Blogs

It’s October 1st — so happy Federal Fiscal New Year! Here are the four steps I hope you’ll take to make this a truly outstanding year for you, your Federal team…and your Federal clients, too! Step One — Stand Up! Today, Celebrate!  I’m serious. There’s research (link below)! My sad secret: I find it hard […]

If a Federal Sales Q4 Hot Wash is so valuable, why doesn’t everybody do one? Take your pick, or add your own. “We’re exhausted and overtaken by events.” “We’ve closed the book on the year; it’s time to move on.” “We’re onboarding our newest clients! No time now!” “It’s important, but not urgent. It can

Debriefings are a critical tool in any federal contractor’s toolbox.   As a threshold matter, they are a useful (if not mandatory) first step in many bid protests, helping contractors gather the information they need to substantiate protest arguments.  But debriefings are a useful information gathering tool outside the protest context as well.  Indeed, they are

You know the feeling, when the Federal fiscal year is about to end or has just wrapped. Maybe you’re waiting to hear about wins, super busy onboarding new clients, or closing the books on what didn’t happen. Everybody’s ready to move on. It’s done — not a minute too soon!  You’ve wiped the slate and

The Challenge: Plan The New Federal Fiscal Year Our CEO said, “It’s time to focus on our next Federal Fiscal Year strategy.  Let’s start to put something together for early next month to give us a sense of what we did this year and what we should focus on in the year ahead!”  The Growth

Gifts are one of the ways we connect as humans. But even the newest GovCon quickly learns not to offer gifts to Federal buyers. FAR Part 3 on Allowable Conduct defines the limits of allowable gifts, and it’s better not to offer anything at all.  Our Federal buyers are human, just like us. They have

New Research Findings Create an overall strategy to increase your 8(a) contract awards using these five effective strategic practices Introduction Although the U.S. government stresses the importance of small businesses in government contracting, small business owners continue to face challenges in securing and maintaining contracting opportunities[1]. In my 2021 DBA Capstone, I explored how owners

The last few weeks of the Federal fiscal year can feel like a mix of excitement, anticipation, confusion, and, sometimes even despair — for buyers and vendors! As vendors, often we feel like we have so much to offer… if only that buyer would return our calls or emails! What does it take to break

Now that Federal fourth quarter is looming on the horizon, GovCons start asking about where those end-of-year dollars lurk! You know: opportunities for next year’s money to be moved forward if our buyers’ projects are ahead of plan, or unspent budgets that can get shuffled to make sure the funds are spent before the fiscal

You’ve been certified as a participant in the SBA’s 8(a) Program.  Congratulations–it’s not an easy (or quick) process!  But now that you’re an official 8(a) Program participant, how do you maximize your chances of winning 8(a) contracts?   For many 8(as), mentoring and joint ventures are a critical piece of the puzzle.  In my career as