R.I. business can benefit from federal grants if state helps

The recent event hosted by Rep. James R. Langevin, D-R.I., and the Rhode Island Small Business Development Center on June 25 at the Johnson & Wales University Culinary Arts Museum to help small businesses was an excellent effort to highlight and spur the development of new, innovative business ideas.
Driving the gathering was the release of new requirements and attributes for the federal Small Business Innovative Research Program. Among them: It’s bigger in terms of dollars, broader in terms of scope, more flexible in terms of corporate structure, and it’s longer in terms of guaranteed duration. It also has added items to help small businesses get involved in government contracting ($5,000 extra on initial awards to get your company equipped to receive a Phase II award for up to $1 million).
The SBIR and other government-funded programs that focus on assisting entrepreneurs can be an effective tool to promote economic development. As a state that continues to struggle in this economic downturn, we must encourage its public officials and the business community to seek out every chance and any opportunity for growth and innovation.
At one time, Rhode Island was a leader in this program. This event was a great first step in making sure Rhode Island companies understand how to access and navigate the bureaucratic maze than often frustrates even the most eager entrepreneur.
The presence of Sean Greene, the U.S. Small Business Administration’s associate administrator for investment and special adviser for innovation, was particularly valuable at this event, in order to facilitate a Washington, D.C., point of contact for small businesses. Kudos to Rep. Langevin for bringing him to the event and sharing his experience and ideas on accessing SBIR funds.
Yet this seminar needs to lead to the most vital step in re-energizing Rhode Island’s governmental agencies. These agencies have to illuminate for businesses their requirements for innovation and solutions. During the restless time when the SBIR program’s future was uncertain, many government agencies lost interest in articulating their needs because the program was rumored to be dead. However, we now have a new and improved SBIR program in Washington.
Rep. Langevin has taken the initiative to be proactive in making Rhode Island businesses aware of this improved opportunity for economic growth within the state. Now, let’s help him take his efforts to the demand side of the equation and make all Rhode Island government agencies become true leaders in defining areas where innovative solutions would be of interest to them under this improved program.
The bottom line is that if we don’t describe the problem, Rhode Island’s small businesses cannot submit a solution and therefore have little probability of economic success within the program. Remember, the program does not exist simply for economic growth for small businesses, it exists for solutions derived from a description of a government-agency problem against which money can be competitively awarded to an innovative proposal submitted to that government agency to solve that problem. There is no opportunity to submit a proposal unless there is an agency-identified problem advertised within the SBIR program.
I would urge anyone who could not attend this event to contact Rep. Langevin, the local SBA office or the R.I. Small Business Development Center that helped host the event and get more information on the SBIR-program improvements. We then need as many state stakeholders as we can to engage themselves by describing problems that need innovative solutions, solutions that our small-business community can provide. &#8226


Jim Lavoie is the CEO of Rite-Solutions Inc. in Middletown.

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