The Dell Power Pitch programme caters to university students and aims to develop a new breed of student entrepreneurs that will help drive economic development.
“At Dell we truly value the spirit of entrepreneurship. Our founder Michael Dell is one of the world’s most successful student entrepreneurs and he is the inspiration behind this endeavour. We are excited about this opportunity to fuel the entrepreneurial fire in our Sri Lankan students and to give them the power to achieve their dreams,” said Lackshmindra Fernando, Country Manager, Dell Sri Lanka.
The ‘Dell Power Talk’ segment of the programme will feature successful corporate leaders and entrepreneurs at government and private universities where they will talk about their experiences and insights with the aim of encouraging students to give birth to entrepreneurial ideas.
At the concluded Power Talk sessions Dulith Herath the founder of online store ‘Kapruka.lk’, Varuni Amunugama Fernando the joint managing director of Triad Advertising and Sandeetha Jayasinghe the founder of consultancy firm ‘The Flying Elephant’ spoke to the students about their own journeys from the point of coming up with the big idea to seeing it bear fruit.
The competition segment of the programme encourages students to pitch their innovative business ideas to a panel of judges. The first round of ‘Power Pitches’ will be carried out in September 2014. The students with the most promising pitch will receive the starting capital to bring their ideas to life.
“Dell is a brand that has a great connection with young people. We want to use the stories of successful entrepreneurs like Michael Dell and Dulith Herath to inspire and motivate our youngsters to think big and dream big. In turn we will power their dreams, giving them the stepping stone to become the next big thing,” added Lackshmindra Fernando.
The initial phase will see the programme being taken to six different universities and institutes, reaching over 4,500 students.
