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Tag: small business

The Power of Small Businesses in Driving Government Innovation

Small businesses are more than just contractors for government agencies; they are the driving force behind innovation. While federal requirements mandate that a significant portion of contracts go to small businesses, their true value lies beyond meeting quotas. Small businesses bring agility, niche expertise, and a culture of innovation that can transform how government agencies operate. (Federal News Network September 4, 2023)

Innovation Sparks Progress

Small businesses, by their nature, thrive on innovation. They operate in highly competitive environments where differentiation is key to survival. This drive to innovate often leads to groundbreaking ideas that can revolutionize government operations. (ibid)

Consider how large disruptors like Uber, Airbnb, and Spotify revolutionized their respective industries. They didn’t just replicate existing services; they introduced entirely new approaches. Small businesses have the same potential to reshape government operations. (ibid)

Agility and Flexibility Matter

Small businesses are unburdened by bureaucratic red tape and the pressure of quarterly growth targets, that large corporations often must cope with. This freedom allows them to make quick decisions and engage in iterative development. Government agencies can leverage this agility to explore innovative ideas, respond rapidly to emerging needs, and adapt to changing technology requirements. (ibid)

Specialized Knowledge

Many small businesses focus on a single area, cultivating specialized expertise. This niche knowledge often results in groundbreaking solutions. Government agencies can harness this expertise through partnerships, driving transformative solutions and advancing their tech agendas. (ibid)

Cost-Efficiency and Value

Small businesses are often more cost-effective than large corporations. They operate with lower overheads and capital investments, making them suitable partners for government agencies with budgetary constraints. Small businesses provide innovative technology and services without imposing excessive financial burdens. (ibid)

The Path to Innovation

In the realm of IT communications, small businesses have driven breakthroughs that eventually found their way into federal agencies. Technologies like SD-WAN, which initially outperformed traditional MPLS, were adopted by small businesses before gaining momentum in federal agencies. These innovations often start in the commercial sector, proving their effectiveness before being embraced by government entities. (ibid)

Inviting Innovation

To become more innovative, government agencies should engage with small businesses actively. Listening to their ideas and embracing their culture of innovation provides agencies with a glimpse into the future. By recognizing the immense value that small businesses bring to the table, agencies can benefit from disruptive technologies rather than being disrupted by them. (ibid)

Innovation is not a matter of chance; it’s a deliberate choice. Government agencies can make this choice by fostering partnerships with small businesses, thus paving the way for transformative advancements.

Does your small business need guidance navigating the federal government arena? Give us a call.

Why the Small Business/Large Contractor Union is a Good Thing

The Biden Administration continues to focus on small businesses providing services to the federal government. This benefits not only small businesses but large contractors, as well. When large contractors partner up with a small business, it’s a win-win for both.

Federal agencies have stepped up their focus on contracting with small businesses to meet their small business contracting goals. The Small Business Administration recently reported $154 billion spent on contracts with small businesses in fiscal year 2021. In 2021, 27.2 percent of total federal contracting awards were to small businesses. This surpassed the 23 percent White House goal. (Washington Technology February 2, 2023)

Unfortunately, the past several years have seen the number of actual small businesses trend downward. The good news, there is more money for fewer small businesses that can serve as prime contractors due to limitations on the services these small businesses can offer. (ibid)

Large government contractors working with small businesses are looking like the future of federal contracting. These partnerships, which are built on mutual trust, allow for increased skills and innovative thinking. Additionally, when large contractors bring in small businesses, new jobs are created, entrepreneurship is expanded and innovation is at the forefront. (ibid)

According to Thomas A. Duckenfield III, CEO of TDB Communications, a service-disabled, veteran-owned small business, and an 8a firm, “the best partnerships between small business and large contractors are based on a shared culture and alignment. There is no one-size-fits-all approach to these relationships. It’s about developing partnerships that benefit both parties while establishing trust between the two companies to better serve federal agencies and their constituents.” (ibid)

When large businesses work with small businesses it creates opportunities, cultivates new ideas, and introduces the latest technologies. For these partnerships to work both parties must understand what each brings to the “communal table.” Skills and capabilities must provide complimentary support and additional capacity for federal agencies. (ibid)

There is no set formula for partnership success. Companies that support each other’s business and goals as well as those of the federal agencies they serve should work well together.

Are you looking to partner with a small or large business on a federal agency contract? Give us a call.

Primes are on the line

On August 22, 2022, the Small Business Administration (SBA) will start providing small businesses with additional ways to show past performance ratings. Past performance ratings are necessary to compete for prime federal contracts. (FEDSCOOP July 25, 2022)

The SBA published a new final rule in the Federal Register that gives small businesses two additional methods to prove qualifying past performance. The first is a joint venture where the small business was part of the joint venture, performing contract work. The second is the subcontracting plan performed by a first-tier subcontractor, under a prime contract. (ibid)

The rule executes Section 868 of the National Defense Authorization Act of fiscal 2021. The goal is to make it easier for small business subcontractors to secure past performance ratings needed to compete for prime contracts. It allows subcontractors to request ratings from contracting officers and prime contractors they have worked with in the past. (ibid)

“SBA believes that, by implementing this rule, the government will be able to attract new small business prime contractors. This will enhance competition in government contracting and provide agencies with increased access to innovative products and services,” according to the SBA. (ibid)

The rule removes the timeline requirement on past performance ratings. The rule allows agencies to use their discretion and gives subcontractors a minimum of 30 calendar days after a performance period’s completion to request ratings from prime contractors. This will keep subcontractors from having to wait until their contract work is complete to request ratings. (ibid)

The requirement to respond to subcontractors’ requests is included in primes’ subcontracting plans, a failure to comply may lead to contract termination, withholding of award fees, lower past performance ratings for subcontracting, liquidated damages, and possibly debarment for “willful or repeated” cases. (ibid)

The SBA has added to the final ruling that subcontractors should notify the contracting officer in the event that the prime contractor fails to submit the requested rating within the rule’s prescribed timeframe. All past performance evaluation factors should align with those of the Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS). (ibid)

The SBA is adding to the final rule that the prime contractor shall use the five-scale rating system – Exceptional, Very Good, Satisfactory, Marginal, and Unsatisfactory. (ibid)

Are you a small business trying to obtain past performance ratings? Give us a call.

OASIS+ is the next big thing small businesses should know about

GSA has been hard at work creating the next-generation contract program for non-IT services. A significant amount of time and industry engagement, including large-scale requests for information (RFIs), went into the creation of the next-generation services contract. (GSABlog June 15, 2022)

GSA had three goals in mind during the design process:

  • Fulfill agency service requirements with highly experienced contractors while simplifying the purchasing experience
  • Broaden access to best-in-class non-IT service contracts for highly qualified contractors while simultaneously increasing small business opportunities
  • Shrink the burden on industry and government (ibid)

GSA is well on its way to achieving its goals.

Maximizing small business engagement is paramount to the new program. GSA is adopting a small business strategy that creates separate and distinct contract families for categories of small businesses to allow maximum opportunities to participate. GSA plans to solicit and award indefinite-delivery indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contracts in the following categories:

  • 8(a) Small Business
  • HUBZone Small Business
  • Service-Disabled, Veteran-Owned Small Business
  • Total Small Business
  • Woman-Owned Small Business
  • Unrestricted (ibid)

GSA’s new program will be capable of fulfilling requirements currently met by GSA’s One Acquisition Solution for Integrated Services (OASIS); Human Capital and Training Solutions (HCaTS); and Building, Maintenance, and Operations (BMO) contracts. Additional scope areas are to include environmental, intelligence services, and large enterprise solutions. Flexibility will be built in to expand the scope as customers identify ongoing needs. (ibid)

The contracts will be grouped by Domains – functional groupings of services spanning multiple NAICS codes. Domains align to order requirements to qualified industry partners. Over time, GSA will add new Domains to meet agencies’ needs. (ibid)

GSA is ensuring companies that receive awards in the new contract program are highly qualified. Additionally, GSA will create an avenue for new industry partners to continually onboard. GSA will provide for continuous on-ramping and eliminate caps on the number of awards. This will allow the program to evolve as the government agency needs change, expand the industrial base and eliminate barriers to entry for qualified businesses.

GSA’s Enhanced Task Order Competition (876) authority establishes a host of contracts that leverage competition and establish price at the order level. The contracts allow for commercial and non-commercial services and orders of all types including fixed price, time and material cost reimbursement, and hybrid. (ibid)

The name of the program is OASIS Plus (aka OASIS+). Until the program is finalized, updates can be found on SAM.gov and the OASIS+ Interact Community. A draft solicitation is expected early FY 2023 with the final RFP in the second quarter of the fiscal year. (ibid)

This is exciting and daunting at the same time. If you have questions about any part of OASIS+ or the upcoming draft RFP, give us a call.

The SBA should focus on small businesses, not fraudulent businesses

Last week the small business community urged lawmakers to shrink administrative burdens complicating entry into the Small. Business Administration’s (SBA’s) 8(a) program.

This is timely as the Biden Administration has set a goal to bolster the share of federal contracts awarded to small disadvantaged businesses from 5% to 15% by 2025. A former SBA official suggests the SBA focus on expanding entry to the program for disadvantaged businesses and not spend time penalizing those who fraudulently attempt to gain entry. This will go a long way to help achieve the goals as set by the administration.

Jackie Robinson-Burnette, CEO of Senior Executive Strategic Solutions and a former SBA senior program executive said SBA should, “shift their focus to include every firm that is eligible'” for the 8(a) program. She mentioned that she served at the SBA, the SBA received over 2,000 applications a year and accepted only 300 participants. The Government Accountability Office believes steps were taken to address fraudulent applications to the 8(a) program. Unfortunately, there remains no official verification procedure. The Government Accountability Office did not take steps to improve oversight of the program, according to report filings.

Robinson-Burnette said, “right now, the focus is making sure they mitigate the risk of firms getting into the program that shouldn’t be in the program – focusing on the fraud – when really that’s 1% or 2% of firms that apply. The other 90-plus percent of firms are struggling to get in … because the SBA is focused on the wrong thing.”

In addition to misplaced focus, Rep. Kweisi Mfune (D-MD) said business owners have reported concerns with the length of the program and that it takes most firms multiple years to receive their first awards. Mfune said, “this hinders the development of program participants and raises the question of whether enterprises are ready for graduation when they exit the program.”

Darryl Hairston, the SBA’s former associate administrator of business development, said he submitted a proposal to redesign the 8(a) program a few years ago. Hairston took into account the complexities small businesses encounter in navigating the federal marketplace during their initial years in operation.

Hairston said, “one of the things that we talked about was that most firms coming into the program, who are truly eligible for the program, had little experience in the federal marketplace. The timeframe is highly dependent upon how successful you are coming into the program and how well you take off with the benefits that are available to you.”

Robinson-Burnette feels adding priority access for SDB mentors will increase successful outcomes. This will occur by shifting some of the SBA’s dependence from their assigned business opportunity and creating additional inroads to work opportunities. Mfume is considering meeting with the SBA administrator to figure out “what can be done in the time we have.”

Are you a small disadvantaged business or a business looking to work with one on an upcoming contract? Give us a call.