PresentationPresentation

The Québec Entrepreneurship Contest is an organization that MOBILIZES a large network of partners to PROMOTE entrepreneurial initiatives in order to INSPIRE more people to believe in themselves, to transform their ideas into action and to achieve fulfilment.

It comes at a key moment when the experience of starting a business or initiating a project in the school context fuels a desire to become an entrepreneur and to transform Québec one project at a time.

To foster the spirit of entrepreneurship in order to help build a proud, innovative, committed and

prosperous Québec

MissionMission

To be a symbol of mobilization and to help people discover their entrepreneurial passion.

VisionVision

More than 700 000 $ for prizewinners throughout Québec.

In 2014... – 12 provincial prizes in Sudent Entrepreneurship Division – 20 provincial prizes in Business creation Division– 1 prize for Regional Commitment

More than half of that amount is given in REGIONAL prizes all over the 17 regions of Québec.

A Province-Wide ContestA Province-Wide Contest

ClientsClients

Two major project divisions :

– Student Entrepreneurship

– Business Creation

Student EntrepreneurshipStudent Entrepreneurship

Student EntrepreneurshipStudent Entrepreneurship

A chance to dare, to persevere and to test one’s limits!

Young people and school staff who design a project together transform their lives! Indeed, the positive impact on self-confidence, identity and student retention rates persuaded a third of Québec schools to participate in the QEC in 2014. The 50 000 students involved had the pleasure of learning while contributing to their community, while 15 000 students from schools in disadvantaged areas received special encouragement through the Valoris project “Believe in yourself and just go for it!”

Student EntrepreneurshipStudent Entrepreneurship Eligible Applicants

The Student Entrepreneurship division of the Québec Entrepreneurship Contest is open to residents of Québec enrolled in a public or private educational institution recognized by the Ministère de l’Éducation, du Loisir et du Sport (MELS) such as:

•an elementary or secondary school, a vocational training centre or an adult education centre•a college (or an affiliated centre)•a university (or an affiliated centre) •a government school•any educational institution recognized by the Ministère de l’Éducation, du Loisir et du Sport (MELS)

Entrepreneurial projects done as school or extracurricular projects and completed over the course of the year between June 2014 and June 2015.

Most project activities must have begun before the application deadline of March 16, 2015, so that the development of the students’ entrepreneurial values can be evaluated and validated.

Student EntrepreneurshipStudent EntrepreneurshipEligible projects

Student EntrepreneurshipStudent EntrepreneurshipCategories

• Elementary Cycle One (Elementary 1 and 2)

One or more people• Elementary Cycle Two (Elementary 3 and 4)

One or more people• Elementary Cycle Three (Elementary 5 et 6)

One or more people• Secondary Cycle One (Secondary I and II)

One or more people• Secondary Cycle Two (Secondary III, IV andV)

One or more people• Secondary school – Special Education

One or more people

• Vocational Training and Adult Education

One or more people

• College - Individual and Small Group

One to three people• College - Group

Four or more people• University - Individual and Small Group

One to three people• University – Group

Four or more people

Projects are evaluated according to the following criteria:

• la mise en contexte

• la réalisation du projet

• la mobilisation

• les retombées

• l’envergure

• l’originalité et l’innovation

• l’appréciation globale du projet

Student EntrepreneurshipStudent EntrepreneurshipEvaluation Criteria

• Carry out an entrepreneurial project as a school or extracurricular project.

• Fill out the online entry form on the Contest website at concours-entrepreneur.org/en. The Accompanying Documents section allows contestants to add PDF or PowerPoint documents, photos and links to videos or websites related to the project.

• When the online entry form is complete, click on Send form to officially submit the project to the Contest.

• Once the registration form has been sent, the local Contest representative will ensure that it is complete, that the project corresponds to the definition of an entrepreneurial project and that it respects the eligibility rules. If it fulfills these criteria, the local representative will send an online message confirming the project’s eligibility for the Contest.

Student EntrepreneurshipStudent EntrepreneurshipEntering the Contest

Student EntrepreneurshipStudent EntrepreneurshipMELS Introduction to Entrepreneurship

Measure

Financial assitance to encourage and support entrepreneurship in schools:oOption 1, "Entrepreneurial Spirit", is intended to fund entrepreneurial projects in elementary and secondary school, as well as in adult education. Projects can be carried out in school or as an extracurricular activity.oOption 2, "Entrepreneurship Spirit", is intended to fund entrepreneurship awareness activities carried out in vocational training centers and colleges as an extracurricular activity.

The Québec Entrepreneurship Contest is not directly related anymore to the IEM, nor appointed to disseminate information towards it. For additionnal information on the two options of the IEM and the related funding, please contact the person responsible for this file in your school or consult MELS website (french only)

www.mels.gouv.qc.ca/entrepreneuriat

Student EntrepreneurshipStudent EntrepreneurshipPrizes at the Provincial Level

Categorie PrizeElementary Cycle One (Elementary 1 and 2) $2000

Elementary Cycle Two (Elementary 3 and 4) $2000

Elementary Cycle Three (Elementary 5 et 6) $2000

Secondary Cycle One (Secondary I and II) $2000

Secondary Cycle Two (Secondary III, IV andV) $2000

Secondary school – Special Education $2000

Vocational Training and Adult Education $3000

College - Individual and Small Group $2000

College - Group $3000

University - Individual and Small Group $2000

University – Group $3000

Buisness CreationBuisness Creation

Buisness CreationBuisness Creation

A chance to make one’s dreams come true!

Armed with gumption, participants achieve self-fulfilment and further the development of their region by founding a new business. Whether they act individually or as a group, they make a crucial contribution to Québec’s pride, solidarity and prosperity. A source of pride, the QEC gives the 2 000 new entrepreneurs who participate each year an opportunity to improve the visibility of their project, win prizes and broaden their support network and chances of success.

Any adult or group of adults 18 years of age or over, residing in Québec and holding Canadian citizenship or permanent resident status is eligible for the Business Creation division of the Québec Entrepreneurship Contest. A contestant or team of contestants may enter only one project in the Business Creation division in one category in any given year.

Business CreationBusiness CreationEligible Applicants

Business CreationBusiness CreationEligible Businesses

• Business projects or businesses that did not take in any sales revenue before April 1, 2014, which is to say that they had no orders or contracts, either underway or completed, whether or not payment was received before that date.

 • Projects designed to create a new business in Québec to be launched

no later than December 31, 2015.

Business CreationBusiness CreationCategories

• Bio-Food• Business Operation, Processing, Production• Commerce• Services to Individuals• Services to Companies• Social Economy• Technological and Technical Innovation

Applications will be evaluated on the basis of the following criteria:

• the market analysis• the marketing plan• the operational plan• the funding plan• the entrepreneurial profile of the promoter(s)• the overall assessment of the project

Business CreationBusiness CreationEvaluation Criteria

A first prize of $10 000 and a second prize of $5 000 will be awarded in each of the seven official Contest categories:

Bio-Food

Business Operation, Processing, Production

Commerce

Services to Individuals

Services to Companies

Social Economy

Technological and Technical Innovation

Business CreationBusiness CreationPrizes at the Provincial Level

Provincial level :

• Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge Grand Prize – $20 000

• Successful Buisness Inc. Prize. – 25 000$

• People's Choice Prize : A prize worth up to $5 000 and offering the advantage of high visibility

Business CreationBusiness CreationSpecial Prize

• Fill out the online entry form on the Contest website at concours-entrepreneur.org/en.

• Please include a photograph and a business plan. We recommend a maximum of 50 pages in length, including a table of contents, financial statements and appendixes. It is possible to send up to four documents in PDF, Word or Excel format.

• When the online entry form is complete, click on “Send form” to officially submit the project to the Contest before the deadline.

• Once the registration form has been submitted, the local Contest representative will ensure that it is complete and that the project is eligible for the Contest. If it is, the local representative will send an online message confirming the project’s eligibility for the Contest. The project will then be considered by the jury members using the official evaluation criteria.

Business CreationBusiness CreationEntering the Contest

Contest OrganizationContest Organization

Active Throughout QuébecActive Throughout Québec

400 local and regional Contest representatives in Québec’s 17 administrative regions

Each region has an organizing committee that includes representatives of the Centre local de développement, the Société d’aide au développement des collectivités, the Carrefour jeunesse-emploi, school boards, colleges and universities, regional offices of Québec ministries, chambers of commerce, etc.

Contest OrganizationContest OrganizationContest Levels

Local Level:

Student Entrepreneurship• Territory under the jurisdiction of a school board;• Private schools, government schools, colleges and universities.

Business Creation• Local responsability may be shared between the educational

institutions and economic development organizations in a given geographic territory within their administrative region.

Contest Organization Contest Organization Contest Levels

Regional Level:• Each of the 17 administrative regions of Québec corresponds

to a regional level and coordinates both the Student Entrepreneurship division and the Business Creation division.

Provincial Level:• The provincial level organizers are the Contest’s permanent

staff.

Action Plan:• promoting the Contest

• supporting applications

• confirming acceptance of applications that meet the Contest criteria

• organizing the local juries

• identifying the winning projects using the Reserved section of the website

• sending a thank-you letter to participants who are not selected (a form letter is available in the Tool Box)

• sending a certificate of excellence to local prizewinners (samples are available in the Tool Box)

Contest OrganizationContest OrganizationLocal Contest Representative

Contest OrganizationContest OrganizationRegional Contest Representative

Action Plan:• taking part in the two official meetings for regional representatives 

• coordinating the activities of the local representatives

• organizing a regional launch ceremony

• finding sponsors

• forming the regional juries

• naming the prizewinners using the Reserved section of website

• organizing a gala

• publicly announcing the regional winners

• collaborating in inviting the finalists for interviews at the provincial level

• collaborating in sending out invitations for the Desjardins Grand Prize Gala 

• producing a final report on activities

Contest OrganizationContest OrganizationProvincial Level

Action Plan:• providing support for the activities at the local and regional levels

• seeking provincial sponsors

• drawing up the provincial communication plan

• organizing training sessions when necessary for the local and regional representatives

• coordinating and ensuring compliance with regulations

• updating promotional and organizational tools

• organizing the provincial juries

• organizing the Desjardins Grand Prize Gala in June

JuriesJuries

JuriesJuries

Local and Regional Juries select:

For Business Creation Division • One project per category and one additional project for every 15

applications, for all categories

For Student Entrepreneurship Division• One project per category and one additional project for every 20

applications, for all categories

JuriesJuries

Provincial Jury select:

Student Entrepreneurship Divisionone grand-prize winner per category

Business Creation Divisiontwo winners (1st and 2nd place) per category

PartnersPartners