Welcome to the Randall Family Big Idea Competition!

February through early April

This competition is an experience-based learning opportunity for Pitt students and postdocs with Big Ideas who enjoy working in diverse teams to bring those ideas to life. It is open to all Pitt undergraduate students, graduate students, and postdocs across all schools and departments. This competition spans February through April of each year and awards monetary prizes to students with the most startup potential, including a grand prize of $25,000! Since its inception in 2009, the competition has attracted hundreds of interdisciplinary teams seeking to bring their Big Ideas to market.

Check back in January 2024 for the RFBIC 2024 application!

Meet the 2023 Randall Family Big Idea Competition Winning Teams

Who can apply?

This competition is open to all Pitt students, undergraduate through postdoc. UPMC-affiliated medical residents are able to participate as well.

Teams must consist of at least two Pitt students and/or postdocs. Students from other institutions may participate as part of a team but cannot receive monetary prizes.

Applicants must upload a mandatory 1-2 minute elevator pitch as part of their application.

  • Elevator pitches should be a Twitter-length version of your idea. Communicate your idea at a high-level overview, and craft your pitch in a way that captures the audience’s attention and leaves them wanting more.

All participants (including team leads and all participating team members) MUST apply prior to the deadline. Walk-ins will not be accepted. 

Teams will be notified of acceptance status the week of TBD.

Having trouble assembling a team? Try our TeamFinder tool.

Click to view last year’s Randall Family Big Idea Competition winning teams.

RFBIC 2024 Informational Presentation

Watch our RFBIC 2024 informational video as Jess Malandro, our Manager of Student Programs & Operations, covers the ins and outs of this year’s Randall competition & how you can win the $25,000 grand prize as a Pitt student.

The RFBIC 2024 informational video will be available to watch by January 2024.

What previous participants have to say about the Randall Family Big Idea Competition:

TBD

Competition Resources for RFBIC 2024 Participating Teams

The Big Idea Center has provided a resource library for RFBIC 2024 participating teams which includes helpful tools specific to the Randall Family Big Idea Competition. To access the RFBIC 2024 team resources, please click here.*

*Note: The RFBIC team resources page is password-protected. You will need to enter the password provided by the Big Idea Center staff which can be found in your RFBIC 2024 acceptance email.

 

Important Competition Dates

Dates, times, and locations for all RFBIC 2024 events are subject to change.

The Big Idea Center will follow the University of Pittsburgh’s COVID-19 requirements and thus reserves the right to make any necessary event changes in order to comply with Pitt’s COVID-19 policies.

 

The following dates are mandatory for ALL participating teams

Application Deadline – TBD, 11:59 P.M.

Teams Notified of Acceptance Status into the RFBIC 2024 Competition – Week of TBD

Bootcamp Week & Mentor Assignments – Week of TBD

Practice Pitch Round (optional, but HIGHLY encouraged) – TBD

Semi-Final Round Pitch Submission Deadline – TBD, 11:59 P.M. (Virtual submission)

Teams Notified of Acceptance Status into the RFBIC 2024 Final Round – TBD

 

The following dates are mandatory for final round participants ONLY

Virtual Final Round Info Session – TBD, 5:00 P.M.

Final Round – TBD, 10-Minute Presentation Time Slots from 12:00-4:00 P.M.

Celebration of Innovation + Randall Awards Ceremony – TBD

 

More about the Competition

Background

Since its inception in 2009, the competition has attracted hundreds of interdisciplinary teams seeking to bring their big ideas to market. The Randall Family Big Idea Competition is made possible through the generous support of the Randall family. Robert P. Randall, a Pitt alumnus and trustee, was president and chief executive officer of the Three Rivers Aluminum Company (TRACO), a prominent regional door and window company, which was acquired by Alcoa and is now a division of Kawneer. Mr. Randall continues to give back to the community through his position on the Board of Trustees at the University of Pittsburgh, his work with the United States Chamber of Commerce, and as a board member of both the Allegheny Conference on Community Development and the Pittsburgh Regional Alliance.

Who is eligible?

The competition is offered to all Pitt undergraduate and graduate students across all schools and departments. Post-doctoral fellows and UPMC-affiliated medical residents are included.

Awards

  • First prize – $25,000
  • Second prize – $15,000
  • Third prize – $5,000
  • Fourth prize – $2,000
  • Video round – $2,000

Meet the Big Idea Competition Team!

Rhonda Schuldt
Director, rschuldt@innovation.pitt.edu 

Rhonda has a career rich in innovative problem-solving and entrepreneurial action, from leading an incubator for human service organizations, directing public-private regional economic revitalization initiatives, and founding several businesses, to executive leadership in technology startups. Rhonda enjoys helping innovative problem-solvers navigate the complexity, uncertainty, thrill, and satisfaction of realizing their entrepreneurial potential.

Jessica Malandro
Manager for Student Programs, jmalandro@innovation.pitt.edu 

Jess has been a part of the Big Idea Center since Fall 2018. She is a Pitt alum with extensive experience in student engagement as well as program management. Currently, she is pursuing her Master’s of Education part-time at Pitt’s School of Education. In her role as Manager for Student Programs, Jess oversees the organization and execution of all department competitions, workshops, and programming. Additional responsibilities include management of the center’s YouTube page, in addition to all digital video production efforts as they relate to in-classroom and public use.

Tiffany Bicek
Outreach, Engagement, and Marketing Coordinator, tiffany.rice@pitt.edu

Tiffany currently serves as the Outreach, Engagement, and Marketing Coordinator for the Big Idea Center. She holds a BS degree in Marketing Management from Grove City College and is currently pursuing her MBA part-time at the Katz Graduate School of Business. She assists with the organization and execution of Big Idea Center I+E Explore events as well as manages the Big Idea Center’s marketing efforts, including our website, social media (@pittbigidea), and blog.

Coaches

JOANNA SUTTON
Entrepreneurship/Competition Coach
jsutton@innovation.pitt.edu

Joanna is a Business Innovation Advisor with Brights Lights Innovations helping small businesses create profitable growth with accelerated times to market. Since 2007, she held various B2B Marketing Executive roles with Westinghouse Electric Company. She helped create numerous business opportunities leveraging a range of advanced technologies.

KELLY COLLIER
Entrepreneurship/Competition Coach
kellycollier@pitt.edu

Kelly has spent her career working across many facets of healthcare innovation and product development. First, as the founder and CEO of a medical device company spun out of Carnegie Mellon’s Biomedical Engineering department, followed by an experience leading new product development and R&D within the medical supply corporation that acquired her startup. Prior to her current role at LifeX, Kelly had a business development role at UPMC Enterprises where she looks to connect startups, corporations, and other health systems with strategic opportunities to partner with UPMC to commercialize innovations in healthcare IT and life sciences.

STEPHAN MUELLER
Entrepreneurship/Competition Coach
stephan@preiscapital.com

Stephan has spent the last 25 years in the technology startup ecosystem primarily in senior leadership roles on both the investor side and the operational side of the table. This has helped him develop a deep understanding of how technology can be applied to solve social and commercial challenges. More importantly, he’s learned firsthand how to take innovative ideas and turn them into real businesses.

JUSTIN FRANKERT
Entrepreneurship/Competition Coach
justin.frankert@gmail.com

Justin has spent his entire career in technology-based roles spanning several verticals. His vast experience in industrial automation and robotics has allowed him to understand complex end to end solutions that arerequired to make businesses successful. He has been leading teams for over a decade in complex environments involving industrial robotics, and more recently in the vertical farming and the micro-fulfillment spaces. Justin has additional experience in start-ups, sales, merger and acquisitions, and intellectual property.

 

Other Media

Students Showcase Entrepreneurial Drive, PittWire, April 22, 2021

Trek Wins $25,000 Top Prize in 2019 Randall Family Big Idea Competition, Innovation Institute, March 21, 2019

Randall Family Big Idea Competition Gives Golden Tickets to Student Business Endeavors, Pitt Chronicle, April 5, 2017

Ambient Cybersecurity and Tiny Lasers Win Big Prizes for ECE Students at Startup Competition, Pitt Swanson School of Engineering Virtual Newsroom, April 26, 2017

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