Lam Family College of Business (LFCoB) undergraduate and graduate students with an innovative business idea or a startup are invited to compete in the LFCoB Pitch Contest.
The top three pitches win cash prizes!
This is a great opportunity for LFCoB students to hear feedback about their sustainable innovative business ideas from industry experts and business faculty. Students can apply for the Innovation Pitch Competition with the same idea. We welcome any stage of entrepreneurial ideas from the ideation phase to ready for angels and seed!
- First place: $500, plus automatic acceptance to the SF State Innovation Pitch Competition to be scheduled in 2025.
- Second place: $300
- Third place: $200
Important Dates and Deadlines for 2025:
- Applications Open: Feb 14, 2025
- Applications Close: Feb 28, 2025, 5:00 P.M.
- Acceptance Notification: March 4, 2025
- Pitch Contest Day: March 7, 2025, 3-5 P.M.
Event Location
The Pitch Contest will be held in person in the Innovation HUB (Humanities Building Room 125) from 3:00PM - 5:00PM
Zoom viewing is available by registration HERE.
To Enter the Pitch Contest
- Submit your application and pitch deck HERE.
- Applications will be reviewed, and finalists will be notified through email.
- Selected applicants are invited to present live in front of the judge panel.
- Winners will be announced at the closing ceremony of the LFCoB Pitch Contest.
Read the full terms and conditions for your application.
Entry and Evaluation Criteria
Requirements
One of the cofounders and the presenter must be a student currently enrolled at least part-time at the Lam Family College of Business. The pitch contest is open to business and entrepreneurial ideas and startups from all industries and at any stage in the startup cycle.
Judging
The preliminary round of judging focuses on finding a compelling and convincing innovation or entrepreneurial story, based on a 10 to 15 slide pitch deck (PDF and PowerPoint files accepted only).
The most successful entries typically demonstrate:
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A clear value proposition for a clearly defined target market.
Who is the prototypical consumer of your innovation, and why would they pay for your solution? What problem of theirs does your innovation solve? What need(s) does your innovation fulfill?
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A clear explanation of how you are able to solve the consumer’s problem.
How or why does your solution work? What enables your solution to fulfill customer needs better than anything/anyone else out there?
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Traction in the marketplace.
Is there a demonstrated product-market fit? Do you have evidence that your idea or prototype is desirable to, adopted by, or sought after by a market?
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A well-articulated revenue model.
How does this innovation generate revenue? What recurring revenue streams are created? Who’s paying, and how are they paying for your offering?
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A founding team that is set up for success.
Does the founding team have the right technical expertise to execute the innovation? Is this something that the founders will continue to pursue after graduation?
Register to Watch the LFCoB Pitch Contest
All are welcome to join us to watch students pitch their ideas at the LFCoB Pitch Contest. Please register in advance.
Register now to watch the Pitch Contest virtually on Zoom on March 7, 2025, from 3-5 p.m.
Judges
Aaron has 25+ years of experience in executive recruiting and staffing, marketing services, and agency environments. He is a passionate entrepreneur, dedicated to making meaningful connections and enriching the lives of the people he contacts.
Founder & CEO of Netswitch, Inc. & Securli Limited
Stanley Li, born in Hong Kong, formative years in England, and migrated to USA, now lived in San Francisco for over 40 years. He started in the IT industry as a cabling technician and became a convergence network consultant before he founded Netswitch in 2000 and develop a patented solution. CyberRisk Governance (CRG) System, to develop an AI driven visible cyber resilience index to help small to mid-size business to demystify the cybersecurity blackhole. He holds an MSc in Telecommunication Management and a BA in Finance & Real Estate, also actively involved with several universities globally to support their mentorship and internship programs to strengthen the cybersecurity workforce development.
Founder & Category Creator
Sophie Vu is a GTM leader and advisor to AI-powered companies like Dovetail, Inception Studio and AI Fund. As a luminary in AI and community building, she reimagines the GTM motion by incorporating community-led and product growth to build relationships and drive revenue. With over 20 years of experience as a seasoned CMO and GTM advisor, she has guided startups and scale-ups such as Google, Adobe, Hootsuite, Vibes, Kony, and Unbabel to success.
This mother of three, based in San Francisco, finds joy in mentoring students at her alma mater SFSU and the UCLA Anderson School of Management, drawing on her experience launching category-leading companies. An expert in brand storytelling and community building, Sophie is a constant learner, always on the lookout for new discoveries – be it innovative products, inspiring people, or hidden gems around the world.
Dr. Yikuan Lee is a Professor in the International Business department at San Francisco State University. She previously served on the faculty of the Eli Broad College of Business at Michigan State University for two years. She teaches Global Business Environment Analysis, International Marketing, and Creativity & Entrepreneurship. In 2024, she received the Teaching Award from the Center for Equity and Excellence in Teaching and Learning at SFSU. Dr. Lee has also been invited to lead entrepreneurship training workshops for managers and graduate students at National Tsing Hua University, Taipei University, and Chang Jung University in Taiwan.
Her primary research interests focus on the diffusion of innovation, specifically from the consumer perspective—examining how consumer perceptions influence innovation adoption. Her work also explores product design and consumer behavior, with recent research focusing on mindfulness and subconscious influences on consumer perception and innovation adoption. She has published in Journal of Product Innovation Management, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Marketing Theory, and Journal of Business Research. Her research has been widely recognized, earning her several grants and awards, including the best paper award from Journal of Product Innovation Management, the best paper award from Global Conference on Business and Economy, and the Research Competition Award from Product Development and Management Association, and the SF State Research, Scholarship and Creative Activities Fund.
Past LFCoB Pitch Contest Winners
- First Place and Voted Fan Favorite: WagWay – Nishtha Korde (B.S. in Business, Information Systems student)
- Second Place: OPTunity – Yoshitomo Mori (Certificate in International Business)
- Third Place : Worms Eco Solutions – Hossein Jamshidian (B.S. in Business Administration, Information Systems student), Founder
View the recording HERE
- First Place: Green Solutions – Heven Kibreab (B.S. in Business Administration, International Business student), Founder
- Second Place: New Intern – Sean Matturano Sebers (B.S. in Business Administration, Marketing student), Founder
- Third Place and Voted Fan Favorite: BrewIT! – Santiago Escobedo (B.S. in Business Administration, Marketing student), Founder
View the recording here
- First Place: ReMind – Rellie Padilla (B.S. in Business Administration, Management student), Founder
- Second Place and Voted Fan Favorite: Baked! – Angelina Healy and Bianca Morales (both are M.S. in Accountancy students), Co-Founders
- Third Place: Ola – Maiyoom Huynh (M.S. in Business Analytics student), Founder
View the recording here