8a Companies Cut From GSA STARS Contract

We just saw this article on FCW.com saying that GSA cut 197 companies from the 8a STARS GWAC because they didn't meet their minimum sales threshold. The contract requires companies to report sales of at least $100,000 in the contract's first three years.

Many other GWACs, as well as GSA Schedules, require their holders to achieve a specific minimum amount of sales or face getting their contracts cancelled. If your company is in danger of having this happen, give us a call and we can help you identify opportunities to make some sales and keep your contract!

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ASBL to Sue SBA

According to the Cherry Hill Courier Post, the American Small Business League said it's preparing to take the U.S. Small Business Administration to federal court to stop a new policy that allows the SBA to officially report government contracts to Fortune 1000 firms and other large businesses as small business awards for at least five more years.

Without the new policy, the SBA could no longer claim the federal government was reaching the minimum 23 percent small-business procurement goal required under current federal law, the league said.

Under the policy that went into effect June 30, the federal government can officially count federal contracts to hundreds of Fortune 1000 firms toward the government's 23 percent small-business procurement goal through the year 2012, the league said.

D2DInc supports this lawsuit since the government is currently over-reporting the contract dollars going to small businesses. We don't have a problem with large businesses keeping contracts they acquire when they buy small companies, even if those contracts were awarded as a SB set-aside. However, the agency shouldn't be allowed to count the dollars towards their SB contracting goal.

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D2DInc EVP Appears in Washington Business Journal

Molly Gimmel, D2DInc's co-founder and Executive Vice President, was featured in this article in the July 20 Washington Business Journal, discussing the proposed implementation of a program for government agencies to set-aside contracts specifically for women owned businesses. Let us know what you think.

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D2DInc Client Makes the Inc 500!

Addx Corporation, a D2DInc client since 2003, has just been named to the Inc. 500! This prestigious list represents the 500 fastest growing privately held companies in the US. Congratulations to Bill Millward, Addx's President, and the rest of the Addx Team!!! Check out their website: www.addxcorp.com.

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SBA regulations on WOB set asides

This article by Inc.com highlights the issues with the new regulations pertaining to set aside contracts for women-owned business. In a nutshell, only 4 industries out of the 313 listed in the procurement registry would be eligible for federal agencies to set aside contracts for women-owned business. The article also references statistics from the US Women's Chamber of Commerce indicating women make up 30 percent of the nation's business owners, but receive only three percent of federal contracts -- clearly a disproportionate percentage. Bottom line - women business owners need to be proactive and aggressive in their efforts to positively impact the regulations. Click link below to see full article.

SBA Defends Contract Plan

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Big News for Small Businesses

In a February 5, 2008 hearing on regulatory fairnesss, American Small Business League (ASBL) Communications Director Chris Gunn highlighted a need for greater enforcement of the regulations created to prevent the diversion of Federal small business contracts to large companies and their subsidiaries. As a result of this testimony, the Small Business Administration (SBA) Office of Government Contracting and Business Development will be conducting a high level review to determine whether or not large businesses are receiving small business procurement awards and agencies are receiving credit for these awards.

According to estimations by the ASBL, more than $100 billion in Federal small business contracts go to some of the largest corporations in the United States and Europe, instead of to legitimate small businesses. There have been no fines or penalties for these misrepresentations to date, despite regulations that allow for hefty fines and even imprisonment.

The ASBL believes that the SBA is not enforcing these regulations, and even claims that the SBA falsifies the small business goaling report to make it seem like goals are being met. Solutions like annual re-certification, the Fairness and Transparency in Contacting Act of 2008, and the enforcement of current regulations have been proposed to remedy this gross misconduct.

In a nutshell, this means more small businesses will have a chance to win contracts in the future that might otherwise have been slipped to large corporations. However, it becomes even more important now to make certain that companies contracting as small businesses are not in violation of any size standards. If you're a small business looking for ways to get a piece of the Federal procurement pie, we'll be happy to help.

Full Text: SBA National Ombudsman Mandates High Level Review of ASBL Testimony

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No such thing as a free lunch.

It turns out that small-business grants and interest-free loans for female and minority new business owners are right up there with Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny; all lovably fun and widespread stories known by many with absolutely no truth behind them. (I am truly sorry if I just burst several bubbles at once for you.) The SBA and other Small Business Development Centers provide technical assistance, loan information, and standard loans, but unfortunately, few hand out no-strings-attached cash to help business owners get started.

Read the full article here: Busting the 'Free Money' Myth

Don't give up hope, however, because once you get your business up and running, then you can use your small-business designations to qualify for various contracts that are specific set-asides. For example, GSA just recently issued the 21-Gun Salute initiative to help service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses (SDVOSBs) by increasing the amount of agency contracting dollars going to these businesses. GSA has failed to reach the goal of 3% of contracting dollars to SDVOSBs in both 2006 and 2007 and is now pushing to achieve those numbers this year. (For more information on this initiative, read the full article here: GSA launches new initiative to help veterans.) As there are government goals in place for each type of small business designation, there are plenty of ways to into contracting, starting by monitoring FedBizOpps or getting in touch with the Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization at the agencies with which you wish to work.

Many commercial companies also need to work with small businesses to fulfill subcontracting goals, so there are also plenty of opportunities to be found to help small business owners succeed outside of working directly with government agencies.

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Procurement Rules and Small-Business Set-Asides

A newly proposed rule from the Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council attempts to clarify for contracting officers procurement rules regarding small-businesses set-asides by stating:

• There is no order of precedence among the 8(a), Historically Underutilized Business Zone or service-disabled veteran-owned small-business programs.

• Contracting officers must reserve acquisitions between $3,000 and $100,000 for small businesses unless the officer determines that two or more businesses will not competitively vie for the job. Even though the acquisition is set aside for small businesses, officers can award it to HUBZone, 8(a) or veteran-owned small businesses.


• Contracting officers should consider their agency’s progress in meeting federal small-business goals when deciding which program to use for a contract.

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2009 & Federal Government Contracting

We have been getting a lot of questions about federal government contracting in 2009 and contracting during the Obama administration coming in later this month. So we decided to pass on our insights and recommendations to our blog's readers.

One thing President-elect Obama has promised is change. But what does that mean? Does this mean less government spending? That is yet to be seen. In the interim, we're still operating off of President Bush's last budget, however the Obama team has already sent in advance people to meet with agency personnel. Will opportunities in the hopper be canceled? We won't know until the new administration is in place. What it does mean is companies have to ramp up their marketing efforts and get in front of opportunities BEFORE they hit the streets.

D2DInc works with companies to help them win and management government contracts. We see a direct correlation between a company's ability to win a contract and the amount of advance work they do. The time to get started on a proposal is before the opportunity is in the procurement phase. This is easier said than done. Companies must retrain themselves on how and which government procurements they pursue.

We recommend the following activities.

• Look at your products and services and make sure that what you sell is in line with what the government purchases.


• Review and update your marketing plans quarterly.


• Identify your potential customers, opportunities, competition and teaming partners. Budgets change -- do you know where the money is?


• Attend agency industry days and conferences. Knowledge is powerful, but relationships are essential. People buy from companies that know and trust. A proposal submission isn't the time to introduce yourself to your potential customer.


• Provide training to the personnel who will be working on proposals -- before the RFP is released. This way they know what to expect, how to do it and how to juggle supporting their customer with meeting proposal deadlines.


• Update your proposal library on a regular basis. Save time and make sure your past performance citations and employee resumes are up-to-date on an on-going basis.


• Do a financial review and make sure your direct and indirect cost rates are in line with industry accepted numbers.


• We are procurement process experts and help companies successfully navigate government procurement. Our advice to contractors is to make evaluating your contracting practices and direction of your marketing efforts standard company policy.

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Molly Gimmel to Speak at NAPAW Annual Conference

Molly Gimmel, D2DInc's co-founder and Executive Vice President, was invited to speak at the 18th Annual Conference of the National Association of Professional Asian-American Women (NAPAW). The conference is April 14-15, 2009 and will be held at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) in Baltimore, MD. This year's conference theme is "You Can Make A Difference" and focuses on helping small businesses learn about doing business with federal, state, and local government agencies. Molly will be speaking on the topics of GSA Schedules and government contract pricing. The conference is open to all - not just Asian Americans. For more information, contact napaw@comcast.net or go to http://www.seiservices.com/NAPAW to register.

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On Point Washington Technology Article

In case you missed it, Matthew Weigelt wrote a really good article on the Obama administration and how it can benefit small businesses. It's an interesting article because he not only talks about the new opportunities that could come for veteran-owned and woman-owned businesses, but also discusses the potential negative impact to Alaska Native Corporations (ANCs). His article appears in the January 2009 issue of Washington Technology or can be found on line at http://washingtontechnology.com/articles/2009/01/12/winners-and-one-possible-loser.aspx.

It's a well rounded article and I particularly like the attention Mr. Weigelt paid to the woman-owned business contracting program. We've been hearing for years about how this program is supposed to go into effect. We'll see if the Mr. Obama and his SBA Administrator nominee, Karen Mills, will be able to implement a program that makes sense and doesn't lock out the majority of woman-owned businesses.

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Molly & Diana's Speaking Engagements for May

The passing of the Stimulus bill and the finalizing of the federal government budget have had numerous positive effects on the government contracting community. Money is now available so projects are moving forward, solicitations are being released, and contracts are being awarded. It’s amazing because not too long ago, many companies were suffering. These same companies now have opportunities to ensure growth, some at a faster pace than anticipated. Planning is essential to ensure the company is able to take advantage of potential opportunities, and also ensure growth does not implode the company.

Molly Gimmel and Diana Dibble Kurcfeld are speaking on a variety of topics that will help your company. We hope that you’ll be able to attend one or all of the events.

GSA Schedules - May 12, 2009

Molly is speaking on GSA Schedules at the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) GovCon Special Interest Group (SIG) meeting on Tuesday May 12^th. She will be speaking about getting a GSA Schedule - what you need to know before and while you submit, and administering the contracts after award. For more information, go to: www.nawbodc.org and click events.

Strategic Alliances - May 14, 2009

Diana is speaking on Strategic Alliances and how they can make your company more marketable and save money. This Women Presidents’ Organization (www.womenpresidentsorg.com) event is hosted by Shulman, Rogers, Gandal, Pordy & Ecker. Ira Hoffman, Of Counsel at Shulman Rogers, will be speaking about avoiding legal pitfalls of strategic alliances. The event will be help on Thursday May 14^th from 8:30 to 11:00 am at Shulman Rogers office (11921 Rockville Pike, 4th Floor, Rockville, Maryland 20852). To register for this event, please email dcadmin@womenpresidentsorg.com with your name, company name, email address, and date of the event. If you have questions, please contact Liza Avruch at DCadmin@womenpresidentsorg.com or 202-626-8773.

Infrastructure - May 19, 2009

Diana is teaming up with Rose Financial Services to talk about infrastructure. The seminar is called Accounting Infrastructure for Government Contractors – What You Need to Know Before You Win the Contract. Rose Financial Services will be speaking on the financial topics. Diana will be speaking on how to translate this infrastructure into the company’s marketing and proposal efforts. The event is Tuesday May 19^th from 8 am to 9:30 am at Rose Financial Services office: 2 Research Pl Suite 300, Rockville, MD 20850. For more information and to register for the event, contact Lauri Rodich at (301) 527-1130 ext 203 or lauri.rodich@rosefinancial.com.

Respond to Lauri by COB on 5/15/09. This is a free event.

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Think Business Article - September 2009 Issue

The fourth quarter of the federal government fiscal year (July 1-September 30) is one of the busiest times for government contracting. It is particularly challenging for businesses who are pursuing multiple opportunities, but have limited resources. Check out our article "Surviving the End-of-Year Fiscal Spending Crunch" in the September issue of ThinkBusiness Magazine. We talk about suggestions to manage multiple proposals during this really frenetic time of year. It's available online at http://content.yudu.com/A1fund/TBM-Sept-09/resources/14.htm.

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Scheduling Proposal Development During The Holiday Season

Government agencies love to issue RFPs in December so the proposals are waiting when they get back after the holidays in January. Map out your staff's holiday vacation schedule now so if an RFP (or two!) hits, you'll have people available to work on the proposal.

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D2DInc's Monthly eNewsletter - Stay in The Know

Stay in the know about the government contracting industry. Sign up for D2DInc's monthly eNewsletter. We include articles about government contracting, proposals, and related topics. We also include information on upcoming opportunities - so you know what's coming out; upcoming events - so you know where to go to network and build relationships; and other information that will help your company win & manage government contracts.

Sign up at http://visitor.constantcontact.com/manage/optin/ea?v=001jYqn93s1IRBCl9-5ZnE0-Q%3D%3D.

Also, send us your input for future articles so we know what you're interested in learning about. Email Melissa Vivari at mvivari@d2dinc.com.

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Upcoming GWAC & Large IDIQ Contract Templates

Several GWACs and large agency IDIQ contracts are going to be open for bidders within the next few months. D2DInc is creating proposal templates for these opportunities that will be available for sale. Using our proposal templates will allow companies to ensure that their proposals are complete and compliant with all RFP requirements.

The templates are created in Microsoft Word for ease of use by the proposal writers. We note all formatting instructions in the template, including proposal structure of volumes and sections, requirements such as font type and size, page limitations, and anything else that might be required. We also incorporate all requirements regarding content, and provide templates for all forms and tables as needed. Opportunities for which templates are available include:

• NIH CIOSP-3 - Template is currently available based on the draft RFP. It will be updated once the final RFP is released, but companies interested in bidding can get started now. Final RFP is expected in March 2010. Price: $2,500


• Navy Seaport-e - Template is currently available based on RFP from last open admissions. It will be updated once the final RFP is released, but very few changes have been made over the last several iterations, so we recommend starting your proposal now. Open admissions is expected in April 2010. Price: $2,500


• DHS Eagle II - Template will be available within 48 hours of RFP release. Reserve yours now so you can get started as soon as the RFP hits the street. Price: $2,500


• Air Force NETCENTS 2: Templates are currently available based on draft RFPs for each of six functional areas. Price: $1,500 per functional area

Want a template for another RFP response? Interested or have questions? Email Molly Gimmel at mgimmel@d2dinc.com.

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