CHESHIRE COLLEGE STUDENTS PITCH BUSINESS PLANS TO BANK OF AMERICA ASSISTANT VICE PRESIDENT

Bharath Rhamaswamy, Assistant Vice President from Bank of America visited Cheshire College –South & West’s Chester campus as part of an employee volunteering programme, organised in partnership with the Cheshire and Warrington Pledge.

Mr Rhamaswamy first visited the college for a CV and interview support session with students, but Business lecturer Jessica Rogers reached out to him and asked whether he would be interested in working directly with Level 2 Business students and listening to their pitch ideas. Mr Rhamaswamy agreed, allowing students to get first-hand feedback from a highranking official at one of the world’s leading financial institutions.

As part of their learning aims for Unit 1 and Unit 18 “Running a Small Business,” Business students are required to write a full business plan including market research, marketing strategy and financial strategy for a business which they have created.

The group chose to work around the concept of pop-up stalls and each learner created a unique concept, which they needed to pitch. Ideas ranged from a dog-friendly outdoor coffee shop to Bulgarian cakes, sweet stalls and a wellbeing stall focusing on sustainability and healthy, nutritious snacks.

Jessica Rogers said of the pitch meetings:

“The students all performed amazingly under pressure. They were confident and articulate in their findings and they really sold their concepts to Mr Rhamaswamy. They were all given really insightful feedback and tips for improvement, which will be of great assistance to them in their future projects.”