Not ready for Angel Funding? Perhaps a Federal Technology Development Grant is the answer!
A company at the seed stage may be considered too risky for Angel Investing. In that case consider some Federal Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program funding.
THE SBIR PROGRAM
A Funding Option with No Equity and No Debt!
Are you an executive of a small business? Are you frustrated with the difficulty of finding funding (and no-strings at that!) for your company's research and development? The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program may be the answer for you!
The Federal Government must spend over $2 Billion on small business technology development during the next fiscal year. This money is earmarked for the research and development of technology all the way from concept to prototype to commercialization.
The SBIR Coach (http://www.SBIRcoach.com) will work with you to help you successfully compete for a share of this no-strings money. In his more than seventeen years of experience with the SBIR program, Fred has been a co-founder of two Texas companies which derived almost all of their early-stage revenues from SBIR -- together totaling over $50 million. All in all, from his companies and his dozens of clients, he has been involved with well over 800 proposal submissions, of which approximately 50 have been Phase IIs. In terms of funded proposals -- the number is over 200, with over 35 Phase II wins. His Phase III commercialization funding exceeds $18 million.
Eleven Federal agencies publish open solicitations for small businesses to submit proposals to solve technology-based problems. The Federal agencies include the Departments of Defense, Health & Human Services, Energy, Transportation, Education, Commerce, Homeland Security, and Agriculture, as well as the National Science Foundation, the EPA and NASA. Each small business may receive close to $850,000 for a specific project, though awards of $2 million or more are not unheard of.
The SBIR program is extremely competitive. On average, only 15% of the submitted Phase I proposals are funded (odds may be as high as 1 in 3 for some agencies, lower for others). What about the 85% that are not funded? It's not because the ideas or technologies were without merit. On the contrary, it's more likely that the applicants did not articulate their proposed solutions clearly enough to compete successfully with those who did.
As your SBIR Coach, we will guide you in the process of producing well-written winning proposals, and will ensure that your experience with the SBIR Program is hassle-free.
Fred Patterson, President
The Commercialization Funding Coach, Inc.
(Doing business as “The SBIR Coach”)
Austin , Texas
Phone: 512-560-3993
Website: http://www.SBIRcoach.com
Fred Patterson has been involved with guiding companies through technology development into commercialization for over forty years, including having worked with the SBIR Program and all of its aspects virtually since its inception.
As a co-founder and executive officer of two of Texas’ most successful SBIR award winning companies (SPEC and Radiant Photonics), he has been involved in the execution of over 150 SBIR and STTR contracts and grants, one third of those Phase II programs, totaling nearly $50 million, and led efforts which secured Phase III commercialization funding in excess of $25 million.
Currently enjoying a well-recognized nationwide consulting practice as “The SBIR Coach”, Fred teaches his dozens of client companies the SBIR “ropes” and guides them in the process of producing clearly articulated and reviewer-focused proposals, effectively doubling their chances of obtaining funding. He then guides his clients through successful execution of the resulting contract or grant, and coaches them in the process of ensuring follow-on funding from Phases II and III.
In addition to SBIR and other Federal government sponsored funding programs, Fred also works with several State sponsored technology accelerator initiatives, including the Texas Emerging Technology Fund (as “The ETF Coach”), Virginia’s Center for Innovative Technology (CIT), and international groups such as The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE). Fred’s company also works with many Angel, Venture Capital, and other private sector investment sources to continually refine its trademarked “Funding Readiness Level (FRL) TM” index (a combination of Technology Readiness, Business Readiness, and Dealsmanship TM) that the company uses to help its clients prepare for the challenges of seeking, securing, and managing funding for commercialization and growth.
Fred holds a BS in Mathematics from Clarkson University, and an MS in Computer Science from the University of Wisconsin. He has been Director of Planning for a Fortune 500 Aerospace company, and held just about every “CXO” position there is at several technology start-up companies. He has also been Adjunct Faculty at four universities, including having taught in the MBA Program at St. Edward's University in Austin, Texas, where he currently resides. |
