EDP, an electricity sector company, has launched the second round of the 2017 University Challenge competition with a new quest: innovative ideas for customer relationship management. The purpose of this initiative is to encourage university students to develop ideas that optimize consumer interaction and improve existing customer service platforms.

The competition is aimed at undergraduate or postgraduate Management, Strategy, Marketing, Communication and Design students. Candidates from other areas will also be accepted, provided that they evince sufficient knowledge in the areas pertinent to the award.

To participate, candidates must fill out the registration form available on the company website: (www.edp.com.br) and submit their projects on the topic. The deadline for submission is September 12.

The winning team will be awarded an R$16,000 cash prize, while the advisor will receive R$8,000. The second best team and their advisor will receive R$8,000 and R$4,000, respectively. For the first time, the competition will also award the third best ranking project, with R$4,000 for the students and R$2,000 for the advisor.

Competition structure

EDP University Challenge participants must organize themselves into groups of two to five members, and it is not necessary that they attend the same educational institution. Teacher monitoring is recommended, but not a prerequisite.

Second-semester participants will compete directly with first-semester teams, and the best 15 projects will be selected by a consultancy firm to advance to the final stage. Projects will be evaluated based on several criteria, including creativity, innovation and sustainability. The award ceremony will be held in March 2018.

More information about the application process and the full regulation is available on the website:

http://www.edp.com.br/pesquisadores-estudantes/edp-university-challenge

About EDP Brasil

EDP Brasil is a company engaged in energy generation, transmission, trading, services and supply. The company has been operating in the country for over 20 years and is currently present in 13 Brazilian states: Amap‡, Cear‡, Maranh‹o, Esp’rito Santo, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Par‡, Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina, S‹o Paulo, and Tocantins. The company is owned by the EDP Group, one of the largest European electricity operators, present in 14 countries.

Through its distributors in the states of Esp’rito Santo and S‹o Paulo, EDP currently provides several customer communication channels such as the in-person service network (with conventional and container stores), the Virtual Agency, the 0800 service, text messaging, and the online EDP app - the latter three with free access. . Together, the concessionaires serve more than 3.3 million customers scattered across 28 cities in the state of S‹o Paulo (Alto Tiet, Vale do Para’ba, and Litoral Norte), and 70 municipalities in Esp’rito Santo (90% of the state).