Ten best students to be selected to take part in the Summer School in Bucharest
March 19, 2015
Hungary, Budapest. 50 students aged 17-23 from a number of secondary schools and universities in Hungary participated in the Citi-Junior Achievement SmartUp Challenge Program. This is part of a regional initiative supported by the Citi Foundation in Hungary, Romania, Slovakia and Bulgaria and it is focused on developing the entrepreneurial skills and competencies of students, enabling them to enhance their employability opportunities and help them create their own business.
The program was launched by Aftab Ahmed, Citi Country Officer for Hungary at the Innovators’ Day on February 19 at the Hunfalvy Janos Secondary School in Budapest. He talked to the students about creativity and innovation, what is the difference between the two, what makes an innovator and how one can transform a creative idea into innovation and get ready for implementation.
Aftab Ahmed said to the students at the launch event, “To become successful entrepreneurs you first you need to think out of the box and come up with creative ideas. The idea you want to pursue needs to be relevant to your target audiences, addresses unmet user needs and represents value to your clients. Playing to win, be willing to take risks, having a positive outlook and being decisive are all critical ingredients for you to implement your innovation and become a successful entrepreneur.”
The program comprises of three workshops and a final competition in May where students present their business plan to a judging panel, with the best 10 students being selected to travel to Bucharest, Romania for a five-day Summer School in August.
Thirty Citi employees, including HR Country Head Klara Tatar-Kiss, Global Subsidiaries Group Head Tamas Molontay and Treasury & Trade Solutions Head Laszlo Jakab, volunteered to engage in the program by delivering presentations on related subjects, working as mentors with the 14 teams and taking part in the judging panel.
In the workshop in March Istvan Kuronya, Citi Senior Marketing Manager shared with the students the key principles of marketing and market research. This will be followed by a workshop in April featuring Tamas Molontay, Citi Global Subsidiaries Group Head who will take the students through the process of developing a viable and sustainable Business Plan.
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