The time for choosing the winner of the 2023 Future Entrepreneur of the Year title is drawing near. This is an international competition to find the young person or team which demonstrates the highest level of entrepreneurial acumen. The competition is open to ‘shark tank’ winners at schools running the KidsMBA programme. There's a $1,000 prize for the winners and the excitement is mounting. Some schools have already sent in their entrants and it’s looking set to be a great competition.
We are delighted to introduce our independent judging panel. They have been chosen for their expertise in entrepreneurship and business and are independent of ABE, KidsMBA or any of the schools involved in the competition.
The judges are:
Michael Buchan, Senior Lecturer, Strategy Enterprise and Innovation, University of Portsmouth.
Michael is a 'pracademic' at the University of Portsmouth enjoying teaching strategy, international business and negotiation alongside his interests which include owning a couple of small companies working in the fields of medical devices and plastic-free beach goods and the chair of the board of trustees of Music Fusion, a fabulous small charity based in Havant and working alongside some excellent creatives at the Guild Of Makers in Portsmouth to help them move their endeavours along.
Covid presented some interesting opportunities to test community endeavours and led to a zero-profit PPE manufacturing virtual agile enterprise being launched within 2 days of the first lockdown...without costing a penny to any recipient, the organisation of volunteers had produced more than 25000 face shields before disbanding after a few weeks once industry caught up to fill the gap (sadly not at zero or low cost!)
A serial networker Michael has worked in corporate settings, small businesses and charities and extensively worked across the globe including the USA, Latin America and Sub-Saharan Africa.
For leisure Michael enjoys time with his two small dogs, messing about on a boat and eating!
Lesley Li, CEO & co-founder, u impact | impact4good
u impact is a FinTech startup with the mission to make impact investing the new normal. It aims to guide young people to invest consciously and for the causes that matter the most to them. Intending to generate wealth and create positive impacts for society, u impact focuses on themes targeted on sustainable investing to allow investments based on personal values and beliefs. Lesley is also a TEDx speaker and is on the Women in FinTech Powerlist ESG.
Philip Salter, Founder of The Entrepreneurs Network
The Entrepreneurs Network is a UK government think tank which aims to provide a voice for entrepreneurs and make Britain a great place to start and grow a business.
Philip was previously Business Features Editor of City A.M. where he wrote a weekly column on entrepreneurship and interviewed many of Britain’s leading entrepreneurs. He also writes a column for Forbes on entrepreneurship and appears regularly elsewhere in the media.
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