Teen entrepreneurs to invade Massey University
The students will be mentored by volunteers from leading companies including Air New Zealand, Fujitsu, Microsoft and Xero.
Enterprise in Action (EIA) is an annual event run by Young Enterprise Trust. EIA is only open to students taking part in Young Enterprise’s flagship programme, The Lion Foundation Young Enterprise Scheme.
“All of the 80 students that are here this weekend are already running their own small business via The Lion Foundation Young Enterprise Scheme,” says Young Enterprise CEO Terry Shubkin. “Enterprise in Action challenges our students to look at global issues and provide big picture solutions.”
Two challenges will be issued to the students over the weekend. The Massey Innovators Challenge will be launched at 9am on Saturday 2 July. Teams will have 10 hours to answer the challenge and prepare a 5-minute pitch. Each student team will pitch from 7-8pm on Saturday night, with the winner announced at 8.30pm.
“Massey University is very proud to sponsor Enterprise in Action,” says Dr Jeff Stangl, executive director at the Massey Business School. “This event focuses on innovation and creativity – something Massey thinks is critical to the success of New Zealand.
“We’re delighted to host the students for the weekend and we can’t wait to see what creative solutions they bring to the challenges we throw at them.”
The second challenge is the New Zealand Trade and Enterprise Challenge, which will be issued at 8pm on Saturday 2 July. Teams have 20 hours to answer this challenge, and will pitch to the judging panel from 4.30-5.30pm on Sunday 3 July. The winner will be announced at 6.30pm.
“New Zealand Trade and Enterprise’s role is to connect our leading businesses with the world,” says David Downs, General Manager, NZTE. “We know that our young entrepreneurs have huge opportunities to create global businesses, and we’re behind them every step of the way. This is a great opportunity for us to see just what our next generation of business leaders are made of.”
At the end of the weekend, five students will win an all-expenses paid trip to a global business destination. The location will be announced at the opening ceremony of Enterprise in Action by Hon. Sam Lotu-Iiga.