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From page 47... ... The NSF SBIR Program regularly receives and responds to external advice. It receives external oversight from its Advisory Committee and from its Committee of Visitors (COV) Read the entire page →
From page 48... ... 53 (For more detail, see Section 8.2.) • In 1999, the NSF SBIR program began a commercialization assistance workshop for Phase I awardees, and since 2001, the program has contracted for a Commercialization Planning Assistance program for Phase I awardees using Dawnbreaker, Inc. Read the entire page →
From page 49... ... Resources for program administration and commercialization assistance are inadequate. Program administrative budgets reportedly do not vary with changes in SBIR funding. Read the entire page →
From page 50... ... Moreover, this factor is applied after firms have incurred the cost of submitting a proposal, and several surveyed firms believe that it is applied unevenly among firms. It should be noted that the firms interviewed did not necessarily object to a UNEDITED PROOFS Read the entire page →
From page 52... ... a. Continue to promote Phase IIB awards, refining the tool as experience suggests and raising the number and amount of these awards as third-party funding permits. Read the entire page →
From page 53... ... This means that many UNEDITED PROOFS Read the entire page →
From page 54... ... It is also a very appropriate measure of women and minority participation in the SBIR program. After all, experience as a PI or Co-I on a successful SBIR program may well give a woman or minority scientist or engineer the personal confidence and standing with agency program officers that encourage them to found their own SBIR firms. Read the entire page →
From page 55... ... In order for the SBIR program to be agile and responsive to applicants, performance measures should include how quickly proposal reviews take place and funds are moved to grantee companies. Read the entire page →
From page 56... ... Specifically, remove the limit of four on the number of proposals UNEDITED PROOFS Read the entire page →
From page 57... ... There are three ways that this might be achieved: a. Additional funds might be allocated internally, within the existing NSF budget with reference to the management funding provided for comparable NSF programs, keeping in mind the special requirements of SBIR applications, solicitations, evaluations, selection, monitoring, reporting, outreach, commercialization services, site visits, and other functions related to the normal and effective operation of the program. Read the entire page →
From page 58... ... For the most part, the Departments, Institutes, and Agencies responsible for the SBIR program have not proved willing or able to make additional management funds available. Without direction from Congress, they are unlikely to do so. Read the entire page →
From page 59... ... Foster participation by minority and disadvantaged persons in technological innovations The study also examines the effectiveness of NSF's management of its SBIR program, including resources, topic definition, solicitations, proposal selection, commercialization assistance, and general oversight of the program. 3.2 METHODOLOGY DESIGN This study of the NSF SBIR program and the study's findings and recommendations are based on a research methodology designed by the Committee, approved by an independent panel of experts, and described in more detail in the study's "Methodology Report."56 The study uses multiple methods to allow cross-checking and confirmation of findings that emerge from any single method. Read the entire page →
From page 60... ... Phase I Project Survey.57 The first listed survey was focused on a sample of Phase II NSF SBIR grants. This Phase II survey had 162 respondents. Read the entire page →
From page 64... ... NSF SBIR officials declined having their program managers complete the survey and provided a single response to this survey prepared by the NSF SBIR program's senior advisor, Dr. Joseph Hennessey. Read the entire page →
From page 65... ... 3.3.3 Review of Program Documents and Data Documents of the NSF SBIR program that were reviewed for the study included internal copies of evaluation studies, related data tables and success stories, survey and interview guides, success stories known as "nuggets," annual reports, reports by the Committee of Visitors, staff presentations, program guidelines, solicitation materials, examples of funded projects, and other materials. The NSF SBIR Office provided data on proposals and grants by individual records. Read the entire page →
From page 66... ... Some of the companies are university spin offs; some are company spin-offs; some are neither. Some received many SBIR grants; some UNEDITED PROOFS Read the entire page →
From page 68... ... The program appears to have kept essentially the same philosophy, focus, and features of the original NSF initiative. Then and now, the NSF SBIR program's emphasis on promoting small business and entrepreneurial research differs from that of the rest of the agency, which focuses on the support of academic research. Read the entire page →
From page 69... ... Coryell, NSF SBIR Program Staff, October 23, 2003 (Note that Mr. Coryell has since retired) Read the entire page →
From page 70... ... To provide a real counterpoint, the new program would target small companies and stress commercialization while also promoting innovation and high quality research.63 These dual goals were considered completely compatible by the developers of the original SBIR program.64 The NSF SBIR program's emphasis on commercialization, then and now, contrasts strongly with NSF's otherwise strong orientation towards funding academic research as a means of contributing to the nation's science and technical knowledge base. 4.2 NSF SBIR DEMOGRAPHICS This section uses data tables and graphs to provide an overview of the NSF SBIR program in terms of number of proposals received and the number and dollar amounts of grants made. Read the entire page →
From page 71... ... The NSF SBIR program essentially holds back what could otherwise be part of Phase II funding, and grants it as a supplement to those Phase II grantees who show evidence of commercialization potential as indicated by their ability to attract third-party funding. To receive supplementary funding under the Phase IIB grant, the grantee must have completed one year of work on the initial Phase II grant (or receive special permission from the NSF SBIR Program Officer) Read the entire page →
From page 72... ... (For additional discussion of the Phase IIB/IIB+ supplement, see Section 8.5.) 4.2.2 Annual Dollar Outlays and Number of Grants As explained above, grants and associated dollar outlays are made by the NSF SBIR program office through three funding tools: Phase I, Phase II, and Phase IIB/IIB+ grants. Read the entire page →
From page 73... ... Phase I Grants: Figure 4.2-1 shows total NSF funding for Phase I SBIR grants from 1992 through 2005. Two jumps in funding for Phase 1 grants are apparent: from 1992 to 1994, when $50,000,000 $45,000,000 $40,000,000 $35,000,000 $30,000,000 $25,000,000 $20,000,000 $15,000,000 $10,000,000 $5,000,000 $0 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 19 19 19 19 19 19 19 19 20 20 20 20 20 20 Figure 4.2-1 Annual Outlays for Phase I NSF SBIR Grants, 1992-2005 (current dollars) Read the entire page →
From page 75... ... Phase II Grants: Figure 4.2-3 shows total NSF outlays on Phase II grants (excluding Phase IIB grants) over the same 14 years, 1992-2005. Read the entire page →
From page 76... ... Notes: excludes Phase IIB grants. Figure 4.2-4 combines a bar chart showing the yearly number of Phase II grants and a line chart showing the average size of Phase II grants. Read the entire page →
From page 77... ... * Notes: excludes Phase IIB grants. Read the entire page →
From page 78... ... Source: Developed from data provided by NSF SBIR program. Read the entire page →
From page 79... ... Table 4.2-1 summarizes the number, total dollar amount, average size, and range of Phase IIB grants from 1998 to 2005. In 1998, these supplemental grants averaged about $100,000 the first year, and only four Phase IIB grants were approved. Read the entire page →
From page 80... ... The amount of funding issued under this supplemental program was constrained by the ability of Phase II grantees to obtain firm commitments from third parties for funding. All Grants: Figure 4.2-6 shows the total annual dollar outlays for the NSF SBIR program from 1992 through 2005. Read the entire page →
From page 82... ... In 2005, the number of Phase IIB grants was 21% of 2004 Phase II grants. 66 Note that J Read the entire page →

From page 47...

... The NSF SBIR Program regularly receives and responds to external advice. It receives external oversight from its Advisory Committee and from its Committee of Visitors (COV)