Babson's Entrepreneurship Club Launches Contest for Startup Businesses

The Babson Entrepreneurship Club (BEC) is offering a new kind of business contest on a platform created specifically for startups. 

Babson Entrepreneurship Club co-president and Babson MBA 2014 candidate Paul Hammond has been working on Startup Rounds for the past several months, and recognizes that there is no better place to first use the software than at Babson College.

This past Thursday, the Babson Entrepreneurship Club launched Startup Rounds, which is officially open for applications. All Babson undergraduate students, graduate students, and alumni are welcome to apply. Once you’ve applied, you’re able to continuously edit and iterate to improve your profile.

“This is a great way for startups to show off their stuff and gain traction,” Hammond said.

Although the Babson Entrepreneurship Club is limiting this first Startup Rounds contest to Babson startups only, it is not intended to exclude the outside community. In fact, according to Hammond, the contest is intended to do the exact opposite.

“The goal of this contest is to get Babson startups in front of the Boston community. Some startups need to prove their concept, or prove traction, but all startups need something. It may be that they need mentors, more customers, investors, or perhaps just more marketing in general.”

The Babson Entrepreneurship Club Startup Rounds contest will consist of four 7-day rounds. Within each round, startups will demonstrate the strengths of their business idea and network by gaining support to improve their standing on the leader board. When the round clock reaches zero, the round ends, and the startups on top of the leader board will advance. At the end of four rounds, the remaining startups will be invited to pitch at the final event and awards ceremony. The top startups will be rewarded with cash prizes and resources in kind.

The Babson Entrepreneurship Club's mission is to support Babson entrepreneurs, driving innovation, business growth and sustainability.

“The BEC believes that with Startup Rounds Babson entrepreneurs have nothing to lose and everything to gain," Hammond said. "For some, it may be an improved business model and a great way to test the market and gain customers, while for others, it can be a great tool to raise capital or (even better) win a seed round.”