Consulting Firm Debarred by GSA

If you have done business with the Government long enough you have heard about companies getting debarred, or black listed, from doing business with the government. A Florida-based consulting firm, Federal Verification Co,, Inc., was the latest to get this exclusion from the General Services Administration (GSA).

In the past they have done business under at least 60 different names including GSA Applications, GSA Processors, and GSA Specialists, to name a few. Many complaints have been filed with the Florida Attorney General, more than one coming from some of our current clients who were unfortunately taken by the Florida Company.

The GSA cited the following as their reasoning for the indefinite exclusion:
"Preliminary ineligible based upon adequate evidence of conduct indicating a lack of business honesty or integrity, or a lack of business integrity, or regulation, statute, executive order or other legal authority, pending completion of an investigation and/or legal proceedings; or based upon initiation of proceedings to determine final ineligibility based upon regulation, statute, executive order or other legal authority or a lack of business integrity or a preponderance of the evidence of any other cause of a serious and compelling nature that it affects present responsibility."You can view the exclusion in it's entirety via SAM.

If you have been notified or believe you will be notified to remove their names from your GSA Contract give us a call and we will complete the modification on your behalf with no cost to you. Give us a call at 234-212-3400 and schedule a free consultation.

Also, we recommend taking a look at the training that the GSA offers: GSA Training

What should you plan on for the new fiscal year?

Federal Agencies put together their budget at the end of each fiscal year for the next year. Once that budget is approved, it becomes their forecasting report. Forecasting reports differ slightly from agency to agency.  In general they are the list of goods and services that the agency will be spending their budget on throughout the year. Vendors can use these reports to get an idea which agencies have money allocated to their goods or services for the upcoming fiscal year.

So how do you go about forecasting for your company? First of all, we would suggest knowing which agencies you want to target. This can be done by looking at what agencies spent the most in your industry in previous years. USA Spending is a great resource for that information, USASpending.gov. Once you have your target list, you can begin looking at forecasting reports for those agencies. Most agencies have a page on their website dedicated to procurement. The Environmental Protection Agency’s page is a good example: EPA Procurement Forecasting Database.

Some agencies forecasting reports can be very general in the type of information they provide, whereas other are very detailed. Generally we can tell what they are forecasting (goods or services) and when they are looking at purchasing it. Some tell you how they plan on purchasing it (open competition, DoD EMall, GSA Schedule, etc.), who the technical point of contact is, the estimated value of the contract, etc.

Once you have your list of opportunities from your targeted agencies, what do you do with this information? First, we want to rank them by priority. Typically the opportunities that will be posted the soonest take first priority. We then recommend reaching out the point of contact. Whether it is the technical point of contact or the general purchasing point of contact found on the procurement page for that agency and begin a dialogue about that specific opportunity. 

When starting the dialogue you want to focus on two things, one being building a relationship with the potential buyer and the other being gathering information about the specific opportunity. The most important question to ask when inquiring about an opportunity is if there is an incumbent, if there is they should give you the name of the company. You also want to know if they are happy with them and what areas they are looking to improve. Some buyers are willing to share this with you while others are not so be prepared for a no when you ask. If there is not an incumbent than you want to find out if they plan on releasing a sources sought or RFI prior to the solicitation or if the statement of work has already been prepared. If the statement of work has not been prepared or finalized yet this means that you have a chance to offer up your industry knowledge and expertise to the buyer.

There are many different questions you can ask depending on the opportunity and the agency you are dealing with. Keep in mind the questions you ask when looking at a current solicitation and begin to ask those of the forecasted opportunities. Using forecasting reports as one tool in your government marketplace arsenal will give you the chance to be a more successful contractor. 

Have you made the most of the first quarter?

You’ve finished your warm ups and the National Anthem has been played, its game time. The first quarter is when you need to set the stage for the rest of the game. How is the next three quarters going to work out, do you know when you need to put your bench players in? Have you planned out what your attack strategy is? You want to know as much about the game that is being played and your opponent as possible.  

Unlike a basketball game when there are off days and an off season we don’t have that luxury so we use our first quarter for planning and answering as many questions as we can. Although there are a lot of variables that go into government purchasing being prepared as you can makes all the difference in the world. If you have not started planning it’s not too late.

You can start by answering the following questions:

• ·         What agencies purchase what you sell?
• ·         Who are your top competitors and what types of contracts do they hold?
• ·         What opportunities are being forecasted in your industry?

Those three questions will take some work to find the answer to but they will give you a good picture of your season and allows you to formulate your attack plan. 

“If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail!"

― Benjamin Franklin

Special requirements for GSA Schedules

Last week we discussed the MOBIS requirements and received a lot of emails requesting more information about other requirements for different schedules. I thought it would be beneficial to just go over a few requirements that are applied to all schedules:
Financials: for every offer a company must submit two years of balance sheets and income statements. You will not be awarded a schedule if you do not complete this requirement. If there are any negatives on your financials, you must explain why.
Invoices: If your company is submitting a Commercial Pricelist you will need to submit invoices for pretty much every line item on that CPL. The invoices must be within 3 years of submitting.
Labor Categories: for every labor category submitted, there must be a description, minimum education requirement, and minimum years experience attached.
Pathways Training Certificate
FOR NON-VA OFFERS:

o   Digital Certificate: every offer that is not a VA offer must have proof of a digital certificate. If you do not have a digital certificate than you will not be able to submit your offer

o   Open Ratings Report

Again, please let us know if you have any questions. We’d be happy to help explain the requirements in more depth because really this blog just scratches the surface.

Feel free to email us at info@gvoconsvcs.com if there is anything else you’d like more clarification on!

Research Wins Bids

We are constantly asked both by current clients and potential clients, “how do we win government business?”. The question is always posed as though there is some circle of secrecy around the subject and if we give out the magic answer we’ll be thrown out of the club. Well, here’s the truth; the most important variable to wining government business is RESEARCH.

Research is time consuming and not all companies have the time and resources to allocate for the necessary research needed to be successful in the government marketplace. Here’s a small snapshot of some data that is being gathered by successful government contractors.

·         What agencies have bought your products and services in the past?

·         Are they planning on buying more in the future?

·         How much did agencies pay for similar products and services?

·         What are the agencies’ goals in procuring those particular products and services?

·         Who is your direct competition in the government marketplace?

·         Are they successful across multiple agencies or just with one?

·         Is your pricing higher or lower than your closest competitor?

·         Why is your pricing higher or lower than your closet competitor?

And that is just the tip of the iceberg. To be successful, there is nothing more important than knowing your market, knowing your buyer, and knowing your competition.

But there are challenges that come with this. Finding all the data isn't always straight forward. Most agencies have forecasts online looking forward to the next 7 years. Some don’t have anything showing. Finding competitors and pricing requires sifting through past awarded contracts and seeing how much the government paid. Some contractors use GSA pricing as a benchmark for comparison even on the open market.

The government in rolling out new tools with the 18F program to make this research easier for contracts but until then doing the research is anyone’s best chance at winning government contracts. 

GSA: Doubling Market Share by 2017?

With high hopes, new interactive purchasing tools, and a new digital system of contracting offerings the GSA plans to more than double its market share of government spending. Commissioner Tom Sharpe feels it is time for the GSA to really show what it is capable of and how it can help other government agencies.

“I would argue the Federal Acquisition Service at GSA should be a centralized buyer — and we are going to make that case and we are going to fight for that,” Sharpe said to the Federal Times. He also stated that the agency plans to boost its market share from 14 to 33 percent by the end of FY2016.

Sharpe claims that the GSA is able to give customers data on what they are spending on goods and services. With this data the GSA is able to see if there is a way to save any money by using different contracts or implementing internal reforms.

By the end of 2015 the GSA will make the website interactive and will provide the tools agencies need to enter into contracts, giving them the opportunity to choose the services they want. These areas will include professional services, human resources, transportation services, and IT hardware and software.

The GSA is also making its new contracts more flexible to avoid wasting money on contract duplicates. An example of this new model is the recently released OASIS contract.

Sharpe realizes that this is a huge challenge is aware that mistakes are possible but what is important is that they learn from those mistakes and reach the end goal. 

Highland Canine Training, LLC Awarded GSA Schedule 84

Harmony, NC – Highland Canine Training, LLC, a leader in working dog sales and training for Law Enforcement, Military and Government Agencies is proud to announce that it has been added by the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) to the approved vendor list as a provider of working dogs and canine educational programs.  This allows government purchasing agents to now place orders directly through Highland Canine Training, LLC. Highland Canine Training achieved this momentous goal with help from the expert GSA team at Government Contract Services and are looking forward to a continued partnership. 

Highland Canine Training, LLC can be found under contract number GS-07F-231BA where it is listed as pre-qualified to provide federal agencies with explosive detection dogs, patrol dogs, drug dogs and educational training courses. Highland Canine Training, LLC is classified in schedule 84, TOTAL SOLUTIONS FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT, SECURITY, FACILITIES MANAGEMENT, FIRE, RESCUE, CLOTHING, MARINE CRAFT AND EMERGENCY/DISASTER RESPONSE, and special item number (SIN) 426-2A, Canine Training and Handling Equipment, Canine Search and Detection. The approved products can also be purchased by state and local governments as part of disaster recovery and American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) purchases.

The schedule assignment allows Highland Canine Training, LLC to provide quality working dogs to federal agencies who want to employ and utilize highly trained working dogs. Highland Canine Training, LLC also offers first class canine education programs at our School for Dog Trainers, including a Police K9 Instructor / Trainer Course as well as a Detection Dog Trainer Course.  Highland Canine Training, LLC  offers training and educational programs on location through their series of comprehensive working dog seminars.

In order to further promote our recently awarded GSA Schedule, the company will attend the 2014 Police & Military Working Dog Conference & Vendor Show in Nashville, Tennessee, July 13-15. Highland Canine Training, LLC representatives will be onsite to demonstrate our working dog capabilities and answer questions about working dogs and training programs. Attendees who visit Highland Canine Training, LLC in booth #32 will have the opportunity to win an equipment bundle worth over $200.

“We're excited about the opportunity to work with federal agencies and providing working dog and training programs to meet their needs,” said Jason Purgason, Highland Canine Training, LLC, Training Director. “We strive to make an impression on government buyers with the quality of our dogs and comprehensive training programs as well as our commitment to customer service"

For more information, please contract Jason Purgason at (704) 498-7907 or training@highlandcanine.com. 

Highland Canine Training, LLC will exhibit at the 2014 Police & Military Working Dog Conference & Vendor Show to meet with federal agency customers and showcase working dogs and training opportunities.

Contractor Teaming Arrangements: When and Why?

Ever wanted to pursue an opportunity only to realize that your company can’t fulfill all the obligations on your own? Contractor Teaming Arrangements (CTA) might be your way forward to large opportunities and big money! CTAs are a formalized agreement between two companies that could fall into two different categories.

The first one is the establishment of Joint Venture between two companies. A joint venture is when two companies combine to form a single company with a separate bank account and legal name for the purpose of a specific opportunity and/or time period. These are best used when both companies are the same size and possess a GSA schedule. Both companies wanted to go after an opportunity that neither can do on their own so they join forces and try to win it together.

The second type of arrangement is a Prime/Subcontractor relationship. In this instance, only the GSA Schedule of the Prime is used. The Prime then subcontracts out work they cannot perform to other companies. It’s best to consider this arrangement when you are trying to gain experience on a federal level. In this case most solicitations require that the Prime contractor must be able to perform 51% of the work and there is no guarantee as a subcontractor you will receive any of the work.

CTAs can be confusing and to this end the GSA has created a series of videos to help GSA contractors set up these agreements in a fair and reasonable way. There’s also a list of FAQs that help you determine whether this is the right approach for you company. Reach out to us and we help determine of the CTA is right for your company. 

What's new in government procurement?

This week's blog post we want to focus on what is going on in the world of government procurement. Staying on top of recent developments can help when looking at what agencies your company wants to work with, what products the government is focusing on, and many more advantages.

So what's new?

Well, I am sure many of you have heard about the conflict between the Department of Defense and the GSA. A few articles have been written recently highlighting the issues between the two agencies as new developments when really there is nothing new. The DoD has their own methods of procurement and have not been big proponents of the GSA right out of the gate. If you're looking at dealing with either agency don't let this shy you away.

A few noteworthy things have been going on in the world of IT this week.
 GSA's CIO, Sonny Hashmi took to the internet with a question ans answer session. He touches base on cloud-based services, shift to modular contracts and a few other topics. Take a look at the session here: https://github.com/govfresh/gitchat/issues/3
The DoD is also expanding its use of IT Dashboard, the agency has reported more than $2.5 billion in ongoing IT projects that have been introduced since the last fiscal year. Take a look at the full article here: http://fcw.com/articles/2014/04/11/dod-it-dashboard.aspx

Are you in the telecommunications industry? You may be interested in the RFI that the GSA has released for Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions. This will replace the Networx vehicle. Comments are due by May 5th and the GSA plans to solicit bids in FY 2015.  Check out the full article here: http://fcw.com/articles/2014/04/14/ns2020-rfi.aspx

Good news for anyone in the construction industry was recently released. The Government announced new flexibility for federal construction standards. It allows for contractors to focus on the end product and not the method to getting there. Take a look at the full article for an example: http://www.fiercegovernment.com/story/new-flexibility-federal-construction-standards/2014-03-18

When people think of things the government buys they think military, but if you think about it the government is just like any other company. They purchase everyday items too. The latest strategic sourcing the GSA is exploring is furniture. The goal is be able to offer agencies better deals and easier access to furniture product and services.

These are just a few of the noteworthy stories our team has come across recently. If you find anything that is not listed here and believe people should be aware of feel free to send them our way. We appreciate all feedback.

-Cristi Kaib