Social Entrepreneurship Archives

Ann Arbor, February 17, 2017 – The winner of the 2017 Michigan Business Challenge – Impact Track is AIM Tech, a developer of a safe, low-power infant ventilator system for use in the developing world. The Impact Track competition, co-sponsored by the Zell Lurie Institute, the Center for Social Impact, and the Erb Institute, began in December with 61 student social entrepreneurs. Ten semi-finalists competed on January 20 for the four finalist spots in this day’s competition.

Finalists included:

AIM Tech – Stephen John (MD ’19) and Aaron Steiner (MBA ’17)
AIM Tech has a desire to improve health care options for under-served groups on a global scale through the development of safe, user-friendly, low power, and affordable equipment.
Find Your Ditto – Parisa Soraya (MHI ’17)
Find Your Ditto is a mobile application that connects individuals living with chronic illness locally to on-demand, in-person support.
Aaron Steiner (MBA ’17) and Stephen John (MD ’19) of the team AIM Tech are the winners of the 2017 Impact Track of the Michigan Business Challenge.
Kladder LLC – Jaymon Ballew (JD/MBA ’18)
Kladder is an online and mobile application that connects diverse professionals and offers unique industry insights based upon the experiences of these individuals.
Sage & Grace – Holly Price (MBA ’17)
Sage & Grace is a website and concierge service that educates and empowers grieving families to better, and more affordably, navigate the complications and stress of the American funeral planning process.

(Click on the links above to see interviews with each of the teams.)

AIM Tech received $15,000 for first place, Sage & Grace received $7,500 for second place, Find Your Ditto received $2,500 for third place, and Kladder received $1,000 for fourth place.

The expert judging panel for the finals was comprised of:

Michael Finney – Community Ventures Resources
Chris Uhl – Rock Ventures
Lauren Bigelow – Growth Capital Network

The Michigan Business Challenge is a campus-wide, multi-round business plan competition, of which the Impact Track is a subset focused on entrepreneurial student ventures focused on social and/or environmental impact. Of the 110 teams that began the competition last December, 61 identified as social enterprises. The competition is open to all students of the University of Michigan, and multidisciplinary teams are encouraged. The at-large Michigan Business Challenge is sponsored by the Zell Lurie Institute, and the Impact Track is additionally co-sponsored by Zell Lurie, Business+Impact, and the Erb Institute.

January 23, 2017December 21, 2018

Four Impact Track Teams Advance to the Finals of the Michigan Business Challenge

January 23, 2017 – Ann Arbor – Business+Impact wants to thank all the teams and judges involved in Round Two of this year’s Michigan Business Challenge – Impact Track! The competition has been very successful thus far, and the ten teams from Round Two of the Impact Track had impressive presentations. The Impact Track had a panel of three judges – Anika Goss-Foster of Detroit Future City, Cat Johnson of The Empowerment Plan, and Aaron Seybert of the Kresge Foundation. In addition to the 4 Impact Track teams moving on, 8 other teams will compete in the main track.

**Kladder presents its social platform for diverse professionals during Round Two of the Michigan Business Challenge – Impact Track**.

The Impact Track finals will take place on February 17, 2017 from 12:30 – 3 pm at the Ross School of Business. The following teams will participate there (Click on each name to find a summary of key information on them):

AIM Tech – Stephen John (MD ’19)
AIM Tech has a desire to improve health care options for underserved groups on a global scale through the development of safe, user-friendly, low power, and affordable equipment.

Find Your Ditto – Parisa Soraya (MHI’17)
Find Your Ditto is a mobile application that connects individuals living with chronic illness locally to on-demand, in-person support.

***Parisa Soraya of Find Your Ditto presents her idea for generating peer support for those suffering with chronic illness.***

Kladder LLC – Jaymon Ballew (JD/MBA ’18)
Kladder is an online and mobile application that connects diverse professionals and offers unique industry insights based upon the experiences of these individuals.

Sage & Grace – Holly Price (MBA ’17)
Sage & Grace is a website and concierge service that educates and empowers grieving families to better, and more affordably, navigate the complications and stress of the American funeral planning process.

The Michigan Business Challenge is a campus-wide, multi-round business plan competition where the winning team has the opportunity to win $26,000, gain feedback from judges and expand their business network. The competition is open to all students of the University of Michigan, and multidisciplinary teams are encouraged. The at-large Michigan Business Challenge is sponsored by the Zell Lurie Institute, and the Impact Track is co-sponsored by Zell Lurie, Business+Impact, and the Erb Institute.

January 4, 2017December 20, 2018

Center for Social Impact and UM-Flint to Collaborate on Flint Challenge

2017 Social Impact Challenge to Address Economic Development in Flint

ANN ARBOR, MI – JAN. 4, 2017 — The sixth annual Social Impact Challenge will take place in Flint, MI and is presented as a partnership between the Ross School of Business’ Center for Social Impact in Ann Arbor and UM-Flint’s Office of University Outreach. As Flint looks toward a post-water-crisis future, the 2017 Social Impact Challenge will look at how to advance entrepreneurship efforts in Flint to revive neighborhood centers and city corridors for economic development.

Business+Impact has hosted previous challenges in Detroit, partnering with civic, community and nonprofit organizations to tackle pressing strategic issues in the urban environment. In 2016, students tackled strategic and operational questions to help launch Detroit PAL‘s Kids At the Corner Campaign in partnership with the Old Tiger Stadium Conservancy, which involved the redevelopment of the historic field.

In 2017, in addition to the partnership between the two University of Michigan campuses, teams will be working with community partners the City of Flint, the Flint & Genesee Chamber of Commerce and Skypoint Ventures—a venture capital and real estate company with strong social impact ties.

“It exciting to move the challenge to Flint this year, where so much is going on, but where there is also so much potential,” says Glenn Bugala, Marketing Manager for Business+Impact.

Paula Nas, Interim Director of University Outreach at UM-Flint says, “The opportunity to partner with the Ann Arbor campus on meaningful social change in our city is very exciting. We look forward to having ongoing dialogue between the campuses on Flint’s future.”

Student teams will be presented with a case statement and will work together to find solutions that will be implemented on the ground in Flint through the partner organizations. In addition to being able to create interdisciplinary teams, this year students will be able to create teams from students at both campuses. The winning team will receive $2,500 and the opportunity to put their plan into practice during the coming months.

There are a number of events between January and March. Students will meet with UM-Flint Outreach in Flint on January 18^th and in Ann Arbor on January 24^th to kick-off this exciting event. On Friday, January 27, all participants will have a site visit in Flint with key stakeholders and U-M. Students must register their teams for the Challenge by Tuesday, February 7^th. On Wednesday, March 15^th in Flint, the final pitches and the winning team will be presented. There will also be special speakers and events surrounding the Challenge on that day.

For further information on this event, check with Business+Impact online at https://businessimpact.umich.edu or with UM-Flint Outreach at http://www.umflint.edu/outreach. Ongoing updates throughout the challenge will be available on Twitter with the hashtag #MSIC17.

About Business+Impact: Business+Impact provides students support and opportunities to design a pathway to become social impact leaders. Students in the Center’s programs collaborate with mission-driven organizations across sectors to develop innovative solutions to pressing social challenges.

About UM-Flint’s Office of University Outreach: University Outreach connects campus and community to support learning, collaboration and partnerships. The office is guided by justice and fairness, healthy relationships, community building, economic vitality, and service.