Entrepreneur Contest Gets Started

Tulsa World:

Attention all entrepreneurs or entrepreneur hopefuls.

Sponsors of the 2nd Annual Mayor Kathy Taylor’s Tulsa Entrepreneurial Spirit Award once again are looking for award-winning business plans to vie for more than $100,000 in cash, prizes and services.

“We’re looking for unique companies that have the ability to penetrate markets and execute on that vision,” said Sean Griffin, senior partner of Vizalution LLC and a “thought partner” with SpiritBank.

“We really learned from the past participants, particularly those who made it into the semi-final round and into the final, that the coaching was one of the most valuable elements of the process,” he said.

All 12 semi-finalists will be assigned a head coach who will follow them through the entire process. Last year, only finalists received coaching.

Seven finalists will be chosen.

A good portion of the $100,000 in prizes covers the coaching costs, Griffin said, noting that 30 coaches will be used this year, which is double from last year.

The competition also will have a much broader panel of judges that will include investors, and specialists in technology, franchising, education and financing. Information about the judges and their qualifications will be posted on the contest’s Web site. But contestants may not contact any of the judges to gain favoritism or they will be instantly disqualified, Griffin said.

More details about Tulsa’s Entrepreneurial Spirit Award are available here.

Photo by Tulsa Entrepreneurial Spirit Award.

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