The University of Wyoming College of Business has selected a group of judges for the 2020 John P. Ellbogen $50K Entrepreneurship Competition, scheduled for May 8-9.
“We have chosen a panel of five extraordinarily accomplished judges to serve during this year’s competition,” says Patrick Kreiser, the Rile Endowed Chair of Entrepreneurship and Leadership at UW. “The panelists represent a variety of diverse backgrounds as well as experience types, and they will be able to ask excellent questions about each of our teams’ business concepts. Importantly, these judges are all extremely dedicated to the university and state, and they will serve as an invaluable asset in helping these teams develop sustainable business models to support the Wyoming economy.”
According to a statement from the University of Wyoming, the judges have volunteered their time and expertise to evaluate student business plans, each vying for a share of $50,000 in prize money.
The judges are:
- Susan Barlow is the co-founder and managing partner of Blue Moon Capital Partners LP, where she is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the business, product development and capital formation. Blue Moon is an investment management platform focused exclusively on senior housing. Barlow began her college education at UW but graduated with a degree in business from the University of Denver. Barlow is based in Boston and Newport Beach, Calif.
- Waldon Fenster, a serial business builder, is a small-business expert and corporate consultant with expertise in facilitating brand growth for businesses and startups. As founder and president of Venture Studio, Fenster has worked with hundreds of companies and brands to expand their business models and amplify their portfolios for immediate financial benefit. He holds degrees in business marketing and management from UW. Fenster lives in Downers Grove, Ill.
- Spencer Garland attended UW and obtained his B.S. and M.S. in mechanical engineering in 2011 and 2012, respectively. In 2011, he became a board member of the John P. Ellbogen Foundation and is the current vice president. Garland started his career with Basin Electric Power Cooperative at the Laramie River Power Station in Wheatland as a mechanical engineer. He currently works at Tri-State Generation and Transmission Inc. at Craig Station, specializing as a turbine engineer. He lives in Steamboat Springs, Colo.
- Stephen Hanlon is a high-technology executive experienced in product development, operations and senior management in the medical device sector. He serves as the director of the Health and Bioscience Innovation Hub at UW. Hanlon is a 1975 electrical engineering graduate of UW; has a master’s degree in electrical engineering from Arizona State University; and received an MBA from the University of Colorado. He lives in Cheyenne.
- Shane Siegfried is a business performance coach/consultant and founder of Singularis Leadership, a small firm that provides strategic leadership consulting, from business management and sales strategy development to overall business performance efficiencies. Siegfried is a 1994 UW College of Business marketing and management graduate. He lives in Fort Collins, Colo.
The annual John P. Ellbogen $50K Entrepreneurship Competition seeks to encourage students to act on talents, ideas and energy to produce leading businesses.
In response to the novel coronavirus COVID-19 situation, the competition has been modified to be a completely virtual public event, hosted by the UW College of Business via Zoom.
The public is invited to participate in the 20th annual entrepreneurship competition, Moderated by Leadership Wyoming Executive Director Mandy Fabel, it will feature eight student teams competing for $50,000 in seed money to pursue their businesses.
Each team will compete in Round 1 Friday, May 8, beginning at 9 a.m. Round 1 will consist of a 10- to 12-minute presentation and 10-12 minutes of interactive discussion between judging panelists and each team.
The top four teams from day one will advance to the Round 2 presentations Saturday, May 9, beginning at 12:20 p.m., when they will have 25-minute interactive discussions with judges who will play the role of potential customers of each business. The four teams advancing to Round 2 will be announced at 4:30 p.m. Friday, and the final winner(s) and award amounts will be announced at 4:30 p.m. Saturday.
“This event is a great opportunity for our students to showcase their entrepreneurial skill sets while simultaneously learning from our extraordinary panel of successful judges,” says Patrick Kreiser, the Rile Chair of Entrepreneurship and Leadership in the College of Business. “Entrepreneurs thrive in times of uncertainty, and the relentlessness of our teams in adjusting and pivoting their business concepts amid the COVID crisis has been inspirational. Positive change comes from educating the citizens of Wyoming and helping students to cultivate an entrepreneurial mindset.”
The winner of the first competition in 2001 was Rocky Mountaineering Inc., with team members Marvin Perry (M.S. ’01, mechanical engineering); Joe Pawlicki (MBA ’01 and B.S. ’97, finance); and Lacey (Songer) Mercil (MBA ’01 and B.S. ’98, agriculture). Their business idea focused on manufacturing rock-climbing and mountaineering products in Laramie.
“The Ellbogen $50K Entrepreneurship Competition is exactly what is needed at this critical time for our state as we look to diversify Wyoming’s economy, and the College of Business is proud to support these efforts,” College of Business Dean Dave Sprott says. “I can think of nothing better than to provide students the opportunity to take their business ideas to the next level.”
Notable companies that have launched successful businesses after competing in the UW entrepreneurship competition are Table Mountain Vineyards, 2004; Bright Agrotech, 2011; GlycoBac LLC, 2011; and Valued Energy Platform, now Disa LLC, 2017.
“The diversity in business types exhibited by this year’s eight finalists is outstanding,” Kreiser says. “These new businesses are built upon well-researched ideas that offer innovative business models and customer markets to the Wyoming economy, while also creating new jobs. As I always tell our students, anything in life is possible with a positive attitude and a lot of hard work. The Ellbogen $50K Entrepreneurship Competition is one of the finest venues that we have at the University of Wyoming for students to learn how to turn their dreams into reality.”
To register for the free event, go to www.uwyo.edu/business/entrepreneurship/.
