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Tips for a successful application

During the 0-1 Challenge application period, you may be thinking how do I submit the best application possible? Or what does a great application look like? This article will hopefully help to show you.

 

Article Contents:

  • The application Selection Criteria
  • Why your team is important for your application
  • The Application Questions
  • Application Do’s and Don’ts

 

Reading this article will work best if you already have an idea forming in your head. If you do not have an idea already, it is best for you to refer back to the ‘Skills Lab – How do you think of a problem to solve?’ article first to come up with a problem which you can solve with a potential solution.

Before we continue, please take a moment to note down the problem you are addressing and the solution you have, a few words will do. This will help serve as a reminder for you to focus on as we go forward. Your problem and solution is all you need to start an application but to fully finish it and finish it well, we are going to need to do a little bit of work. 

Understanding the criteria used to review the applications and the questions asked in the application is important, and will give you a benefit when completing your application.

 

Idea

We of course want to know the quality of your idea and firstly judge this through the L Marks innovation teams’ experience and understanding of trends. Complementary to this is how innovative is your business idea and how unique is your idea? Has it been done many times before? Sumitomo will place priority to ideas which are not replicating current company activities. Finally make sure that your idea is addressing a problem you have identified.

 

Scalability

Growth opportunities are all about growing that idea across the business. Do you think it will be easy for this idea to provide value across the business? A big focal point for us is whether the idea is technically complicated as this has an effect on the speed in which the ideas can be integrated into the existing Sumitomo infrastructure.

 

Sumitomo Values

With Sumitomo Values, we look at the directions in which Sumitomo are looking to grow, meaning both commercially and morally. Can your idea be commercially successful for Sumitomo and fit in with the values of the company? Will your idea provide opportunities for in the long-term and have a significant impact upon society?

 

Team

Although you do not need a team to apply, you will need a team if you progress in the program. We will want to know about the team’s potential & if they have the skills needed to succeed. You want to make sure that the team has an understanding of the sector the idea is for, it may not be the industry in which you are working day-to-day, but do you have an understanding of this new area?

 

Getting started with The Team Section

Getting a team together will really help you in putting together your application. You can read our team identification article on the learning resources section of the website to guide you. A great example of a brilliant founding team with complementary skill sets is Apple Inc. I’m sure you have all heard of their success stories in the computer, phones and electronics area, but what is very important is that they had a founding team which complemented each other really well.

 

Steve Jobs was a co-founder of Apple Inc. Keen on the opportunity of a new computer. He has all the business skills, product design, consumer wants and needs. He was not overly technical and needed someone who could produce the ideas in his mind.

Steve Wozniak was also a co-founder of Apple Inc. An experienced electrical engineer. He was a technical expert who started playing around with the concept of a computer that looked like a typewriter. He was the missing person Steve Jobs needed to create these technical ideas.

 

These two co-founders filled in each others skill gaps and generated one of the most valuable computer companies in the world. We are not expecting you to have a team like this, however there are many people in Sumitomo who can help fill the gaps you may need. Knowing who you are and what you bring to the table helps establish the type of team you need to build around you. You will have to be honest with yourself, with what you can do, and what you will need assistance with.

 

Main Questions

While going through these questions, is it important to reflect on the selection criteria for your answers. Ensure that you are covering idea, scalability, and strategic alignment clearly in your responses.

  • What is the existing problem/condition/need your idea addresses?
  • Short idea description
  • More detailed idea description and how it solves the problem you have identified* 
  • What makes your idea unique?
  • Who are your main customers?
  • Why do you think that your idea is a good fit for Sumitomo?
  • What skills or experience does your team have that will make your idea successful?
  • If you were accepted into the 0-1 Challenge Program, what would you look forward to the most?

 

Lastly, we recommend these tips to help you make your application as successful as it can be.

 

Application Do’s

  • It’s ok to not complete the full application in one sitting
  • Use full sentences and complete thoughts
  • Do research – a quick google search
  • Review the Scoring Criteria mentioned above
  • Talk about your idea with colleagues and friends!

 

Application Don’ts

  • Don’t rush through the application
  • Don’t wait until last minute to submit (August 10th)
  • Don’t let your questions go unanswered
  • Don’t be afraid to put your idea forward- no bad idea