Extracurricular business planning competitions Challenging the assumptions

Business planning competitions [BPCs] are a commonly offered yet under-examined extracurricular activity. Given the extent of sceptical comment about business planning, this paper offers what the authors believe is a much-needed critical discussion of the assumptions that underpin the provision of such competitions. In doing so it is suggested that these competitions, being based on business plans, could be limiting the entrepreneurial activity they seek to stimulate. As a result it could be said that BPCs are in a state of flux and require an evolved approach emphasizing implementation rather than planning for implementation. The issues highlighted set the scene for further critical questioning of the competition agenda and expected to be of value to those designing and offering competitions as part of their extra-curricular entrepreneurship education portfolio.