The foundation for high-quality SBIR proposals is technical excellence. The proposed innovation and the research/work plan both must reflect rigorous scientific principals and approaches. The credentials of the proposed work team should meet high standards of technical excellence.
Technical excellence generally is a necessary condition for a proposal to score well in the evaluation and selection process. Other characteristics of high-quality proposals will not bail out an inadequate technical presentation.
How can technical excellence be insured in a proposal? Make sure the proposal team is complete - both for the proposal preparation and for the proposed work. Consultants and subcontractors frequently are key to establishing a complete team. University resources play a key role in shoring up the technical excellence of SBIR proposals, especially in rural states.
Include multiple critical review and rework cycles in the proposal preparation process. Discriminating team members can play a vital role in the critical review process to identify technical weaknesses, and to help them shore up these weaknesses in the proposal rework process. Four to six of these rigorous critical review periods (each about one week long) are key to a high-quality proposal.
The critical proposal review cycles cited above commonly identify needs for additional team members, modifications to the innovative concepts, and different work plan approaches. It takes time to make these adjustments in the proposal to achieve technical excellence. Therefore, significant time must be allocated to the critical proposal review and rework process.
Establish technical excellence in the SBIR proposal - it is the foundation for a winning proposal.
