Technology Development Bridge (TDB) Fund Panel Review and Evaluation Guidelines

Fund Eligibility Criteria
Each investment presented to a review panel must satisfy all of the Fund's Eligibility Criteria. The primary eligibility criterion is that a co-investor(s) has committed investment capital which the Fund will 'match' in part or in whole on the same terms and conditions as the co-investor(s). In presenting the TDB application to the review panel, the Illinois Technology Development Alliance (ITDA) has only determined the company eligible for consideration and has made no opinion, express or implied, regarding the quality of the enterprise.

Purpose of the Review Panel
Simply put, the Illinois Technology Development Alliance is not a venture capitalist and requires outside expertise and assistance in evaluating seed stage investments. The Illinois Technology Development Alliance enlists local venture capitalists and private sector experts to review the key elements of a company's business plan and investment documents and provide us with an investment recommendation. The role of the panel is to determine whether the application is a high quality investment opportunity for the Technology Development Bridge program.

Prior to the review panel meeting we provide the panelists with the company's business plan, TDB Investment Application and investment documents, including a Term Sheet. All materials are reviewed in advance of the review panel meeting so the panel has a deep understanding of the scope of the business. Based on exit interviews, most panel members typically spend 1-1/2 to 2 hours reading over the materials before the meeting.

Panelists view the material from a business perspective, keeping in mind that the Fund is aimed at high-risk enterprises whose capital needs typically cannot be met by venture capitalists and that a co-investor(s) has conducted a level of due diligence prior to committing to an investment in the company. While job creation and economic development are important to goals of this program, the measures used by the review panel to determine their investment recommendation are:

Whether the company has a strong overall potential for commercial success; and
Whether the terms of the investment are fair.

Additionally, the ITDA asks panelists to consider the following elements of the company's business plan and investment documents in making your investment recommendations:

Management team
Market Assessment
Financial Assessment (history and projections)
Use of Proceeds
Exit Strategy
Co-Investor (expertise and historical performance)
Co-Investment (terms and conditions)

Agenda for Review Panel
Each review panel meeting is structured to allow the company's management team and co-investor an opportunity to present their case for an investment in the company and for panel members to ask any questions they may have. At the end of the meeting, the company and its co-investor(s) will be excused and panel members will make an investment recommendation to the Illinois Technology Development Alliance. Each review panel meeting lasts approximately 90-120 minutes allocated in the following way:

Welcome, introductions and overview of the TDB Review Panel Guidelines
Company presentation and Q&A
Panel discussion and recommendation

Form of Recommendation
Typically, the review panel makes one of three recommendations: 'yea', 'nea', or 'need more information'. If the company is recommended by the review panel for financing, the company's application and the meeting proceedings will be forwarded to the Illinois Coalition's board of directors for a pro forma review to certify the integrity of the review process proceedings. The application then will be forwarded to IFA for review by the Board of Directors, which has the final say on all investment decisions. If approved at that stage, the deal goes to close, which is usually completed in less than 30 days.

If the review panel does not recommend the company for investment under the Fund, the ITDA is committed to work with the company to address any deficiencies identified. Individual panel members, to the extent they have time and are interested, also are encouraged to follow-up with the company to offer any advice and direction they may have. If an investment is turned down, the company can address the issues raised and reapply for financing. The same competitive review process applies the second time around.

Disclosure of Conflicts
In every case, the Illinois Technology Development Alliance will state any and all conflicts it may have with a potential investment. As a reminder, the ITDA asks all panelists to refrain from serving on a review panel if a conflict of interest or the appearance of a conflict of interest exists. In addition, the ITDA asks that all panelists refrain from any professional or financial involvement with the company under consideration until such time as it has either been turned down for investment or until the company has closed the financing round in which the Illinois Finance Authority will participate. All company information provided to the panelists is kept under strict confidentiality.

Download TDB Application Forms