NSF Engines Builder Platform Solutions Offering.pdf

OTHER TRANSACTION AGREEMENT SOLUTIONS OFFERING

(OTASO)

Project: NSF Engines Builder Platform

1.0 Purpose:

The National Science Foundation (NSF) Directorate for Technology, Innovation and Partnerships (TIP) launched the NSF Regional Innovation Engines program in May 2022 to spur the development of inclusive and diverse innovation ecosystems across the country, with an intentional focus on regions that have not fully participated in the tech boom of the past several decades. To learn more about the NSF Engines program, please refer to the Broad Agency Announcement and the NSF Engines resources page. Many NSF Engines awardees are expected to come from regions with early-stage capacity, capital, and entrepreneurial expertise, which may require awardees to build these invaluable support mechanisms and networks from scratch.

To achieve the ambitious goals of the NSF Engines program, NSF recognizes the need to do more than deploy capital into NSF Engines communities. As such, NSF is seeking to develop the NSF Engines Builder Platform (called “Builder Platform” hereafter) that will be directly informed by the needs of the NSF Engines awardees. The Builder Platform will be responsible for providing the tailored support structures, networks, learning opportunities, and services needed by and vital to the growth of individual NSF Engines. The Builder Platform should connect NSF Engines awardees to talent, resources, and networks nimbly, moving at the pace of a startup. NSF is looking for an innovative, operationally-minded organization(s) who can develop the necessary infrastructure, partnerships, curricula, and networks that align with the NSF Engines programmatic vision and goals.

From a tactical perspective, NSF seeks one or more organization(s) who can develop and run the operational infrastructure, manage the day-to-day activities of the Builder Platform, serve as the main point of contact for NSF Engines awardees for this type of support, coalesce the key constituents and networks to support awardees, and be a thought partner with the NSF Engines leadership in developing the strategy and roadmap of the Builder Platform offering. NSF intends to build a dedicated team in-house that would work closely with the external lead organization and co-create these strategies with the selected organization(s).

In its end state, NSF expects that the Builder Platform will create a set of resources and an accompanying engaged and expanding community. The Builder Platform will connect awardees to the curated talent, capital, networks, and resources they need to thrive during and beyond their award periods. What is needed to achieve those goals will evolve over time as Type-1 and Type- 2 NSF Engines awardees enter the cohort, mature over time, and new awardees join future cohort(s). Together, the NSF Engines and the Builder Platform will produce a new model that empowers awardees to thrive and drives long-term economic impact in emerging innovation ecosystems.

During the three-year award period, NSF anticipates providing the Builder Platform organization(s) with the necessary funds to seed the core infrastructure, build a high-caliber team, develop a robust curriculum and an initial suite of services, and create a high-quality experience for NSF Engines awardees. While NSF will provide financial support for the first three years of platform operation, it is expected that there will opportunities to layer on new aligned initiatives, scale offerings, and/or partner with other organizations that can provide https://beta.nsf.gov/funding/initiatives/regional-innovation-engines/resources-and-contact-information https://sam.gov/opp/bd00bb5129334b71847dc464ef200036/view https://sam.gov/opp/bd00bb5129334b71847dc464ef200036/view https://beta.nsf.gov/funding/initiatives/regional-innovation-engines/resources-and-contact-information additive value for NSF Engine awardees. The Builder Platform team should work to secure partners and commitments from the philanthropic, corporate, venture capital, non‐profit and/or state, local, tribal, and/or federal partners who can increase the likelihood of long‐term platform success and enhance the awardee experience. Likewise, the leveraged financial support should allow NSF Engines awardees’ work to remain firmly and sustainably rooted in their regions of service.

2.0 Scope or Mission:

The Builder Platform team will support the full portfolio of Type-1 and Type-2 NSF Engine awardees. The NSF Engines BAA notes that NSF would make up to 50 Type-1 awardees and up to five Type-2 awardees in the first phase of the program. It is expected that there will be activities and offerings that are curated to awardees at different stages of maturity (Type-1 vs.

Type-2). The organization(s) developing the Builder Platform offerings will provide tailored and hands-on support to both Type-1 awardees, who are laying the groundwork to become NSF Engines in the future, and Type-2 awardees, who are primed to stand up and scale their regional innovation ecosystems over 10-year award periods as NSF Engines. To learn more about the potential pool of Type-1 and Type-2 awardees, the concept outlines submitted in June 2022 are available here. The goal of the Builder Platform effort is to support awardees’ growth and help set up their geographic regions of service for long-term success.

NSF’s Definition of Platform: the “platform” is a human-centered, high-touch support network for NSF Engines awardees. The Platform team comprises individuals who connect NSF Engines awardees, in a heavily curated manner, with the talent, knowledge, resources, and communities they need to excel. “Platform,” as used throughout this solicitation, should not be mistaken for a technology platform, website, and/or data analysis technology; instead, it should be viewed as a holistic, high-touch effort to connect and train emerging innovation ecosystem builders, namely NSF’s cohorts of Type-1 and Type-2 awardees.

3.0 Period and Place of Performance:

NSF anticipates making an initial three-year commitment to the Builder Platform awardee organization(s). NSF envisions the selected organization(s) will work with Type-1 awardees for the entirety of their two-year award period and will work with Type-2 awardees for the early phases of their awards (~2+ years).

NSF intends to include a provision in the award that will permit the ability to extend the award term or choose to recompete parts or all of the Builder Platform contract.

The Builder Platform organization(s) is expected to provide a mix of virtual, hybrid, and in-person support to NSF Engines awardees during the award period. Some of these activities will involve one-on-one sessions with NSF Engine awardees while other activities will be one-to-many events. Many of these activities will be scheduled. The Builder Platform team should provide a system for all parties to easily understand and track upcoming and past events.

4.0 Instrument and Approach

https://beta.nsf.gov/funding/initiatives/regional-innovation-engines/find-potential-nsf-engines

Through this solicitation, NSF contemplates the issuance of an Other Transaction Agreement (OTA) contract pursuant to NSF’s statutory authority at 42 U.S.C. § 19116. An Other Transaction Agreement is not a FAR-based procurement contract nor a financial assistance transaction but another system of contracting available to NSF by statute. NSF intends to make one or more awards resulting from this solicitation. It is anticipated that any award resulting from this solicitation will be an award vehicle under which individual orders may be issued. The first order under the planned award vehicle is anticipated to have a 12-month period of performance.

NSF anticipates issuing subsequent orders during the three years. The Builder Platforms organization(s) will be provided with detailed task-specific information prior to the issuance of any future orders. The award resulting from this solicitation is anticipated to be awarded on a milestone-based schedule that will be determined during contract negotiations.

This solicitation contemplates a competitive, two-step evaluation process. NSF will receive and evaluate proposals from interested firms and perform a down select based on the evaluation factors identified in this solicitation. Firms that are selected as part of this review may be invited to participate in oral presentations at NSF.

5.0 Background:

Builder Platform Summary The Builder Platform seeks to develop a model that supports the unique needs of awardees and the dynamic goals of the NSF Engines while incorporating elements and best practices from the incubator/accelerator and venture capital world, as well as government technical assistance approaches. Traditionally, technical assistance approaches are defined as programs, processes, and resources that provide targeted support to a community, region, organization, and/or other beneficiary to help them access and deploy resources to deliver results. NSF anticipates developing an ambitious platform model that builds on and blends the best elements of both approaches.

The purpose of this solicitation is to identify the lead organization(s) and team that can develop and oversee the entire Builder Platform effort. It is anticipated that the lead organization will have the skillset and networks to lead several Builder Platform work streams, be the NSF Engines awardee-facing organization, and coordinate the delivery of high-quality services, offerings, communities, and curricula.

The Builder Platform will support NSF Engine awardees and develop relevant curricula across four major categories, namely:

1. Nurturing Talent

2. Building Partnerships

3. Creating Sustainable Ecosystems; and

4. Embedding Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) into NSF Engine

Awardee Strategies.

The Builder Platform team should focus on these four major categories of support (talent, partnerships, sustainability, and DEIA) while:

1. Helping NSF Engines awardees and their regional innovation ecosystems tap into talent and partnership opportunities with a national network of companies, non-profits, and funders. This national partner network, curated and managed by the Builder Platform organization(s), may support NSF Engines awardees, NSF Engines programmatic priorities, and even startups/technologies emerging from individual NSF Engines.

2. Developing tailored curriculum, support structures, and tools that benefit NSF Engines awardees and are shaped by NSF Engines’ priorities.

3. Creating a robust community and peer-to-peer network for NSF Engines awardees where they can share learnings, challenges, and opportunities across the portfolio of awardees while tapping into networks of experts, mentors, coaches, fellows, and entrepreneurs/industry-in-residence, etc. These efforts should also connect NSF Engines awardees with other relevant teams and programs within the NSF TIP directorate, such as the “I-Corps”, “Lab-to-Market Platform” and emerging translational programs like “Pathways to enable Open-Source Ecosystems” (POSE) and “Entrepreneurial Fellows”.

The Builder Platform should ideally create a culture where awardees are learning from each other and creating best practices that can be shared across the cohort.

The Builder Platform work should be centered around developing interpersonal connections between NSF Engines awardees and the broader use-inspired research, innovation, venture, workforce development, and economic development communities.

The Builder Platform is not:

• A technology-first platform. The focus is on humans helping awardees in high-touch ways to build high-performing NSF Engines. Technology can play a role, but it is not the central focus.

• An innovation or economic development analysis tool, where an organization provides an analysis of the innovation or economic development landscape of a region. The focus of the Builder Platform is providing awardees with the training to develop the skills that they need to excel while actively connecting them with resources and people.

• A stand-alone website that consolidates best practices or information on awardees. This may be a part of a Builder Platform but does not meet the ambitious vision of the totality of the platform.

• A set of technologies or tools that scrape databases for promising technologies to commercialize or a database of potential industry partners developed based on keyword searches.

• An opportunity to preview your new technology or tool for NSF in the hopes that it will be considered for other NSF funding opportunities.

• A holding company that outsources all the work to subcontractors. It is expected that the Builder Platform lead organization will lead multiple work streams and have topic area expertise and experience.

• For organizations that are only interested in supporting awardees in a single geography.

• For applicants who have very specialized expertise and are not interested or able to take on the broader, cross-functional objectives of the Builder Platform. Instead, those organizations should consider joining a team as a subcontractor or partner rather than submitting as a lead organization.

Eligibility Any responsible source (excluding foreign entities) may submit proposals for consideration. All offerors must be registered in the Federal Government’s System for Award Management (SAM) prior to submitting a proposal (www.sam.gov). A proposal can involve multiple organizations, but the proposal must be submitted by a lead organization with sucontracts to other participating organizations. Separately submitted collaborative proposals are not permitted. An eligible organization can submit a maximum of one proposal as a lead organization per solicitation.

Characteristics of a Strong Builder Platform Organization(s) The below list should not be viewed as solicitation requirements but instead as a partial list of the characteristics that can contribute to a strong Builder Platform organization(s). It is not expected that a Builder Platform team will have every characteristic at the time of submission.

• A creative and nimble approach to solving the complex, ever-evolving problems faced by the NSF Engines awardees. NSF is seeking an organization(s) that is willing to evolve over time based on the developing needs of NSF Engine awardees and the NSF Engines Program Officers who will be co-creating the Builder Platform and its offerings.

• The skills and networks needed to stand up the Builder Platform quickly post-award and begin NSF Engine awardee-facing work shortly after, with an early focus on programming and curriculum development, specifically focused on Type-2 awardees.

• Ability to carry out the NSF Engine’s programmatic vision and to communicate to the awardees and external partners in a manner where NSF and the Builder Platform team are speaking with a unified voice.

• Experience working:

o With project teams/startups/organizations who do high-impact, use-inspired research. Strong applicants will also have deep experience and expertise working on translating research-driven innovations, developing workforce development strategies in emerging technology fields, and advancing these innovations and technological outputs in ways that accelerate regional economic development.

o With a wide spectrum of awardee organization types, including: early-stage entrepreneurial ecosystems, commercialization and tech transfer entities, venture studios, state and local government economic development agencies, tribal governments, institutions of higher education and/or startup companies. Of particular interest are organizations that have helped these entities, in a high-touch manner, to build their networks, developed cross-sector partnerships, and quickly and sustainably scaled their growth. Organizations who have historically only worked in a hands-on manner with one organization type (e.g., startup companies or institutions of higher education) or in one topic area (e.g., bio, climate) will need to provide a compelling rationale for why they are well-suited to work with NSF Engine awardees and their diverse innovation ecosystems.

o As and with ecosystem builders, which requires a different skillset, than working directly with individual researchers or startup companies. While NSF anticipates that there will be complementary opportunities to work with startups emerging from NSF Engines locations, NSF funds should be used to support the NSF Engine awardees who are leading regional ecosystem building efforts.

Given NSF’s stated intent to develop a Builder Platform that can evolve and grow with co-funder involvement, NSF recommends that either the Builder Platform lead organization or a subcontractor has the capacity to receive philanthropic capital contributions and the ability to justify the “charitable purpose” of their work to external funders. It is not required that the organization has this capability at the time of submission but it will be a requirement to be demonstrated within the first year of the award. NSF plans to work with the Builder Platform http://www.sam.gov/ contractor, during regular check-ins, to understand their strategy to scale the Builder Platform and bring onboard complementary partners/funders, even though it is not a requirement that the Platform bring on such partners/funders.

6.0 Performance Objectives

Creating entry points to NSF Engine activities for awardees and external partners The Builder Platform and affiliated team will act as a coordinating entity to serve the distinct needs of two communities, namely 1) NSF Engines awardees and 2) external partners who want to work with NSF Engines awardees. Although each community will have its own entry point to the Builder Platform offerings, the goal is to create a frictionless process for each community to engage with the services offered by the Builder Platform team and to interact with the other community (awardees with external partners and vice versa).

1.Provide services for NSF Engines awardees who want to:

a. Access resources;

b. Learn new skills and best practices that are relevant to building an NSF Engine;

c. Build community with fellow cohort members and experts in their region/topic area; and

d. Connect with historically difficult to reach organizations, whether that is venture capitalists, philanthropists, and/or community organizations who deeply understand the needs and desires of their shared community.

2. Provide services for interested external partners who want:

a. To access diverse sets of organizations (NSF Engines awardees) working in emerging technology areas of national importance. When functioning well, the Builder Platform will create a compelling entry point for external partners who recognize the benefits of working with a curated set of projects (NSF Engines awardees) that have been vetted and “de-risked” by NSF’s meaningful investment of time and capital into these projects.

b. A scalable way to interact with the full portfolio of NSF Engines awardees across a broad set of geographies and topic areas, in a concierge manner.

Developing the curricula and support structures NSF Engine awardees need to launch, scale, and thrive The Builder Platform team will be responsible for creating and delivering a training curriculum for the NSF Engines program designed to help Type-2 awardees grow sustainable NSF Engines that drive their regional innovation ecosystems.

The size of the curriculum, in terms of numbers of hours teams spend in live sessions and completing “homework” may vary over the award periods; however, awardees should not be expected to attend more than two, 2.5 hour live sessions per month during the first 12 months of their awards. This commitment may evolve over the life of the NSF Engines awards and will be evaluated on a regular basis, based on learnings and the distinct needs of Type-1 vs. Type-2 awardees. The Builder Platform team should consider creating discrete training modules tailored to different elements of an NSF Engine and develop each module for those on the leadership team responsible for Engine activities related to the module’s topic area.

Because the training program for Type-1 awardees will already be in progress at the time the Builder Platform award begins, the Builder Platform team will be expected to familiarize themselves with the Type-1 curriculum, activities, delivery structure, etc. Type-1 training resources should be integrated into the Type-2 training curriculum, as needed, to create a training program that is aligned with and builds upon the Type-1 curriculum while meeting the unique needs of Type-2 awardees.

An intentional focus on DEIA and inclusive economic development NSF intends for DEIA to be a central pillar of the Builder Platform effort. NSF is looking for organizations that embody a culture of DEIA throughout their leadership and activities.

Applicants should provide details on how their organizational practices and leadership structures are inclusive and embody DEIA principles. Organizations can provide data, historical evidence, and details on Builder Platform-specific plans to develop inclusive and equitable approaches.

In the same way that NSF is asking NSF Engines awardees to interweave “DEIA into the very fabric of each Engine, across all foundational components (e.g., use-inspired research, partnerships, translation, workforce development),” NSF expects the Builder Platform team to adhere to these same principles.

This discussion of how the offeror team will embed DEIA into their own organizational structure and practices should be distinct from their proposal for how they will help NSF Engine awardees develop DEIA strategies in their NSF Engine team governance models and communities.

Developing metrics to track awardee engagement with platform services and progress

The Builder Platform team will be responsible for:

• Helping NSF collect data to track portfolio progress, engagement with platform services, and other relevant platform-related metrics dynamically as the program evolves. A non-exhaustive list of areas for data collection includes awardee engagement with the platform offerings, community engagement, and outcomes that result from these Builder Platform engagements (follow-on capital raised after an introduction, new team members added, mentor matches, etc.)

• Collaborating with NSF and the awardee community to define and measure which offerings and tools are most valuable. Provide these learnings, tools, services, and curricula in a way that allows for asynchronous delivery and broad dissemination. These materials and tools should be housed in a central location.

• Collaborating with the NSF Engines Evaluation Team and Program Officers to review and refine program offerings based on learnings from continual data collection and regular conversations with awardees.

• Creating new training and curriculum co-developed with world-class data scientists, coupled with insights from practitioners, to drive data-driven decision making in the fields of economic development and lab-to-market programs.

7.0 Focus Areas for Builder Platform

The NSF Engines program has identified four central pillars for the Builder Platform offering (talent, partnerships, sustainable ecosystems, and DEIA).

Actual activities under each focus area will be mutually negotiated by NSF and the Builder Platform contractor. However, respondents are encouraged to offer their own ideas for activities that best support the NSF Engines program goal of creating a platform for innovation ecosystem building, enabling meaningful sharing and collaboration, peer-to-peer learning, and facilitating connections to benefit all parties. While NSF provides significant flexibility to respondents in determining what activities and offerings should sit within each category; all platform offerings developed must intentionally incorporate DEIA perspectives.

Talent NSF expects the contractor to make early and continuing investments in:

• Training the senior leadership of NSF Engines, through interactive curricula and mentoring, on how to develop and manage entrepreneurial and nimble NSF Engines;

• Sourcing and connecting high-quality, cross-sector talent for roles within individual Engines, ranging from Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) to fellows; and

• Creating communities within and across NSF Engine awardees for CEOs and key members of their management teams. These communities should facilitate peer-to-peer learning and cross-sector collaboration. NSF welcomes creative ideas on other networks that can be created which would transcend beyond the community of NSF Engine awardees.

Partnerships Many Type-1 and Type-2 NSF Engines awardees and especially Type-1 awardees, will have strong partnerships and representation in 1-2 organization types or sectors but will be weaker in others. For example, a university-led team may need help building mutually beneficial and well-balanced partnerships with industry, state, and local economic development agencies, and even smaller academic or technical institutions in their community. Alternatively, a non-profit partner might need help strengthening their connections to academia and national laboratories to source use-inspired research and translate those technologies. The Builder Platform team should:

• Play a guide role for awardees, helping them in developing equitable partnerships with measurable outputs, with a focus on helping awardees develop partnerships with a diverse mix of organization types, including those organization types that are different from their own; and

• Help awardees develop the networks, organizational capacity, and skills needed to build equitable and robust cross-sector partnerships. It is anticipated that some of these partnerships will be developed by the Builder Platform at the portfolio level and benefit all awardees while others will be structured at the individual awardee level.

NOTE: this is not set of technologies or tools that scrape databases for promising technologies to commercialize or a database of potential industry partners developed based on keyword searches.

Sustainability Funds provided by NSF will be insufficient to power an NSF Engine awardee (Type-1 or Type-

2) beyond the award period and achieve the full breadth of activities needed to develop a high-functioning innovation ecosystem. As such, NSF would like the Builder Platform to help awardees:

• Develop nimble organizational structures with strong governance models and diversified revenue streams; and.

• Identify, solicit, and absorb capital from sources outside of NSF.

DEIA strategies NSF would like the Builder Platform organization(s) to:

• Create programs, support structures, and curricula to support individual NSF Engines awardees incorporate DEIA into all aspects of their vision and activities; and

• Develop all platform offerings with an equity framework, including a clear plan to create on-ramps for historically underserved communities into Builder Platform offerings and activities within individual NSF Engines awardees’ regions of service.

Creating a human-centered and accessible Builder Platform The Builder Platform operator’s ability to work with awardees (in one-on-one, peer-to-peer, and group settings) at different stages of development and with leadership teams with different lived experiences will be critical. NSF expects the Builder Platform team will provide one-on-one support to awardees and develop programming, events, activities, and publicly accessible technology platforms/tools that may take on a life of their own and may grow independently of the NSF Engines activities.

If there are publicly accessible tools that can achieve the stated goals of the Builder Platform, then the Builder Platform organization(s) should use them and avoid developing custom-built tools, software, and technologies. If new tools are required, the Builder Platform should provide NSF with a clear explanation for why existing technologies in the market are insufficient. All technology and software developed should be easily portable with minimal constraints imposed by proprietary software, and have suitable APIs for plug and play.

If any information technology (IT), websites, and/or cloud technologies are procured or developed as a part of the Builder Platform effort, then the awardee must ensure that these solutions comply with NSF and/or federal IT security, information management, and data security requirements. Coordination with NSF's Division of Information Systems (DIS) may be required.

8.0 NSF Engines Builder Platform Goals

Within first three months (not an exhaustive list)

• Curricula o Work closely with the NSF Engines Program Officers in the first three months post-award to develop an initial set of training modules that is ready to implement within 1 month of the Type-2 award start date. This curriculum will be regularly assessed to determine progress towards programmatic goals.

• Innovation community o Develop and launch an outreach campaign geared towards the broader innovation community, creating an entry point for them to express interest in engaging with the Type-1 and Type-2 awardees.

• Operations o Create a clear set of expectations, understood by NSF and NSF Engine awardees, on how the Builder Platform will engage with NSF Engine awardees and the broader innovation community.

o Builder Platform should be well-positioned (from operational and strategic perspectives) to work meaningfully with all Type-1 awardees (about 50) and have a clear actionable plan for engaging with the first cohort of Type-2 awardees, as well.

o Initial leadership team for Builder Platform is onboarded.

Within the first six months (not an exhaustive list)

• Curricula o Curricula are developed for the first year of the award and awardee teams participate in regular training sessions, curated to their needs, relative strengths, and weaknesses. Where possible, the training incorporates learnings from the Type-1 curriculum, initially executed by NSF.

• Innovation community o Build a network of external stakeholders who will work with awardees as mentors, coaches, entrepreneurs-in-residence, etc. Show clear progress towards developing these relationships, on behalf of awardees, and creating the infrastructure necessary to connect Type-1 and future Type-2 awardees to these support resources.

• Operations o Create a means for awardees to communicate with each other and with the

Builder Platform organization(s) in a dynamic way.

o The Builder Platform team should be growing and evolving based on early learnings from interactions with awardees.

Year 1 goals (not an exhaustive list)

• External partners understand how to partner with the Builder Platform and are actively partnering on mutually beneficial collaborations. Multiple partnerships are being structured with agreements being executed at the Builder Platform portfolio level and with individual NSF Engines awardees.

• There are fleshed-out platforms and operational protocols for how the Builder Platform lead organization will interact with awardees, NSF, and the broader innovation community.

• Type-1 awardees are interacting with the Builder Platform team on a regular basis, taking advantage of the initial suite of platform offerings, and making progress towards their Type-1 goals, identified in partnership with the NSF Engines program team.

• Type-2 awardees are onboarded and gaining value from the offerings that are being created for the full portfolio of awardees and from curated offerings that are specifically targeted to Type-2 awardees. Type-2 awardees participate in interactive training and programming on a regular basis and these efforts are directly informed by their needs.

• The Builder Platform can receive funds from external entities and the Builder Platform coalition meets the “charitable purpose” threshold necessary to receive philanthropic funds.

9.0 Proposal Format

Proposals should be direct, concise, and must not exceed a total of 15 single sided pages exclusive of the title page and appendixes. The proposal shall be typed, single-spaced, using 12-point font, and printed on “8 ½” “by 11” paper, with 1” margins on all sides. Tables/graphs may use a smaller font. Proposals that do not meet these format specifications may be removed from consideration.

NSF expects the submitting organization to provide details and timelines on their year 1 deliverables across each of the focus areas (talent, partnerships, sustainability, and DEIA strategies) and related curriculum delivery. For each focus area, the submitting team should outline which activities will focus specifically on Type-1 vs. Type-2 awardees and which activities they imagine would be accessible to the full cohort of Type-1s and Type-2s.

9.1 Title Page (does not count toward page limit)

The title page must include the lead organization’s name, UEI number, point of contact for communications, and the contact information for that point of contact.

9.2 Body of the Proposal (limited to 15 pages)

The body of the proposal must include concise, comprehensive information and details on how the offeror will support the efforts outlined in this solicitation. The proposal should address the following areas:

Vision:

Your firm’s Builder Platform vision and role in leading it.

Operations and Organizational Experience Provide a description of your organization’s operational, entrepreneurial, and creative capacity and how it aligns with the needs of the Builder Platform. This section should convey the track record of your organization and of your leadership team in leading entrepreneurial ecosystem building efforts. Include short bios (less than 3 sentences per bio) for the leadership team members and provide brief descriptions of any subcontractor organizations that you plan to bring onboard. For subcontractors, please explain why these organizations are necessary to execute on your vision of the Builder Platform and how their involvement might address any gaps your team has.

Include an overview of networks, partnerships, and new capital sources your organization has and how they will be deployed in support of NSF Engines awardees.

Activities Provide a 1) description and 2) timeline for the activities that your team will undertake during the award period. This should include a description of awardee facing activities, NSF facing activities and partner-facing activities (co-funders, talent, industry partners, etc.). While these activities may evolve after contract negotiations and as priorities evolve, NSF would like to gain an understanding of the offeror’s proposed “launch activities.” Applicants are encouraged to put forward creative ideas to tackle the challenges faced by the NSF Engines awardees, even if these ideas are very different from the activity examples laid out in this solicitation.

Additionally, include high-level information on what a robust Builder Platform will look like at the end of year 3. What programs will be launched? What organizations will be involved in supporting Builder Platform activities? How will the Type-1 and Type-2 awardees have benefitted from Builder Platform activities?

DEIA

A description of your organization’s ability to infuse DEIA into all aspects of the Builder Platform model. Include details on activities that your organization has already taken to build an inclusive DEIA culture within your organization, activities that you have taken to infuse DEIA into your clients’ work and new efforts that you will undertake which are specific to the Builder Platform effort.

9.3 Proposal Budget (no page limit)

A budget and accompanying budget justification which sets forth the amount of funding requested from NSF, by budget category, for the first 12 months of effort.

The budget justification provides a detailed breakdown for each category as well as a rationale to support the proposed. The budget justification must contain sufficient information to allow for meaningful evaluation of the proposed level of effort. NSF is only requesting detailed budget information for the first 12 months of support. Please note that NSF will commit no more than $9.5 million of support over the planned 36 months of the term of the award.

This section shall also specify the requested pricing arrangement (e.g., fixed-price, cost, cost-plus-fixed-fee, etc.) and the rationale for its use. If an organization requests a cost reimbursement type of pricing arrangement, they must have an approved accounting system.

Direct Labor – Breakdown of direct labor identifying the individuals, labor categories, pay rates, and projected level of effort devoted to the project, and their associated subtotals.

Direct Labor Overhead/Fringe Benefits – Rate(s) and base(s), and the cumulative effect on labor costs.

Materials, Supplies, and Equipment – Description and cost of materials, supplies, and equipment, to include the basis of the cost estimate (e.g., historical data, competitive market quotes, and in-house transfers).

Travel – Breakdown of travel and transportation costs. Proposed travel must include the following for each trip: the purpose of the trip, origin and destination if known, approximate duration, the number of travelers, and the estimated cost per trip must be justified based on a reasonable basis for estimation.

Subcontracts – For proposals that contain one or more subcontractors, include a separate subcontractor budget for each planned entity that provides a comparable level of detail to the budget submitted for the overall proposal.

Consultant Services – Breakdown of each individual’s expertise, primary organizational affiliation, normal daily compensation rate, and number of days of expected service, as well as any expected travel costs. This line item should include funds allocated for mentors, entrepreneurs-in-residence, and coaches (if these individuals will be paid for their role in supporting NSF Engine awardees).

Other Direct Costs - Breakdown of other direct costs not already included elsewhere in the budget.

Indirect Costs – For each indirect rate (identified here and elsewhere), indicate if the proposed indirect rate and allocation base have been approved by a government audit or cognizant agency for use in proposals; when the rate(s) was approved; and the name of and telephone number of the cognizant auditor or approving official.

Profit or fee - Profit or fee may be proposed, and if proposed, is subject to negotiations and applicable statutory limits.

9.4 Data Management and Privacy Plan (limited to two pages)

Proposals shall address within the Data Management and Privacy Plan their plans for data-sharing across their team, with NSF, and with the general public during the award.

9.5 Letters of Commitment (no page limit)

Signed one-page letters of collaboration from proposed subcontractors where the subcontractors outline what work they will perform as a part of the Builder Platform effort and why they are uniquely qualified to lead that work.

9.6 Long-Term Financial Model

A five-year financial model outlining the expected total costs of the Builder Platform, including a revenue analysis that details contributions from NSF, and other current or prospective financial contributors. The financial model should include current as well as anticipated commitments (financial and in-kind) to sustain the Builder Platform over a five-year period. Offerors may anticipate some level of funding from NSF in years 4 and 5; however, NSF expects and encourages the Builder Platform lead organization and team will pursue opportunities to receive additional funding from outside organizations to scale adjacent initiatives and provide complementary platform offerings. The financial model should be prepared separately from the three-year budget estimate, but the first three years of NSF support included in the budget estimate should tie into the five-year financial model.

This model shall include information related to anticipated alternative revenue sources. Offerors are encouraged to consider philanthropy, fees for access to the talent network, fellowship funding from external partners, revenues from equity cash outs, and other fees or sponsorship costs. NSF would like to see what strategies offerors have to create and develop a sustainable funding model that may not include significant future funding provided from NSF. NSF recognizes that these figures and projections might ultimately change post-award, but this exercise will be helpful in understanding how the proposer thinks about the broader Builder Platform vision and its sustainability.

9.7 Project Deliverables (three-page limit)

A comprehensive list of all anticipated deliverables under the award. The deliverables in this document should align with the information provided in the Milestone Payment Schedule. Offerors should provide details on which activities will be geared towards the entire cohort versus which activities will be geared specifically towards Type-1 or Type-2 awardees.

9.8 Milestone Payment Schedule (no page limit)

The Milestone Payment Schedule should minimize the number of items listed on the schedule. Payments should be scheduled on a quarterly basis. Offerors shall include a quarterly report where they describe all items that occurred. These items should be listed not more frequently than monthly, but no less frequently than quarterly.

Payments for milestone will only be paid following successful completion of items that are well documented in progress reports and accepted by NSF.

9.9 Conflicts of Interest

The Offeror must include a statement describing any potential financial interests that the organization(s) may have that could create conflicts of interest with the work to be performed in their proposal. The offeror must also include their plan to resolve the conflicts. This statement applies to the OTA contractor, its employees, consultants, and subcontractors used to perform work under their proposal.

Given the nature of this requirement, it is possible for a conflict to arise after the award is made that is not otherwise anticipated. Due to this, the OTA award will include language requiring that the selected organization(s) notify NSF if a conflict arises post award and how the firm intends to address the conflict including a proposed mitigation plan.

10.0 Selection Criteria Definitions

Breadth: the percentage of the contract functions or tasks with which an offeror has had at least one experience. The greater the percentage of the functions or tasks that the offeror has performed, the broader their experience with the work of the prospective contract.

Depth: the number of times an offeror has performed a particular contract function, activity, or task. The more times an offeror has performed a particular contract function or task, the deeper their experience with that function or task.

Experience: demonstration of historical instances of performance of tasks similar in nature to those that will be performed under the prospective contract through which an offeror has had an opportunity to learn about the nature of the work, successful methods, processes, and procedures, and problems and effective solutions.

Relevance: the extent to which work done in the past was similar in kind and scope to the work that will be performed under the prospective contract and confronted the offeror with similar kinds of technical and management challenges and difficulties. The greater the extent, the more relevant the experience.

11.0 Written Proposal Selection Criteria

All written proposals will be evaluated using the selection criteria listed below. Both criteria will be given full consideration during review and as such both must be addressed. When evaluating written proposals, the technical evaluation team will weight “Organizational Experience” as significantly more important than “Understanding of the Challenges.”

Organizational Experience

• The organization’s (and any subcontractors’) organizational and specialized experience in supporting efforts similar to the Builder Platform. This experience includes, but is not limited to, supporting entrepreneurial efforts with the resources and the expertise necessary to grow, develop, and mature organizations similar to those what will be receiving Type-1 and Type-2 NSF Engines awards.

• The extent to which the key personnel included in the proposal have the necessary experience to support this project.

• The extent to which the lead organization and subcontractors have demonstrated experience and has the necessary networks to build and drive new partnerships with NSF Engines stakeholders in a high-touch manner.

• The extent to which the lead organization and subcontractors have experience in developing and delivering curriculum and interactive learning experiences that would create value for NSF Engine awardees.

• The extent to which the lead organization and subcontractors have presented sufficient evidence about their experience embedding DEIA values into their organizational structure and work products.

Rating Guidelines

Exceptional: The proposal demonstrates that the solicitation requirements are very well understood and the core proposing team has the relevant background, depth, and breadth of experience that will likely result in extremely high-quality performance. The proposal clearly addresses and exceeds requirements with no major weaknesses. The proposal contains outstanding features that meet or exceed the expectations of the Federal Government on multiple dimensions and demonstrate a deep understanding of the needs of NSF Engines Type-1 and Type-2 awardees and their innovation ecosystems. There is high confidence that the proposing team has the breadth of experience and networks needed to quickly create support structures, partnerships, and curriculum needed for awardees to thrive. The lead organization and/or subcontractors have experience creating highly relevant curriculum and support structures for ecosystem builders at similar stages of development to NSF Engine Type-1 and Type-2 awardees and can provide details on how this curriculum, programming, support structures had a material impact on the performance of participants. DEIA is clearly embedded into the culture of proposing team and their proposed work products. The proposal scope aligns very well with agency objectives and priorities. The risk of poor performance is extremely low.

Acceptable: The proposal demonstrates that the solicitation requirements are mostly understood and some members of the core proposing team have the relevant background and experience that will likely result in satisfactory performance. The offeror addresses some of the requirements, with some weaknesses. The offeror demonstrates some experience, qualifications, and/or performance capabilities but there are concerns about their relevance, depth and/or breadth. The proposal partially aligns with objectives and priorities described in the solicitation. There is moderate confidence that the proposing team has the breadth of experience and networks to quickly create support structures, partnerships, and the curriculum needed for awardees to thrive. It may not be sufficiently clear if DEIA is embedded into the culture of proposing team and their proposed work products. The risk of poor performance is moderate.

Not Acceptable: The proposal does not meet the solicitation requirements. The proposal scope does not align with objectives and priorities of the solicitation. There are moderate to serious concerns about whether the proposing team’s previous experience is relevant, broad enough to meet the diverse objectives of the federal government, and/or shows a track record of success. The proposal could not satisfy critical requirements without a major revision and/or a rewrite of the proposal or a major redirection effort. DEIA is not discussed or if it is discussed, it is insufficiently embedded into the proposing team’s culture and proposed work products. The risk of poor performance is high.

Understanding of the Challenges

• How well does the proposer understand the challenges that the Builder Platform aims to address and provides a well-developed plan to address these challenges.

• The extent to which the proposal meaningfully addresses all four topic areas (talent, partnerships, sustainability, and DEIA) and provides actionable activities to fill gaps.

• The extent to which the budget and budget justification are comprehensive and reflect a reasonable allocation of resources necessary to successfully complete the proposed activities and a full understanding of the goals of the Builder Platform.

Exceptional: The proposal demonstrates that the solicitation requirements are very well understood, and their innovative and nimble approach will likely result in extremely high-quality performance. The proposal clearly addresses and exceeds requirements with very limited weaknesses. The proposal contains outstanding features that meet or exceed the expectations of the Federal Government on multiple dimensions, including the unique needs of both Type-1 and Type-2 awardees across the four topic areas. The proposal scope aligns very well with agency objectives, priorities, and vision for how the Builder Platform team will support awardees and connect them in a high-touch way with the innovation community. The plan clearly articulates what activities will be undertaken at the 3-month, 6-month, 9-month, and 12-month milestones and provides a cohesive strategy for how these activities will contribute to short-term and long-term Builder Platform outcomes. The proposed budget is reasonable and shows funds being allocated in such a way that meets the diverse objectives of the scope of work. The risk of poor performance is extremely low.

Acceptable: The proposal demonstrates that the solicitation requirements are mostly understood, and the approach will likely result in satisfactory performance for part of the requirements.