2026 Faculty and Staff Intent to Compete

Intent to Compete

Thank you for registering your intent to compete in the 2026 UA Faculty + Staff Innovation Pitch Competition!

We are excited to get to know you and learn more about your innovative venture idea. Thank you for taking the first step toward participating in this year's competition.

Competition Date: Friday, October 9, 2026

Registration Deadline: Thursday, October 1, 2026, at 10:00 p.m.

Name

First NameLast Name

UA Email Address

Alternative Email Address

Phone Number

XXX-XXX-XXXXFormat: (000) 000-0000.

CWID

Are you a UA:

What UA college are you associated with?

What department are you in?

Job title:

What is your business idea / name?

Was this idea created as part of your position with UA?

If you competed in any previous business plan or pitch competitions with this same idea, please list the year you competed and any prize money you were awarded.

If your idea was created as part of your position with UA was it supported by a grant you received?

THE BEGINNING: Your introduction should answer one of these questions: what is the big problem you are trying to solve or what is the big opportunity you are trying to pursue. Your introduction should get the audience emotionally interested in your topic. Note that in your pitch you should make sure to introduce yourself and do so in a way that lets everyone know why you are the right person with the right vision to move the idea forward. List a few ideas for your beginning section in the box below:

THE MIDDLE: After you define the problem or opportunity, next spell out your solution. Briefly describe your idea and be very clear about what you are proposing. Clarify how your idea is better (e.g. faster, smarter, cheaper, etc.). Make sure you use language everyone can understand. Then move on to your target customer or who will buy your product or service. Make this discussion interesting, and make sure you connect to the audience. The 'middle' is the part of the story that introduces the hero, or the knight in shining armor. It's your job to help the audience see how your idea or solution saves the day. List a few ideas for your middle section in the box below:

THE END: What happens after you introduce your idea to the world? Picture the audience as investors; they want to know how you are going to use the money to scale up and make even more money. Why should they choose you as the winner? Make sure you talk about the idea and you - how you can bring this idea to market and grow a business. What's the happy ending? Also, what is your call to action - what do you want (e.g. I need $10k to XXX). How will you spend the money? What is your vision of the future? List a few ideas for your ending in the box below:

We can offer times for individual coaching leading up to the competition. Would you be interested in this?

We are considering hosting a series of workshops for participants of the Faculty / Staff Innovation Competition. Generally, would you be interested in participating?

Would you be interested in learning more about an initiative to help you put together a team to assist you building a business around your idea?

Would you / or your team be interested in an accelerator program that would provide funding as well as help build the team and your business?