Military business success

Abstract

The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program was created in 1982 to stimulate research and development among small businesses while providing the government innovative technical and scientific solutions to challenging problems. In SBIR, Phase I awards are made for research projects to evaluate the scientific and technical merit of an idea. Phase II awards are made to further develop selected Phase I projects that demonstrate the greatest potential. In Phase III commercialization occurs, however no SBIR funding is available. This research identifies and measures the variables that shape the success of the Naval Air System Command's (NAVAIR) SBIR program from the stakeholders' point of view. As different stakeholders have different perspectives on how they perceive success in this program, this study identifies the variables that shape the success of NAVAIR's SBIR program from the firms' viewpoint. To identify the variables that shape the success of NAVAIR's SBIR program from the firms' perspective, we conducted a qualitative research. The analysis and results were generated based on the interviewees' perceptions and responses. This study concluded with the factors influencing the success of the firms in the SBIR and from the findings several recommendations were made for the SBIR program and future research.