• Wednesday 22April
• 5.30pm-7.30pm
• Showroom Café

Come and hear from past Enterprise Challenge finalists!

This will be your chance to ask them your questions on what starting up in business is like, how the competition helped them and to find out what they have achieved since they entered the competition and won a prize!

Find a mentor!

The evening is also a chance to come and network with local business people who would like to offer mentoring support to those who have entered the competition or those who would like some additional support. Although the Enterprise Team at Sheffield Hallam University can arrange 1:1 specialist advice for those interested in being self-employed, these are in structured weekly or monthly appointments. The benefits of a mentor are:

• It is the chance to talk over your ideas with someone else (although the Research and Innovation Office offers 1:1 specialist advice these are on a weekly or monthly booked appointment basis. A mentor can offer additional support, as listed below, at other times)
• It is likely to be someone who has had similar experiences and problems to you
• They are likely to have additional contacts that they can put you in touch with
• They will be able to give you advice on specific areas of self-employment and business
• It builds up your professional skills. You will need to arrange the meetings and liaise with the mentor in a professional manner
• The mentor has volunteered their time, they want to help you!

1 free drink will be available on arrival and a light buffet will be available throughout the evening

The speakers at this years event include:

Belinda Noda and Paul Stanton – 2014 winner of Enterprise Challenge, winner of the Audience Vote at the Enterprise Awards Dinner and winner of the Best Manufacturable Product prize

Matt Parks – Winner of the second prize in Enterprise Challenge 2014 and Audience Vote runner up http://www.1plus2travel.com/

Liz Poxon and Claire Turner – Winners of third place in Enterprise Challenge 2013  https://landlordlettingnetwork.co.uk/

Enterprise Challenge is Sheffield Hallam University’s annual business start up competition.

From 13th February to 9th March we received 72 entries for Enterprise Challenge. Through different stages of the competition there is both 1:1 training and workshops to give all those that enter the chance to win a first prize of £5000, a second prize of £1000 and a third prize of £500. There is also a new prize this year of £2000 for the best Manufacturable Product and £2000 for the best Social Enterprise www.shu.ac.uk/enterprisechallenge

To find out more about the support available from the Enterprise Team for those interested in becoming self-employed visit our website http://www.shu.ac.uk/employability/self-employed/