The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program remains the cornerstone of efforts to stimulate technological innovation and to help America’s small businesses compete in the global economy.
SBIR Grant Application Guide will expose you to all you need to know. Read on
This grant caters for early-stage financing for small businesses, universities, and non-profit research organizations. Funding is provided to initiate proof of concept and feasibility studies, which are later converted into full-scale development and production for the product or service.
The US government provides funding to those who wish to develop innovative products, people, or services. The funding is subjected to a peer review process from the private sector and is awarded based on the experimental data that has been produced. This means that SBIR applications are reviewed by industry experts for their potential for success.
The Small Business Innovation Development (SBIR) program was created under the Small Business Innovation Development Act of 1982. This act was initially funded by Congress through the National Defense Authorization Act, and the authorization was reauthorized eventually.
Since its inception in 1982, SBIR has brought over $5 billion in capital to small businesses focused on science and technology innovation. The program was designed for the federal government to work with and fund small businesses in the United States, so that they may make significant contributions to innovation in science and technology, as well as create jobs for the US economy.
Application Process of SBIR funding
1. Get A Lead Researcher:
In order to apply for a grant with the SBIR program, you must have a lead researcher. It is up to you who that person is, it just has to be someone on your team who will be responsible for the day-to-day running of the project.
You should take the time to find a person who can be a good fit for the SBIR program and who has the skills to lead this kind of research. Before you start, take a moment to ask yourself, “Who would be a good fit?”
One way to help you find a lead researcher who is a good fit for the program is to make sure they have the following qualities:
- An understanding of your business and the SBIR program: You want to make sure that your lead researcher is experienced with either your field or with applying for government grants. If you’re applying for a SBIR grant, the lead researcher needs to have knowledge of your industry so they understand the results that you’d expect to get out of this project.
- A team that can deliver: Having a lead researcher who will manage his team members, support the project, and communicate with the government is the most important thing you can do to make sure your SBIR project succeeds. It’s also important that your lead researcher has a good understanding of the research and knows how to communicate the results to the government.
2. Register your company:
One of the first steps to applying for an SBIR grant is to register your business with the government. When you register your business, you’ll have to provide information about your company as well as a DUNS (Data Universal Numbering System) number and your CAGE (Commercial and Government Entity) code. These numbers will allow the government to track your business.
3. Get Your Project Idea:
I’m sure you’ve heard this a hundred times before, but business is all about providing value to your customers. The same goes for your SBIR project. Before you start working on your research or application, you should make sure you have a clear understanding of the problem that your project is trying to solve and how this research will help solve it.
4. Write a proposal:
Once your team has some solid information about your project, you should start thinking about how you’re going to present it. This is one of the less difficult steps of the application process, but it’s important to do it correctly. You don’t want to just drop your proposal on the government and hope they like it.
A good way to think about how to write a proposal is to consider what they will expect from you. Think about what they would like to see and how that relates to your project.
With your lead researcher’s help, put your proposal together and make sure that it includes all the information that the SBIR program needs to make a decision about whether you should be awarded the grant or not.
5. Submit your application:
Once you’re happy with the information in your proposal, you can start to submit it. This is a simple step that should take less than an hour. You will upload your proposal and supporting materials to the government’s website.
Once you have submitted your project, be sure to pay attention to your email. You may receive some instructions from the government on how to complete your application.
6. Review:
Once you have submitted your application, you’ll start to wait for a decision. You should expect this to take up to six months, but it can take longer if the government needs more details from your company like your financial information.
Best Strategies: How to get an SBIR grant
1. Tailor Your Grant Intent Statement:
The most important thing you can do for your SBIR application is to make sure that the application is tailored to the program you’re applying for. The intent statement is a part of your proposal that describes the problem you plan to address, so make sure it’s clearly written and matches the requirements of the program you’re applying for.
2. Use the Correct Proposal Format:
Different agencies have different requirements when it comes to how you should present your application. It’s important that you know what format they’re looking for and present your proposal in that format.
For example, if you’re applying for an Army grant, the proposal has to be five pages or less and include a grant narrative about your project goals.
3. Make Sure Your Budget Is Accurate:
Once you have submitted your application, you’ll start to wait for a decision. You should expect this process to take up to six months, but it can take longer if the government needs more details from your company like financial statements or tax forms.
If you are expecting to get an award, make sure that your budget is accurate and that you have included all the necessary costs of your research. This information will be important when you do your progress reviews since they will want to see how much money they’ll need to reimburse.
4. Stay on Top of Your Progress Reviews:
After you’ve been funding for a while, it can be easy to forget that the government has a review process regularly. Unfortunately, if you fail to do these reviews, you risk losing your funding. A simple way to stay on top of these reviews is to schedule them with your manager so you remember when they’ll be due.
Conclusion
Once you have submitted your application, you can start to wait for a decision. If your SBIR grant application process was fast enough, the SBIR grant can be funded quickly, so in most cases, the government will review your project quickly.
If you are expecting to get an award, make sure that your budget is accurate and that you have included all the necessary costs of your research.
