SBIR and the Phase III Challenge of Commercialization


Book Description

In response to a Congressional mandate, the National Research Council conducted a review of the Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR) at the five federal agencies with SBIR programs with budgets in excess of $100 million (DOD, NIH, NASA, DOE, and NSF). The project was designed to answer questions of program operation and effectiveness, including the quality of the research projects being conducted under the SBIR program, the commercialization of the research, and the program's contribution to accomplishing agency missions. This report summarizes the presentations at a symposium exploring the effectiveness of Phase III of the SBIR program (the commercialization phase), during which innovations funded by Phase II awards move from the laboratory into the marketplace. No SBIR funds support Phase III; instead, to commercialize their products, small businesses are expected to garner additional funds from private investors, the capital markets, or from the agency that made the initial award.




SBIR at the Department of Defense


Book Description

Created in 1982 through the Small Business Innovation Development Act, the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program remains the nation's single largest innovation program for small business. The SBIR program offers competitive awards to support the development and commercialization of innovative technologies by small private-sector businesses. At the same time, the program provides government agencies with technical and scientific solutions that address their different missions. SBIR at the Department of Defense considers ways that the Department of Defense SBIR program could work better in addressing the congressional objectives for the SBIR program to stimulate technological innovation, use small businesses to meet federal research and development (R & D) needs, foster and encourage the participation of socially and economically disadvantaged small businesses, and increase the private sector commercialization of innovations derived from federal R&D. An earlier report, An Assessment of the Small Business Innovation Research Program at the Department of Defense, studied how the SBIR program has stimulated technological innovation and used small businesses to meet federal research and development needs. This report builds on the previous one, with a revised survey of SBIR companies. SBIR at the Department of Defense revisits some case studies from the 2009 study and develops new ones, and interviews agency managers and other stakeholders to provide a second snapshot of the program's progress toward achieving its legislative goals.




The Small Business Innovation Research Program


Book Description

In 1992, Congress for the first time explicitly directed the federal agencies making SBIR grants to use commercial potential as a criterion for granting SBIR awards. In response, the Department of Defense developed the SBIR Fast Track initiative, which provides expedited decision-making for SBIR awards to companies that have commitments from outside vendors. To verify the effectiveness of this initiative, the DoD asked the STEP Board to assess the operation of Fast Track. This volume of original field research includes case studies comparing Fast Track and non-Fast Track firms, a large survey of SBIR awardees, and statistical analyses of the impact of regular SBIR and Fast Track awards. Collectively, the commissioned papers and the findings and recommendations represent a significant contribution to our understanding of the SBIR program.




An Assessment of the SBIR Program at the National Science Foundation


Book Description

The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program is one of the largest examples of U.S. public-private partnerships. Founded in 1982, SBIR was designed to encourage small business to develop new processes and products and to provide quality research in support of the many missions of the U.S. government, including health, energy, the environment, and national defense. In response to a request from the U.S. Congress, the National Research Council assessed SBIR as administered by the five federal agencies that together make up 96 percent of program expenditures. This book, one of six in the series, reports on the SBIR program at the National Science Foundation. The study finds that the SBIR program is sound in concept and effective in practice, but that it can also be improved. Currently, the program is delivering results that meet most of the congressional objectives, including stimulating technological innovation, increasing private-sector commercialization of innovations, using small businesses to meet federal research and development needs, and fostering participation by minority and disadvantaged persons. The book suggests ways in which the program can improve operations, continue to increase private-sector commercialization, and improve participation by women and minorities.




SBIR at NASA


Book Description

The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program is one of the largest examples of U.S. public-private partnerships, and was established in 1982 to encourage small businesses to develop new processes and products and to provide quality research in support of the U.S. government's many missions. The U.S. Congress tasked the National Research Council with undertaking a comprehensive study of how the SBIR program has stimulated technological innovation and used small businesses to meet federal research and development needs, and with recommending further improvements to the program. In the first round of this study, an ad hoc committee prepared a series of reports from 2004 to 2009 on the SBIR program at the five agencies responsible for 96 percent of the program's operations-including NASA. In a follow-up to the first round, NASA requested from the Academies an assessment focused on operational questions in order to identify further improvements to the program. Public-private partnerships like SBIR are particularly important since today's knowledge economy is driven in large part by the nation's capacity to innovate. One of the defining features of the U.S. economy is a high level of entrepreneurial activity. Entrepreneurs in the United States see opportunities and are willing and able to assume risk to bring new welfare-enhancing, wealth-generating technologies to the market. Yet, although discoveries in various fields present new opportunities, converting these discoveries into innovations for the market involves substantial challenges. The American capacity for innovation can be strengthened by addressing the challenges faced by entrepreneurs.




An Assessment of the SBIR Program at the Department of Defense


Book Description

The SBIR program allocates 2.5 percent of 11 federal agencies' extramural R&D budgets to fund R&D projects by small businesses, providing approximately $2 billion annually in competitive awards. At the request of Congress, the National Academies conducted a comprehensive study of how the SBIR program has stimulated technological innovation and used small businesses to meet federal research and development needs. Drawing substantially on new data collection, this book examines the SBIR program at the Department of Defense and makes recommendations for improvements. Separate reports will assess the SBIR program at NSF, NIH, DOE, and NASA, respectively, along with a comprehensive report on the entire program.




Revisiting the Department of Defense SBIR Fast Track Initiative


Book Description

In October 1995, the Department of Defense launched a Fast Track initiative to attract new firms and encourage commercialization of Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) funded technologies throughout the department. The goal of the Fast Track initiative is to help close the funding gap that can occur between Phase I and II of the SBIR program. The Fast Track initiative seeks to address the gap by providing expedited review and essentially continuous funding from Phase I to Phase II, as long as applying firms can demonstrate that they have obtained third-party financing for their technology. Another program initiative, Phase II Enhancement, was launched in 1999 to concentrate SBIR funds on those R&D projects most likely to result in viable new products that the Department of Defense and others will buy. The current volume evaluates the two SBIR Program initiatives-Fast Track and Phase II Enhancement-and finds that both programs are effective. Ninety percent of Fast Track and 95 percent of Phase II Enhancement reported satisfaction with their decision. This book identifies the successes and remaining shortcomings of the programs, providing recommendations to address these issues.




SBIR GUIDE: Department of Defense SBIR Phase I Proposal Preparation Manual


Book Description

Newly updated for 2020 DoD SBIR Release! The purpose of this book is to guide you through the DoD SBIR program and make your proposal creation easier, compliant and increase your success probability. My intent is that you will effectively: •Understand the DoD SBIR program •Learn my method for getting solicitation’ topics tailored to the problem you solve •Create a compliant and standout proposal with the aid of real world sample proposal components •Understand the process of contracting•Position your project for a follow-on Phase II contract This book provides a practical, step by step process to get you from a concept to an actual proposal, while arming you with the knowledge needed to successfully execute and position yourself for a Phase II award. The sequential chapters allow one to: 1.Understand the basics of the program and answer the pressing questions you may have, such as: a.Am I eligible? b.What do I give up? c.Who owns the intellectual property? 2.Complete all required entity registrations prior to proposal submission 3.Introduction to the BAA and topic solicitations 4.Present my method for getting a potential solicitation created for your solution 5.Learn about the role and requirements of the principal investigator 6.Detailed and step by step instructions on proposal generation to include requirements, tips, formats and a sample of the sections 7.How to upload your proposal into the DoD SBIR portal 8.Provide our history of contracting so you are better prepared 9.I provide some recommendations on executing your Phase I project to better position your project for Phase II consideration 10.Finally, a glossary to help navigate all relevant acronyms For more information and resources visit us at www.sbirguide.com




Winning Sbir/Sttr Grants


Book Description

This book provides a straightforward, user-friendly approach for preparing a NIH Phase I SBIR/STTR application. The proposal preparation process is spread over a 10-week period, and tasks are completed in a logical progression. The time requirement ranges from 10 to 25 hours per week, leaving sufficient time for other business activities. Dr. Garland draws on her years of SBIR/STTR proposal preparation experience, providing useful tips to ensure your application is highly competitive and that the entire preparation process proceeds smoothly.




Winning SBIR/STTR Grants


Book Description

The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) / Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs provide grant funding to help companies commercialize transformative technologies. Companies that successfully receive Phase I awards are eligible to apply for Phase II grants that can generate over a million dollars to fund product development. This book provides a straightforward, user-friendly approach to preparing a Phase II application for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) SBIR/STTR programs. A 12-week strategy is presented for developing a strong Commercialization Plan, Research Plan, and Other Components that are required for a successful application. In addition, the Review and Award process, as well as post-award considerations, are described. The Eva Garland Consulting team provides deep expertise in developing competitive SBIR/STTR proposals, having successfully assisted clients who have collectively received hundreds of millions of dollars of SBIR/STTR funding.