Title here Bullet point Jane A. Alexander, PhD Technical Consultant Doing R&D Business with the Federal Government

Title here Bullet point Increasing your success rate getting Federal R&D support  Understand your client  Federal agencies have distinctly different characters  Different missions  Different processes  Federal agencies are not charities  Money is appropriated to them for specific purposes  You will be more successful if you can explain why your proposed R&D supports their mission

Title here Bullet point Federal R&D Programs  A program is led by a Program Manager (PM)  A program will have:  Specific Technology Objectives aligned with customer needs which, if achieved, will have a significant operational impact  Plan to move from current level of technical maturity to a higher level (TRLs – Technology Readiness Levels)  A technical approach indicating how the objectives will be achieved  A program structure indicating how the PM has deployed resources (time, money, executors) to achieve the objectives  Deliverables  Transition Strategy/Technology Development Path

Title here Bullet point Federal R&D Process Identify requirements Develop program plan and allocate resources Communicate plans and priorities to technical community Posting Solicitations Solicitation Process – White Papers Submitting proposals Different programs demand different contract vehicles Flexibility used to match mission Programs tailored to meet unique conditions of objectives Active interaction with performers ExecutionContractSolicitationPlanning

Title here Bullet point Creative Tension with the Program Manager PM wants to leverage existing technology, others’ R&D investment and market pull PM wants the intellectual property strategy aligned with transition plan, but will negotiate usually PM’s job is to manage technical and programmatic risk and WANTS YOU TO SUCCEED The PM is a resource for you in accomplishing the R&D and in transitioning to the government customer

Title here Bullet point Mechanics of Proposing R&D  Find agencies with closest mission match  Identify R&D element(s) within the agencies  Look for existing R&D solicitations (Money already exists for these efforts!)  Do your homework (read website, workshop results, and any presentations on your target program solicitation)  Respond to solicitation carefully – meet all administrative requirements and make sure your R&D matches the stated program needs  If no solicitation, contact R&D PM. Explain relevance to his/her mission. Be patient. Be persistent.

Title here Bullet point Contracting Vehicles  The Government has a range of contracting vehicles to match programmatic needs and contractor character.  Grants  Contracts  Cooperative agreements  Other Transactions for Research or Prototypes  Allows government to deal with non-traditional contractors who have desirable technologies, but do not want to keep “Government books”  Must comply with “generally acceptable accounting principles”