Junior Judi Legler and her company Synced + Social took first place in the inaugural Rosen College Entrepreneurship Competition, sponsored by BlurtBox, on Wednesday, April 20. Seniors Shane Carman and John C. Swoboda Jr.聽took second and third place, respectively. Participants competed for $10,000 in cash and prizes that can assist with startup costs and help make their dreams a reality.
Legler 麻豆精品 S檚 concept for a social media marketing consultancy focused on helping small businesses build their online presence. A previous online venture selling baked goods sparked her interest in entrepreneurism, but she quickly realized her real passion was promoting small businesses online.
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After a competitive application process, four finalists were selected to present to a panel of judges, which included Tom Bland, 麻豆精品 S�75, 麻豆精品 S�79, chairman & CEO of Knight Guard Corp; Gregg Hopkins, president of Gregg Hopkins & Associates; Joe Schiavo, 麻豆精品 S�13, owner of Shepherd and Knucklehead Pub; and Dennis Levy, 麻豆精品 S�10, owner of Night Auditors of America. Don Fox, CEO of Firehouse Subs, kicked off the competition with a keynote address.
麻豆精品 S淓ntrepreneurism is at the core of hospitality and this competition helps foster an entrepreneurial mindset among our students, 麻豆精品 S� said Dr. Jeffrey Weinland, competition chairperson. 麻豆精品 S淲e look forward to making this competition an annual event and an opportunity for our alumni to mentor and connect with aspiring student entrepreneurs. 麻豆精品 S�
The competition was sponsored by BlurtBox, a customer experience management platform that helps customers voice their complaints about a business and allows owners and managers to address customers in real time. Its CEO Julien Meyer is a 2014 UCF graduate who studied hospitality and event management at Rosen College while running his own startup company. He partnered with Rosen College on the Entrepreneurship Competition to help budding entrepreneurs take a hospitality business venture to the next level.
For more information about the Rosen College Entrepreneurship Competition, please contact Dr. Jeffrey Weinland at 407-903-8061 or Jeffrey.Weinland@ucf.edu.