2 Follow-up

C.2. Attachment 2

Introductory and Follow-up Letters to Respondents

OMB Control No. 0925-0499

From: Jo Anne Goodnight [SBIRSurvey@Humanitas.com]

Sent:

To: Dr.

Subject: Updating NIH Contact Information

Importance: High

************************************************

Dear Dr.:

The National Institutes of Health’s SBIR Program needs to update its awardee database to prepare for the OMB-approved Second National Survey to Assess the Outcomes of the NIH SBIR Program. We will be conducting this online survey to learn about companies’ experiences with this program and how to enhance the support that the Program provides to small businesses. You will be receiving further information about the survey via email in several weeks.

Please review the information, shown on the form below, which is currently in the NIH database. If any of the information needs updating or is missing, please click on the following link:

https://www.humanitas2.com/SBIRUpdate

You will be asked for your Username and Password to reach the secure site, where you may update and supply contact information. When filling out the form, please make sure that your email address and telephone number are current.

Your Username is:
Your Password is:

If the information shown in the form below is all complete and up-to-date, you may merely click on Reply, enter “ALL COMPLETE” in the subject field, and click on Send.

If you have any questions about this request for current contact information or the upcoming survey, please contact me:

Jo Anne Goodnight, SBIR/STTR Coordinator

Office of the Director, NIH

(301) 435-2688 or jg128w@nih.gov

I thank you in advance for your time and assistance in helping us update the NIH database. It is only with the generous help of people like you that our forthcoming assessment can be successful.

SBIR Award Number: Project Period:

Company:

Project Title:

Principal Investigator (PI):

PI Telephone: PI Email:

Business Official (BO):

BO Telephone: BO Email:

OMB Control No. 0925-0499

From: Jo Anne Goodnight [SBIRSurvey@Humanitas.com]

Sent:

To: Dr. _______________________

Subject: Updating NIH SBIR Data

Importance: High

************************************************

Recently we tried to contact you by email about updating The National Institutes of Health’s SBIR Program awardee database in preparation for the OMB-approved Second National Survey to Assess the Outcomes of the NIH SBIR Program.

NIH will be conducting this online survey to learn about companies’ experiences with the SBIR Program and how to enhance the support that the Program provides to small businesses. You will be receiving further information about the survey via email in a few weeks.

To date, we have not received any feedback from you. Please take a moment to log on to https://www.humanitas2.com/SBIRUpdate and update the contact information SBIR has in its database. You need only click on this link or copy and paste it into your Internet browser window to access this secure site (SSL—Secure Socket Layer encryption).

You will need to enter your Username and Password.

Your Username is:

Your Password is:

Alternatively, you may contact the NIH SBIR Survey toll-free update line at 877-608-3290, x302, and provide us with your current email address and telephone number.

If you have any questions or need additional information, please feel free to call or email me:

Jo Anne Goodnight, NIH/SBIR 301-435-2688 jg128w@nih.gov

Thank you in advance for your help.

OMB Control No. 0925-0499

From: Jo Anne Goodnight [SBIRSurvey@Humanitas.com]

Sent:

To: Dr.

Subject: Upcoming Survey to Assess the Outcomes of the NIH SBIR Program

Importance: High

************************************************

Dear Dr.

You will soon receive an email request from the National Institutes of Health to participate in an important survey—the Second National Survey to Assess the Outcomes of the NIH SBIR Program. We are conducting this survey to learn about companies’ experiences with this program and their project outcomes. We recognize that SBIR projects yield a range of important outcomes, such as Phase III commercialization and more general medical and societal benefits and technological innovations.

Participation in this survey is voluntary. The information you provide about your SBIR award and its outcomes will have no effect on current or future awards. However, your responses will be extremely valuable to NIH. They will help us enhance the administration of the SBIR Program and the increasing support that it provides to small businesses.

Your company was selected specifically to participate in this survey. The information you provide will be kept confidential to the full extent permitted by law. If you have any questions about the survey, please contact me:

JoAnne Goodnight, SBIR/STTR Coordinator

Office of the Director, NIH

(301) 435-2688 or jg128w@nih.gov

The survey will be conducted using an online questionnaire. It should take about 15 minutes to complete the survey. It may take an additional 15 minutes to retrieve any necessary information. We look forward to your participation, and I thank you in advance for your time and consideration. It is only with the generous help of people like you that our assessment can be successful.

P.S.

If you have not yet supplied or confirmed your email address, please do so as soon as possible by using the online form at: www.Humanitas2.com/SBIRUpdate or by calling Humanitas, the survey contractor, at: 301-608-3290, ext. 302, and speaking with Maura Kephart, the Survey Coordinator. If you are no longer associated with the SBIR awardee small business in the mailing address above, please call Humanitas: 301-608-3290, ext. 302. Thank you. JG

OMB Control No. 0925-0499

From: Jo Anne Goodnight [SBIRSurvey@Humanitas.com]

Sent:

To: Dr. _______________________

Subject: Accessing the Online NIH/SBIR Survey

Importance: High

************************************************

***** Second National Survey to Assess the Outcomes of the NIH SBIR Program *****

As we explained in an earlier email, NIH is conducting the Second National Survey to Assess the Outcomes of the NIH SBIR Program in order to enhance program administration and support for small businesses. The survey will be conducted online. It should take about 15 minutes to complete the survey, and it may take an additional 15 minutes to retrieve any necessary information.

The location of the survey is:

https://www.humanitas2.com/SBIRSurvey/4605Logon.htm

Please click on this link to access the survey, or copy and paste it into your Internet browser window. Once you have accessed the introductory screen, you will need to enter your Username and Password.

Your Username is:
Your Password is:

The survey is implemented using SSL (Secure Socket Layer) encryption. You will see a “lock” in the lower right-hand corner indicating a secure connection. If you have trouble accessing the survey, please contact Humanitas, Inc. Survey Support Specialist, Geoff Demitz, at:

877-608-3290, x306 or NIHSBIRSurveySupport@Humanitas.com

Participation in this survey is voluntary, and your answers will have no effect on current or future grant awards. The information you provide will be extremely valuable to NIH, and it will be kept confidential to the full extent permitted by law.

If you have any questions or need additional information, please feel free to call or email me:

JoAnne Goodnight, NIH/SBIR 301-435-2688 jg128w@nih.gov

Thank you in advance for your help.

OMB Control No. 0925-0499

From: Jo Anne Goodnight [SBIRSurvey@Humanitas.com]

Sent:

To: Dr.

Subject: The Online NIH/SBIR Survey: Thanks!

Importance: High

************************************************

***** Second National Survey to Assess the Outcomes of the NIH SBIR Program *****

Last week, we sent you an email message asking for your help in completing the Second National Survey to Assess the Outcomes of the NIH SBIR Program. If you have already completed the online survey, please accept our sincere thanks. If not, please do so today.

We are especially appreciative of your help. It is only by asking individuals such as you, about your experiences with the NIH SBIR Program, that NIH can make changes to enhance the support that the Program provides for small businesses.

Thank you for your time and cooperation.

If you have misplaced the earlier email message, the survey location is:

https://www.humanitas2.com/NIHSBIRSURVEY/4605Logon.aspx

Please click on this link copy and paste it into your to access the survey, or Internet browser window. Once you have accessed the introductory screen, you will need to enter your Username and your Password.

Your Username is:
Your Password is:

The survey is implemented using SSL (Secure Socket Layer) encryption. You will see a “lock” in the lower right-hand corner indicating a secure connection. If you have trouble accessing the survey, please contact Humanitas, Inc. Survey Support Specialist, Geoff Demitz, at:

877-608-3290, x306 or NIHSBIRSurveySupport@Humanitas.com

If you have any questions or need additional information, please feel free to call or email me:

JoAnne Goodnight, NIH/SBIR 301-435-2688 jg128w@nih.gov

Thank you in advance for your help.

OMB Control No. 0925-0499

From: Jo Anne Goodnight [SBIRSurvey@Humanitas.com]

Sent:

To: Dr.

Subject: Follow-Up about the Online NIH/SBIR Survey

Importance: High

************************************************

***** Second National Survey to Assess the Outcomes of the NIH SBIR Program *****

About two weeks ago, we sent you an email message giving the location of the online survey, the Second National Survey to Assess the Outcomes of the NIH SBIR Program, and asking for your help in evaluating the support that the NIH provides to small businesses. To the best of our knowledge, the survey has not yet been completed.

Other awardees who have received NIH SBIR awards have responded and described their experiences with the SBIR program and project outcomes. Their information will help NIH enhance support for small businesses. NIH is interested in all kinds of project results. We recognize that SBIR projects yield a range of important outcomes, including Phase III commercialization and other medical and societal benefits that are equally important. We also understand that not all SBIR projects come to fruition, and that the pathway to realize Phase III commercialization may be as long as 10 or 12 years. What is of importance is that respondents represent a range of award outcomes.

We are contacting you again because of the importance that your survey has for helping to get accurate results. Although we have contacted other awardees, it is only by hearing from nearly all awardees in the study time period that we can be sure that the results are representative. Please be assured that your answers will have no effect on current or future grant awards.

It should take about 15 minutes to complete the survey, and it may take an additional 15 minutes to retrieve any necessary information. The information you provide will be kept confidential to the full extent permitted by law. In case you have misplaced the earlier email message, the location of the survey is:

https://www.humanitas2.com/SBIRSurvey/4605Logon.htm

Please click on this link to access the survey, or copy and paste the location into your Internet browser window. Once you have accessed the introductory screen, you will be prompted to enter your Username and Password.

Your Username is:
Your Password is:

The survey is implemented using SSL (Secure Socket Layer) encryption. You will see a “lock” in the lower right-hand corner indicating a secure connection. If you have trouble accessing the survey, please contact Humanitas, Inc. Survey Support Specialist, Geoff Demitz, at:

877-608-3290, x306 or NIHSBIRSurveySupport@Humanitas.com

If you have any questions or need additional information, please feel free to call or email me:

JoAnne Goodnight 301-435-2688 jg128w@nih.gov

Thank you in advance for your help.

OMB Control No. 0925-0499

From: Jo Anne Goodnight [SBIRSurvey@Humanitas.com]

Sent:

To: Dr.

Subject: Your NIH/SBIR Survey is Incomplete….

Importance: High

************************************************

***** Second National Survey to Assess the Outcomes of the NIH SBIR Program *****

We noticed that you have not yet finished the Second National Survey to Assess the Outcomes of the NIH SBIR Program, and we trust that you meant to complete it. If so, please do so today. Remember that, after finishing the survey, you must click on the “Submit” button to register the survey as complete and to send your responses to us. If, in the interim, you have already completed the survey, please accept our sincere thanks.

We are especially appreciative of your help because the validity of the survey’s results depends greatly upon the participation of investigators who, like you, have not yet completed responding. This is because survey research suggests that those who have not returned a completed survey have often had different experiences and hold different opinions than those who have already completed and returned the survey.

If you have misplaced the earlier email, the survey location is:

https://www.humanitas2.com/SBIRSurvey/4605Logon.htm

Please click on this link to access the survey, or copy and paste the location into your Internet browser window. Once you have accessed the introductory screen, you will be prompted to enter your Username and Password.

Your Username is:
Your Password is:

The survey is implemented using SSL (Secure Socket Layer) encryption. You will see a “lock” in the lower right-hand corner indicating a secure connection. If you have trouble accessing the survey, please contact Humanitas, Inc. Survey Support Specialist, Geoff Demitz, at:

877-608-3290, x306 or NIHSBIRSurveySupport@Humanitas.com

If you have any questions or need additional information, please feel free to call or email me:

JoAnne Goodnight 301-435-2688 jg128w@nih.gov

Thank you in advance for your help.

OMB Control No. 0925-0499

From: Jo Anne Goodnight [SBIRSurvey@Humanitas.com]

Sent:

To: Dr.

Subject: Please help us ….

Importance: High

************************************************

***** Second National Survey to Assess the Outcomes of the NIH SBIR Program *****

We haven’t heard from you yet, and I’d really appreciate your help with this important survey. The end of the survey field period is nearing. SBIR needs a good response from SBIR awardees to address governmental concerns about the value of the Program. Please take a few minutes to complete this survey.

Thanks!

Jo Anne

_____________________________________

In case you have misplaced the earlier email message, the location of the survey is:

https://www.humanitas2.com/SBIRSurvey/4605Logon.htm

Please click on this link to access the survey, or copy and paste the location into your Internet browser window. Once you have accessed the introductory screen, you will be prompted to enter your Username and Password.

Your Username is:
Your Password is:

The survey is implemented using SSL (Secure Socket Layer) encryption. You will see a “lock” in the lower right-hand corner indicating a secure connection. If you have trouble accessing the survey, please contact Humanitas, Inc. Survey Support Specialist, Geoff Demitz, at:

877-608-3290, x306 or NIHSBIRSurveySupport@Humanitas.com

If you have any questions or need additional information, please feel free to call or email me:

JoAnne Goodnight 301-435-2688 jg128w@nih.gov

Thanks again!

OMB Control No. 0925-0499

From: Jo Anne Goodnight [SBIRSurvey@Humanitas.com]

Sent:

To: Dr.

Subject: Completing the NIH/SBIR Survey Online

Importance: High

************************************************

***** Second National Survey to Assess the Outcomes of the NIH SBIR Program *****

Here is the information that you requested for the online Second National Survey to Evaluate the NIH SBIR Program. Thank you very much for agreeing to complete this important survey. The survey data will help NIH enhance the administration of the SBIR Program and the support that it provides to small businesses.

The survey should take only about 15 minutes to finish, and we are asking you to complete and submit the survey as soon as possible.

The location of the survey is:

https://www.humanitas2.com/SBIRSurvey/4605Logon.htm

Please click on this link to access the survey, or copy and paste the location into your Internet browser window. Once you have accessed the introductory screen, you will be prompted to enter your Username and Password.

Your Username is:
Your Password is:

The survey is implemented using SSL (Secure Socket Layer) encryption. You will see a “lock” in the lower right-hand corner indicating a secure connection. If you have trouble accessing the survey, please contact Humanitas, Inc. Survey Support Specialist, Geoff Demitz, at:

877-608-3290, x306 or NIHSBIRSurveySupport@Humanitas.com

If you have any questions or need additional information, please feel free to call or email me:

JoAnne Goodnight 301-435-2688 jg128w@nih.gov

Thank you for your time and cooperation.

OMB Control No. 0925-0499

From: Jo Anne Goodnight [SBIRSurvey@Humanitas.com]

Sent:

To: Dr.

Subject: Last Call for the NIH/SBIR Survey!

Importance: High

************************************************

***** Second National Survey to Assess the Outcomes of the NIH SBIR Program *****

As of today, we haven’t received your completed survey. There is only one week left before the end of the survey field period. You had indicated to one of the telephone interviewers that you would participate in the survey, and we are hoping that you will do so.

SBIR needs your input. The validity of the survey’s results depends greatly upon the participation of scientists, who like you, have not yet responded. This is because survey research suggests that those who have not returned a completed survey often hold different opinions than those who already have.

Thanks for your help!

If you have misplaced the earlier email, the survey location is:

https://www.humanitas2.com/SBIRSurvey/4605Logon.htm

Please click on this link to access the survey, or copy and paste the location into your Internet browser window. Once you have accessed the introductory screen, you will be prompted to enter your Username and Password.

Your Username is:
Your Password is:

If you have trouble accessing the survey, please contact Humanitas, Inc. Survey Support Specialist, Geoff Demitz, at:

877-608-3290, x306 or NIHSBIRSurveySupport@Humanitas.com

If you have any questions or need additional information, please feel free to call or email me:

JoAnne Goodnight 301-435-2688 jg128w@nih.gov

Thank you.