Struggle for Investment: Experts Evaluated International Business Projects of Students

19:00, May 30, 2018

On May 17, 2018, students of the programme International Economics and Business presented international business projects to potential investors

Business projects were developed by students’ teams during the semester in the framework of the course International Business Planning. The main objective was to identify the business idea via doing international marketing research and prove its viability and investment attractiveness.

For an objective assessment of student projects, the jury included representatives of the business community of Ekaterinburg, who have extensive experience in investment and implementation of business projects. Experts and potential investors into student ideas were Denis Sergeev, Founder and Partner in TitanSoft and Web2Win, and Ilya Pachkay, Head of Residents Engagement Division in Development Corporation of Middle Ural.

Denis Sergeev explained to the students by an example of a student’s presentation how to attract an investor and what is the most important in a business model presentation, as well as how not to behave when working with investors.

«Be flexible! It is important to see and adopt alternative, more effective development scenarios in the implementation of business projects that can differ significantly from an original business model» — recommended Denis Sergeev.

Ilya Pachkay gave valuable advice to the teams on the possibilities of market research and statistical sources, and told about important aspects of a product description that is expected to be introduced to the market.

«You did a great job that is very important for your future career and development of managerial competences», — said the expert.

The students described their new experience as follows:

«We thought that we know everything about our projects and worked out all the aspects of their implementation. But in the end, we realized how much more has to be done to turn these ideas into efficient business models. It is important that we were able to get feedback from the experts and understand their vision and requirements».

The teacher of the course International Business Planning Ekaterina Demchenko stressed the importance of assessing students' projects by business practices, as it allows to increase the level of professional competencies development for students, as well as help adjust the course content in accordance with the real requirements of employers.

We are grateful to Denis Sergeev and Ilya Pachkay for their time and contribution to the formation of professionals in international business and hope to continue cooperation.