Write Better Grants With A Project Management Mindset
On the topic of writing, many leaders of small biotech companies have told me that two important goals are raising money and building awareness. When it comes to the former, applying some simple project management techniques to your grant submission process can greatly improve the quality of the application, your chances of being funded, and the progress of your novel technology.
Approaching project management. As a scientist who has worked in both industry and academia, I am no stranger to tight deadlines. When running a startup where every decision requires your attention, the opportunities for running short on time are plentiful. I have implemented many aspects of my PMP credential from the Project Management Institute in my own lab and research program, and further applied the concepts to my role as a medical writer. I employ a structured framework to help my clients navigate the challenges of not only completing the application on time but also to submit better grants. The process includes creating a clear plan, a reasonable timeframe, and milestones. We then back out from the targeted submission date to establish dates for the milestones which keeps everyone involved accountable and on track to deliver. Regular check-ins are scheduled along the way, which allows us keep progress and address challenges.
Scheduling project milestones. It can be extremely challenging to take a proactive approach to writing - most scientists who need to write grants are incredibly busy with other critical tasks. Ideally, the writer has dedicated time to flesh out all of the necessary components of the application. That said, completely unstructured time does not always suffice, and this is where having a plan helps - it forces the writer to timebox all of the key project components, so that there is ample time to meet the demands of the schedule. The Gantt chart below shows a 12-week project window for the preparation and submission of an SBIR application. In this example, the preliminary data is in hand. This plan could be adapted to any grant type, and can be used as a part of the strategic planning of an organization as it pertains to hitting key grant due dates.
Teamwork makes the dream work. The other important aspect that yields improved grants is a team - or at least a partner. First and foremost, this provides is accountability. The above schedule is great, but if challenged to make the deadlines and there are no ramifications for missing them, due dates are often missed. This is less likely to happen when a partner is involved because of being held to a higher standard. The second component of a great team is that your ideas are inherently better because they are more thorough. Whether a peer can expand on your idea, contradict it, confirm it, or simply improve the way it is being said, the grant stands a better chance, and the development of your blockbuster new drug will too.
For more advice on writing high-quality SBIR applications, please see Financing Your Biotech Startup: The NIH SBIR Program.
For more insight on writing a grant, check out our 4-part series including:
