ALDAG Student Competition

The 2024 Edward K. Aldag Jr. Student
Business Plan Competition

Competition Overview

 

Aldag Coaching Hours

Coaching hours will be added soon.

Register + Draft PowerPoint Presentation Due March 24th

Instructions for Submitting PowerPoint

  • (Pages 2 – 5)
Dr. Welbourne will be reviewing each draft presentation and giving feedback to use for the final presentation.
The Draft PowerPoint submission confirms your plan to compete and is a mandatory requirement for moving forward. Note that the “submitting PowerPoint” instructions include information on how to upload your video; that is due at a later date.
 
NEW THIS YEAR:  After you register, you will receive instructions that allow you to use a custom AI tool to review your PowerPoint that will provide you with feedback. You will receive details on how to improve the document overall, and you will receive scores based on our judge sheets.  You can run your PowerPoint through the tool as many times are you want.  The custom AI engine uses 3 different AI tools and bases the recommendations on the convergence of output from the different analyses. 

Submit You Finalized PowerPoint Presentation + YouTube Video

April 3rd @ 11:59pm CST

Review the following documents for full requirements:

Aldag Competition Opening Round

VIRTUAL – April 8th from 12:30 – 5pm

Round 1: All teams participate in live Q&A with 15 minutes of judge questions via Accelevents

Judges will decide which teams advance to Round Two.

*Note, teams not advancing to Round Two are still eligible to win certain other prizes.

Aldag Competition Final Round

IN-PERSON – April 10th from 8am – 7pm

Round 2: Competition groups will take place simultaneously. Round Two competitors will be given a 25-minute slot and have up to 10-minutes for a live presentation,  and up to another 15-minutes for live Q&A . Judges will then have 5 minutes to take notes before the next team begins. Based on judge deliberations, there could be multiple prize winners within each group.

Winners Announced

April 10th

Note: Teams are encouraged to meet with judges/coaches after the competition for feedback. These interactions can be scheduled through the mentorship module within each StartupWind group.

  • Instructions for Submitting PowerPoint
  • (Pages 2 – 5)
  • Dr. Welbourne will be reviewing each draft presentation and giving feedback to use for the final presentation. Expect feedback around March 19th.
  • The Draft PowerPoint submission confirms you plan to compete and is a mandatory requirement.
  • If you are in need of an extension on your PowerPoint, please contact Jenni Miesse Whinery at jmiesse@ua.edu or call 205-348-3345.
  • Please register first!
  • March 21, 5 – 7 p.m. at The EDGE | General Workshop
  • March 27, 5 – 7 p.m. at The EDGE | Financial Workshop
  • Register
  • Register
  • Schedule an appointment via  Dr. Theresa Welbourn’s Calendly Link
  • Schedule an appointment via  Earl Evens’ Calendly Link
  • Schedule an appointment via  Leverett Powell’s Calendly Link
  • Round 1: All teams participate in live Q&A with 15 minutes of judge questions via Zoom.
  • Judges will decide which teams advance to Round Two.
  • *Note, teams not advancing to Round Two are still eligible to win certain other prizes.
  • Round 2: Competition groups will take place simultaneously. Round Two competitors will be given a 25-minute slot and have up to 10-minutes for a live presentation,  and up to another 15-minutes for live Q&A . Judges will then have 5 minutes to take notes before the next team begins. Based on judge deliberations, there could be multiple prize winners within each group.
  • Teams are encouraged to meet with judges/coaches after the competition for feedback. These interactions can be scheduled through the mentorship module within each StartupWind group.
  • All 2023 Aldag competitors will receive a gift. Winners will be asked to sign the paperwork, pick up their trophies, and take celebratory photos.
View the 2023 Winners

What's At Stake

Grand Prize

$50,000

First Prize

$5,000

Second Prize

$3,000

Third Prize

$2,000

Established Concept Prize(s)

Prize 1: $5,000
Prize 2: $3,000
Prize 3: $2,000

New Business Idea
Prize One

Prize 1: $2,500
Prize 2: $1,500
Prize 3: $1,000

New Business Idea
Prize Two

Prize 1: $2,500
Prize 2: $1,500
Prize 3: $1,000

Best Teamwork

$500

Best New Idea

$500

Crowd Favorite

$500

Social Entrepreneurship

$500

Alabama Power Foundation Innovation Technology Awards

This year a series of special awards are made possible by the Alabama Power Foundation. The Alabama Power Foundation Innovative Technology Awards for students offer three cash prizes totaling $10,000 ($5,000 first prize, $3,000 second prize, and $2,000 third prize) for the most groundbreaking technology-focused idea.

First Prize

$5,000

Second Prize

$3,000

Third Prize

$2,000

Pittsburgh Regional Health Initiative NEW Patient Safety Tech Award

The Patient Safety Tech Award of $5,000 sponsored by Pittsburgh Regional Health Initiative challenges students to develop ideas for a technology-enabled solution to address a leading patient safety problem anywhere along the continuum of care with a focus on one or more of the following five problem categories: medications, procedural/surgical, patient care, infections, and diagnostic safety.

Additional awards for all winners

Co-working Space

One year of free co-working space at The EDGE

Free Consulting

Business, accounting, and law partners’ consulting

Entrepreneurship Academy

Ability to apply to the Summer 2024 Crimson Entrepreneurship Academy

Questions?

If you are interested in helping out as a coach, judge, or sponsor please complete this brief form and someone from our team will get back to you.

JENNI MIESSE

MARKETING MANAGER

jmiesse@culverhouse.ua.edu
(205) 348-3345
The EDGE

THERESA M. WELBOURNE, PHD

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF AEI
WILL AND MAGGIE BROOKE PROFESSOR IN ENTREPRENEURSHIP

twelbourne@culverhouse.ua.edu
(205) 348-3343
The EDGE