Latest on the GSA and cyber assurance-

The General Services Administration has been working on several changes due to the latest increase in cyber security issues. The first being a Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA) and the second being yet another addition to the Schedule 70 service offering.

The GSA is awarding a BPA for credit monitoring and identity protections services to address future issues, coming after the hack of The Office of Personnel Management’s security clearance database.

To also assist with future issues the GSA has release an RFI to determine if adding a SIN (Special Item Number) to Schedule 70 would be advantageous. It would cover hardware, software and services that fall under cyber assurance, virus detection, intrusion detection and network management.

You can take a look at the RFI that is currently on FedBizOpps here: https://www.fbo.gov/index?s=opportunity&mode=form&tab=core&id=68e1e8b5cc17539fc9d4d8ee53189344

Responses to the RFI are currently due September 11, 2015 at 4PM EST.

If you need assistance with responding to the RFI or just have questions in general feel free to give us a call at 216-662-7044. 

Government Marketplace- How well do you know it?

Most businesses that we talk to on a regular basis about their government sales have some kind of idea of the agencies that they want to sell their products/services to and what other companies will be going after the same opportunities. However, when we ask them where they came up with that information it is mostly based on their commercial business. While this is a great start there is a lot of information available that is specific to the government market.

So, what type of information should you be looking at? To start you want to have an idea of the following:

·         What agencies are really spending the most on your products/services

o   Who in those agencies are purchasing it

o   Does that agency have anything forecasted in your industry

o   How are they purchasing it i.e. GSA Schedule, Sole Source, etc.

o   What type of set asides do they purchase from

·         Who are the contractors that are being awarded the most contracts

o   Who are their largest buyers

o   Do they have any set asides

o   Do they hold any contracting vehicles i.e. GSA Schedule, Blanket Purchase Agreement, etc.

Being able to answer the above listed questions will give you a good idea of what agencies you should be targeting (along with why, how and when) and who you will most likely be competing with when going after those agencies opportunities.

There are a few sites that we would recommend visiting to start gathering this information:

·         https://www.fpds.gov/fpdsng_cms/index.php/en/

·         https://www.fbo.gov/

·         http://www.gsaelibrary.gsa.gov/ElibMain/home.do

And if you have any questions or want a point in the right direction you can take advantage of our free market research report to get started. Just schedule an appointment: http://government-contract-services.reservio.com/

Does your firm qualify for 8(a) status and the sole sourcing that comes along with it?

If you are a small business you have heard of contractors receiving a sole source because they are 8(a) certified. What does this mean and how do you get one?

First, you have to go through the grueling 8(a) certification process, which seems like you are allowing the Small Business Administration access to your life. If you make it to the end of the process with a certification than you are very lucky, these days SBA has been cracking down on requirements. So what exactly does is mean and what is this sole source?

A sole source contract means that the agency that is purchasing does not have to put that service and/or product out for bid. Right now this can only be done for firms that hold the 8(a) status, soon to be woman owned small businesses as well. The reasoning behind it comes from what it means to be an 8(a) firm.

To qualify to submit an application for the certification you need to meet the following:

·         Business must be majority-owned by an individual(s) (aka no holding companies)

·         That individual(s) must be an American citizen

·         Business must be majority-owned and controlled/managed by socially and economically disadvantaged individual (s)

o   In order to qualify as socially disadvantaged you need to belong to one of the following:

§  Black American

§  Hispanic American

§  Native American

§  Asian Pacific American

§  Subcontinent Asian American

o   In order to qualify as economically disadvantaged the individual(s) your net worth must be below $250,000

§  That does not include the value of the primary home, business or any retirement funds

·         Business must be considered a small business

·         Business must demonstrate potential for success

·         Principals must show good character

These are just the initial requirements, if you want to find out more information and if your firm qualifies take a look at the SBA’s 8(a) Certification Q&A: https://www.sba.gov/blogs/sbas-8a-certification-program-explained