The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program is one of the largest examples of U.S. public-private partnerships, and was established in 1982 to encourage small businesses to develop new processes and products and to provide quality research in support of the U.S. government's many missions. The U.S. Congress tasked the National Research Council with undertaking a comprehensive study of how the SBIR program has stimulated technological innovation and used small businesses to meet federal research and development needs, and with recommending further improvements to the program. In the first round of this study, an ad hoc committee prepared a series of reports from 2004 to 2009 on the SBIR program at the five agencies responsible for 96 percent of the program's operations-including NASA. In a follow-up to the first round, NASA requested from the Academies an assessment focused on operational questions in order to identify further improvements to the program. Public-private partnerships like SBIR are particularly important since today's knowledge economy is driven in large part by the nation's capacity to innovate. One of the defining features of the U.S. economy is a high level of entrepreneurial activity. Entrepreneurs in the United States see opportunities and are willing and able to assume risk to bring new welfare-enhancing, wealth-generating technologies to the market. Yet, although discoveries in various fields present new opportunities, converting these discoveries into innovations for the market involves substantial challenges. The American capacity for innovation can be strengthened by addressing the challenges faced by entrepreneurs.

In response to a Congressional mandate, the National Research Council conducted a review of the Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR) at the five federal agencies with SBIR programs with budgets in excess of $100 million (DOD, NIH, NASA, DOE, and NSF). The project was designed to answer questions of program operation and effectiveness, including the quality of the research projects being conducted under the SBIR program, the commercialization of the research, and the program's contribution to accomplishing agency missions. This report summarizes the presentations at a symposium exploring the effectiveness of Phase III of the SBIR program (the commercialization phase), during which innovations funded by Phase II awards move from the laboratory into the marketplace. No SBIR funds support Phase III; instead, to commercialize their products, small businesses are expected to garner additional funds from private investors, the capital markets, or from the agency that made the initial award.

As an authoritative guide to biotechnology enterprise and entrepreneurship, Biotechnology Entrepreneurship and Management supports the international community in training the biotechnology leaders of tomorrow. Outlining fundamental concepts vital to graduate students and practitioners entering the biotech industry in management or in any entrepreneurial capacity, Biotechnology Entrepreneurship and Management provides tested strategies and hard-won lessons from a leading board of educators and practitioners. It provides a 'how-to' for individuals training at any level for the biotech industry, from macro to micro. Coverage ranges from the initial challenge of translating a technology idea into a working business case, through securing angel investment, and in managing all aspects of the result: business valuation, business development, partnering, biological manufacturing, FDA approvals and regulatory requirements. An engaging and user-friendly style is complemented by diverse diagrams, graphics and business flow charts with decision trees to support effective management and decision making. - Provides tested strategies and lessons in an engaging and user-friendly style supplemented by tailored pedagogy, training tips and overview sidebars - Case studies are interspersed throughout each chapter to support key concepts and best practices. - Enhanced by use of numerous detailed graphics, tables and flow charts