Yale School of Management - The Goldman Sachs Foundation Partnership on Nonprofit Ventures Announces National Business Plan Competition Finalists

"The Yale School of Management – The Goldman Sachs Foundation Partnership on Nonprofit Ventures" today announced its selection of 20 nonprofit organizations to proceed to the final round of the National Business Plan Competition for Nonprofit Organizations.

The 20 finalists are in the planning stage, or early stages of operating income-generating business ventures. They will spend the next three months working with business planning consultants and Yale School of Management students to strengthen and finalize their business plans. 

On May 12 - 13, 2004, the 20 nonprofit finalists will present their business plans to a panel of expert judges at the Second Annual Conference and Awards Ceremony in downtown New York City at the Museum of Jewish Heritage. The judging panel will select four grand-prize recipients, each of whom will receive $100,000 and four runners-up, each of whom will receive $25,000. In addition to cash awards, the winners will receive hundreds of hours of business planning consultations to assist their organizations in implementing their business ventures. Presentations are open to the public.

The judging panel, still in formation, will consist of a diverse collection of experience and expertise that lends tremendous value to the Competition. It includes: Rick Antle, Senior Associate Dean of the Yale School of Management and the William S. Beinecke Professor of Accounting; Richard Fishman, Executive Vice President of MacAndrews & Forbes Group, Inc.; Roderick von Lipsey, Private Wealth Management, Goldman Sachs & Co.; and Lynn Taliento, Principal of McKinsey & Company and co-founder and leader of the Firm's Global Nonprofit Practice.