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In traditional commercial selling, a company seeks to understand its business problems and then presents a solution that would save time and money. Understanding federal requirements has a few more barriers than scheduling a meeting with the CIO.

The federal government has security requirements and considerations few commercial companies can even consider. There are no effortless ways to understand system requirements for a company trying to break into the federal marketplace.

This has been understood for decades. In fact, Ron Reagan decided to help small businesses understand their needs and provide some assistance.

The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program was established in 1982. The concept was simple: an agency would post requirements and look for a small company to get a response. If the proposal was favorable, some steps allowed further development and funding.

During today's interview, Tom Ruff updated us on the three phases of SBIR and provided specific examples of companies that have successfully navigated the process.