Teams Win

A former associate in the private sector was widely recognized for leading major proposal teams to winning submissions. At kickoff meetings for these efforts, the associate would say "I have never written a winning proposal." This always drew puzzled responses from team members, and he then would quickly add "but I have been on many winning proposal teams." This technique effectively conveyed his plan AND expectation that the proposal activity at hand would be a team effort.

Winning SBIR proposal teams, like championship athletic teams or highly acclaimed orchestras, must have players at all the positions working together in harmony. "Players" on SBIR proposal teams need to include technologists, businesspersons, writers, critical reviewers and more. One key position left unfilled can have a debilitating impact on the quality of the proposal submitted, and on the chances for capturing a win.

While the need for teamwork in SBIR competition processes may seem obvious, many proposals are compromised for lack of it. Inadequate draft reviews and rework, improper balance between technical and business issues, and insufficient work plan detail, are examples of problems commonly manifested. Causes may include lack of experience, poor proposal schedule management, or egos that get in the way of quality.

Frank Broyles, the former college football coach at the University of Arkansas and elsewhere often quoted a football player who said "It`s amazing what can be accomplished when no one cares who gets the credit." This applies to SBIR proposal teams too.

Complete and harmonious teams have a much better chance of submitting winning SBIR proposals than individuals. Take the team route!!!