Fifty-one of 326 entries advance to next round in 2013 Gov's Business Plan Contest

February 28, 2013

Fifty-one entries from 28 communities have advanced to the semi-final round of the 10^th annual Wisconsin Governor’s Business Plan Contest, contest producers announced Thursday.

The contestants were selected from a field of 326 first-round entries by an independent panel of about 70 judges organized through the Wisconsin Technology Council, which is producing the contest in conjunction with its membership subsidiary, the Wisconsin Innovation Network, the Wisconsin Angel Network and other statewide affiliates.

The semi-finalists reflect the diversity of Wisconsin’s economy and are spread among four broad categories: advanced manufacturing (13), business services (14), information technology (15) and life sciences (9). That proportion roughly reflects the mix of Phase 1 entries in the contest’s four categories.

Software solutions, industrial products and processes, energy management and controls, gaming and mobile apps, health diagnostics and medical devices were sectors that drew a number of entries. The contest also attracted entries focused on products for children and older adults, as well as sports and recreation innovations.

“The pipeline of entrepreneurs in Wisconsin continues to become more diverse,” said Mark Bugher, chairman of the Tech Council and director of University Research Park. “The entries that advanced to the semi-final round reflect the fact that good ideas come from all high-growth sectors of the economy.”

The 51 entries competing in Phase 2 of the contest are writing executive summaries of no more than 1,000 words. Each summary describes the core product or service, defines the customer base, estimates the size of the market, identifies competition, lists members of the management team and provides key financial data.

Phase 2 plans will be filed online by 5 p.m. March 18; the next judging period will last about two weeks.

Once Phase 2 judging is complete, the 51 entries may be made available for inspection by accredited investors through the Wisconsin Angel Network, which has more than two-dozen angel networks, private equity funds or corporate strategic partners. About two-dozen plans will move on to Phase 3, in which contestants will write a full business plan.

Total cash and in-kind prizes in the statewide contest exceed $100,000. Prize winners will be announced June 4-5 at the annual Wisconsin Entrepreneurs’ Conference, to be held at the Marriott West in Middleton. The top dozen contestants will give live presentations at the conference – with judges scoring those pitches as a part of selecting the winners. A major sponsor is the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp.

Other sponsors of the 2013 contest to date include: 5Nines; Aberdean Consulting; American Family Insurance; American Transmission Company; AT&T; BDO; Cleantech Open; City of Waterloo; EarthIT; Flanagan Financial/Functional Biosciences; Grant Thornton; JZB Solutions; Kohner Mann & Kailas; Kollath & Associates; Logistics Health; Madison Gas & Electric; Marshfield Clinic; Michael Best & Friedrich; Midwest Prototyping; Milwaukee Institute; Mortenson Construction; Murphy Desmond; Nelson Schmidt, Inc.; Pieper Properties; Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren s.c.; Revelation PR, Advertising & Social Media; Smith & Gesteland; University Research Park; UW-Madison Office of Corporate Relations; Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati; Wisconsin Health and Educational Facilities Authority; and Wisconsin Technical College System.

To become a sponsor, call 608-442-7557 or visit http://www.govsbizplancontest.com/.

Here are the 2013 semi-finalists in the Wisconsin Governor’s Business Plan Contest. Reporters wishing to contact individual contestants may do so through the Wisconsin Technology Council by calling 608-442-7557 ext. 26.

Contestant                           City                         Idea Abstract

Rick Kawczynski                  Franklin                 Better Medical Disinfectant

Pete Matson                         Waukesha           Clouditz

Justin Reed                           Madison               C-Motive Technologies Inc.

Mary Kuckuk                         Madison               CodeEm

Tim Hart                                 Shorewood          Custom Healing Abutment

Justin Knupp                        Middleton            CyderMED

Timothy Shedd                     Madison               Datacenter Cooling Technology

Mackenzie Krentz                Madison                Detour Mobile App

Olivia Nix                               Milwaukee           Diddits

Mitchell Fiene                       Whitewater           DMZ Aerial

Jordan Giessel                     Oregon                  EasyShifts

Gary Krause                         Racine                   EKG Concepts

Betty Marquardt                   Poynette               Employmate

Heather Johnston                Milwaukee             Find My Spot

Shobhan Thakkar                 Fitchburg               Gaming - Gristmill Studios(GS)

Petr Zilberman                     Mequon                  Glow in the Dark materials

Abby Johnson                      Madison                Green Chemistry Solutions

Dennis Bahr                          Middleton              Helicam Neutron Camera

Sreenath Pillai                     Madison                 Infrastructure for Mobile Apps

James Cruikshank              Cedarburg            Integrated Pharmacy Services

Terry Spilde                          Madison                kNew

Joel Dietz                               Madison                Lab Desk

Pradeep Rohatgi                  Milwaukee             Lightweight composite castings

Allen Oelschlaeger             Mequon                 Martial Arts Marketing Network

Mike Lilek                              Wauwatosa           Mobile work tickets

Charles Potter                      Mequon                 MTD Therapeutic Hypothermia

Scott Johanek                       Shawano               MUTO

Frederick Montgomery       Madison              Nitric Oxide Generator for Chr

Russ Rymut                          Hartland                  Nobo

Bret Wagner                          Fitchburg               Oil & Gas Royalty Software

Tom Dougherty                    Milwaukee           OSAT: Real Time Metal Analysis

Joseph Trygar                      Pleasant Prairie   Pharma Detect

Menachem Tabanpour       Madison                 Phosphorus Upcycling

Thom Lemmenes               Princeton               Pierless Boat Rentals

James Benson                     Marinette               Quality Medical Management

Stephen Parkhill                  Glendale                quickTab

Jon Odorico                          Madison                Regenerative Medical Solutions

Michael Harper                    Milwaukee            ROAM

Alan Stoffer                          Madison                Ronin Studios

David Beebe                        Monona                  Salus

Annamalai Karthikeyan     Oshkosh                 Specialty carbon using wastes

Chad Lee                              Middleton               SpectraNotes

Curt Frey                               Madison                 TaxBadger

Sarah Wright                        Cottage Grove      The Healthy Challenge

Mike Kobida                         Madison                  The Orkan

Jim Schuessler                    Crandon                 Trolley Green Energy Platform

David Buslee                        Delafield                  Truck Data Measurement

Alan Peters                           Brookfield             True Flow

Peter Petit                             Pewaukee             V-Glass Vacuum Insulated Glass

Brian Mayer                          Glendale                 WeDo

Kevin Kleinfelt                      Sun Prairie            WiscBox

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