Process
"Disruption is already happening. There’s unbelievable innovation occurring in the commercial world. We must partner with those leading this disruption in both industry and academia, to ensure we maintain our competitive advantage,” stated a US Federal Government Innovation Team Leader.
1. The first step is when government agencies present the IBDC with topic areas they are interested in pursuing and implementing. This is a diverse area and can range to any topic or area. Previous topics have included Security, Installation Resilience, Leveraging Technology for Operational Effectiveness, Reverse Engineering, Communication, and Health and Wellbeing.
2. The IBDC then "puts the word out" and encourages solutions and ideas from industry and organizations--with emphasis placed on non-traditional sources of innovation in non-defense and non-governmental organizations. There are many times a company is working on a technology that is extremely useful--but in another venue, purpose, or environment. For example, past topics have solicited over 1,000 online proposals. Solutions ranging from disruptive cybersecurity technology to virtual assistants and AI-enhanced platforms for decision making.
3. Of these submissions, 50 solutions (as an example) proposed by individuals and teams from the public and private sectors were selected to advance. These solution owners are invited to present their innovative solutions at IBDC Innovation Day. *Due to the global health crisis, this took place as a virtual event in 2020.
4. Invited teams take center stage in a digital interactive exhibit to present their cutting edge solutions to US Government leadership, key decision-makers, and operators. Selected teams then deliver private pitches to U.S. Government evaluators and participate in networking opportunities to mix and mingle with other exhibitors.
5. The goal of Innovation Day is to select the best solutions and guide them through future contracting, funding, and prototyping to further develop their concepts into real-word implementation to benefit the Department of Defense, and allied partners worldwide.
6. This is an incredible opportunity for the Federal government to partner with innovative industries and academia to identify, fund and launch new strategies. The Challenge is seeking solutions that can be implemented immediately, those that require some further development and also moonshot ideas may not be implemented until later.
7. Additionally, organizations that may not be "ready" to partner or conduct business with the government can receive coaching and assistance to "get there."
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We are excited about the potential partnerships with industry, academia, and beyond to solve some of the critical issues impacting our Federal Government's organizations and missions.