ConnecTech, a relatively new office within D.C.'s Department of Small and Local Business Development, has a new manager. Phil Reeves was hired this spring to help startups and small tech firms navigate opportunities with the Small Business Innovation and Research (SBIR) and the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs.
"The whole goal is to take tech out of the lab and into the marketplace," explains Reeves.
SBIR is a three-phase program that outsources research and development to small businesses. The federal program has been in existence since the late 1970s; small businesses apply to and are chosen by 11 different government agencies from the Department of Agriculture to DoD to NASA. Each agency maintains its own program guidelines and deadlines, but typically a phase one company is awarded up to $150,000 over the course of six months to conduct feasibility studies, do lab work or create prototypes. Phase two companies are eligible for more funding (up to $1 million) and a longer timeframe (two years) during which they can "build a commercialization plan, scale and get ready for production." By phase three, companies typically work directly with the agency.
The STTR is also a three-phase program with an additional research-based component. Small businesses looking for funding through STTR should be prepared to partner with a university or large research institution. Funding through STTR is often contingent upon having a lead researcher on the small business or startup team. And that's where ConnecTech can play a key role.
"We can help startups find that university partner to round out their teams," he explains. ConnecTech can also assist startups and small businesses with identifying topics that might garner them attention in the SBIR and STTR programs, reviewing materials and so forth. "If you bring the tech, we'll help with the business," Reeves says.
Reeves says D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray gave ConnecTech a letter of support when the agency launched in early 2013. "[The agency] is part of his strategy to make [D.C.] the largest tech sector on the East Coast."