The federal government spends billions of dollars annually buying products and services related to the cybersecurity industry, and that pace increased dramatically with the Cybersecurity National Action Plan (CNAP) which was enacted in Feb. 2016 and put into place short-term and long-term strategies to bolster the government’s cybersecurity stance.
One of the major short-term plans is to invest more than $19 billion for cybersecurity as part of the fiscal year 2017 budget. This represents a more than 35 percent increase from FY 2016 in overall federal resources for cybersecurity.
For both cyber and physical security, government contracting is a complex and detailed process that requires time and dedication in order to succeed; however, if you can stick with it, you will be rewarded with highly lucrative long-term government contracts.
Companies who are on the fence about selling security services and technologies to the federal government must start to make the shift to take advantage of the current flow of funding. Here are 7 tips:
1. Get registered. To begin, get a Data Universal Number System (DUNS) number from D&B (www.dnb.com). You need this to register with the System for Award Management (SAM) (www.sam.gov), which you must do in order to get contracts and obtain payment.
You will also need to begin the process of obtaining a General Service Administration (GSA) Schedule (www.gsa.gov) contract vehicle to give your company an easier selling path. The GSA schedule is the government’s primary purchasing contract vehicle, which functions by procuring goods and services through long-term agreements to buy from contractors at what is called a discounted rate.
Contractors selling to the GSA are categorized into different schedules based on what types of products and services they sell. These schedule contracts enable the government to buy quickly, shortening the long and complicated procurement process down to a few days or weeks.
Becoming a GSA schedule contractor can be highly profitable in its own right; just as important, though, it prequalifies you for just about any government work you pursue, including competitive bids. Many organizations bring in outside consultants to help with this process.
2. Determine your set-aside. All federal agencies have a goal of awarding 23 percent of contracting dollars to small businesses. The Small Business Administration (SBA) determines the appropriate small business size standards on an industry-by-industry basis, but they are typically based on the organization’s average revenue over the past three years or average number of employees over the previous 12 months. There are set-aside programs for:
- Woman-owned small businesses;
- Service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses;
- Disadvantaged (8a) small businesses; and
- Businesses located in a Historically Underutilized Business area (Hub-Zone).
Review the socio-economic set-asides supported by the SBA to determine for which set-asides, if any, your organization would qualify. Visit https://www.sba.gov/contracting/government-contracting-programs/what-small-business-set-aside to learn more —and yes, your business can qualify for more than one.
3. Understand the rules and regulations of federal procurement. The U.S. government operates in a much different way from private sector. Government buyers must follow the more than 1,500-page Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) when making any procurements.
Learn everything you can about the procurement process and all rules that will apply to your business. Technology companies in general also need to understand the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) special publications, which are broken down into three primary categories:
- SP 800, Computer Security (December 1990-present)
- SP 1800, NIST Cybersecurity Practice Guides (2015-present)
- SP 500, Computer Systems Technology (January 1977-present)
Organizations in the security industry obviously need to focus primarily on SP800 and SP1800. Understanding all the different rules and regulations within the federal government is critical to winning business and allowing your organization to stand out from the crowd. Many organizations bring in outside consultants to help with this process.
4. Market your business. Getting listed on a government contract does not guarantee sales. You still have to market to decision-makers. Use social media tools, networking organizations and events like those sponsored by the OSDBU council (www.osdbu.gov). These events are geared to help small business meet federal agency buyers and also meet potential partnering and teaming companies of all sizes. Marketing the federal government space is more than marketing to federal agencies it is also about marketing to large prime contractors to help them meet the small business goals.
5. Get experience or partner with it. Successful government contracting happens when your business has a track record of success. Past performance is critical to landing a federal contract, so you must have a history of customers who will give you outstanding references; thus, many companies starting out in the federal government marketplace should consider teaming and or partnering with more experienced federal government contractors. Partnering and teaming spreads the risk, bolsters the proposals experience and gives all parties a much deeper reservoir of talent.
Partnering and teaming is also more highly desired from the government’s position, as it enables an organization to buy from a single contractor, instead of a putting together a piecemeal solution.
6. Do your homework. Finding government opportunities requires the time to review a lot of potential opportunities — many of which you will find are not a good fit. Review current opportunities at FedBizOps (FBO – www.fbo.gov) or at GSA eBuy, which is only available to current GSA schedule holders.
You will also need to look for expiring contracts, which represent upcoming opportunities. They can be found on the federal agency’s procurement forecast or on one of the many government procurement databases. This plethora of information can be difficult to review in the beginning, but stick with it and it will become a breeze.
7. Follow the proposal instructions to the letter. I cannot overemphasize that when responding to the government proposal, the smallest of details matter when determining the winner. Federal agencies are very specific when putting the statement of work together and expect a proposal response to be just as specific. \
Being vague will not get you any points in government. If the proposal limits you to 25 pages with 12-point Times New Roman font delivered by 11:00 a.m. eastern — you either meet those requirements exactly or forget about winning the contract.
Since these contracts are awarded with federal tax dollars, the government does everything it can to ensure the process is equal for every company submitting. If they are not this strict, many organizations would file so many protests over contract awards that nothing would get done.
Patrick Dalton is Research Director for the Winvale Group (www.winvale.com), a leading provider of government advisory services, strategic consulting and training services to government contractors across all industries and disciplines. We provide our client expert guidance and support as they enter and compete in government markets.
