Malic Dekkar, a doctoral student in Modeling & Simulation,��came in second place and won $1,000 for developing Light Cloud which provides subscribers with a cloud-based 3D repository database of dense, millimeter accurate 3D data. Student James Davis won $750 and third place for At Your Side Laboratory Services, which provides onsite clinical laboratory testing with immediate results. The other five semi-finalists included: Adventure Fix (James Ceparano/Travis Sherman); Automated Cytometry Solutions (Antoniay Petkova); Chore Credit (Justin Castillo); KIDDS (Todd Stephenson) and Legleze (Terry Warren).

Judges for the event included: Biff Godfrey, local attorney; Jan Conrad, the 2012 recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor for the Success in Entrepreneurship program; Adora English, award-winning television executive; Carol Ann Dykes, site manager, UCF Business Incubator; Kai Isaac and Eddie Bradley, the founders of Filmscape Productions; Isabel Perry, president of TheSafetyDoctor.com; Michael Judith, engineer; Ron Ben Zeev, international economist and business expert; and Robin Phelps, startup strategist and team leader for UCF’s statewide program for second-stage business growth, GrowFL.

The inaugural event was hosted by the UCF Blackstone Launchpad, an initiative of the Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership, located in the College of Business Administration. Rather than focusing on developing a robust business plan, complete with financials and slick presentations, the business model competition focuses on identifying and precisely defining the assumptions of the new venture, testing those assumptions in the field, and then changing (pivoting) based on the lessons learned. Students must demonstrate how they tested their assumptions rather than gathered data and how they validated their learning rather than merely wrote a business plan.

Visit the to learn more about other upcoming competitions.

Sixteen teams participated in the semi-finals of the 9th Annual Joust Business Plan Competition, but just four of them were selected to compete in the final round in April.

The competition, hosted by the UCF Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (CEI), located in the College of Business Administration, is UCF’s premier celebration of students’ entrepreneurial aspirations, creativity and achievements. The event has grown each year, and has become more competitive.

“Approximately 500 students have been energized and enriched by this event over the years and they have enriched us as well,” said Cameron Ford, director of the CEI.

The final four teams will compete for $25,000 in awards, and include:

ALTR LLC, led by Alexandra Gramatikas, is dedicated to providing easy and affordable alternatives to existing everyday apparel. The company has created a way to “ALTR” your existing blazer, polo, cardigan, or anything else with buttons, by adorning it with an innovative button cover which can transform a plain blazer into a trendy UCF sporting jacket.

Greek Guide, led by Michael Irene, is a mobile application implementing cognitive learning techniques that uses push notification technology. The app enables new fraternity and sorority members to learn the entire history of a fraternity or sorority with ease.

PHIDIAS3D, led by Malic Dekkar, is an emerging construction intelligence company that specializes in providing engineering-grade, millimeter-accurate 3D data of any existing building structure. By leveraging their expertise in algorithm design, they effectively increase construction fidelity and efficiency and cost of ownership while providing permanent accurate 3D records— considerably lowering risk and costs.

PlatForm, led by Tyler Salem, allows businesses to create custom electronic signable forms to be used by the business’ clients. The software can be used by front-end users on tablet computers such as the Apple iPad, Kindle Fire and Samsung Galaxy.

The Joust is sponsored by Steven Felkowitz, ’79, chief executive officer of Atico International. Incoming CBA Dean Paul Jarley served as a judge, along with N. Lois Adams, ’85;��Debbie Balaschak, ’88;��Jim Balaschak, ’86;��Jeff Borysiewicz, ’95;��Mark Brewer;��Howard Brunet, ’75;��Les Eiserman, ’81;��Andy Fore, ’76;��George Gramatikas, ’04;��Rob Hearn, ’00;��Keith Ingersoll, ’01;��Bill Kehoe, ’91;��Mitch Less, ’86; Joe Losch, ���Ի���Rick Parks, ’76.

The finals will be held on April 6 at 2 p.m. in the FAIRWINDS Alumni Center. Visit the CEI website for more information on the Joust.

Hosted by the Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation located in the College of Business Administration, the competition featured 16 entries that presented their business ideas to a panel of six judges.

The King of the Court competition is comprised of two rounds of competition. In both rounds, participants are given 90 seconds to present their business concept and another 90 seconds to address questions raised by the panel of judges. The top four finalists win cash prizes totaling $3000.

Other top entries included:

The following students also participated in the competition:

Judges included:

Please visit the to learn more about the center and the competitions they sponsor throughout the year. The Joust is scheduled for Friday, April 6, 2012.

Nearly 150 aspiring entrepreneurs attended Invention to Venture (I2V), a one-day workshop hosted by the College of Business Administration’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation and the National Collegiate Inventors and Innovators Alliance.

Scott Gerber, founder of the Young Entrepreneur Council and author of the book Never Get a “Real” Job: How to Dump Your Boss, Build a Business and Not Go Broke, was the keynote speaker. Gerber promotes entrepreneurship to students and young professionals interested in starting their own business in support of Startup America Partnership, an initiative from President Barack Obama focused on supporting entrepreneurs. Prior to his presentation, Kirstie Chadwick, managing partner of Growth Innovators, announced the formation of Startup Florida, an offshoot of the national program. KnightLaunch, a new web-based resource for young entrepreneurs at UCF was also introduced at the workshop.

The event, which was held in the �󴡱���±����ٳ���Alumni Center, featured workshops on technology entrepreneurship, legal issues, marketing and sales and financing.

Invention 2 Venture will be held from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the , and includes presentations from outstanding innovation-based experts including Scott Gerber, a serial entrepreneur, syndicated small business columnist, angel investor and author of “Never Get a Real Job.”

Early bird registration prices are in effect until November 11 (students $5; staff/faculty: $10; and community $20). After that date, cost is students $8; faculty/staff: $15; and community: $25. Attendees may register . Breakfast and lunch are included in the cost.

Invention 2 Venture workshops are held in cooperation with the National Collegiate Inventors and Innovators Alliance (NCIIA). This year’s event is a featured event for Startup Florida.

Global Entrepreneurship Week is the world’s largest celebration of the innovators and job creators who launch startups that bring ideas to life, drive economic growth and expand human welfare.

Schaefer is a graduate student pursuing his master’s degree in Hospitality & Tourism Management and Roach is an undergraduate Hospitality Management major.  The duo pitched the concept for Dave’s Market, a tribute to David Schaefer, a Rosen College student who was killed in an automobile accident in October 2010. The mission of the project is to provide a well thought out and profitable restaurant that incorporates David’s passion for cuisine, as well as good times with good friends.

Over 30 teams applied to compete, and Schaefer and Roach successfully made it to the Joust Finals where they went up against three student entrepreneur groups.  Each team had 15 minutes to present their company to the judges, followed by a 10-minute question and answer session, in front of approximately 100 attendees.

Schaefer shares, “It was an unforgettable experience that provided information on the restaurant industry that [Kyle and I] never would have unveiled.”  He hopes that more Rosen College students will participate in next year’s Joust.

Event judges included: Tom Bland, ’75 and ’79;��Steven Felkowitz, ’79;��Paul Gregg, ’74 and ’76;��Ron Pizzuti;��Mark Plaumann, ’74 and ’79, ���Ի���Marilyn Wilson.  The sponsor of the event was Steven Felkowitz, ’79. He is chief executive officer of Atico International and a College of Business Administration Hall of Fame member.

For more about the winning business concepts, please click here.

The senior finance major pitched his company to a panel of five judges. His product helps students prepare for exams more effectively through the use of visual and SMS-based representations of the study material.

Approximately 100 attendees viewed the event which was hosted by the Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, located in the College of Business Administration.

Glenn, along with the three other student entrepreneur groups that made it to the Joust finals, had 15 minutes to present their company to the judges, followed by a 10-minute question and answer session.

Other winners included:

Judges of the event included: Tom Bland, ’75 and ’79;��Steven Felkowitz, ’79;��Paul Gregg, ’74 and ’76;��Ron Pizzuti;��Mark Plaumann, ’74 and ’79, ���Ի���Marilyn Wilson.

The sponsor of the event was Steven Felkowitz, ’79. He is chief executive officer of Atico International and a College of Business Administration Hall of Fame member.

For more information on student competitions or the Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation visit their .

Thirty teams applied; 16 made it to the semi-finals and now just four teams have a chance to win the Joust Business Plan Competition which will be held on Friday, April 15. The event is open to the public.

The tournament is the signature competition of the , which serves as a hub for academic entrepreneurship across UCF’s colleges and programs. “The Joust is UCF’s premier celebration of our students’ entrepreneurial aspirations, creativity and achievements. Approximately 400 students have been energized and enriched by this event over the years, and they have enriched us as well,” said Cameron Ford, founding director of the CEI.

(View a photo gallery of the semifinals on our . You can also .)

The final four teams include:

The final will be held on Friday, April 15 at the  at 1:30 p.m. Prizes include: