Business Opportunity Forum:
    - a Connecticut Technology Council initiative funded by
    long-time CT law firm of Wiggins & Dana

Application Deadline for Selection Consideration:
Extended
for SBIR applicants coming through this site
June 28, 2005
A Brief Description of the firm, your relevant areas of competency and match to Pitney-Bowes technical requirements will be submitted to the Connecticut Technology Council
This will occur subsequent to your notifying us of your interest by completing the initial application on this site.
Main Event date: July 27, 2005
Pitney-Bowes technology interests:
SEVEN primary areas
Some background to our supporting this
project: the concept of Technology Seeker
Across all industry segments and technology arenas, an increasing percentage of large and mid-sized firms are instituting an important Technology Seeker function, often with tie-in to senior management levels and with substantial departmental involvement. These persons are tasked explicitly to look outside the firm for available technologies, capabilities and skill-sets relevant to addressing current problems and anticipated future needs.
     Particularly important to SBIR-involved firms, is the fact that many of these Technology Seekers have the authority and the resources to establish effective working relationships with those external sources engaged in development of those disruptive technologies that will likely create new market opportunities.
     In the past, this type of external access has usually engaged the universities, non-profit R&Dfacilities, the federal labs and, on occasion, other large(r) corporation. However, as demonstrated all over this site and, most recently, discussed in detail at the very successful SBIR Awardees event held in Boston, MA (June 1-3, 2005) --

Phase 3 Business matters:
realizing SBIR value

-- as now the largest single concentration of technical talent, SBIR-STTR involved firms are increasingly becoming a major focus of these Technology Seeker

Making connection to SBIR Awardees:
Many highly motivated Technology Seekers are only vaguely aware (if at all) of who SBIR firms are and what they can do. Even those who are interested and familiar with the SBIR program indicate that finding individual SBIR Awardees with the requisite skill-sets they need can be a major challenge. The overwhelming percentage of awardees are smaller, often young and resource stretched, and almost always to some extent under-the-radar. In this context, even a large SBIR player may be overlooked as not much more than a blip on the screen. Keeping track particularly of those doing leading-edge work may be seriously problematic.

Therefore, as the primary keeper of the SBIR-STTR record in exquisitely detailed databases which also include a wide range of related technical and business data on all SBIR awardees, for many of these Technology Seekers this company - the Innovation Development Institute - long-time SBIR advocate has become an important and useful access point to identify and to profile particularly those all important SBIR-STTR Awardees doing leading-edge work.
    The Fourth Innovation@Work
    This time featuring:

Pitney-Bowes, Stamford, CT

Consistent with our increasingly assuming the role of a major SBIR Technology Transfer Center, as an important pilot effort we have set up a working collaboration with the Connecticut Technology Council and with another important Connecticut organization - the Connecticut Center for Advanced Technology to enable a strong SBIR Awardee presence at this important Technology transfer initiative.

With primary focus on the larger companies which are headquartered in the State of Connecticut, previous events held in the passed few months in this important and very useful series have featured
  • General Electric Company
  • Gerber Scientific
  • Mohegan Sun Casino
To date, the extent of any involvement by SBIR awardees in these events has been very limited. That must (and will) change!

On a by-invitation basis, firms selected by the Connecticut Technology Council for participation in Innovation@Work events are provided valuable and IMPORTANT OPPORTUNITY
  • to make presentation before the senior technology and innovation executives of the hosting large firm -- in this case, at the Stamford world headquarters of Pitney-Bowes
  • to hear formal presentations by senior staff of the host company.
  • to network informally with those company executives
It should be stressed again that
  • this is a BY-INVITATION event. Your online submission here will get you that invitation from the Connecticut Technology Council.
  • ONLY firms whose presentation submission is received by the CT Technology Council due date of (now) June 28 will be considered. Obviously, you need to get your Interest Statement to us at least 48 hours earlier than that.
  • and, critically, ONLY those accepted by the CT Technology Council based on their Submitted Statement will be permitted to attend the Briefing itself.
As comparative late-comers to this particular event and given the strong local focus of the organizers, it is likely that preference for full presentation will almost certainly be given to firms doing business in southern New England and West Chester County, NY. HOWEVER, be assured that we will be fully involved on July 27 and will be providing indication of the capabilities of other SBIR firms. Further, as we are with various other major corporations, we will be in an ongoing working relationship with Pitney-Bowes subsequent to this special one-time event. Technology relationships take time to mature and are not one-shot opportunities

Hence, even if you cannot participate at this time -- we know that the notice is short -- and/or you don't make the cut, if you have relevant skills-sets and expertise, please be sure to complete the online Pitney-Bowes interest form here

Though the range of what Pitney-Bowes is looking for is substantial and highly varied - see Pitney-Bowes interest list - this particular Technology Seeker opportunity may not be the one for you. However, many others business opportunities are in the planning stages and one of those almost certainly will capture your interest and fit your needs. Keep in touch!