Officials and participants during the competition.
Doha: As part of the efforts by Qatar University’s (QU) College of Business and Economics (CBE) to support entrepreneurship and innovation activities and give students firsthand experience, the College organised a competition for the best entrepreneurial project entitled ‘Entrepreneurs and Cash Catch’ as part of the Entrepreneurship and Small/Medium Business Management course in the Fall 2022 semester. The college held the event in cooperation with QU’s Center for Entrepreneurship & Organizational Excellence.
Students were required to present a creative poster summarising a business plan for a new entrepreneurial project, which is then shown to investors, business incubators and entrepreneurs in Qatar with the aim of seeking financial support for their projects.
Winning students were judged for their presentation which had to encompass the name of the project, identify a problem, provide a solution, target market, technology (if applicable), competition, marketing and sales, the team, financial forecasting, current status of the project (sold, or startup) and finally the student must clarify the sources of funding required.
Poster presentations were followed by a panel discussion entitled ‘Financing Opportunities for Entrepreneurial Projects in Qatar,’ moderated by Dr. Sarah Al Maadeed, Assistant Professor of Management at QU.
Dean of the College of Business and Economics, Dr. Rana Sobh noted that the CBE is concerned with supporting entrepreneurs and innovators through its academic programmes and activities. This year, the college began to offer minors in entrepreneurship and innovation to all QU students from various disciplines, which contributes to developing students’ entrepreneurial knowledge and capabilities.
Dr. Rana stressed that the competition links academics with on ground experience, allowing students to contribute in providing new services and products to society. It also supports competition among students and allows them to interact with business leaders, creating a link between the college and the community. The competition also helps support the development of a culture of entrepreneurship and innovation among QU students, helping to widen their horizons and encouraging the upheaval of a new generation of entrepreneurs that contribute to achieving sustainable economic development, one of the main pillars of the Qatar National Vision 2030.
Director of the Center for Entrepreneurship & Organizational Excellence, Dr. Said Elbanna stressed that the competition allowed students to present their entrepreneurial projects to investors, business incubators, supporting financing institutions and experts.
Dr. Mohammed Elgammal, Section Head of Case Study and Community Engagement at the Center for Entrepreneurship & Organizational Excellence said speakers at the event, including Rashid Al Mansoori, CEO of Aamal Company; Dr. Hashim Al-Sayed, Chairman of the Qatar Association of Certified Public Accountants; Mahmoud Abdullah, Head of SME at Qatar International Islamic Bank; Omar Sharif from Eden Solutions; Abdulla Al-Mansoori, Director of the Qatar Career Development Center; and Suleiman Al Haidar, Director of Startups at the Qatar Stock Exchange, made the event memorable.
The winning projects were Makani, Wakala, Al Amal, Mealzz, LifeSmart and Tourdom.
