NPower NY Wins National Business Plan Competition
June 16, 2005
NPower NY was named as one of four grand prize winners in the National Business Plan Competition for Nonprofit Organizations sponsored by Yale School of Management – The Goldman Sachs Foundation Partnership on Nonprofit Ventures. Nearly 500 nonprofit organizations from across the country entered business plans in the competition.
NPower NY’s proposal focused on NPower Basic, an affordable package of hardware, software and technical support services for nonprofits, which is currently in the pilot stage. Central to the design of NPower Basic is its employment of graduates from the organization’s Technology Service Corps program (TSC). The Technology Service Corps program trains 18-25 year olds from low-income communities on a suite of technology and professional skills, provides “real world” work experience through its internship program and community-service events; and places graduates in the nonprofit sector as junior IT administrators. As a grand prize winner, NPower NY will receive a $100,000 cash prize, as well as business planning technical assistance, to further develop the NPower Basic service.
“We are truly delighted to be recognized by this prestigious business plan competition,” said Barbara Chang, NPower NY’s executive director, who led the team that conceived of NPower Basic and presented the concept in the final round. “We believe that NPower Basic will revolutionize the way small nonprofits address their technology needs. NPower Basic is a home run for all of us involved in this endeavor – foundations, alliance partners such as Microsoft and Cisco, Technology Service Corps graduates, small nonprofits and NPower NY.”
“We congratulate the winners of this year's Competition,” said Stephanie Bell-Rose, President of The Goldman Sachs Foundation. “Once again, the quality of the business plans presented was outstanding and we are confident that all of the participants will use this experience as a springboard to continued success.”
In addition to NPower NY, the other grand prize winners are EcoLogic Finance in Cambridge, MA.; and First Book and Mission Fish (Points of Light Foundation), both in Washington, D.C. Two other local organizations, Brooklyn Justice Council and Thirteen/WNET New York, had been among 20 contest finalists announced in March.
