WA Minister’s Innovation Challenge

Generation Entrepreneur had the unique privilege of partnering with the Western Australia (WA) Department of Education to deliver the Inaugural Minister’s Innovation Challenge (MIC). MIC 2022 saw teams of Year 8 students from 20 public schools across WA use design thinking to develop innovative solutions to local problems. The challenge became the first step in an ongoing immersive journey of design thinking and innovation learning for WA public school students.Former Education and Training Minister, Hon Sue Ellery BA MLC, commented in a media statement saying, “the Innovation Challenge is an exciting opportunity for students to develop their problem-solving skills and work closely with industry mentors”.

School Entrepreneur of the Year 2022

With delivery confined to the virtual classroom in 2021, we were proud to facilitate many of our workshops in schools to students, face-to-face. Finalists of our three-round, business building tournament (School Entrepreneur of the Year) were invited to a two-day intensive at UNSW Sydney’s Michael Crouch Innovation Centre. Those who were interstate were party to the finale via an all-purpose virtual experience. We saw representation from across the country, with teams from Western Australia, Victoria and New South Wales in the finale. The team from Northholm Grammar School were crowned the 2022 School Entrepreneur of the Year for their idea ‘Safety Shadow’ - a wearable device that alerts emergency services within seconds after the wearer is involved in an injury-inducing accident (particularly catered towards extreme sport athletes).

The Entrepreneurial Mindset (season 2)

Season 2 of the Podcast was HUGE! We were fortunate enough to have the likes of Olympian Steve Solomon, YouTuber Briddy Li, medical student Prithvi Santana, and Program Manager Gabi Byrnes talk about how to overcome the fear of failing and self-doubt, the importance of focusing on community-building, how to find one’s own version of work-life-balance, and the many perspectives of financial literacy. Stay tuned for deeper dives in 2023!

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Christmas Island District High School

School Entrepreneur of The Year Finalists

The Entrepreneurial Mindset

STARTUP 101

Startup 101 is Generation Entrepreneur’s one-day entrepreneurship program for high school students, capable of being delivered in both an in-person and online setting. The program is designed, and frequently updated, to inspire, excite and empower students to find solutions to problems they care about solving.During the program, students work in teams to create their own start-up by brainstorming, researching, designing and pitching their ideas throughout the day. Startup 101 provides students with the learning opportunity to develop and apply creative thinking and critical thinking skills, leadership and public speaking skills within a high-pressure environment - all within a day!In 2022, we expanded our program delivery team to accommodate more students and were able to impact double the number of students as last year. This involved a combination of program delivery both online and in-person. This year was a leap forward in our mission of empowering high school students across Australia to find solutions to problems they care about through entrepreneurship. We look forward to enabling more future entrepreneurs this year!

WHAT WE'RE PROUD OF

- Startup101 Workshops held across 3 states
- Execution of the inaugural WA Minister’s Innovation Challenge
- Impacted 710 students across 15 high schools

Startup 101 at Baulkham Hills High School

hear from students about their experience

INITIATE 48: APRIL

Initiate 48 is a weekend program for high school students. Over the short period of 48 hours, attendees learn from industry experts and business leaders about the tips and tricks to running a successful start-up.In 2022, we hosted our annual Initiate 48 in April, opening our doors to 24 student entrepreneurs. Students were taken through five key workshops - Problem Identification, Customer Development, Product Development, Lean Business Canvas, and Pitching. Over the 48 hours, student entrepreneurs gained feedback and insights from industry mentors from high-growth startups to Fortune 500 companies.At the conclusion of the 48-hour hackathon, all student entrepreneurs (solo founders and co-founders alike) pitched their startup to a panel of judges - think Shark Tank and Dragons’ Den. We heard ideas for combating food wastage, substance abuse, excessive spending, as well as startup ideas in the field of agriculture, fitness and cryptocurrency.These student entrepreneurs completed a process which most take weeks and months to execute. Congratulations to all who had the courage to attend!

WHAT WE'RE PROUD OF

- Our student cohort (of 24) creating solutions to problems they care about including food waste, substance abuse, and sustainable agriculture to name just a few.
- Mentors from 10 different high growth companies from across the industry
- Our solo founders as well as our co-founders for their tenacity and resilience as they ideated, empathised, prototyped, and pitched an entire startup in a matter of 48 hours.

Participants meeting for the first time and forming teams

i48 at UTS Startups Event Space

Student pitching practice

ABOUT THE EVENT

In 2022, we continued our partnership with Finder, Australia’s largest comparison site, to launch and deliver School Entrepreneur of the Year, Australia’s nationwide high-school entrepreneurship tournament. Our event saw students from all over Australia competing for the chance to be crowned School Entrepreneur of the Year 2022.

Round 1: Startup 101

The first round of School Entrepreneur of the Year consisted of our face-to-face Startup 101 workshops and our virtual Startup 101 workshops at different schools around Australia. In these Startup 101 workshops, teams created their start-ups by learning about problem identification, market research, product development and pitching. Top teams from each Startup 101 workshop were selected to progress to Round 2.

Round 2: Qualifiers Competition Day

In Round 2, the nominated teams from Round 1 participated in a one-day virtual competition. In this round, teams were guided through additional workshops designed to build on Round 1, focusing on further product development, financials, and traction. Industry mentors from Finder and Generation Entrepreneur provided guidance, support and valuable feedback for each team. Teams ended the day by pitching their new and improved start-up to our panel of judges.

Round 3: The Finale

The top 10 teams from Round 2 were invited to a 2-day immersive event to take their start-up to the next level whilst battling it out to be crowned School Entrepreneur of the Year 2022. Teams were presented with personalised ‘crisis statements’ to reflect and simulate circumstances and obstacles they may face as their start-up builds traction. Teams were guided by industry experts from Finder and the Australian entrepreneurship space throughout the 2 days to assist them with their solutions before presenting their final 10 minute pitch to the CEO of Finder, Frank Restuccia and Head of Program Management, Shirley Liu. Congratulations to Team Safety Shadow from Northholm Grammar School, Sydney, NSW for being crowned School Entrepreneur of the Year 2022!

Round 1: Startup101

Round 2: Qualifiers Competition Day

Round 3: The Finale

Key Achievements

- Finder's Innovation Fund provided access to underprivileged schools and participants
- Prize pool of $1.5K, Generation Entrepreneur & Finder merchandise, and industry level mentoring
- Over 700 students in total

THE TEAM BEHIND IT ALL

2022 was a sensational year for Gen E! From holding weekend hackathons to running a national business competition for high schoolers, it wouldn’t have been possible without the generous support from our growing team.

OUR PURPOSE VIDEO

In 2021, we filmed our purpose video - a video that commemorates our story and impact over the past 6 years and encapsulates our vision and goals for the next 5. 🌏

Purpose Video