Small Business Innovation Research Articles

Small Business Innovation Research Program Phase I (USDA)

Federal Grants & ContractsVolume 45, Issue 21 p. 8-8 Grants alerts Small Business Innovation Research Program Phase I (USDA) First published: 04 October 2021 https://doi.org/10.1002/fgc.31991Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Volume45, Issue217 October 2021Pages 8-8 RelatedInformation

ІННОВАЦІЙНЕ ПІДПРИЄМНИЦТВО В УМОВАХ ОБМЕЖЕНЬ І КРИЗИ

The report of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WJPO) for 2020 statistically confirms the connection between the global financial crises and falling spending on research and development. The purpose of this article is to systematize and content analysis of financial and information-cognitive limitations of the emergence and formation of innovative small businesses in crisis and post-crisis periods. The study shows that, first, the investment of the business sector in research and development is more stable than in government agencies. This is due to the fact that during the crisis the state is forced to expand the general support of the population and the most affected part of the business, including small businesses. Second, investment in research and development and innovation are the basis for further economic recovery and growth. Third, before the COVID-19 pandemic, the global economy had not yet fully recovered from the 2008 financial crisis. This affects the innovative activity of small businesses. In the face of ongoing crises, small innovative enterprises face different types of constraints and barriers. In particular, it is the reduction of venture capital and the share of the state in the financing of research and development, as well as the transfer of knowledge on high-tech technologies. The government’s solution to the problem with the help of industrial parks requires a more detailed technological foresight analysis. In developed countries, in addition to the expert opinions of the scientific, business and political communities, the population is encouraged, taking into account their views on technology prospects and the state of the environment. Accordingly, sufficient technological literacy and cognitive ability of the population is assumed. Technological literacy of entrepreneurs who are going to use high-tech and especially breakthrough technologies must be above the amateur level. In the future, it is planned to conduct a content analysis of existing technological foresight forecasts.

Mapping the “Valley of Death”: Managing Selection and Technology Advancement in NASA's Small Business Innovation Research Program

In this paper, we determine the risk mitigation process inherent in managing a portfolio of technologies diverse in both their readiness for infusion and the nature of the performing organization, focusing on the so-called “valley of death” in which the technology's principles have been proven but prototypes have yet to be developed. Using the Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) of projects funded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Small Business Innovation Research program, a two-stage competitive process, we find that the result of selection of the first round is a tendency toward larger companies. In the second round of funding, technology maturity is a stronger determinant of selection and company headcount is no longer a statistically significant driver. This combination allows the program to manage risk and deliver real technical advancement from even the smallest companies. We find that technologies typically advance from TRL 2, concept formulation, at the program's outset to roughly TRL 5, component validation, at the program's conclusion; these outcomes precede economic benefits from the subsidy. These findings illuminate a mechanism to address risk as well as demonstrating the technical outcomes of a managed early-stage technology program.

Development of small innovative business in the Russian economy

The article is devoted to small entrepreneurship in the scientific and technical sphere, despite the recognition of its right to state support, it has a significant difference from scientific and technical and the so-called earlier implementation activities characteristic of the period preceding economic reforms. A significant place in the article is given to the development of mathematical modeling in the system of innovative entrepreneurship in modern crisis conditions. Adaptability and flexibility are considered as the most important indicators of the efficiency of structures, their ability to ensure sustainable operation and effective innovative development of small businesses. The issues of scientific, technical and innovative activities in small business and in the public sector of the economy on the conjugation of adaptability and flexibility are considered. A number of modern techniques related to the development of mathematical modeling of the development of small enterprises in innovative activities in a crisis are analyzed. The necessity of mathematical modeling as the main factor in the implementation of financial support for small business in innovation, for which conventional methods are unacceptable, has been substantiated. The proposed approach should be considered as a guideline when assessing the mechanism for allocating funds from the budget for the development of small business in innovation.

On the State of Innovative Activities of Small Enterprises in Russia

The purpose of the article is to analyze some aspects of the state of innovation in Russia, including the state of small innovative business, venture capital financing startups, the dynamics of the creation of business entities by universities and research institutes. The facts of an extremely small number of small innovative enterprises created by universities and research institutes were recorded, as well as a low level of innovative activity of small enterprises over the entire period of statistical observations, a long-term dynamics of a decrease in the share of innovative goods, works and services in 2019 by almost two times (1.7 times) compared to 2013. The presented data indicate the low effectiveness of the idea of direct copying of the American model of technology commercialization, according to which the main player here should be higher educational institutions, as it has historically developed in the United States. It was concluded that in order to create an effective model of an innovation system consisting of proactive owners of research and development results, venture funds financing startups, universities that undertake the organization of research and development for the subsequent release of results to the market, large firms financing a significant percentage of turnover in R&D, in Russia there were no conditions and, unfortunately, until now there are none. The system needs to be corrected taking into account the real state of the Russian economy.The article analyzes several current competitions for the development of innovative activities held by large companies and administrations of Russian regions and makes proposals for correcting the organization of competitions.

Innovation in Small Businesses: towards an Owner-Centered Approach to Innovation

Abstract Purpose: We aim to understand how small business owners develop innovations. Theoretical framework: We adopt social cognitive theory to understand innovative activities in small businesses. We draw on Schumpeter’s work to understand how owners may develop innovations and how an owner-centered approach to innovation should take form. Design/methodology/approach: We conducted a multiple case study in small businesses from different traditional sectors. We conducted in-depth semi-structured interviews with the participants and we accessed data from social networks such as the Facebook and Instagram fan pages of the businesses. Findings: The results explain what drives business owners towards innovation and what affects the innovation structure of their businesses. These results are expressed through the antecedents of innovation that emerged from the field and may help in explaining the differences between innovative small businesses and non-innovative small businesses. Research Practical & Social implications: We developed an approach designed for studying innovation within the context and reality of small businesses. In order to contribute to the development of innovations in forgotten businesses, we have listed some recommendations for supporting agencies, government bodies, and researchers alike. Originality/value: Small business innovation is influenced by the owner’s propensity to recognize and act on opportunities. Therefore, the owner can guide the innovation activity in a small business and this needs to be considered by researchers.

Development of products and services in small enterprises: proposition of an artifact to discuss creative logics

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to make available an artifact that helps entrepreneurs and managers to recognize the diversity of creative logics centered on resources that are already available to the organization, presenting it as a tool to support the expansion of the product and service portfolio and as an alternative to Research and Development strategies, which are difficult to implement in the context of small businesses.Design/methodology/approachFollowing the precepts of the Action Design Research (ADR) method, researchers and practitioners (teachers and consultants) collaborated in the development of the artifact. Successive versions of the artifact were tested in the field: in classrooms by the teachers and in small companies by the consultants.FindingsIn addition to the artifact itself, which is available on the Internet, the lessons learned from the design process of the artifact were formalized in meta-requirements and meta-designs, in accordance with the precepts of the design theory that served as the foundation of ADR. These meta-specifications facilitate the critical analysis and evolution of the proposed artifact, in addition to the conception and proposition of new artifacts for the same class of problem.Practical implicationsThe dialogical nature of the ADR approach, with the development of the artifact through interactive cycles between design and use, based on the practitioners' experience of using it with the final beneficiaries, resulted in a functional artifact that is simple to use by those interested in discussing product and service innovation with small organizations. The artifact in the form of software is available to all at https://tentypescreation.com.Originality/valueFrom business examples and comparisons with widespread creative tactics, such as copy and invention, eight other creative tactics centered on resources available in the organization are explored by the artifact, providing means for practitioners to discuss alternative ways for managers, entrepreneurs, and future entrepreneurs to face the challenge of product and service innovation in small businesses.

Chern-Hooi Lim

On a Friday evening in 2018, just before a 3-day weekend, Brent Cutcliffe got a text from one of his old badminton players. Chern-Hooi Lim wanted to talk about a business idea. The two met in 2010, when Lim began a PhD in chemical engineering at the University of Colorado Boulder. Cutcliffe coached a local badminton club, and Lim had been playing since childhood. They sometimes talked about business. Cutcliffe was an executive at a cloud-computing start-up. Lim had taken some business classes as an undergraduate and once won third place in a business plan competition. “Sure,” Cutcliffe replied. “When?” Lim wrote back: “Tonight.” They spoke for a few hours. Lim wanted to start a company, and he was chasing a National Science Foundation Small Business Innovation Research Program grant. The deadline was in just 2 weeks, but Cutcliffe agreed to help. A couple of months later, the grant was

PLATFORM TECHNOLOGIES OF FINANCING THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE MARKET OF INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES IN UKRAINE

Topicality. The urgency of the problem of innovation technology development in Ukraine is due to the fact that, despite the high priority and great efforts of Ukraine to develop the innovation technology market, ie digital transformation, innovation and startups, still remain quite low innovation rates, the level of startups, the number of startups and their share in the national economy. From our country the active outflow of highly skilled workforce and the knowledge defining competitiveness of innovative processes and systems, and consequently, potential of development of the market of innovative technologies proceeds. One of the most important factors in this situation is the lack of financial resources in the newly created small innovative business structures (startups). Aim and tasks. The purpose of the article is to identify promising innovative tools for financing small innovative business structures (startups) and study the need for state regulation. Research results. The study allowed to include in the financial component of the business environment investors who support various stages of the life cycle of the innovation project, from the prototype to the initial public offering (IPO); business angels who finance the early stages of an innovation project; sowing funds; crowdfunding communities and platforms; venture funds; banks; institutions providing grants and institutions providing state financial support; large technology companies that finance startups for their own needs. It was found that crowdfunding can be an important area of investing the savings of Ukrainian citizens in startups, because the financial market is almost non-existent, investing in real estate requires large funds, investing in gold is long-term and risky. It was found that, on the one hand, the lack of special regulation of crowdfunding simplifies fundraising, and on the other hand, there are no guarantees for investment, which significantly increases the risks and so risky investing in innovative projects. Therefore, it is necessary to develop and adopt a law that would regulate crowdfunding in Ukraine, which would raise funds for innovative projects under a simplified procedure. The main provisions of this law can be adapted for Ukraine by the provisions of the EU regulation governing crowdfunding platforms, which can be considered as a basis for the development of Ukrainian law, especially in terms of guarantees of investor protection. Conclusion. The study revealed a promising innovative tool for financing small innovative business structures (startups) - crowdfunding (and its kind of crowdfunding). Given that in Ukraine, on the one hand, the lack of special regulation simplifies the collection of financial resources for the implementation of innovative projects, and on the other hand, there are no guarantees for investment, which significantly increases the risks of investing in innovative projects, the EU regulatory framework crowdfunding and proved the need to adapt it to the regulatory framework of Ukraine.

Performance drivers in knowledge-intensive entrepreneurial firms: a multidimensional perspective

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to offer a comprehensive perspective on different facets of knowledge management and their effects on the performance of knowledge-intensive entrepreneurial ventures.Design/methodology/approachThe empirical setting involves small and medium-sized enterprises located in the State of São Paulo, Brazil. Primary data for 223 knowledge-intensive entrepreneurship (KIE) firms was obtained through questionnaires applied to ventures which applied to the innovative research in small business program, a small business innovation research-like initiative run by the São Paulo Research Foundation. Econometric results assessed the drivers of competitiveness in terms of firm growth, research and development intensification and technology transfer.FindingsResults highlight the complexity involved in establishing effective knowledge management processes in terms of driving KIE performance. Notwithstanding, some interesting insights on the moderation effects of strategic knowledge management (SKM) systems over technical skills could be identified with particular emphasis for the case of academic spin-offs. Ecosystem drivers present a good explanation power for technology transfer practices but fall short in providing answers for firm-level growth dynamics. It is also noteworthy that public and private investments in KIE firms are similarly associated with positive impacts – contrary to the view that private investors perform better than governmental sources in picking promising small ventures.Originality/valueThe assessment has provided novel evidence for a sample of KIE ventures concerning the appraisal of performance drivers associated with three dimensions of knowledge management, namely, technical knowledge, SKM and ecosystem features. Firms’ outcomes were addressed from a multidimensional perspective, thus providing a comprehensive perspective of the events under scrutiny.

PROGRAMA AGENTES LOCAIS DE INOVAÇÃO: UM ESTUDO DE CASO DE CARACTERIZAÇÃO E RESULTADOS EM BOA VISTA (RR)

The Local Innovation Agents Program (ALI) is a relevant extension initiative developed in an inter-institutional coordination in order to promote innovation in small Brazilian businesses through the operationalization of the Brazilian Micro and Small Business Support Service (SEBRAE) and funding from the National Council Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq). Structured through a case study with the application of a semi-structured survey to a sample of 25 small companies in a universe of 40 in the data collection, combined with a graphic analysis and an administrative hermeneutics in the data analysis, this research has an exploratory and descriptive nature regarding to the purposes and quali-quantitative nature regarding the means. Based on the results presented it is concluded that the implementation of the Local Innovation Agents Program (ALI) has had positive indicators in the promotion of innovation in local small business in the municipality of Boa Vista in Roraima as well as shared by the perception of the businessmen served.

Investor initiatives program: Public-private partnerships to expedite commercialization for NCI-funded small business entrepreneurs.

The National Cancer Institute’s Small Business Innovation Research Development Center (NCI SBIR) provides federal research and development funding and commercialization resources to more than 400 small businesses each year developing novel technologies to prevent, diagnose, and treat cancer. Although federal funding is vital for life science startups at the early stage of development, it is often insufficient to translate the technology from discovery to commercial product. Early‐stage startups must connect to follow‐on capital and resources to bring NCI‐funded technologies to patients. Most startups face challenges in securing additional funding due to lack of access to investors and strategic partners and the ability to effectively pitch their technology. In 2015, the NCI SBIR started the Investor Initiatives program to connect funded small businesses with targeted investors and strategic partners to address the aforementioned obstacles. This program leverages an extensive network of investors and partners to conduct business‐focused reviews and provide pitch coaching. The program incentivizes earlier collaborations between NCI‐funded companies and private investors through various channels. The program has supported 117 companies from years 2016–2019 to attend 27 investor showcase events. Follow‐up surveys show that the program and the assistance offered by NCI SBIR have contributed to a total of 32 completed deals as of April 29, 2020. This paper will discuss the Investor Initiatives program and its outcomes from 2016 to 2019 and demonstrate the effectiveness of a federal program that leverages public‐private partnerships to assist portfolio companies with raising follow‐on funding to accelerate the translation of research into clinical practice.

National Cancer Institute support for targeted alpha-emitter therapy.

Radiopharmaceutical targeted therapy (RPT) has been studied for decades; however, recent clinical trials demonstrating efficacy have helped renewed interest in the modality. This article reviews National Cancer Institute (NCI)'s support of RPT through communication via workshops and interest groups, through funding extramural programs in academia and small business, and through intramural research, including preclinical and clinical studies. NCI has co-organized workshops and organized interest groups on RPT and RPT dosimetry to encourage the community and facilitate rigorous preclinical and clinical studies. NCI has been supporting RPT research through various mechanisms. Research has been funded through peer-reviewed NCI Research and Program Grants (RPG) and NCI Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Development Center, which funds small business-initiated projects, some of which have led to clinical trials. The NCI Cancer Therapy Evaluation Program (CTEP)'s Radiopharmaceutical Development Initiative supports RPT in NCI-funded clinical trials, including Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core (IROC) expertise in imaging QA and dosimetry procedures. Preclinical targeted a-emitter therapy (TAT) research at the NCI's intramural program is ongoing, building on foundational work dating back to the 1980s. Ongoing "bench-to-bedside" efforts leverage the unique infrastructure of the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) Clinical Center. Given the great potential of RPT, our goal is to continue to encourage its development that will generate the high-quality evidence needed to bring this multidisciplinary treatment to patients.

National Institute on Aging seed funding enables Alzheimer's disease startups to reach key value inflection points.

IntroductionThe National Institute on Aging (NIA) provides funding to academic researchers and small businesses working in the Alzheimer's Disease (AD) and AD‐related dementia (ADRD) fields to help commercialize their products. The NIA uses Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) awards to bridge the funding gap in the diagnostic, therapeutic, and care interventions areas, enabling startups to reach key value inflection points to achieve scientific milestones.MethodsOnly publicly available information is reported. The National Institutes of Health Report Portfolio Online Reporting Tool database and the commercial database Global Data, were used to track the progress of companies that received SBIR or Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) funding from the NIA.ResultsSince 2008, the NIA has awarded $280 million—including $207 million from fiscal year (FY) 2015 to FY 2019—in new small business program awards for AD/ADRD research.DiscussionNIA seed capital and mentoring programs are critical resources to help small businesses reach key value inflection points and advance their research from concept to commercialization.

Research Subsidy Spillovers, Two Ways

We study how the outputs of research spill over technological and geographic space in the context of the U.S. Small Business Innovation Research program. We infer input-output links using text analyses and identify the marginal costs of producing patents using noncompetitive grant matching policies. Due to technological spillovers, the costs of spurring specific types of patents are substantially larger than the costs of spurring any patent. Due to geographic spillovers, roughly 80% of the patents generated by the program are from inventors who never participate in the program. The cost effectiveness of research subsidies crucially depends on which outputs count.

The Urban–Rural Divide: The Effects of the Small Business Innovation Research Program in Small and Nonmetro Counties

This study assesses the efficacy of the Small Business Innovation Research Program on innovation, employment, and business formation in small and nonmetropolitan counties. The primary goal is to further understand rural innovation and growth process through government intervention on small business development. Using panel data and employing fixed-effect models, the results suggest that, compared with large metropolitan counties, the Small Business Innovation Research Program may not be an effective program to generate employment and entrepreneurship opportunities in small and nonmetropolitan regions, but it could be a viable source to improve rural innovation outcome. The geographical effects of the program are heterogeneous across implementation years and award agencies. This study contributes to the innovation policy agenda in small and nonmetropolitan regions, which is an important and emerging topic in the field.

Inappropriateness Penalty, Desirability Premium: What Do More Certifications Actually Signal?

Prevailing theory argues that more certifications increase performance. However, emerging empirical evidence implies that obtaining more certifications may actually decrease performance. How do we reconcile this tension? Practically speaking, why would ventures seek additional certifications in light of these recently identified risks? To address this gap between existing theory and recent empirics, we look more closely at ventures’ activities and performance outcomes after they receive their first certification. We posit that different patterns of certification reflect different forms of experimentation. In particular, ventures may be willing to experiment in ways that incur an inappropriateness penalty for the chance to gain a subsequent desirability premium if their experiments succeed. Inappropriateness means that certifications signal divergence from accepted market norms and standards. Desirability means that certifications signal activities that are in the perceived self-interest of the potential audience. We hypothesize that certifications reflecting broad experimentation incur initial inappropriateness penalties, yet when successful, they are more likely to lead to breakthroughs that generate desirability premia. We find support for this idea through an empirical analysis drawing from a sample of 7,440 U.S. ventures that receive one or more Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) or Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) grants to commercialize new technologies. This study advances institutional theory of certification to better account not only for its benefits but also for its costs.

Innovation in the “forgotten businesses”

PurposeThe objective of this article is to discuss how the research on innovation in the small businesses may be operationalized. This paper discusses the field's concepts, typologies, units of analysis and the general basic assumptions pertaining to the operationalization of innovation research in small businesses.Design/methodology/approachThe article is an essay, whose format aims to provide the reader with reflections and multiple questions, by instigating the free thinking, the research as well as the construction of different ideas and/or perceptions in a logical and scientific way (Meneghetti, 2011). Thus, a conceptual approach for the operationalization of the innovation research in small businesses is proposed and discussed.FindingsMost of the innovation literature has ignored the small businesses, so that its core concepts and basic assumptions should be reviewed in an inclusive approach. The authors developed an analytical proposal that consists of a four-step logical approach to researching innovation in small businesses, starting from the innovation's concept as something important and then evolving to discussing how one has to try and see the small business as an object of study.Originality/valueThe value of this paper lies with the attempt to critically bring the small businesses into the spotlight, as study them has practical and theoretical implications that go beyond the field of innovation itself.

Examining the Relationship between the Economic Performance of Technology-Based Small Suppliers and Socially Sustainable Procurement

Sustainable public procurement plays an important role in addressing not only environmental but also economic and social issues through government acquisitions from technology-based small suppliers. In this context, the objective of this study is to better understand the holistic public procurement process by assessing the operational efficiency of technology-based small suppliers and associating the economic aspect of public procurement with the social aspect, such as women-owned businesses. To this end, we analyzed U.S. Department of Defense Small Business Innovation Research grantees by combining network data envelopment analysis with bootstrap truncated regression analysis. Drawing on the analysis results, we found that (1) there is heterogeneity in the performance of research and development, network building, and commercialization sub-processes, and (2) there is a positive relationship between the overall performance and women-owned small suppliers who excel particularly in network building. The former implies that small suppliers may have different expertise in the chain of public procurement; the latter suggests that woman entrepreneurs with a business network may be able to outperform their counterparts in the public procurement market.

Is SBIR a Government Venture Fund?

The federal government's well-known Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program funds small businesses that are developing and commercializing innovative new technology. It is commonly regarded as a "government venture fund." This label is unfortunate. Within the U.S., it has caused the SBIR program to be criticized both for competing with private ven- ture capital funds (VCs) and for wasting scarce taxpayer resources on small businesses that, according to some detractors, are not as successful at generating innovation as venture capital (VC)-backed companies. These criticisms divert attention from SBIR program successes, generate unnecessary drama during congressional SBIR reauthorization debates, and sideline important opportunities to improve the SBIR program. Outside the U.S., the "government venture fund" concept disguises the very real differences between the SBIR program and VCs, potentially undermining the effectiveness of government initiatives to promote innovation. There are actually few similarities between the SBIR program and VCs—aside from the fact that both provide comparable amounts of seed-stage funding to small technology firms. As a matter of public policy, it needs to be clearly understood that the SBIR program is not a government venture fund, does not compete with VCs, and has objectives of national economic and soci- etal importance that do not conflict with those of private-sector investors. This paper begins by comparing the number and size of SBIR and VC seed-stage investments in the U.S. Then it contrasts their very different objectives, company selection criteria, staging of investments, obligations imposed on recipient companies, and metrics used to measure success.