Realise a great idea

JCI Malta, an affiliate to Junior Chamber International, is giving young potential entrepreneurs the opportunity to transform their business ideas into concrete business plans.

The seventh Best Business Plan Competition, supported by HSBC and KPMG, will provide participants with a platform which will include training sessions on how to structure a business plan, consultancy on the main sections of a business plan, and the possibility of financing by potential investors who are seeking to invest capital in seed, growth and expansion of business plans.

Last year's JCI Best Business Plan Competition helped participants make their business plan become a reality. For instance, Fonicom, a startup company primarily focused on creating innovative software platforms and services to meet the complex needs of telecom carriers, is currently in its first phase of operations.

The company's research and development department is set up in Pondicherry, India, and in Malta, where all administrative, technical planning, sales, marketing and finance related tasks are handled locally .

After over a year of research and development, having secured capital investment through the JCI Best Business Plan programme, Fonicom is an example of how JCI's Best Business Plan Competition can help young and dynamic entrepreneurs realise their business goals.

In this edition, JCI will also be presenting the business plans, recommended by the panel of judges, to potential investors who are seeking to invest capital in such ideas. This will increase the prospect for the 2008 participants to make their business ideas a reality.

The competition also offers a series of training sessions to all participants. This will give a better understanding on the requisites to formulate a business plan. The training sessions deal with defining the objectives and fundamentals of writing a business plan; developing business analysis and strategy; defining the product, operations, sales and marketing; creating the business plan financials; and presenting the business plan.

All participants can make use of professional consultancy which will be available as part of the BBP competition. This service will give participants a competitive advantage in formulating better their business plan.

The winning business plan will win a grand cash prize of €2,500 while the first runner-up will be awarded a cash prize of €600. The winning business plan will automatically participate in 2009 JCI International Best Business Plan Competition held during the JCI World Congress with the chance of winning a further $5,000.

The JCI Malta Best Business Plan Competition is open to all Maltese aged between 18 and 39. Participants must submit a business proposal with an application form, by March 31 at 4 p.m. The application fee is €85 per participant or team.

For further information consult the information pack available at www.jci.org.mt or e-mail bbp@jci.org.mt. You can also contact the Project Team on 9989 7036.