IMD invests in future entrepreneurs

IMD continues to expand its support in the Swiss startup ecosystem. In addition to its IMD startup competition, which brings together startup founders with experts enrolled in the IMD MBA program, the institute is now offering funds to foster entrepreneurship.

The IMD grant includes financial support of 100,000 Swiss francs and mentorship from Thierry Maupilé, Jim Pulcrano, and Benoit Leleux, the Stephan Schmidheiny Professor for Entrepreneurship and Finance, for 12 months. The support will enable MBA candidates to grow their business idea that will benefit society.

“The last thing that you want to do as an entrepreneur is to worry about money,” said Thierry Maupilé, who is currently the Chief of Business & Product Strategy at the new Japanese venture company Rakuten Symphony.

Members of each year’s current MBA class are eligible for the venture award. Candidates may apply individually or as part of a team, and at least one of the venture’s founders must be an IMD MBA candidate. The submitted proposal should outline the venture’s value proposition, target market, competition and assets and competencies the business will need to acquire or build. Moreover, the candidate should highlight their ambition and how they intend to use the funds. Proposed ventures can be existing startups – as long as they are less than two years old – or completely new ideas. The winner must commit to their venture full-time for at least 12 months, starting 1 January of the following year.

From this year’s MBA class, 11 candidates have submitted their intent to apply with nine projects. Registration is open until mid-July, and this winning candidate will be announced on 2 September during the MBA trip to Silicon Valley.