Global Social Venture Competition

Official Rules and Guidelines

Official Rules

I. Competition Rules

The GSVC awards prizes to the business plans that show the highest, most integrated financial and social returns (i.e. blended value), as well as an award for Social Impact Assessment (SIA).

II. General Rules

1. To qualify for the Competition, a proposed venture must:

• Plan to be financially sustainable or profitable; whether it is a commercial business or a tax-exempt organization, it must be self-sufficient on its earned revenue.
• Be scalable. This criterion will be unique for each business plan. Scalability will take into account the potential for growth of the business (and how well both the financial and social goals can be scaled). 
• Have a quantifiable social and/or environmental bottom line incorporated into its mission and practices. 

2. Each entrant team must include a graduate business student from any business school in the world or an individual who has graduated from a graduate business program within the past two years (from the date that the plan is first submitted). The graduate business student must be actively involved in the venture (i.e., actively participating in development of the business plan and presentation or actively working on the business).

• The business plan must include a statement describing the graduate business student's level of involvement.
• If the plan advances to the final round of judging, the business student must be one of the plan's presenters (and must be available to answer judges' questions regarding the business). 

Teams are strongly encouraged to include seasoned entrepreneurs and professionals with relevant skills and experience.

3. The proposed venture must not have been in operation for more than 3 years, with the start of the venture marked by first income or first patent, which ever occurred earlier.

4. The proposed venture may not be a wholly owned subsidiary of an existing entity (of either a for-profit or non-profit entity). A business plan cannot enter the competition in more than two consecutive years. A team cannot enter the competition more than twice. Whether or not a team re-entering is considered the “same team” as before is determined at the discretion of the GSVC organizers, but is mainly based on business plan itself, with lesser emphasis on the team members and the team name.

5. The business plan must include a financial analysis as well as a Social Impact Assessment (SIA) which includes the following three items:

• DEFINE: Definition of the Social Value Proposition 
• QUANTIFY: Listing of the top three Social Indicators
• MONETIZE: Social Return on Investment (SROI) analysis. Additional SIA support can be found in our SIA Resource Section.

6. To request a mentor, executive summaries must be received by the stated deadline.

7. The plan must include a statement on what the team would do with the prize distribution. All plans in the final round must be written in English.

Submission Guidelines

Executive Summary Round
The following documents should be submitted as electronic versions:

• Executive Summary, not to exceed 5 pages (typed and double-spaced, 12 pt font, and 1-inch margins on all sides) of text, charts, and diagrams. Executive Summary PDFs should be titled using the following convention: TeamName_GSVCExecSum_ExecSummary.pdf
• One team resume booklet, wherein each individual’s resume should not exceed 2 pages in length. Resume booklet PDFs should be titled using the following convention: TeamName_GSVCExecSum_ResumeBooklet.pdf

Full Business Plan Rounds
The following documents should be submitted to your respective Regional Semi-Final Round: 

1. Business Plan   

• Business Plan must be limited to 25 pages in pdf format (typed and double-spaced, #12 Times New Roman font, and 1-1-1-1 inch margins, page size: 8 1/2 x 11 inches) exclusive of text, charts, and diagrams. Appendices are limited to 5 pages, which may include detailed spreadsheets and other appropriate appendices. Total plan length should be no more than 30 pages (a cover page, if included, will not be counted towards the 30 pages).
• Within the financing section of the business plan, entrants must include an explanation of the offering to investors which indicates how much money is required, how it will be used, and how a deal might be structured, i.e., stock, debentures, etc. The team is not required to reveal its desired deal, although the judges may ask questions about it. Also, delineate the possible exit strategies. Detailed financial data should be displayed in spreadsheet form as an appendix. Financial data should include a cash flow statement, income statement, and balance sheet.
• Business plan PDFs should be titled using the following convention: TeamName_GSVCSemifinals_BPlan.pdf
• Your business plan will be judged not on the length of your submission, but on the overall quality, analysis and presentation of your business opportunity.

2. Team Resume Booklet

• One team resume booklet in pdf format, wherein each individual’s resume should not exceed 2 pages in length.
• Resume booklet PDFs should be titled using the following convention: TeamName_GSVCSemifinals_ResumeBooklet.pdf
• Please note that even if your team resume booklet has not changed from the one that was submitted for the executive summary round , we are asking you to rename the file and resubmit one for the semi-finals round.

3. Pitch Video (optional)

• We highly encourage you to provide a 3 minute pitch video of your business opportunity – the details and format of the video are left to your discretion and should best represent the strengths of your idea and team.
• To share your video link, please complete the form in the Submission Forms box at the top of the page and upload to YouNoodle.
• Pitch video link documents should be titled using the following convention: TeamName_GSVCSemifinals_PitchVideoLink.doc
• Please note that you are not to add the video link to the application field that was provided in the executive summary round application.

The formatting guidelines above will be strictly enforced; if your team does not adhere to them, your entry will be disqualified.

Presentation Guidelines for the Global Finals

• During the Finals, each team will be given 15 minutes to present its business plan followed by a 10-minute question and answer session between the presenting team and the judges. THESE TIME LIMITS WILL BE STRICTLY ENFORCED.
• Only two members of the team may present. The graduate business/management student must be one of the two presenters during the formal presentation of the plan.
• Equipment needs: the presentation room will be set up with a LCD projector and screen and microphone. Any additional requirements must be coordinated with the school hosting the final (Haas School of Business at UC-Berkeley) three weeks in advance.

Confidentiality and Intellectual Property Guidelines

• The authors of the business plan will retain all rights to the plan regarding its use at all times prior to and following the competition except as stated below. Due to the nature of the competition, we will not ask judges, reviewers, staff or the audience to agree to or sign non-disclosure statements for any participant.
• All public sessions of the competition, including but not limited to oral presentations and question/answer sessions, are open to the public at large. Any and all of these public sessions may be broadcast to interested persons through media which may include radio, television and the Internet. Any data or information discussed or divulged in public sessions by entrants should be considered information that will likely enter the public realm, and entrants should not assume any right of confidentiality in any data or information discussed, divulged or presented in these sessions.
• The partner schools of the Global Social Venture Competition and the organizers of the GSVC Competition may make photocopies, photographs, videotapes and/or audiotapes of the presentations including the business plan and other documents, charts or material prepared for use in presentation at the GSVC Competition. Students retain all proprietary rights. GSVC may use the materials in any book or other printed materials and any videotape or other medium that it may produce, provided that any profits earned from the sale of such items is used by GSVC to defray the costs of future Competitions. The partners have non-exclusive world rights in all languages, and in all media, to use or to publish the materials in any book, other printed materials, videotapes or other medium.