The University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business, a top-ranked U.S. business school with Executive MBA and custom executive education programs in China is sponsoring its second annual China Business Plan Competition. The competition, themed "Building Leaders for the Digital Economy" is organized by the Smith School's Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship and will bring together entrepreneurs and business executives from around the world to compete for a total of $50,000 in prize money, including a $25,000 grand prize, $15,000 second prize and $10,000 third prize.

Teams of up to four individuals will submit business plans focused on information, communications and technology with the hope of making it to the final round competition to be held on September 13, 2006. The final round competition will also include a post-conference networking event so individual VCs and entrepreneurs will have opportunities to discuss business ideas and investment opportunities. Key competition dates are as follows:

• March 23, 2006 - launch of the China Business plan competition. Entries will be accepted online at www.rhsmith-umd.cn/bplan2006 until May 22
• June 2006 - semi-finalist announcement. Semi-finalists will be asked to develop a 15-25 page business plan, which will be accepted until an August 1, deadline
• August 28 - final round notification to finalists
• September 13, 2006 - final round competition. Five selected finalists will make 10-minute presentations of their business plans as well as participate in a feedback session with the judges. The judges for the final round will include representatives of leading venture capital firms.

The Smith School is sponsoring the second annual China Business Plan Competition in support of the growth of world-class business ideas and business leaders in China. With its focus on globalization, entrepreneurship and technology, the Smith School is ideally positioned to share its leadership in these areas as part of its commitment to the China market.

With the China Business Plan Competition, the school has created a forum that provides entrepreneurs with a source of early stage capital and valuable exposure to VCs and judges, as well as an opportunity to obtain early feedback on a business plan that can be used to further develop a business. The Smith School also recognizes that a valuable outgrowth of business plan competitions is that they help aggregate the entrepreneurial community. The Smith School is taking a leadership role in building a venue to facilitate greater interaction and cooperation between investors, entrepreneurs and the corporate community.

About the Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship

As one of the first and leading entrepreneurial centers in the United States, the Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship at the Robert H. Smith School of Business, University of Maryland, is dedicated to empowering entrepreneurs by facilitating, supporting and guiding new enterprise growth through professional services, academic programming and outreach alliances and events. The Dingman Center is committed to supporting enterprise growth in the China market with the annual China Business Plan Competition and other initiatives that promote entrepreneurship and the growth of world-class business ideas in China To learn more about the Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship, visit:www.rhsmith.umd.edu/dingman

About the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business

The Robert H. Smith School of Business is an internationally recognized leader in management education and research for the digital economy. One of 13 colleges and schools at the University of Maryland, College Park, the Smith School offers undergraduate, full-time MBA, part-time MBA, Executive MBA, PhD, and executive education programs, as well as outreach services to the corporate community. In addition to the Smith School's programs in Maryland, and its custom MBA (Tianjin) and open enrollment EMBA programs (Beijing and Shanghai) in China, the school offers degree and certification programs in Europe and has academic collaborations in Korea, Japan, Thailand, Israel, the Netherlands, and France.
For more information please visit the Smith School International Web site.