Draft of CT Innovation Ecosystem RFQ - 1/2012

Innovation
Ecosystem
………………...... January 5

Draft 2012
Request for
Qualifications
Draft for
Comment

Innovation Ecosystem
Request for Qualifications, 2012 – Draft for Comment – 1/5/12
Contents
Executive Summary ........................................................................................................................... 4
Section I: Overview & Program Objectives ......................................................................................... 5
Section II: Award Information............................................................................................................ 6
2.1 Type of Award ...................................................................................................................... 6
2.2 Estimated Funding................................................................................................................ 6
2.3 Expected Number of Awards ................................................................................................ 6
2.4 Period of Performance ......................................................................................................... 6
2.5 Application Timeline............................................................................................................. 6
Section III: Eligibility Information ....................................................................................................... 7
3.1 Lead Applicants .................................................................................................................... 7
3.2 Applying for Multiple Elements ............................................................................................ 7
3.3 Permitted Activities .............................................................................................................. 7
3.4 Private Leverage Requirements ............................................................................................ 7
Section IV: Application and Submission Information .......................................................................... 8
4.1 Information on Contract Opportunity ................................................................................... 8
4.2 Letter of Intent ..................................................................................................................... 8
4.3 Deadline for Receipt of Applications ..................................................................................... 8
4.4 Content and Form of Application Submission ....................................................................... 8
Section V: System, Company and Element Performance Evaluation ................................................... 9
5.1 Evaluating the Innovation Ecosystem as a Whole ..................................................................... 9
5.2 Evaluating Each Idea, Team and Company in the Innovation Ecosystem................................... 9
5.3 Evaluating Each Element of the Innovation Ecosystem ............................................................. 9
Section VI: Contract Proposal Narrative ........................................................................................... 11
6.1 Directions .............................................................................................................................. 11
6.2 Standard Questions ............................................................................................................... 11
6.3 Statewide resources and programs ........................................................................................ 13
6.3.1 Business Plan Competition .......................................................................................... 13
6.3.2 Mentor Networks ....................................................................................................... 14
6.3.3 Entrepreneurs-in-Residence (Startups) and Executives-in-Residence (Stage 2 firms) ... 16
6.3.4 Concept Development & Commercialization ............................................................... 18
6.3.5 Eco-system development: Internship Development & Talent Resource Directory ....... 20
6.3.6 Innovation Vouchers ................................................................................................... 21
6.4 System Facilitation ............................................................................................................. 22
6.4.1 System Management .................................................................................................. 22

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6.4.2 Software Platform(s)................................................................................................... 23
6.4.3 Data Collection, Feedback and Verification ................................................................. 24
6.5 As Part of an Innovation Hub ................................................................................................. 25
6.5.1 Innovation Hub Management ..................................................................................... 26
6.5.2 Concierge ................................................................................................................... 27
6.5.3 Accelerator ................................................................................................................. 28
6.5.4 Entrepreneur Club House ........................................................................................... 29
6.5.5 Entrepreneur Hotel/Co-Working space ....................................................................... 30
6.5.6 Entrepreneur Education.............................................................................................. 31
6.5.7 Choose-Your-Own-Adventure ..................................................................................... 32
Section VII. Approximate Maximum Contract Allocations ................................................................ 33
Section VIII. Internal Controls and Audit Process Narrative .............................................................. 34
Section IX: Application Evaluation and Selection Process ................................................................. 35
9.1 Evaluation Criteria ................................................................................................................. 35
9.2 Review and selection process ............................................................................................. 36
Section X: Additional Information .................................................................................................... 37
10.1 Questions ............................................................................................................................ 37
10.2 Transparency ....................................................................................................................... 37
10.3 Reporting, Monitoring and Inspections ................................................................................ 37
10.4 Timeliness Requirements ..................................................................................................... 37
10.5 Payment .............................................................................................................................. 37

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Executive Summary
The Innovation Ecosystem is designed to address two goals of the State of Connecticut: 1) To be a
globally competitive location by creating a comprehensive strategy and system that attracts, assists and
retains the most likely-to-succeed first-time and serial entrepreneurs as they start and grow emerging
technology companies in Connecticut; 2) To identify and assist a small group of Stage 2 companies (10 to
99 employees) that have the potential to grow significantly in the state through the introduction of new
techniques, innovation and other interventions, including funding.

A number of drivers have created the need for the State to take actions. These include:

• The persistent low relative levels of business and job growth in the state, and the state’s
demonstrated weakness in retaining high-growth firms that start in Connecticut
• The limited and declining percentage of national venture capital funds flowing into the state to
match and support local investment funds
• The rise of infrastructure to support entrepreneurs in cities and states outside Connecticut,
which are attracting and retaining entrepreneurs building fast-growing companies

The Innovation Ecosystem creates infrastructure to support innovation, company formation and growth.
In larger places, many key infrastructural elements are privately run. But in Connecticut, the State has a
catalytic role to play in developing the critical mass of entrepreneurs and support organizations needed
to sustain private investment in this type of infrastructure. If the State is successful, the Innovation
Ecosystem will attract private capital to become self-sustaining. State support will last only a matter of
years and will decline after an initial period of startup and stabilization. The program is designed to
leverage entrepreneurial leadership, energy and funding to create a critical mass of activity that can be
sustainably self-funded in the near future. Many elements require a private match.

For the first year of the Innovation Ecosystem, Connecticut Innovations (CI) will allocate $4.8 Million of
the new funds allocated in H.B. 6801 to this Program, to be drawn on as needed.

The program will be composed of two levels of operations. The levels are a statewide “System” level,
offering services to the second level, composed of multiple “Hubs.” The System programs will be
designed to minimize overhead and respond as much as possible to demand generated at the Hubs.

The Hubs will be centered in a few key urban areas and may be composed of a variety of programs
operated in coordination but separately, or they may be structured as one entity offering multiple
programs under one roof. They may also be created as a combination of these two paradigms. The
intent of this complex structure is to build a flexible state-wide system that will operate with the agility,
competition and performance likely in a region with more entrepreneurial firms and innovation-oriented
support organizations. Organizations responding to this Request for Qualifications (RFQ) are asked to
consider which programs they are prepared to run and which they will access through alliances and
collaboration with other groups.

This RFQ for the Innovation Ecosystem seeks to help private, public and non-profit efforts to create a
robust infrastructure of entrepreneurship support. The RFQ has many elements for which companies,
organizations and individuals may propose solutions. Funding is limited, so it is likely that not every
location applying will be funded, nor that every element in each location will receive support.

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Section I: Overview & Program Objectives
Governor Dannel Malloy convened a special session of the Connecticut General Assembly to address job
creation in the State of Connecticut on October 26, 2011. The General Assembly passed House Bill 6801,
An Act Promoting Economic Growth and Job Creation in the State, which included provisions to develop
a more effective system of innovation and entrepreneur support in Connecticut.

The development of such a system is called the Innovation Ecosystem. Its goal is to elevate
Connecticut’s profile in innovation-based economic development and drive economic growth via the
creation of knowledge-based jobs. As part of the Innovation Ecosystem, Connecticut Innovations (CI), in
concert with the Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD) will oversee a
competitive contract process to provide funding to a number of elements that together will comprise a
more effective infrastructure for entrepreneurs to use as they grow companies.

The goal of the Innovation Ecosystem is to nurture and support entrepreneurs as they develop, launch
and grow companies that eventually create a large number of high-wage jobs. The Innovation Ecosystem
will support entrepreneurs, startups and stage 2 companies by providing them training and education,
peer networks, mentoring, strategic and technical support.

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Section II: Award Information

2.1 Type of Award
DECD anticipates awarding contracts under this competitive funding opportunity.

2.2 Estimated Funding
Approximately $4,800,000 is available for new contract awards in this funding cycle. The maximum
award depends on which element(s) for which the applicant is bidding. Successful applicants may
have the opportunity to apply for additional funding in each of four (4) subsequent annual funding
cycles.

2.3 Expected Number of Awards
DECD will award contracts to a limited number of entities that submit compelling proposals, but will
not award contracts for every element of the system described in every location. Decisions will be
made on a case-by-case basis and will take into account the current and potential critical mass of
entrepreneurs in each region an applicant intends to cover.

2.4 Period of Performance
DECD expects that successful applicants will fully obligate and expend funding received under this
contract award cycle within one year of receipt of funds.

2.5 Application Timeline
There will be four opportunities in 2012 to apply for the Innovation Ecosystem contract awards: In
February, March, July, and October. Timelines for the first two opportunities are below. Later
schedules will be released with new RFQ packages later in the year.

Milestones February Track Due Dates March Track Due Dates
Draft RFQ Released January 5 January 5
Feedback Due January 13 January 13
Official RFQ Released January 20 January 20
Letter of Intent Due N/A February 3
Pre-Application Due Date February 3 February 17
Information Session(s) TBD TBD
Collaborative Work Period February 3 - 10 February 17 to March 9
Application Deadline February 17 March 30
Application Review Period February 24 April 2 – 30
Announcement of Awards February 27 May 16

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Section III: Eligibility Information

3.1 Lead Applicants
In order to be eligible under this competitive funding opportunity, the lead applicant must:
 Be a private, public, or non-profit entity
 Have clear policies relating to internal controls and annual audits; and
 Demonstrate that it has the capacity to provide assistance to entrepreneurs and small
businesses.

If a consortium is submitting an application or proposing to create a new entity, a lead applicant
must be identified. The lead applicant must be the fiscal agent for the contract.

3.2 Applying for Multiple Elements
In the event an organization wants to apply as the lead applicant for multiple elements, the
organization must submit one application that deals with every question for each element, and must
describe how the elements complement one another and how the organization will successfully
manage each element.

3.3 Permitted Activities
Successful applicants must use funding received under this program to support entrepreneurs and
companies within their region, as described in the Contract Proposal Narrative description for each
element. Funding received under this competitive contract program cannot be used for
construction-related expenses, nor can the funding be used to finance existing debt.

3.4 Private Leverage Requirements
For many elements, applicants must demonstrate a local matching share from non-state sources
that must be available and committed to the project. This match must be equal to the value
specified for each element in the Budget section of this document. Applicants with even higher
leverage ratios will receive higher merit review scores on criteria 9.1.4 of the Contract Proposal.

The leverage requirement has dual purpose: It is intended to ensure that public money is serving to
fill a gap in the private market that the market is likely to address in the future, given sufficient
development of the entrepreneurial pipeline; and it is necessary due to the limited public funding
available to make sure the system has sufficient funds to make an impact. Matching money will
make an applicant more competitive when it demonstrates validation that the applicant is likely to
accelerate formation and growth of significant numbers of companies.

The private leverage requirement is focused on new cash invested in the specific program of the
proposal, but can also include in-kind contributions, such as contributions of space, equipment or
services. Applicants should provide letters of commitment that demonstrate the local match.

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Section IV: Application and Submission Information

4.1 Information on Contract Opportunity
Please direct all inquiries about this contract opportunity to Kip Bergstrom, Deputy Commissioner,
Department of Economic and Community Development at: innovationct@gmail.com.

Responses to inquiries will be posted on a Q&A web page. Please do not contact any CI board
member or staff member. For more information on this contract opportunity, please attend an
information session, the times and locations of which will be shared with all applicants submitting a
letter of intent.

4.2 Letter of Intent
Applicants are requested to submit the letter of intent before 5 p.m. Eastern Time on the date
specified in the Application Timeline. DECD strongly suggests interested applicants submit a letter of
intent, but failure to do so will not disqualify an applicant that submits a complete application.

In the letter of intent applicants are asked to identify:
 The lead applicant
 The element(s) for which the applicant(s) are applying
 Other organizations that are likely to be partners in the application; and
 The Innovation Hub it is seeking to serve

Applicants should submit their letter of intent electronically to innovationct@gmail.com

4.3 Deadline for Receipt of Applications
The deadlines for receipt of applications are specified in the Application Timeline section.
Applications must be received by 5 p.m. Eastern Time. Electronic submission to
innovationct@gmail.com is required. DECD reserves the right to discuss with the applicant(s) any
items over which it has questions.

4.4 Content and Form of Application Submission
A complete application submitted in response to this funding opportunity will contain three parts:
1. Contract proposal narrative and supplemental information for each element for which an
applicant is applying
2. Budget template including each element for which an applicant is applying
3. Internal controls and audit processes narrative covering each element for which an
applicant is applying

Applications that do not address the information required in each part will not be considered for
funding. The contract proposal may not exceed 7 single-spaced pages, plus 3 single-spaced pages
for every element for which an applicant is applying. Applicants are advised to read carefully the
instructions contained in the Application and Submission Information section. It is the sole
responsibility of each applicant to ensure that a complete application package is received by DECD.

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Section V: System, Company and Element Performance Evaluation

5.1 Evaluating the Innovation Ecosystem as a Whole
DECD will create a process to evaluate the performance of the Innovation Ecosystem as a whole,
based on company formation and growth. The key metrics in this evaluation are: Private capital
raised, revenue growth and job creation. Companies that perform particularly well in these
three metrics are referred to in this RFQ as “High Performance Companies”. The goals of the
Innovation Ecosystem are that each year in Connecticut a new 50 startup companies and a new
75 Stage 2 companies become High Performance Companies.

5.2 Evaluating Each Idea, Team and Company in the Innovation Ecosystem
To allocate scarce resources in the Innovation Ecosystem, Hub Management, Concierge staff,
Mentors and EIR will be responsible for regularly rating every idea, team or company they are
working with based on the expected time it will take each idea, team or company to become a
high performance company. The System Management will coordinate a system of sharing and
discussing evaluations to improve resource allocation and System design.

5.3 Evaluating Each Element of the Innovation Ecosystem
5.3.1 Every element of the Innovation Ecosystem will be evaluated based on the success of companies
in Connecticut. There are three key quantitative and two qualitative criteria:

I. Revenue Growth
•Percentage growth in company revenue per quarter
II. Job Growth
•Percentage growth in full-time equivalents (FTEs) per quarter
•Average salary per FTE
III. Investment capital raised (for startups only)
IV. Net promoter score
•Results of quarterly surveys asking, On a 1 to 10 scale, how likely are you to
recommend the Innovation Ecosystem to other entrepreneurs developing companies?
V. Ascription of helpfulness
•Every company receiving support from the Innovation Ecosystem must set goals and
report both on progress toward those goals and which elements of the Innovation
Ecosystem were most helpful in achieving that progress.
•Every element of the Innovation Ecosystem must evaluate every other element
quarterly for its usefulness and cooperation.

5.3.2 The Innovation Ecosystem software platform, explained briefly in section 6.4.2, will allow
companies to input data and fill out surveys quarterly to track these results.

5.3.3 Each year, every Innovation Hub must bid on the number of companies it expects to be primarily
responsible for helping attain High Performance Company status. Since the system is
collaborative in nature, many elements will contribute to company success. The Ascription of

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Helpfulness process will provide due credit to each element that helped a company, and will
enable elements to receive fractional credit for company success. For example, if a High
Performance Company says one element contributed 60% of the help it needed and four others
contributed equally to the other 40%, then the first element would get credit for 0.6 High
Performance Company and the other four would get credit for 0.1 High Performance Company.

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Section VI: Contract Proposal Narrative

6.1 Directions
The primary purpose of the contract proposal narrative(s) is to demonstrate the degree to which the
applicant has thought through the opportunities and challenges of running each element for which it is
applying. An effective proposal will include not only descriptions of the approach, but also identification
of the barriers to implementation and descriptions of the strategies for overcoming those barriers.

The contract proposal narrative should demonstrate the applicant’s ability to help startup and Stage 2
companies grow. The applicant may demonstrate that ability both through the activities proposed in
this document and by proposing other approaches that would be more effective in achieving the goals
of the Innovation Ecosystem. The length of the contract proposal narrative may not exceed 7 single-
spaced pages, plus 4 single-spaced pages for every element for which an applicant is applying. Each
page shall be 8.5 x 11 inches with not less than 12-point font and 1-inch margins. Supplemental
information provided at the end of the contract proposal narrative will not count towards the page limit.
Supplemental information may include: letters of support or commitment from strategic partners, a
map of the region, organization charts, and résumés of key team members. The contract proposal
narrative and any supplemental information should be submitted as a single Adobe PDF file.

The requirements of what must be included in each component of the contract proposal narrative are
outlined below. Applicants should cite the source of all data presented throughout their application.

6.2 Standard Questions
For each element for which the applicant is applying, please answer the following questions in addition
to the questions in each section that are particular to that element:

I. Financial questions
A. Please provide a detailed budget and a narrative describing and justifying expenditures.
B. Please describe the system of internal budget controls and audit processes.
C. How will the applicant attract and leverage private capital to become financially self-
sustaining? What is the level of private match in the first year? Please provide
documentation in the form of letters of commitment or existing budget commitments.
D. Over what time period will the applicant become self-sustaining? Please show this
transition in the budget. The budget may go out as far as 5 or 10 years if necessary.

II. Management and governance
A. Describe how the element will be managed. Who are the leaders, and what is their
experience? Please provide evidence of their ability to help companies grow.
B. Describe the governance structure. What are the various positions, roles and
relationships? For example, is there a board? What is its role and how does it interact
with the management team?

III. Impact
A. Time to market: Please provide a timeline outlining the process by which the element
will deliver the programming described in the Design section of this proposal.

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B. Performance: By what metrics should the element be judged and how will the applicant
collect those metrics?
C. For existing organizations, please provide historical performance metrics.
D. For new organizations, please share evidence of past performance by the management
team and/or governing board.

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6.3 Statewide resources and programs

6.3.1 Business Plan Competition
I. Description
Business plan competitions will serve as a major funnel for the Innovation Ecosystem,
attracting top-notch entrepreneurial teams with the opportunity to win pre-seed stipends
and professional service vouchers. The goals are to select those with the best chances of
success, and guide them to the most effective resources in Connecticut to help them grow.

There will be one major competition planned on a statewide basis with a global marketing
reach. The winners of this “system” competition will be assigned to various hubs based on
the wishes of the winners and input from hub and system managers.

II. Example
MassChallenge

III. Match
1:2 private match ($1 for every $2 of contract)

IV. Design Questions
A. Selection: Please describe the process the applicant will use to attract, screen and select
entrepreneurs. How will the competition be advertised, to whom, and in which target
markets? What will be the application process? Will there be different categories of
entrepreneurs? Who will judge the applications and what criteria will judges use?
B. Stages: How many stages will the competition have and what will happen during each?
What will be asked of entrepreneurs at each stage and what will be provided them?
What will be provided to entrepreneurs who do not progress to the next stage?
C. Prizes: Please describe the prizes offered to winning companies, including number and
composition. Please document relevant planned or established partnerships with other
applicants or existing organizations to support company growth.
D. Sources of capital: Please describe the sources of the competition’s funds. Who are the
fund’s investors? What will be the terms of the investments?
E. Calendar: Describe the calendar the competition will use. How long will the
competition run? How many sessions will the competition run per year?
F. Mentorship: Describe the system of mentorship the competition will provide. How will
it work with the statewide mentorship system? What types of mentors will it seek?
How will it recruit, train and manage mentors? Please provide evidence of any planned
or established partnerships the applicant has with mentorship providers.
G. Access to capital: How will the applicant help entrepreneurs seek, attract and secure
capital in addition to that which the competition provides? How will the applicant help
entrepreneurs find, meet and engage with investors and other sources of capital?
Please document relevant planned or established partnerships.
H. Community: How will the applicant help entrepreneurs forge relationships?
I. Size: How many applications can the applicant support? How many entrepreneurs can
the applicant support at each stage of the competition?

V. For Financial, Management and Governance, and Impact questions please see section 6.2.

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6.3.2 Mentor Networks
I. Description
A mentor network is a system through which experienced entrepreneurs who have held
leadership roles in fast-growing companies, preferably with exits, volunteer their time to
help less experienced entrepreneurs develop their leadership capacity and navigate the
myriad challenges of growing a startup company. An effective mentor system screens
potential mentors rigorously for ability. Not all successful entrepreneurs make good
mentors. A good system trains mentors in a Socratic method of engagement, and curates
the group to ensure excellence. A mentor may spend between one and three hours per
week with an individual company. Meetings should be recorded, graded and logged in all
cases. Scheduling and reviewing mentors will be facilitated at the System level.

For older or larger Stage 2 firms the role of mentors will require mentors who have more
specific skills to work with peers or individuals who may be more skeptical or uncertain
about the ability of unpaid individuals to help them in a meaningful way. Therefore, special
recruiting and matching will be required.

II. Example
Entrepreneur Center, Nashville, Tennessee

III. Match
No match required

A. Selection: Describe the process the mentor network management will use to recruit,
screen and select mentors. Explain and describe filters that will be necessary to find
mentors who will be able to best work with startups and those necessary to find
mentors best able to work with Stage 2 firms.
B. Training: How will the applicant train mentors? What are the principles and methods of
mentorship the applicant will train mentors to use?
C. Curation: Describe how mentor performance will be evaluated and how under-
performing mentors will be let go.
D. Matching: How will mentors and entrepreneurs or Stage 2 firms be matched? How will
the system pair appropriate mentors with entrepreneurs and stage 2 firms in a dynamic
way that changes according to company needs and growth stage?
E. Relationship management: Please describe the system the applicant intends to use to
manage relationships with and among mentors, entrepreneurs, Stage 2 leaders, service
providers and investors.
F. Compensation: Should mentors be compensated? If so, how? Should mentors be
treated in special ways? If so, how?
G. Interaction with innovation hubs: Please describe the relationship between the mentor
network, the mentors, and the organizations in the hubs. Where will mentors meet
with entrepreneurs? Will hubs provide meeting space and if so, how? Assuming
mentors will meet Stage 2 firms in the company’s offices how will the interaction quality
be maintained and standardized?
H. Availability: To what types of companies, located in what areas and involved with which
other elements of the Innovation Ecosystem will the mentor network provide service?

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How will that service be booked and how will the network be compensated for that
service?

V. For Financial, Management and Governance, and Impact questions, please see section 6.2.,
plus the following:

VI. Particular Financial Questions
A. Please provide a detailed budget with an accompanying narrative that describes and
justifies expected expenditures. These might include tools such as iPads, thank you
certificates for dinners, and periodic social gatherings with clients and mentors.

VII. Particular Impact Questions
A. For existing organizations, please provide historical performance metrics, a list of
mentors and the amount of time each works with companies per month.
B. For new organizations, please share the list of proposed mentors, evidence of their past
performance, and the amount of time each has committed to work with companies per
month.

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6.3.3 Entrepreneurs-in-Residence (Startups) and Executives-in-Residence (Stage 2 firms)
I. Description
A system of entrepreneurs-in-residence (EIR) is a more intense application of the benefits of
the mentor network. It will provide a “time-share” portion of the weekly casework of a
seasoned entrepreneur or executive to a worthy startup. In some cases the System may
assign an EIR to a company directly. These seasoned entrepreneurs will have experience in
general and specific aspects of growing companies and some will have gone through
successful exits. They may be former corporate leaders or members of accomplished startup
management teams. EIR will have workloads from a few firms at a time to as many as five or
six. They may have subject matter, industry or stage areas of specialization. They will be
employed by the System in most cases and their assignments will be controlled through the
use of Innovation Vouchers that the Hubs may allocate during the course of a year.
However, Hubs may find and deploy their own EIR as well if they raise the funds to do so.

Stage 2 firms will need access to EIR (Executives-in-Residence), and will need specialized and
talented individuals who can drop into on-going and complex situations with strong and
experienced managers who will be looking for very specific and deep skills in a person who
would purport to bring aid to their firms. EIR for Stage 2 firms may fall into the category of
consultants who can be CEO coaches, CMOs, or CTOs and bring short-term bridge skills to a
firm for which the EIR will then find a permanent player or may fulfill that role themselves.

II. Match
1:4 private match ($1 for every $4 of contract) for vouchers and 1:1 match for EIR dedicated
to a hub

III. Design Questions
A. Selection: Describe the process the program should use to recruit, screen and select EIR.
B. Training: How will EIR be trained? What principles and methods of management,
leadership and mentoring should be used with EIR?
C. Curation: Describe how the Hub or System will evaluate EIR performance and how
under-performing EIR will be let go.
D. Matching: How will EIR and entrepreneurs be matched? How will the System and Hubs
pair appropriate EIR with entrepreneurs in a dynamic way that changes according to
company needs and growth stage? Please specify how this process will work for both
startups and stage 2 firms.
E. Relationship management: Please describe the system the applicant intends to use to
manage relationships with and among EIR, entrepreneurs, Stage 2 leaders, service
providers and investors.
F. Compensation: How much should EIR be compensated? If at all, how much value in EIR
vouchers will the Hub require? The System is prepared to match $4 for every $1 in
match the Hubs raise for vouchers to “buy” shares of EIR.
G. Interaction with innovation hubs: Please describe the relationship between the EIR
network, the companies and the organizations in the Hub. Where will EIR meet with
entrepreneurs? Will hubs provide meeting space and if so, how?
H. Availability: To what types of companies, located in what areas and involved with which
other elements of the Innovation Ecosystem will the EIR network provide service?

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IV. For Financial, Management and Governance, and Impact questions, please see section 6.2.,
plus the following:

V. Particular Management and Governance Questions
A. Hubs will be given vouchers for EIR and will have to make choices as to how they are
used and whether relationships should be cancelled at the end of each quarter or
continued. Please describe the methods you would use to judge the value of each EIR
relationship. How will a relationship that has reached diminished or no positive return
be analyzed? How can the news be broken to the parties in a constructive way?
B. EIR will normally be employed by the System and made available to the Hubs through a
triage and allocation formula. Describe how you would like to see this system managed.
C. The Hubs will need to review the progress and impact of the EIR relationships, and will
be responsible for the proper record keeping by both client firm and EIR. EIR should file
weekly reports and assessments of all client firms.
D. It is expected that EIR engagements will run between two quarters and two years.
E. Hubs may recruit their own EIR if they can fund them for their own clients. They may
offer their EIR to the System if the EIR have excess capacity and are interested in finding
additional clients. How would the applicant recruit EIR?

VI. Particular Impact Questions
A. EIR, Clients and Hubs will have opportunities to grade each other on an ongoing basis.
B. Hubs will be graded on the quality of matches they make between client firms and EIR.
C. Hubs will be graded on their ability to use their vouchers in the most productive ways.

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6.3.4 Concept Development & Commercialization
I. Description
Many ideas or early stage technologies need help to become commercializable. Corporate
intellectual property, university research, and ideas by free-floating entrepreneurs may
need assistance of one or multiple of the following types: prototyping; product and process
design and testing; market analysis; business plan assistance; scale-up planning; and
mentorship. One or multiple of these services could be provided by university researchers,
student teams, corporate R&D departments, and many of the elements of the larger
Innovation Ecosystem. There is a need for an organization that screens, selects, matches
and funds highly promising projects in need of these types of assistance.

Note: The Concept Development & Commercialization element has no contract opportunity
associated with it in 2012, but is an important component of the system and will likely be
funded in the future.

II. Example
The inspiration for this element comes from the Deshpande Center for Technological
Innovation at MIT and the von Liebig Center for Entrepreneurism at University of California,
San Diego. However, the concept has been broadened to serve ideas from any source,
statewide.

III. Match

A. Selection: Please describe the process the applicant will use to attract, screen and select
projects. How will the process be advertised and to whom? What will be the
application process? Will there be different levels and types of scrutiny for projects of
different sizes? How will the judging process work? What criteria will judges use?
What types of judges will be used? Will they be compensated, and if so, how? How will
the selection process handle the wide array of technology concept areas from which
projects will likely apply?
B. Matching: Please describe the method the applicant will use to match projects with
service providers. How will the applicant develop and maintain a knowledge base of
capacities in universities, corporations and the Innovation Ecosystem and how will that
knowledge base be put into/extracted from the Innovation Ecosystem software
platform database, mentioned in section 6.4.2? How far afield will the applicant search
for service providers: Statewide, region-wide, nation-wide or globally? Please document
relevant planned or established partnerships.
C. Project awards: Please describe the system of project awards. What sizes of awards will
be offered? Will awards be broken into stages to force awardees to show progress
before receiving another tranche?
D. Sources and uses of capital: Please describe the sources of the applicant’s funds. What
will be the terms of the awards?
E. Calendar: Describe the calendar the applicant will use to solicit and evaluate project
proposals. How many times a year will it run, or will it be a continuous process?

18

F. Eligibility: Who is eligible to receive an award? What requirements, if any, will there be
on the affiliation of the project team or structure of the organization of which the team
is part? Will awards be available only to teams seeking service from another
organization, or can awards be used by the teams themselves to do certain types of
work? If the latter, what percentage funding match will be required to ensure that
awards are leveraging additive projects?


19

6.3.5 Eco-system development: Internship Development & Talent Resource Directory
I. Description
There seems to be a shortage of key talent in engineering, programming and systems
management in the state. Yet there are also many good students taking relevant classes
and younger workers with the right experience. How can we match these talents and
needs? The SBIR has one successful program for engineers that we can build on as a model.
There may be others as well. Our goal is to have two new resources in addition to the
matching database of the SBIR. The first will be a statewide annual internship program, with
forty $3,000 internship contracts to be matched by Hub client companies from 33% to 100%
and then offered through a competition to state-based students in public colleges and
graduate schools or to Connecticut citizens going to private schools. Ten interns per year
may be granted an additional amount to complete a special project for the company.

Second, each year a problem solving test will be given to all interested students in computer
programming and the resulting skill profiles published in a state-wide directory of
programming talent.

II. Match

A. Selection: How would the applicant recruit firms to take part in the Innovation
Ecosystem Internship program? Would the applicant recruit students to apply for the
internships? How would the applicant recruit students to take the state-wide
programming test and take part in the talent directory?
B. Matching: How would the applicant create a matching process?
C. Special projects: How would the applicant determine which intern projects to fund?
D. Programming test: How would the applicant design the programming test each year?

IV. For Financial, Management and Governance, and Impact questions, please see section 6.2.,
plus the following:

V. Particular Financial Questions
A. How would the applicant encourage firms to contribute matching funds to the
internships? Interns could be allocated based on the size of the match. Is this a good
way to run the program?

VI. Particular Impact Questions
A. What kind of reports would the applicant require and collect for each of the internships.
How would the applicant judge the success of the program?
B. Should companies be encouraged to hire interns in future years? How can this be
encouraged?

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6.3.6 Innovation Vouchers
I. This is not a contract opportunity in this RFQ, but is an element that will facilitate other
elements in the Innovation Ecosystem.

II. Description
A. Innovation Vouchers are a means to create a market for the transfer of knowledge.
Projects may take the form of prototyping, product and process design and testing,
scale-up planning, commercialization assistance including market research, business
plan creation and mentorship services, as well as other areas. Projects from
universities, corporate R&D centers, and free-floating entrepreneurs may qualify for
innovation vouchers, which will be funded by the State and delivered through the
Concierge, Innovation Hubs, or other qualified organizations, such as an eventual
Concept Development & Commercialization organization. Projects may use innovation
vouchers to purchase assistance from university research labs and teams, corporate
R&D centers, professional service providers, or other qualified entities in the Innovation
Ecosystem.

B. Vouchers are worth $5000.

C. Projects or companies may apply for up to three at a time. Further applications are
allowed and must describe the results from previous voucher use.

D. Vouchers will be distributed to the Concierge, Innovation Hubs and other qualified
organizations on the basis of the number of companies they bid to get over the High
Performance Company bar each year.

E. Each element distributing vouchers will be evaluated based on the following conceptual
equation: Results for projects and companies using the vouchers, divided by the dollar
amounts of all vouchers that element distributed. Elements will be able to give back
unused vouchers to the System before each evaluation period.

21

6.4 System Facilitation

6.4.1 System Management
I. Description
The Innovation Ecosystem is essentially a startup organization. As such, it requires flexibility
and agility to adapt quickly to deliver results in a dynamic business environment. For at
least the initial two years of the program, during which the greatest experimentation is
likely to take place while the system stabilizes, the management of the Innovation
Ecosystem will be outsourced.

The System Management is responsible for supervision of all System-level elements of the
Innovation Ecosystem, which includes: Business plan competition, mentor networks,
entrepreneurs- and executives-in-residence, concept development and commercialization,
internship development and talent resource directory, innovation vouchers, software
platform(s), and in a matrixed way, innovation hub management and the concierge service.

The System Management will create the appropriate systems and meetings to maintain a
dense and transparent set of connections, data sharing and general amity between the Hubs
to promote communications, cooperation, and joint problem solving as required to produce
an agile and learning network.

The System Management will maintain the dashboard of all Innovation Ecosystem
operations and will be responsible for encouraging compliance with reporting requirements
and will report to the state on the overall attainment of progress and goals.

II. Match
There is no match requirement for this element.

A. How would the applicant manage or interact with each element it oversees to drive
experimentation, accountability, and results? Please describe the proposed interaction
with each element specifically.
B. How would the applicant interact with hub management and concierge services, which
are also responsible to their respective hubs to strike the right balance of coordination,
autonomy, and flexibility?
C. How would the applicant drive elements to use the software platform to enable
networking, collaboration, lead-tracking and workflow, data collection, and
performance evaluation?
D. How would the applicant support use of innovation vouchers?

IV. For Financial, Management and Governance, and Impact questions please see section 6.2.

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6.4.2 Software Platform(s)
The Software Platform(s) will be awarded through a separate RFP process, but it is
important for Innovation Ecosystem applicants to know that a platform is being created to
enable all elements and participants in the system to find each other, network, collaborate,
manage leads/contacts, relationships, calendars and workflows, and report and track
performance.

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6.4.3 Data Collection, Feedback and Verification
I. Description
The investment of $4.8 million of state money in the ecosystem is a statement and act of
great faith in the innovation community to use the funds wisely and create a significant
impact in the job creation systems with the state. The overall goals of the Innovation
Ecosystem effort are to first, identify and assist startups each year such that at least 50 new
companies are classified as high performance at year’s end; and second, to identify and
assist 75 Stage 2 firms to grow on average 10% over the next two years.

The progress and success of the many parts of the Innovation Ecosystem will need to be
monitored and analyzed to see if these goals are met. The reason for this is not simply to
point out failure or success but to create an agile, easily improved set of interrelated
activities and actors who can willingly and easily exchange information for the purpose of
understanding what is working and what can and should be changed.

Reflection for the sake of improvement must be the overriding culture of the entire effort.
A system that comprehensively catalogues the performance of the system to encourage
better results without giving incentives to hide or falsify data must be created.

II. Design Questions
A. How would the applicant determine what data needs to be collected and how would the
applicant balance the needs of creating teams, partnerships and strong working
synergies with the need to accurately monitor what the overall and individual parts of
the system were achieving?
B. What architecture for data collection, storing and accessing information should be
created? Should data be collected at the Hub and System level and if so, how can
compliance with reporting needs be measured?
C. Considering the on-going flow of activities, the periodic outcomes and changes of
function and roles – so-called milestone events – how should the data collection be
organized by time and activity?
D. How should reports be compiled and issued periodically? How should real-time
dashboards be established and maintained?
E. How should system updates, recalculations, progress and changes be scheduled? Should
the system seek to find issues and weaknesses on an on-going basis and test them to
see if they are true problems needing repair? Should key parts of system be given longer
periods to self-correct – perhaps one or two years? Which pieces or elements of the
system should be given longer periods of time than others before being reviewed?
F. Since it will take years to fully understand if the overall goals of the Innovation
Ecosystem have been met, how can the on-going data collection and analysis be used as
a surrogate and actual tool to increase the likelihood that the goals will be achieved?

III. For Financial, Management and Governance, and Impact questions please see section 6.2.

24

6.5 As Part of an Innovation Hub
The questions relating to finance, management & governance, and impact apply to all elements in an
innovation hub and may, if the applicant(s) prefer(s), be filled out once to apply to the whole hub.
Alternatively, the applicant(s) may answer these questions separately for each element. To save space,
the questions have been written only once below, rather than repeated in each element section. The
applicant must ensure that these questions have been answered for each element in a hub, whether by
treating the hub as a single entity, or by answering each question below for each element.

I. Financial questions
A. Please provide a detailed budget with an accompanying narrative that describes and
justifies expected expenditures.
B. Please describe the system of internal budget controls and audit processes.
C. How will the applicant attract and leverage private funding to become financially self-
sustaining? What is the level of private match in the first year? Please provide
documentation in the form of letters of commitment or existing budget commitments.
D. Over what time period will the applicant become completely self-sustaining? Please
show this transition in the budget. The budget may go out as far as 5 or 10 years if
necessary.

II. Management and governance
A. Describe how the hub/element will be managed. Who are the leaders, and what is their
experience? Please provide evidence of their ability to help entrepreneurs grow their
companies.
B. Describe the governance structure. What are the various positions, roles and
relationships? For example, is there a board? What is its role and how does it interact
with the management team?

III. Impact
A. Market potential: Please define the region the hub/element seeks to serve. For that
region, please provide the most recent possible 5 years of data on the number of
company launches and the amount of growth in terms of capital raised, revenue
generated, and new jobs created.
B. Time to market: Please provide a timeline outlining the process by which the
hub/element will deliver the programming described in the Design sections of this
proposal.
C. Performance: By what metrics should the hub/element be judged and how will the
hub/element collect those metrics?
D. For existing organizations, please provide historical performance metrics.
E. For new organizations, please share evidence of past performance by the management
team and/or governing board.

25

6.5.1 Innovation Hub Management
I. Description
A Hub must operate as a coordinated whole, a local innovation ecosystem. Hubs may elect
to have a function that manages and coordinates Hub elements. The applicant must show
the ways in which Hub Management would contribute directly to successful Hub operation
by taking on roles implied in the overall RFQ. These might be contributing the management
overhead for programs, operations, and data collection and could include mentoring itself.

The Hub Management must have the breadth of skill, contacts and experience to play the
role of “super connector” and triage manager for all parts of the Hub ecosystem and
especially for the key sorting of new and would-be entrepreneurs to the services and
connections they need in a quick and easy way.

The Hub Management will provide communications and daily problem solving for the Hub.
The role must be filled by a credible leader and “explainer” for the innovation community
and must also have the leadership and personality traits to handle the frequent tension,
disappointment and failure that will be part of efforts to find success and growth from the
careful application of funds and talented people to complex and ambiguous problems.

One complicating issue for any Hub Management is that it will have to work with and be
part of a team lead by the System Management team. So the relationship will be a nuanced
and matrix one, since the Hub Management will be paid in part by the System but will be
hired and monitored by the Hubs. In any contract there will be a clause that will allow the
System to suspend payments for Hub Management if it is felt Hub Management is not
performing in a way that best promotes the System’s goals.

Given that there is not enough funding for all Hubs to receive dollars for all programs,
creative use of Hub Management will be an important factor for successful applications.
The Hub Management element does not require matching funds, so it can be used in
conjunction with other elements to change the relationship and ratio of System funds to
Hub matching funds. However, the funding and requirements for match for the Hub
Management may change in future years depending on the best practices across all Hubs.

A. Selection: describe the skills and roles of Hub Management. How would the applicant
recruit the necessary talent and create a system, board or institution so Management
performance could be overseen and judged, and changes made easily if needed.
B. Roles: If Management talent will be playing various roles please explain the time to be
allocated to each and how the personnel skills fulfill the needs of these roles.
C. Please explain how you would use the allocated funding to make the Hub successful.
D. Explain the nature of the organization that will hire the Hub Management. Is it a for-
profit or a not-for-profit? If the latter, what kind of a 501(c) is it?
E. The key number: How many companies will the element bid to help get over the High
Performance Company bar in year 1? In year 2? In year 3? Remember, elements can
receive fractional credit for High Performance Company success.


26

6.5.2 Concierge
I. Description
The Concierge system will connect entrepreneurs with the people, institutions, services and
resources they need to grow. This system could operate in various ways. For example, it
could rely on staff to identify and assist companies demonstrating high levels of readiness
for innovation and growth, or it could be based on an open platform to enable companies to
self-identify and access resources. Regardless of the mechanism, the Concierge will serve as
the state’s front door for potentially fast-growing stage 2 companies and will perform a
variety of functions to help those companies achieve their potential:

A. Discovering companies’ goals, wants and needs
B. Connecting companies to the resources they need to grow
C. Providing Innovation Vouchers to firms with sufficient ability to grow and to use the
vouchers effectively.

A. Search: Please describe the process the Concierge will use to search for companies that
could grow fast with some targeted assistance.
B. Selection: Please describe the process the Concierge will use to assess which companies
could achieve the greatest growth.
C. Assessment: Please describe the process the Concierge will use to assess which types of
assistance would provide the greatest benefit to each company.
D. Referral: Please describe the method the applicant will use to match projects with
service providers. How will the Concierge system develop and maintain a
comprehensive knowledge base of capacities in universities, corporations and the
Innovation Ecosystem and how will that knowledge base be put into/extracted from the
Innovation Ecosystem software platform database? How far afield will the Concierge
system seek to identify service providers: Statewide, region-wide, nationwide or global?
E. Use of Innovation Vouchers: Please describe how the Concierge intends to use the
Innovation Vouchers to help companies access the resources they need. What sizes of
awards should be offered? Should awards be broken into stages to force awardees to
show progress before receiving another tranche?
F. Calendar: Describe the calendar the applicant will use to search, select, assess and refer
companies. How many times a year will the process run, or will it be a continuous
process? How many hours does the applicant expect it to take to complete the process
of assessment and referral for each company, and over what time period will such work
be completed? Please offer a plan for achieving the turn-around time described.
G. Eligibility: Which types of companies should be eligible to receive Concierge assistance?


27

6.5.3 Accelerator
I. Description
An accelerator invests in a highly select cadre of entrepreneurs for a short time period,
providing intense mentorship, a peer community and space to help startups prepare for
fundraising and launch.

Two models of statewide accelerator architecture are under consideration. The first is that
every Innovation Hub has an accelerator. The second is that there should be only one
accelerator in the state, due to the intensely competitive nature of accelerators and their
need to have as wide as possible a catchment area to attract the best companies.

II. Examples
YCombinator; TechStars; Betaspring

III. Match
1:1 match ($1 for every $1 of contract)

A. Selection: Describe the process accelerator management will use to recruit, screen and
select entrepreneurs.
B. Guidance for others: Will the accelerator management provide any guidance to
entrepreneurs not selected for the accelerator? If so, what type of guidance?
C. Investment approach: Describe the sources, management, and uses of the accelerator’s
investment fund. What is the size of the fund? Who are the fund’s investors? How
much will be invested in each accelerated entrepreneur? When will the investments
occur and what will they support? What will be the terms of the investments?
D. Time limits: Describe the calendar the accelerator will use. What time limits will there
be on entrepreneurs’ presence in the accelerator and their use of accelerator
resources? How many sessions will the accelerator run per year?
E. Space: Describe the space and amenities the accelerator will provide to entrepreneurs.
What is the neighborhood like? What amenities are nearby? Will it charge rent?
F. Mentorship: Describe the system of mentorship the accelerator will provide. How will it
work with the statewide mentorship system? What types of mentors will it seek? How
will it recruit, train and manage mentors? Please provide evidence of any partnerships
the organization has with mentorship providers.
G. Programming and curriculum: What types of educational programs and training will the
accelerator provide? How will those programs respond quickly to the changing needs of
entrepreneurs in the region? Please provide evidence of any partnerships the
organization has with programming providers.
H. Access to capital: How will the accelerator help entrepreneurs seek, attract and secure
capital? How will the accelerator help entrepreneurs find, meet and engage with
investors and other sources of capital? Please document relevant planned or
established partnerships.
I. Community: How will the accelerator help entrepreneurs forge relationships?
J. Size: How many entrepreneurs will the accelerator support?


28

6.5.4 Entrepreneur Club House
I. Description
Provides workspace and mentorship to a highly select set of entrepreneurs for a period of
six to nine months, to help startups learn from each other, continue to seek funding, and
grow their companies. Club houses are generally run by venture capital firms that invest in
a few of the companies in the club house toward the end of their stay.

II. Example
Dogpatch Labs

III. Match

A. Selection: Describe the process club house management will use to recruit, screen and
select entrepreneurs.
B. Guidance for others: Will the club house management provide any guidance to
entrepreneurs not selected for the club house? If so, what type of guidance?
C. Investment approach: Describe the sources, management, and uses of the club house’s
investment fund. What is the size of the fund? Who are the fund’s investors?
D. Time limits: Describe the calendar the club house will use. What time limits will there
be on entrepreneurs’ presence in the club house and their use of club house resources?
E. Space: Describe the space and amenities the club house will provide to entrepreneurs.
What is the neighborhood like in which the club house is located? What amenities are
nearby? Will it charge rent?
F. Mentorship: Describe the system of mentorship the club house will provide. Please
provide evidence of any partnerships the organization has with mentorship providers.
G. Programming and curriculum: What types of educational programs and training, if any,
will the club house provide? How will those programs respond quickly to the changing
needs of entrepreneurs in the region? Please provide evidence of any partnerships the
organization has with programming providers.
H. Access to capital: How will the club house help entrepreneurs seek, attract and secure
capital? How will the club house help entrepreneurs find, meet and engage with
investors and other sources of capital? Please document relevant planned or
established partnerships.
I. Community: How will the club house help entrepreneurs forge relationships with each
other?
J. Size: How many entrepreneurs will the club house support?


29

6.5.5 Entrepreneur Hotel/Co-Working space
I. Description
Provides highly flexible workspace to a lightly curated group of entrepreneurs for an
unlimited time period, to help startups and established firms learn from each other and
grow. Entrepreneur hotels, which include both dedicated and communal work spaces, and
co-working spaces are generally run as market-rate real estate enterprises with a focus on
providing excellent, flexible space and amenities, with a strong sense of community. The
organization does not invest in its entrepreneurs.

II. Examples
General Assemb.ly; Cambridge Innovation Center

III. Match

A. Curation: Describe the process management will use to select entrepreneurs.
B. Guidance for others: Will management provide any guidance to entrepreneurs not
selected for the space? If so, what type of guidance?
C. Investment: Will the organization or its managers invest capital in the entrepreneurs or
companies in its space?
D. Time limits: Will there be any explicit time limits on entrepreneurs’ presence in the
space?
E. Space: Describe the space and amenities it will provide to entrepreneurs. What is the
neighborhood like in which the space is located? What amenities are nearby? Will it
charge rent?
F. Mentorship: Describe the ways entrepreneurs in the hotel/co-working space will be
able to connect with mentors. Please document relevant planned or established
partnerships.
G. Programming and curriculum: Describe the ways entrepreneurs in the hotel/co-working
space will be able to access training programs and curricula. Please document relevant
planned or established partnerships.
H. Access to capital: Will the applicant help entrepreneurs raise capital? If so, how?
I. Community: How will the applicant help entrepreneurs forge relationships with each
other?
J. Size: How many entrepreneurs will the space support?


30

6.5.6 Entrepreneur Education
I. Description
Successful entrepreneurs possess a wide range of abilities and skills, some of which are
industry specific, and some of which apply to all entrepreneurial endeavors. The education
element shall teach entrepreneurs the skills they need to launch, grow and sell their
companies, and will help to develop the talent they need to fuel their growth.

Note: The entrepreneur education element has no contract opportunity associated with it,
but is an important component of an innovation hub. Only applicants proposing to run hub
management, an accelerator, an entrepreneur clubhouse or entrepreneur hotel are eligible
to apply to run the entrepreneur education element.

II. Examples
General Assemb.ly

a. Targeting: To which types of entrepreneurs will the applicant provide education?
b. Education types: Please describe the types of educational content that the applicant will
deliver. What is the process for selecting that content and for ensuring that the content
changes rapidly to match demand?
c. Format: Please describe the format(s) of education the applicant will provide, including
range of class sizes, in-person or online delivery, lecture, seminar, practicum, tutorial or
other class design.
d. Faculty: Please describe the process for selecting faculty.

IV. For Financial, Management and Governance, and Impact questions please see section 6.5.

31

6.5.7 Choose-Your-Own-Adventure
I. Description
This RFQ may be missing elements that would lead more effectively to the formation and
growth of companies that become technological powerhouses, changing industries and
creating jobs and prosperity in Connecticut. Please use this section to articulate elements
that would improve the Innovation Ecosystem, which the applicant(s) propose to run, either
at the System or Hub level. Please be at least as clear and thorough in the description of the
design, financial, management and governance and impact components of the element as
the prior segments of the contract proposal narrative request.

32

Section VII. Approximate Maximum Contract Allocations
Applicants must provide a detailed budget with their contract proposal. Applicants should clearly
document expected expenditures and provide a budget justification narrative that explains how they
propose to expend funding.

2012 Max. Innovation Min.
Contract Min. Cash Vouchers Cash/Service
Element ($000s) match ($000s) ($000s) match ($000s)
System: Statewide Resources and Programs 750 150 30 150
Business Plan Competition 500 100-250 30 150
Mentor Networks 50
Entrepreneurs- and Executives-in-Residence 50
Concept Development & Commercialization 0 N/A
Internship Development and Talent Directory 150 150
System Facilitation 700 0 0 0
System Management 250
Software Platform(s) 350
Data Collection, Feedback and Verification 100
Innovation Hub 690-1,090 175 795 300
Hub Management 185 25 365
Concierge 155 430 300
Accelerator 200-600 100-300
Entrepreneur Clubhouse 100-200 100-200
Entrepreneur Hotel/Co-Working Space 50 150
Entrepreneur Education N/A N/A
Choose-Your-Own-Adventure Unknown Unknown Unknown Unknown

33

Section VIII. Internal Controls and Audit Process Narrative
Applicants are requested to provide a narrative that describes their internal accounting and
administrative controls used to safeguard against waste and misappropriation of funding. Applicants
that lack sufficient internal controls and audit processes will not be eligible for funding.

34

Section IX: Application Evaluation and Selection Process

9.1 Evaluation Criteria
9.1.1 All applications will be evaluated on a 100 point scale. Evaluations will be based upon the
information provided by the applicant within their contract proposal narrative, supplemental
information and budget.

Evaluation Criteria Points
Design 30
Financial Sustainability 25
Management and Governance 30
Regional Impact and Expected Results 15
Total 100

9.1.2 Each section will be scored on a 0-5 scale using the process described below
Score Description
0 No response provided or response provided not relevant to the criteria item
1 Response does not address each criterion in a substantive way
2 Response addresses each criterion in a substantive way
3 Response addresses each criterion in a substantive way and has a reasonable likelihood
of being implemented in the way described
4 Response is a documentable best practice and has a reasonable likelihood of being
implemented in the way described
5 Response is a documentable best practice and has a high likelihood of being
implemented in the way described

9.1.3 Design: 30 points
Design criteria will be evaluated based on the extent to which the applicant presents clear and
well-defined evidence that their proposed model will meet the needs of entrepreneurs in
Connecticut effectively. Preference will be given to applicants that find an optimally low
overhead structure that is able to deliver significant results. Preference will be given to
applicants whose management team skills will enable those results, and which have developed
close partnerships with existing organizations and other applicants to provide coordinated,
complementary services.

9.1.4 Financial sustainability: 25 points
Financial sustainability will be evaluated based on the extent to which the applicant presents
and is able to demonstrate a well-defined strategy to ensure both short-term and long-term
financial sustainability of the system element in question.

9.1.5 Management and governance: 30 points
Management and governance criteria will be evaluated based on the extent to which the
applicant demonstrates a qualified, competent and motivated management team and a well-
defined governance structure.

35

9.1.6 Impact: 15 points
Impact criteria will be evaluated based on the extent to which the applicant documents and
provides clear evidence in their proposal that the proposed activities will lead to quantifiable
outcomes. In addition, applications will be evaluated on the extent to which the applicant (or
the application team) is able to document and demonstrate an effective historical track record
of producing specific quantifiable results.

9.2 Review and selection process
9.2.1 The state reserves the right to cancel and reissue any or all parts of this RFQ at any point in the
process.

9.2.2 The state reserves the right to award as many or as few contracts as the reviewers deem
sufficiently compelling to warrant public investment, and as available funding limits allow.
Applicants not awarded contracts are encouraged to continue developing their efforts and to
apply again at a later date with a more robust proposal.

36

Section X: Additional Information

10.1 Questions
All questions should be submitted via email to innovationct@gmail.com. A list of frequently
asked questions will be developed and posted to the DECD website.

10.2 Transparency
Connecticut Innovations (CI) and the Department of Economic and Community Development
(DECD) are committed to conducting this contract award process in an open and transparent
manner. Applicants are advised that their respective applications and information related to the
review and evaluation may be made publicly available, either fully or partially in accordance
with Connecticut’s Public Records Act, except for those limited documents exempted from
disclosure. Additionally, applicants are advised that quarterly and annual performance reports
will be made publicly available, either fully or partially.

10.3 Reporting, Monitoring and Inspections
Applicants must permit CI, DECD and/or any agent thereof to inspect the physical location of a
project at any time during the project period. Inspections will be conducted during regular
business hours.

All recipients of funding under this program are required to report on their activities. CI/DECD
will withhold payment if reports are not completed in a timely manner. Funding recipients must
submit quarterly performance reports and annual audited financial reports. These reports are
due 30 days after the end of each quarter or calendar year. CI/DECD will provide recipients
reporting templates.

10.4 Timeliness Requirements
Projects selected for funding through this program must begin implementation within 60 days of
receiving an award. CI and DECD reserve the right to terminate a contract at any time if the
recipient fails to adhere to the contract timetable.

10.5 Payment
The method of payment will be on a cost reimbursement basis. Contract recipients will submit a
reimbursement/drawdown form as necessary, but not to exceed one reimbursement request
per quarter. Reimbursement requests must be accompanied with copies of all appropriate
documentation of allowable expenses incurred. All reimbursements will be provided to contract
recipients via electronic funds transfer.

37

Draft of CT Innovation Ecosystem RFQ - 1/2012

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