Six student startups participated in the BOSS finale to compete for funding for their companies.
BOSS is an experiential entrepreneurship program that provides students with a series of workshops on problem identification, business model development, marketing strategies, and pitch deck development. At the end of the semester, student teams pitch for funding while the winner earns a spot to compete in the President's Buckeye Accelerator Finale (PBA). The participating startups were:
Software developed to enhance the operational efficiency of box machines.
Inventory management system targeting small businesses.
Accessible makeup palette for low vision individuals.
Medical provider-education program that provides personalized training to reduce implicit bias.
Fun and accessible games to improve STEM education outcomes.
Nonprofit creating 3D models for blind individuals.
CorrSuite, which was created by Sean Schnautz, a senior studying mechanical engineering, and Kush Dalal, a senior studying computer science engineering, claimed the first-place prize of $2,000, and secured a spot in the finals for the President’s Buckeye Accelerator. Mindful Diagnosis earned the runner-up position and took home $1500 prize. Digitag also gave a strong presentation and won the $500 people’s choice award.
The idea for CorrSuite came from Schnautz’s internship over the summer. He noticed some of the machines that were used to create boxes of different sizes were inefficient. He was able to learn the process and find ways to increase profits for the company he worked for. By partnering with Dalal, they were able to create software that addresses this problem.
“Changing the knives based on whether you have a large or small box on the same machine can take a really long time,” Schnautz said. “By making a scheduling assistant that looks at all the things to take into account for that box, it can optimize the schedule for the day to reduce a lot of those challenges.”
“We have been able to go to gatherings every other week where they go over basics on how to give and make a pitch,” Dalal said. “It has a lot of good information on how to get a business off the ground.”
The Keenan Center for Entrepreneurship offers a wide array of programming to help prepare students to develop successful companies, including LaunchpadOSU, BOSS, BOOST, and PBA. As students enter these programs, they work with mentors and gain meaningful connections that help them along their journey.
“I'm incredibly proud of our students and their relentless drive and innovative spirit,” said Cheryl Turnbull, Director of the Keenan Center for Entrepreneurship. “Each year we see these amazing students develop ideas that will help shape the future.”
Schnautz and Dalal said they are looking forward to using the money they were awarded to continue to develop Corrsuite, and they are looking forward using it to impact more organizations.
“This is going to go towards us becoming a real company and our patent filing process,” Schnautz said. “We want to start taking our software out there and working with more companies.”
See photos from the BOSS Finale here