PhDs vs MBAs: Who Writes a Better SBIR Application?

It's time for the battle of the degrees. In this video, I'm going to break down the pros and cons of preparing an SBIR application for those with a business background, like an MBA, compared to those with a technical research background, like a PhD. Then at the end of this video, I'm going to share my thoughts on who prepares a better SBIR application, those with an MBA or those with a PhD. Which one do you think will win? Go ahead and comment down below. Hey guys, welcome back to the channel. I'm Stacy Chin from KeepYourEquity.co, and our goal is to help startup founders secure non-dilutive grant funding from federal programs called the SBIR and the STTR. We mostly work with science and tech startups and help them to bring their innovative ideas to the commercial market. If you're interested in learning more about these SBIR and STTR programs, I'll leave a link in the description below to another video. So these SBIR and STTR grant funding opportunities are meant to support science and tech startups and other small businesses by giving them the funding they need to to pursue research and development efforts that have really strong commercial potential. Now, to prepare a really strong application, the team's going to need technical expertise to prepare a really rigorous research and development strategy that meets the requirements of that funding agency's goals. And this usually includes identifying research questions, developing a research plan, conducting experiments, and analyzing data. Usually, these technical expertise are provided by a member with a PhD or a strong research background. However, the technical feasibility alone is not enough to secure funding from the SBIR program. The proposed innovation also needs to have commercial potential that can be demonstrated through something called a commercialization plan. And this requires other skill sets like business acumen, financial analysis, marketing expertise, the ability to identify other markets, and to develop a go-to-market strategy. And the commercialization expertise is typically provided by someone on the team with a really good business background or someone with an MBA. So for the past 10 years, I've had the pleasure of working with so many different founders as I was advising them on their SBIR strategy. And usually many of these founders either have a strong technical background like a PhD, or others are usually just have the business background like an MBA. And sometimes some founders have both. And from my experience working with these founders, those with the business or technical background have different pros and cons that they bring to the table when preparing an SBIR application. And so for you as a technical founder or a business founder, it is important for you to understand which side of the coin you fall on so you can more properly allocate your time and resources when developing a really competitive SBIR application so that in the long run, this would increase your chances of funding. And so with that being said, I'm gonna break down the most common strengths and weaknesses that I found when working with these founders, especially those with only just a technical background or those with only just a business background. But before I jump into it, If you haven't done so, please support this channel by liking this video and subscribing so that you won't miss out on any tips we have to share with you to support your fundraising journey through non-dilutive grants. And don't forget to check out our website at keepyourequity.co where you'll find more advice, resources, and templates to support you in your non-dilutive fundraising journey. First, let's talk about founders with a technical background, usually those with a PhD. Strengths that these founders bring to the table is that their technical expertise are excellent to develop research strategies, understand how to conduct really rigorous experiments, and they have a high level of attention to detail. These technical founders also can bring a deep level of understanding of the innovation and technology itself. And all these traits combined can be very advantageous to develop a really strong SBIR application, especially on the research side. However, founders with a really strong technical background may sometimes lack the business acumen. They may struggle to put together a really strong commercialization plan that meets the requirements of the SBIR program. It is important for technical founders to keep in mind that whatever they propose in their research strategy has to be aligned to their go-to-market goals. Another strength that technical founders have is that they might be very strong technical writers. However, they may not be as strong when communicating to a wider, broader audience. Technical founders may not be aware how to effectively bring their innovation or technology to the commercial market, and that's going to impact how they can prepare an effective SBIR application. So as a recap, technical founders are very strong to create an outstanding research and development strategy with plenty of detail and evidence, but may struggle on the commercialization side and the persuasion aspects required to put together a strong application. Now let's discuss the other side of the situation, where founders have a really strong business background, like an MBA, but may lack the technical skills, like a founder with a PhD. These founders are usually really good at identifying market opportunities, analyzing the market, and how to put together a go-to-market strategy. And because of those skill sets, these founders can be very strong when preparing the commercialization strategy of an SBIR application. However, these founders might lack the technical expertise required to understand what details they have to consider when preparing a really rigorous research and development strategy, especially because this requires a deep understanding of the science behind the innovation and technology itself. And because these business-oriented founders may not have the level of research experience as a technical founder does, they might struggle to put together a really rigorous research and development plan, which is required for an SBIR application. And because business-oriented founders can be quite strong when communicating their ideas to a wide, broad audience, This might be problematic when preparing an SBIR application since they lack the technical depth required within their discussion on the innovation and the research strategy. And if you don't include enough technical information within your SBIR application, this might give reviewers the lack of confidence that you understand how to utilize that grant money if you are funded. So to recap, these business-oriented founders can bring great strengths when developing a commercialization plan or a go-to-market strategy. However, they might have a difficult time preparing the technical side of the SBIR application. Now, since we looked at both the strengths and the weaknesses of founders with a PhD or an MBA, it's time to declare a winner. So who writes a better SBI application? Well, in my opinion, neither. And that's because you're going to need both skill sets to prepare a really strong application. From my experience working with professors from the top US universities like MIT, Harvard, and Duke, they excel at preparing a really rigorous research and development strategy. However, they might lack the business acumen to understand how to best position that strategy towards their commercialization efforts. And likewise, I've also worked with many great startup founders that are strong in the business side and even with several exits and acquisitions on their end. And I've seen they might struggle to put together a really rigorous research and development strategy. So based on what I've seen, startups with the strongest SBIR applications have both the technical and the business expertise on their team. And that's because the technical expert will ensure that a really strong research and development strategy is proposed when the SBIR application, while the business expert ensures that the proposal demonstrates the commercial potential, and has a strong go-to-market plan. So whether you are a technical founder or a founder with business skills, by understanding your strengths and weaknesses, you can better understand where the gaps are between your skill sets so that you can best allocate your resources, time, and energy to fill those gaps so that you can prepare the best SBIR application as possible so that you have a good chance of funding. And that's because at the end of the day, the combination of these skill sets is necessary to convince SBIR reviewers that your technology has both the technical feasibility and the commercialization potential to bring this guy to market. So did you guess both? Let me know in the comments below if you chose one or the other and your rationale behind it. And I'd love to hear any other questions you might have about the SBIR and STTR process. So with that, thank you so much for watching till the end of this video. Please like and subscribe to this channel, and don't forget to check out our website at keepyourequity.co where you'll find lots of other resources to help you in your fundraising journey.