Entrepreneurs' Programme – Innovation Connections

This programme aims to encourage and assist small and medium businesses to access knowledge, engage with researchers and foster innovation. It forms part of the Entrepreneurs' Programme, an Australian government’s flagship initiative for business competitiveness and productivity at the firm level.

There are two components of the programme:
1. Innovation Connections Facilitation
- Provides businesses with expert guidance to address knowledge or research related issues.
- Delivered through a national network of innovation facilitators. Eligible businesses will be matched with an innovation facilitator who will work with them.
- At the end of the engagement the innovation facilitator will provide the business with an Innovation Facilitation Report, which addresses the enquiry of the business and provides recommendations.
- Applications may be made at any time.

2. Innovation Connections Grant
- Provide support for undertaking an Innovation Connections Project which incorporates recommendations from an Innovation Facilitation Report.
- Innovation Facilitation Report recommendations will be funded through the following grants:
a) Researcher placement (up to a maximum of $50,000): The placement of a researcher in the business to work collaboratively on a specific Innovation Connections project in order to develop and implement a new idea with commercial potential.
b) Business researcher placement (up to a maximum of $50,000): The placement of a participants’ own research employee into a Publicly Funded Research Organisation to work collaboratively on a specific Innovation Connections project and access to research infrastructure.
c) Graduate placement (up to a maximum of $30,000): The employment of a graduate or post graduate into the participant’s business to undertake a specific Innovation Connections project collaboratively with a Publicly Funded Research Organisation.
- Applications must be made within 12 months of receiving an Innovation Facilitation Report.

Grant funds are paid when all project activities are completed and all project costs have been paid. Applicants must make a claim for reimbursement of the agreed amount within 30 days of the end of the project.

Eligible applicants must:
1. Innovation Connections Facilitation
- Be an eligible corporation that is non tax-exempt and is registered for GST.
- Satisfy one of the following:
a) Be operating in one or more of the growth sectors: Advanced manufacturing; Food and agribusiness; Medical technologies and pharmaceuticals; Mining equipment, technology and services; Oil, gas and energy resources.
b) Provide enabling technologies and services to one or more of the growth sectors.
c) Demonstrate they are committed to, and have the skills, capability, intellectual property or expertise to operate in, one or more of the growth sectors in the future.
- Within the current or previous two years have an annual turnover or operating expenditure between:
a) Between $1.5 million and $100 million.
b) Between $750,000 and $100 million for applicants from Remote Australia or Northern Australia.
- Be solvent.
- Have operated in Australia and filed business activity statements showing ongoing trading in at least three consecutive years.

2. Innovation Connections Grant
- Have received a Facilitation Report.
- Be able to fund the total value of the cost of the Innovation Connections Project before being reimbursed, without using in-kind contributions or other government grants or programmes.
- Apply for a Innovation Connections Grant within 12 months of receiving a Facilitation Report, unless otherwise agreed by the programme delegate.
- Must not have previously received a Research Connections Grant or Innovation Connections Grant in the last five years, except where a second grant is provided to address the same Facilitation Report.

Please refer to the Guidelines for the complete eligibility requirements.

Please refer to the Guidelines for the specific eligible activities and expenditure of the two components of the programme.