GovCon Incubator Will Help Write Proposals and Train Small Businesses for Maryland Technology Development Corporation's (TEDCO) New U.S. SBA Grant
OST Global Solutions Will Help Women-Owned, Disadvantaged, Rural Companies in Federal R&D Contracts Market
ROCKVILLE, Md., Oct. 9, 2018 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The GovCon Incubator of OST Global Solutions, Inc. (OST), a woman-owned small business, will help small businesses win government seed capital through a new U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Federal and State Technology (FAST) grant won by the Maryland Technology Development Corporation (TEDCO). The other grant team members are the Maryland Small Business Development Center (SBDC) and the Eastern Shore Entrepreneurship Center (ESEC).
The SBA grant will fund an innovative SBIR Proposal Lab as part of the SBA's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program. SBIR is a highly competitive government program that provides seed funding to small businesses to develop innovative technologies that have the potential for commercialization. The SBIR award program is funded at more than $2 billion annually.
Providing a special focus on women-owned, disadvantaged, and rural small businesses, the new SBIR Proposal Lab's ultimate goal is to improve proposal quality and submission rates for government contracts while building long-term capacity to win government and commercial bids.
The SBIR Proposal Lab's goal is to at least double the success rate of the SBIR applications (from the 16 percent national average to 32 percent) through an innovative alternative to funding training workshops and providing proposal consulting as stand-alone initiatives.
The SBIR Proposal Lab combines SBA's tutorials, best-in-industry proposal training, mentoring, proposal reviews, and hands-on guidance throughout the process of developing and submitting NOAA and DOD SBIR proposals. A cohort of as many as 30 companies will be selected to participate in the SBIR Proposal Lab from the SBIR solicitation issuance through proposal submission.
Team TEDCO will conduct workshops simultaneously from two locations (Rockville and Salisbury, MD) using communications technology and connecting participants via a series of portals. The SBIR Proposal Lab will culminate in the cohort's proposal submissions and subsequent advisory services for awardees.
The Lab will not only help companies succeed in obtaining SBIR dollars but also help create a government proposal development skillset that will transform their small businesses in the long term.
"Sharply Focused" on Women-Owned, Disadvantaged and Rural Businesses
"The TEDCO SBIR Proposal Lab focuses on women-owned, disadvantaged, and rural businesses that have not previously won an SBIR," said Ronald W. Kaese, TEDCO's Director, Federal Programs. "This fits very well with what TEDCO is doing with its Pre-Seed Builder Fund for women-owned and disadvantaged businesses and the Rural Business Pre-Seed Fund."
"Our GovCon Incubator is all about giving voice to small businesses where it comes to winning government contracts, and the SBIR Proposal Lab is in line with our mission – and sharply focused on disadvantaged businesses that normally don't get as many chances to play in the R&D arena," explained Olessia Smotrova, President and CEO of OST Global Solutions, Inc.
For more information on the new SBIR Proposal Lab and to participate, please visit here.
About Team TEDCO
TEDCO provides resources and connections that early-stage technology and life sciences companies need to thrive in Maryland. TEDCO's mission is to discover, invest in, and help build great companies. The GovCon Incubator, run by OST Global Solutions, Inc. (OST), a Maryland woman-owned small business (WOSB). OST Global Solutions is a thought leader in government business development, specialized in winning highly competitive proposals and offering 50+ courses in every aspect of capture and proposal development. The Maryland Small Business Development Center (SBDC) supports small businesses in all five Maryland regions. The Eastern Shore Entrepreneurship Center (ESEC) represents the rural Maryland communities focused on agriculture and aquaculture technologies.
SOURCE OST Global Solutions
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