Skip to main content

Project Description Instructions

A. Phase I

Project Description [10 pages MINIMUM; 15 pages MAXIMUM]. The project description is the core of the proposal document. Ensure that the following headers are used: “Intellectual Merits,” “Company/Team,” Broader Impacts,” and “Commercialization Potential.” Questions under each header are provided for your understanding in preparing this document, but it is not required that every question be explicitly (or even implicitly) addressed. Every proposal story is different, and it is up to the proposer to provide a convincing/compelling case for an award recommendation.

Intellectual Merit (recommend 7-10 pages, including the technical solution and Research and Development (R&D plan):

  • What is (are) the proposed technical innovation(s)? What is the new scientific/engineering insight that underpins it? (Provide a description of the innovation, including the novel scientific/engineering aspects that enable the realization of the final product.)
  • What are the technical risks/barriers, and how does the proposal address them? What are the go/no-go technical risks/barriers that are unique to your approach and could prevent the innovation from achieving the impact the team intends it to make?
  • Please provide a detailed R&D plan, including a timeline, milestones, risk mitigation and quantitative success criteria. The detailed R&D plan should convey to the reader that the team has subject area mastery of the relevant technical details and show that significant planning has been done to maximize the chance of technical success in Phase I. An R&D plan that consists simply of a generic set of tasks and goals, without giving a substantial perspective and understanding that is unique to this particular effort, may result in the proposal being returned without review.
  • Explain the significance of the Phase I milestones and how they relate to the commercial objectives of the technology.

Company/Team (recommend 1-2 pages):

  • Provide the date when the company was founded and describe the revenue history, if any, for the past three years. Include and explicitly state government funding and private investment in this discussion.
  • Describe the company founders or key participants in this proposed project. What level of effort will these people devote to the proposed Phase I activities? How does the background and experience of the team enhance the credibility of the effort? Describe the company’s core competencies as related to this project, especially for aspects that are not obvious from other documents contained in the proposal. Give evidence that the core company team is committed to building a viable business around the product/service being developed. If your proposal includes consultants or advisors outside the budgeted company personnel, please discuss it briefly.
  • If the company has existing operations, describe how the proposed effort would fit into these activities. Describe your vision for the company and the company’s expected impact over the next five years.

Broader Impacts (recommend 1-2 pages):

  • What is the motivation for the company to take on this project?
  • Clearly articulate how the proposed technology will result in a societal benefit. Which communities will benefit and on what timeline?
  • How will the societal benefits be measured and tracked?
  • What steps are being taken to recognize and minimize any unintended consequences of the proposed technology?

Commercialization Potential (recommend 1-3 pages):

  • Is there a compelling potential business model?
  • What is your initial target market and its size? How have you validated that this market needs your technology?
  • Provide a detailed plan on your pathway to generate revenue and to become a self-sustaining entity. Present a compelling case that the project will significantly advance the readiness of the technology and strengthen its commercial position.
  • Describe the value proposition of the proposed technology.
  • Describe your plans to address regulatory (including permitting) or safety standards and ethical considerations involved in developing your technology and bringing your product or service to market.
  • Describe your intellectual property strategy and provide a brief rationale for why you chose this strategy.
  • Provide a detailed description of the competitive landscape and your sustainable competitive advantage.

Note: The incorporation of URLs or websites within the Project Description is not acceptable, and the proposal may be returned without review.

B. Phase II

Project Description [10 pages MINIMUM; 15 pages MAXIMUM]. The project description is the core of the proposal document. Ensure that the following headers are used: “Results of the Phase I Project,” “Technical Objectives, Approach and Work Plan,” and “Broader Impacts.” Upload as a single PDF file.

Results of the Phase I Project. [One page minimum, four pages maximum]: Briefly describe how your Phase I effort has established the feasibility of the innovation, provided justification for U.S. National Science Foundation support and intended commercial applications, and demonstrated the ability of the proposer to conduct R/R&D.

Technical Objectives, Approach and Work Plan. [Seven pages minimum, ten pages maximum]: Define the specific technical objectives of the Phase II research and technical approach to meet these objectives, a work plan defining specific tasks, performance schedules, milestones and deliverables. Proposals with subawards should specifically address the amount and type of work to be performed both by the small business concern and by the research institution and describe the necessary cooperation, coordination and complementarity.

Broader Impacts [One page minimum, four pages maximum]. Describe how the proposed product or service offers the potential for broader societal impacts as well as economic benefit (through commercialization under a sustainable business model). Examples of such outcomes may include (but are not limited to) those found in the “American Innovation and Competitiveness Act” (P.L. 114-329, Section 102) Broader Impacts Review Criterion. Recommended length for this section is 1-4 pages.

Discuss the envisioned broader impacts and the specific implementation plan, including: the relevant metrics and measurement plan; potential partners to enhance the likelihood of success (including an assessment of the value proposition to the partner, their reasons for engaging in this project, and a summary of the engagement to date); potential risks and associated mitigation strategies; and additional anticipated needs for resources and the plan to secure them.

Note: The incorporation of URLs or websites within the Project Description is not permitted.

C. Fast-Track

Project Description [10 pages MINIMUM; 16 pages MAXIMUM]. The project description is the core of the proposal document. Ensure that each of the headers listed below is used. Questions under each header are provided for your understanding in preparing this document, but it is not required that every question be explicitly (or even implicitly) addressed. Every proposal story is different, and it is up to the proposer to provide a convincing/compelling case for a funding recommendation.

Fast-Track Phase I R&D Plan — four pages MAXIMUM; duration between six months and 12 months (specified by the proposing small business).

  • Succinctly describe the proposed technical innovation, highlighting those aspects that are innovative and transformative relative to the current state of the art. Describe the innovation in sufficient technical detail for a knowledgeable reviewer to understand why it is innovative and how it can provide benefits in the target applications.
  • Describe the primary technical risks associated with developing the proposed innovation and the key technical objectives to be accomplished during Phase I, clearly explaining why these technical objectives are commercially relevant.
  • Provide an R&D plan to achieve the key Phase I technical objectives, along with a corresponding timeline. The R&D plan must leverage fundamental science or engineering research and techniques. Associated with this R&D plan, provide a set of clear, quantitative Phase I technical performance targets. Note that these performance targets, if met, must be sufficient to establish or strongly suggest the technical viability of the proposed technology, although it is recognized that substantial further development work will likely be needed to generate a commercial product or service.
  • If the project involves subawards, explain why the subawardee(s) is(are) appropriate partners and describe the intended outcomes of the subawards.

Fast-Track Phase II R&D Plan – five pages MAXIMUM; duration between 18 months and 24 months (specified by the proposing small business).

  • Describe the technical performance metrics that you will need to achieve in order to develop (i) a minimum viable product or service, and (ii) a first-generation commercial-grade product or service. Describe the intended technical outcomes of the Phase II component of the project in terms of these two stages of development, clearly explaining how far you plan to progress towards a commercial solution during Phase II.
  • Describe the major non-commercial hurdles that will need to be overcome to achieve the above Phase II technical outcomes.
  • Provide a detailed R&D plan to transition the Phase I results into the intended Phase II technical outcomes described above, along with a corresponding timeline.
  • Clearly describe any security and privacy practices or standards, regulatory requirements or other industry standards or practices that the proposed technology will need to comply with in order to be widely adopted and explain how you will ensure that the technology is compliant.
  • Discuss manufacturing/production, deployment/distribution and technical scalability of the proposed solution.
  • If the project involves subawards, explain why the subawardee(s) is(are) appropriate partners and describe the intended outcomes of the subawards.

Company and Team – one page MAXIMUM.

  • Explain the motivation for the company in proposing this project.
  • Provide a concise description of the relevant qualifications, experience and expertise of the company founders and the Senior/Key Personnel on the proposed project.
  • Describe your vision for the company and the company’s expected impact over the next five years.
  • Describe any existing company operations and explain how the proposed effort would fit into these activities.
  • Provide the revenue and funding history of the company. Include and explicitly indicate any government funding (federal, state or local) and private investment.
  • Describe the expertise and contributions to the project of any consultants that you proposed to engage during the project.
  • Describe how you expect to expand the team going into Phase II and present a rationale for the team changes relative to Phase I. In your response, include a discussion of Phase II team members who will not be supported by NSF funds.

Broader Impacts – one page MAXIMUM.

  • Describe how the proposed product or service offers the potential for broader societal impacts as well as economic benefit (through commercialization under a sustainable business model). Examples of such outcomes may include (but are not limited to) those found in the “American Innovation and Competitiveness Act” (P.L. 114-329, Section 102) Broader Impacts Review Criterion.
  • The NSF Small Business Innovation Research/Small Business Technology Transfer Fast-Track pilot programs fund the development of new, high-risk technology innovations intended to generate positive societal outcomes. Discuss the envisioned broader impacts and the specific implementation plan, including: the relevant metrics and measurement plan; potential partners; potential risks and associated mitigation strategies; and additional anticipated needs for resources and the plan to secure them.

Commercialization Plan – five pages MAXIMUM. The Commercialization Plan is a critical section of the proposal. It is the primary opportunity to describe the strategy that the small business will employ to generate revenue from the proposed innovation research. The Commercialization Plan is the company’s road map and should convey how the company will generate profits from its innovation. It should represent a compelling vision of a unique business opportunity.

  • Describe the target market (including the size and geography of the target market) and initial target customer(s), with examples where possible.
  • Describe results of ongoing customer discovery activities to date. Provide supporting data if possible.
  • Clearly describe the proposed product or service, and how it will be delivered to the target customers.
  • Clearly describe the value proposition.
  • Describe the proposed commercialization and monetization models. Provide a pricing model with supporting evidence.
  • Discuss commercial scalability of the proposed solution.
  • Describe the competition and explain how your company will build a sustainable competitive advantage.
  • Describe the company’s intellectual property strategy and provide a current status.
  • Present a financing plan to bring the company to profitability and explain how you will enact this plan.
  • Provide a five-year pro-forma, with underlying assumptions and supporting evidence for the assumptions. Be sure to include a detailed breakdown of expected revenues, cost of goods sold and company expenses.

Note: The incorporation of URLs or websites within the Project Description is not acceptable, and the proposal may be returned without review.

Return to Preparation and Submission