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NIST GCR 05–873
Customer Satisfaction Findings from the Advanced Technology Program’s
Survey of ATP Applicants 2002
4. Applicant
Views of the Usefulness of ATP Information Sources
The Advanced
Technology Program (ATP) aims to make the proposal process a smooth one
for applicants, and utilizes a variety of outreach efforts. For example,
ATP sponsors a website with detailed information, holds conferences for
potential proposers, and operates information booths at a variety of
professional meetings. Information about ATP also travels by “word
of mouth” among researchers. The Survey of ATP Applicants 2002
asked applicants how useful they view these information sources.
Respondents
were asked to indicate how useful each of the following have
been for them as an information source about ATP:
- ATP website
- ATP Proposers
Conference
- ATP information
booth at industry or trade association meetings
- Industry
or company colleagues
Respondents
were also asked to report any additional information sources
about ATP which they found to be useful. |
Applicants find the
information sources about ATP to be useful
- 85% of the applicants
say that the ATP website is useful to them. (See Figure 4–1.)6
- Half of all applicants
report having no experience with ATP Proposers Conferences. While
only 37% of applicants indicate that the Proposers Conferences are
useful (see Figure 4–1), this represents over three-quarters
of applicants who have experience with this source.
- The majority of applicants
(72%) have no experience with the ATP information booths at professional
meetings. But over half who do have experience with this source rate
it as useful. (See Figure 4–1.)
- Two-thirds of applicants
view industry or company colleagues to be useful sources of information
about ATP. (See Figure 4–1.)
- The survey asked applicants
to tell us of any other information sources about ATP which they
had found useful. Sources they identified largely fell into the following
three groups:
- Mailings from
ATP, including the ATP Proposal Preparation Kit;
- Direct contact
with ATP staff;
- Previous experience
with the ATP process.
Figure
4–1. Applicant Views of the Usefulness of ATP Information Sources
Figure 4.2. Awardee
and Nonawardee Views of ATP Information Sources as “Very Useful”
Awardees view the
information sources as more useful than do nonawardees
- Overall, awardees
were more likely than nonawardees to say they found the source to
be “very useful.” (See Figure 4–2.)
- If they have experience
with these information sources, nonawardees are more likely to view
them as useful than not useful. (Data not shown.)
Table 4–1. Applicant Views
of ATP Information Sources, by Technology Area
| |
Materials
and Biotechnology |
Chemistry |
Electronics |
Information
Technology |
 ATP
Website |
| Very useful |
43% |
39% |
45% |
53% |
| Somewhat useful |
45% |
46% |
39% |
30% |
| Not useful |
8% |
7% |
7% |
11% |
| No experience |
4% |
8% |
9% |
5% |
| ATP
Proposers Conference |
| Very useful |
15% |
19% |
12% |
19% |
| Somewhat useful |
20% |
25% |
17% |
20% |
| Not useful |
7% |
11% |
10% |
12% |
| No experience |
58% |
44% |
60% |
50% |
| ATP
information booth at meetings |
| Very useful |
3% |
4% |
1% |
5% |
| Somewhat useful |
14% |
16% |
11% |
5% |
| Not useful |
12% |
12% |
14% |
15% |
| No experience |
71% |
68% |
73% |
75% |
| Industry
or company colleagues |
| Very useful |
32% |
30% |
32% |
25% |
| Somewhat useful |
31% |
36% |
36% |
34% |
| Not useful |
18% |
12% |
12% |
19% |
| No experience |
19% |
22% |
20% |
22% |
Across ATP technology areas, applicants
differ in how useful they view the information sources
- Applicants in the
Information Technology field were most likely to view the ATP website
as being “very useful.” (See Table 4–1.)
- Applicants in Materials
and Chemistry were most likely to view the ATP Proposers Conference
as useful. (See Table 4–1.)
- Applicants in the
Biotechnology and Chemistry and Materials fields were most likely
to view ATP information booths at meetings as being useful. (See
Table 4–1.)
- Applicants in the
four technology areas were similar in viewing industry or company
colleagues as a useful source of information.
Applicants on Joint Venture proposals
were more likely to view colleagues as useful information sources about
ATP
- Four out of five applicants
submitting Joint Venture proposals report that industry or company
colleagues have been useful sources of information about ATP, compared
to three out of five single applicants.
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Date created:
July 29, 205
Last updated:
August 4, 2005
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