UMS FEB Student Wins Silver with UMKM Website Innovation

A group of students from the Faculty of Economics and Business (FEB), Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta (UMS) has once again achieved national recognition. They successfully won a silver medal at the Idea Fest 3 competition.

The team, led by Syaban Al Musyaffa Ibnu Ahmad along with his two colleagues, Fauzan Muhammad Ihsan and Heilin Alber Siva Haryoko, presented a project titled: “Branova: An Integrated Website Innovation as the First Branding and Marketing Solution for MSMEs in Indonesia.”

This work earned a prestigious place in the economics sub-theme, following a rigorous selection process beginning in March 2025. Syaban explained that the inspiration for their project stemmed from concern over the condition of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Indonesia. According to data from Bank Indonesia, around 80 percent of MSMEs fail to survive beyond three years.

“One of the main causes is the lack of digital literacy and innovation in promotion. Branova is presented as a solution to overcome that challenge,” explained Syaban Al Musyaffa Ibnu Ahmad when interviewed on Wednesday (30/7/2025).

As a student of the Faculty of Economics and Business (FEB), Syaban feels called to make a real contribution in line with his field of study. He also emphasized the importance of making the most of college years by joining various competitions to broaden experience and insight.

“As a student, you must take advantage of every opportunity. This is one way I express myself and my potential,” he stated.

The Branova idea began to take shape in May 2025. The curation process and finalist selection were conducted online. In the final stage held in Malang, the team presented their work live before a panel of judges on July 26–27, 2025, at the Malang Creative Centre, East Java.

“Thank God, the presentation went smoothly, even though we were a bit nervous because we were only given 4 minutes to convey quite a complex idea,” said Syaban.

This achievement is a point of pride for UMS. Syaban noted that UMS played a significant role in encouraging students to compete at the national level.

He also expressed his joy at being able to bring honor to the university beyond the UMS environment. According to him, this award is not the end, but rather the beginning of a more serious and impactful development of the idea.

“UMS has been a very important platform because it has given me the space to keep growing,” he said.

Writer: Yusuf Ismail

Editor: Maysali Sudarwati

Translator: Farizal Luqman Majid