ALBA student team on its way to Barcelona

The full-time MBA students team that will participate in the 2001 European Business Plan of the Year Competition , to be held in Barcelona, on June 18-19, 2001, was selected after completing ALBA's internal Business Plan Competition: Athanassopoulos Nicolaos, Ioannides Leonidas, Angelopoulou Kassiani and Gavriil Georgios are the first four students to participate in this European Competition. Their business idea called 'EASY ISLANDS' will be included among other ideas coming from 13 leading European Business Schools.

The 16 participating teams were evaluated by a panel consisting of the Dean, two faculty members, and four alumni: Dean Nickolaos Travlos, Assistant Professor of Marketing Vassilis Theoharakis, Professor of Entrepreneurship Robert Hopley, Seraphim Voliotis (General Manager, AKIS SA), Sergio Sarafopoulos (Marketing Manager, Bentonite Division, SILVER & BARYTE ORES MINING Co SA), Yiannis Angelis (Business Development Manager, PETROS PETROPOULOS AEBE), and Costas Liakopoulos (Financial Director, PREVEZA MILLS SA).

All teams have intensively prepared for the presentation; a group was selected based on the concept/idea presented, business development efforts, presentation skills, written plan quality, as these fit in the specific context of the European Business Plan Competition. Selecting the finalists was a hard task for the members of the panel. ALBA faculty and staff wish to congratulate all participating teams, for their hard work, enthusiasm and commitment and to state their full support in coaching the finalists for the Competition.

Apart from ALBA, the other competing Business Schools for 2001 are:

• Cranfield School of Management
• Stockholm School of Economics
• INSEAD
• WHU Koblenz School of Management
• Rotterdam School of Management
• IESE Barchelona
• The Management School, Imperial College
• Helsinki University of Technology
• SDA Bocconi
• IMC Budapest
• London Business School
• EM Lyon

It is the first time that a Greek Business School will participate in this high-caliber event. Participation in the Competition requires a formal invitation. ALBA was formally invited to participate in the 2001 Competition after having attended last year's Competition as an observer. For this year's ninth Competition, the awards will be:

• First Prize
• First Runner-up
• Second Runner-up
• The Gemini Prize for Innovation

Sponsors and supporters for the 2001 Competition include:

• Cap Gemini Ernst & Young
• Foundation for Entrepreneurial Management
• A.T. Kearney
• Baker & McKenzie
• Barclays Bank
• Ernst & Young Entrepreneurial Services
• IBM
• Lehman Brothers

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