Southeast Missouri State University is kicking off its first annual Business Plan Competition with student submissions of innovative comprehensive business plans.

The event is sponsored by the Douglas C. Greene Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, part of the Harrison College of Business.

It was created to encourage Southeast students to develop an entrepreneurial mindset for the professional world.

Dr. Foster Roberts, assistant professor of management and marketing, said the competition was the work of an action committee and the late dean Gerald McDougall, which began last semester.

"Our dean had a high level of interest in having a competition that sponsored entrepreneurship," he said. "We formed an action committee, driven by Judy Wiles (director of the Greene center, chair of management and marketing department)," he said. "With the support of McDougall, we worked to get this together."

Roberts said while the competition is sponsored by the business school, the committee hopes to engage more students from all over campus.

"The economy is becoming more and more driven by entrepreneurs and small businesses, so we have to get our students engaged in the process of entrepreneurship," Roberts said. "Our goal is to create entrepreneurs."

This is an important concept for students at Southeast to understand, because it can have both professional and practical applications when entering the post-collegiate world.

"Companies are going to want you to think innovatively," Roberts said. "[Using] efficiency, effectiveness, bringing new products to market, or creating better ways to produce products and services. Innovation is a way of life. It's not going away anytime soon."

Beyond fostering innovative thinking and entrepreneurial efficiency, the competition seeks to teach Southeast students valuable life lessons beyond the vocational aspects provided.

"Rigor and due diligence is a part of life, and the sooner we start learning that success comes through hard work as opposed to luck, it will benefit our students even greater," Roberts said.

Prior to this event, Southeast's business department held the Southeast Innovation Challenge in the fall semester. Students worked together to come up with ideas on how to improve student life and involvement.

The university hopes to see students from all parts of campus and all fields of study involved in future installations of the Business Plan Competition, and the contest's committee plans to work toward making the event more accessible and applicable to any and all Southeast students.

Students entered in the competition have a chance to win a first prize of $2,000, a second prize of $1,000, or a third prize of $500.

Judging is currently in progress, and the top three teams will present their ideas on Wednesday, April 26, during common hour in the University Center.