2020 ASCEND IMPACT CHALLENGE
ABOUT THE CHALLENGE
Emerging from the Pandemic: Recovery & Reinvention for Asian and Other Small Businesses
Can we build transformative and sustainable business models for Asian and other small businesses to succeed in post-pandemic recovery?
Small businesses have been adversely impacted by COVID-19.
This competition will gather participants from diverse backgrounds and experiences, and challenge them to conceptualize innovative solutions to help these businesses bounce back.
We are looking for transformative solutions that introduce new business models. We ask that participants identify public and private interventions that will most effectively encourage the recovery and reinvention by the end of 2021. We are also asking you to amplify the voices of our business leaders by diving deeply into their issues.
PRIZES
GRAND PRIZE
$8,000
Crowdsource Prize
$1,000
Multigenerational Inclusion Prize
$1,000
JUDGES
THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS
PRESENTING
SUPPORTING
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Ascend's 2020 impact Challenge Winners are
Team Sky Kitchen | Hahney Yo , Vivian Hu
Ascend's 2020 impact Challenge finalists are:
Team Cook with a Chef | Abi Suresh
Team DelierEats | Jasmine Laura, Tam Vo
Team MixPose | Peter Ma, Ethan Fan, Sarah Han
View projects from all of the registered teams on the DevPost project gallery
Congratulations to all the participating teams who invested incredible time and effort to make a social impact!
HIGHLIGHTS
GUIDELINES AND ELIGIBILITY
JUDGING CRITERIA
Application, Relevance, Potential for Impact- How realistic is the application of this solution? How relevant is the solution to current small businesses? How impactful could this solution be?
Creativity- How original is this solution? Does it set itself apart from other solutions through innovative or non-traditional methods? Does it demonstrate outside-the-box thinking?
Scalability- What is the potential for scalability? How costly would this solution be to bring to scale?
Multigenerational inclusion- To what degree does the solution consider people of various generations as both business owners and customers? What degree of effort went into building a solution that could be used by, and benefit people of, various generations?
TEAMS
Teams shall be composed of a minimum of two (2) and no more than five (5) members
Winning teams must have at least one Ascend member (student or professional). Membership can be addressed upon winning an award
Team members may be from any industry or background, and can be located anywhere in North America
Team members must stay consistent throughout the Challenge - no alternates or substitutions are allowed
CHALLENGE GUIDELINES
Research and design a new business model for a restaurant, retail or other small business.
Submissions must include:
6-8 page business plan (omit appendix in total page count)
8-10 slide presentation
2-minute video pitch
Submissions are due by Sunday, August 23, 2020, at 11:59 PM ET for preliminary evaluation.
Submissions will be showcased at the Semi-Final Round on August 26, 2020 during which four or five finalists will be selected.
Finalists will receive further training and time to hone their business models and develop a prototype for demonstration. Finalist teams will compete for the Grand Prize by presenting their demos at the Final Round on September 29, 2020.
Teams are encouraged to consult their Ascend-paired mentor and Feed Your Hospital restaurant partners (or other small business contacts) along the way. Teams will also receive guidance through webinars and workshops offered in upcoming weeks.
