Schulich’s e-Host team heads to national Enterprize competition in Vancouver

A five-member team of undergraduate students from York’s Schulich School of Business will head to Vancouver next month to compete in the 2010 Enterprize Canada Business Plan Competition, one of Canada’s largest student-run entrepreneurship organizations.

Calling themselves the e-Host team, Schulich students Feroz Qayyum, Deepthi Ravula, Kathryn Savoie, Erwin Sirbu and Aized Sethna earned the right to compete in the national competition after finishing third in the Enterprize Central Canada Regional Competition Jan. 16. The top three teams from each region are eligible to compete in the national Enterprize competition. The national semifinals will take place Feb. 5 with the final round on Feb. 6. The e-Host team will compete against students from across Canada.

Left: The Schulich e-Host team is heading to the Enterprize Canada Business Plan Competition. From left to right, Kathryn Savoie, Feroz Qayyum, Aized Sethna, Erwin Sirbu and Deepthi Ravula.

The competition requires each team to come up with a business plan. The e-Host team has created a touch-screen ordering system for sit-down restaurants.

At the competition, the teams will face judging and feedback from some of the nation’s finest business professionals, industry experts and entrepreneurs.

The Enterprize Canada Business Plan Competition is an annual showcase of some of Canada’s brightest young entrepreneurs. More than 90 teams from across Canada entered the 2009 competition. Schulich had three teams competing in the Central Canada Regional Competition. The e-Host team was assisted by Schulich policy Professor Jean Adams.

The goal is to have the best business plan for a proposed company. In this way, Enterprize Canada hopes to foster the entrepreneurial spirit.

Should Schulich win one of the top three spots at the finals, they could walk away with $15,000, $7,000 or $5,000 in cash and professional services.

For more information, visit the Enterprize Canada Web site.