8-Week Planner

The chart below is meant to provide a guideline for the completion of the many steps involved in an SBIR/STTR grant application. Certain steps will take much longer than others, while others will require more leg work to complete such as gathering required documentation from collaborating partners and securing biosketches from key personnel who may not be employed by the applicant organization. Further, it is essential that applicants allow themselves as much time as possible to work on the Project Narrative and provide an application that is responsive to the FOA.

This schedule was developed with small business organizations in mind that have limited staff and are relatively new to the SBIR/STTR grant application process. We recognized that experienced grant writers or companies with larger staffs, and personnel dedicated to specific areas, may approach this process differently.

	8 week schedule - starts when Funding Opportunity Released
	1 (8/7)	2	3 8/21	4 (8/28)	5	6	7	8	9	10 (10/9)
Download / review FOA	Select FOA
Decide SBIR/STTR	SBIR or STTR
Contact Topic Author		Send email	Follow-up
Locate Service Providers	SBDC, PTAC, Phase 0
Registrations	PAMS	SAM Registration			Grants.gov	SBA
Prepare Project Narrative		Write part	Get feedback	Write more	Get feedback	Write more	Get Feedback	Tweak & add markings	Finalize
Letter of Intent (LOI)		Draft	Get Feedback	Submit LOI
Principal Investigator (PI) role				Role?	Confirm who
Budget			Think about		Start preparing	Keep working	Get Feedback	Finalize
Budget Justification					Staffing $	Facilities $	Get Feedback	Finalize
Employees, subs, consultants					Discuss	Confirm
Required Forms (RI, subs)					Distribute	Follow-up	Secure
NEW ITEM: PIER PLAN					Think about	Reach out	Prepare
Commercialization Plan				Review Example	Draft	Get Feedback	Finalize
Letters of Support				Think about	Reach out	Follow up	Secure
Access Grants.gov workspace					Download forms & start completing	Get feedback as needed	Finalize
Prepare Abstract/Summary						Prepare
Biosketches				Format	Request all	Proof
Full Application due									Submit early?	Application due - Monday
Have questions about FOA?	Reach out to DOE Help Desk as needed; as well as help for Grants.gov and PAMS

Week	Activities - 8 Week Calendar
1	FOA Released Locate appropriate FOA in grants.gov, download, and review for application requirements & specifics Determine type of application: SBIR, STTR, or Both Download & review topics/subtopics document Determine potential topic/subtopic pair Research issuing office - review mission, needs, research, programs Assess ability to successfully respond to topic/subtopic pair Contact Topic Author/Manager if you have questions Consider personnel and/or partnerships required to respond to topic/subtopic pair Begin drafting LOI Download DOE SBIR/STTTR application checklist Begin SAM registration and PAMS registration
2	If STTR application, or working with RI, consortia, or any partnering organizations, begin contacting those organization if known. If you do not have established contacts, review partnering resources. Determine PI and Key/Senior Persons Begin drafting Project Narrative Review PIER Plan requirements and begin formulating PIER Plan Review Commercialization Plan requirements and determine if outside assistance from service provider needed
3	Register in Grants.gov Request letters of commitment/funding/support from RI, consortia, and/or any partnering organizations Finalize senior / key personnel and begin completing biosketches Begin completing Current & Pending Support for PI and key / senior persons Continue drafting Project Narrative Continue to formulate budget If working with a service provider or reviewer, begin providing Project Narrative sections for review as they are completed for comments
4	LOI due Submit LOI in PAMS Begin entering information on the SF424 webform in Grants.gov Finalize biosketches for PI and all senior/key persons Continue drafting Project Narrative Continue to formulate budget Divide time between creative aspects of writing Project Narrative and completing required forms - R & R Senior/Key Person Form, R&R Other Project Information Form, SBIR/STTR Information Form.
5	If partnering with RI or any subcontractors, send subaward budget documents (downloaded from grants.gov application workspace) to RI or representative for completion Continue drafting Project Narrative Continue to formulate budget Begin Budget Justification Form Determine data management plan; if working with an RI, ensure that there is agreement on how/if data is to be shared
6	Verify SAM registration complete Register as SBC on SBIR.gov Continue drafting Project Narrative Continue to formulate budget Divide time between creative aspects of writing Project Narrative and completing required forms - R & R Senior/Key Person Form, R&R Other Project Information Form, SBIR/STTR Information Form. Complete Level of Effort and Max Funding spreadsheet Review DOE application checklist to ensure all required forms have been completed
7	Non-responsive feedback, if any, issue If you receive non-responsive feedback, review, address the comments, and determine next steps Begin finalizing Project Narrative Begin finalizing Budget Review subaward budgets (if any) from RI and/or subcontractors Finalize PIER Plan Finalize Commercialization Plan Finalize Budget Justification Form
8	Review Project Narrative for necessary edits and/or adjustments Review Budget for any errors or inconsistencies Review Budget Justification to ensure consistency with Budget Review DOE checklist to ensure all necessary forms completed
9	Submit application

Page tree

8-Week Planner