Federal Contracting: Terrifying Prospect or Lucrative Opportunity?

The federal government is well-known as the largest purchaser in the world. It uses so many products and services that it is literally a market in and of itself – the range of things the government purchases for its needs is so diverse that many companies exist entirely to sell to the government. However, the labyrinthine sets of rules and procedures can make it a terrifying area of business for the uninitiated.

The first United States government purchase was performed in the 1770s, when General George Washington directed Philip J. Schuyler to buy weaponry from Major Duncan at Schenectady, with a guarantee to pay for the goods upon delivery. Since then, opportunities to sell to the federal government have expanded greatly; though a large portion of the federal contracting budget is still set aside for military and defense purposes, more money is spent on a much wider range of opportunities that most people realize.

Believe it or not, currently only about 5% of businesses in the United States actually do business with the government. This is despite the fact that it generally spends, on average, over a billion dollars a day, on everything from janitorial services to dog treats to IT services to research. Why is that?

The rules governing the federal procurement process are incredibly intricate. If the contracting field is new to you, you are going to find out just how difficult it can be – this is one of the most complex arenas that there is in business. Fortunately, there are plenty of people and businesses willing to help, and it is possible to acquire a working knowledge of the process, policies, and procedures that apply to your business and how to navigate the government contracting arena.

One piece of good news is that the government tries to do a lot of its business through small contractors. The U.S government has federally and legally mandated goals and procedures designed to favor small businesses. Every federal agency has a small business contracting goal – a percentage of its budget each year is ‘set aside’ specifically for a variety of types of small businesses, ranging in amount depending on the agency. Businesses are eligible for these set-aside goals if they fit the description, be it small, woman-owned, minority-owned, or any in a wide array of other categories.

Small contractors can work with the government without a large office staff or support system, but only if they understand how everything works. Unlike other customers, you cannot simply walk into a government office and make a sales pitch. There is a huge array of protocols that must be met before you can do business with the government – but if you know your rights and are familiar with government programs, contracting can be extremely lucrative for anyone willing to accept the time, effort, and expense of getting started. You also don’t have to do it alone – there are many companies out there willing to direct you along the correct path and to help you get going.

Everyone knows about the current declining economy, said by some to be the worst since the Great Depression. Small businesses should definitely consider utilizing government contracting as a source of income. The federal bailout means that there are going to be hundreds of billions of dollars of extra contracting money spent in the next few years. These dollars will have to be spent somewhere – and not all of them are going to be on the multi-million dollar contracts – the companies that win the large contracts started out winning small contracts. Your business sells products or services that the government buys, and the time to get started with federal contracting is now. In short, federal contracting is both: a terrifying prospect AND a lucrative opportunity. Navigating the maze can be dangerous but the risk is well worth the potential reward!

Working with Gateway to the Government, your business can penetrate the complex web of doing federal contracting. Through our partnership program, you gain access to everything – all of the advantages of the small business set-aside programs and the lucrative field of contracting – without having to accept the huge amount of time, effort, and expense of getting started.

Poker Night

This past Saturday night was a significant night for my roommate and I: it was our first time hosting poker night. The night before I left him alone for dinner and our apartment was how it always looked; by the time I got back, I thought I had walked onto a movie set. Our dining room table was in the middle of the living room with extra leaves already inserted, a second card table by the kitchen, hundreds of poker chips already placed in baggies, along with the house rules, explanations of the chip amounts, and hand explanations posted on each wall (we had several players just learning the game). I couldn't believe my eyes! He had even cleaned the kitchen in the process.

I couldn't help but comparing the novice poker players we had over with businesses having to take the same risks with government contracting. I know I had difficulty the first time I played. I didn't know what combination of cards were the best, I didn't know when to fold or place my bets, and I really couldn't tell if people were lying to me or not. When our contracting business first opened its doors, we had no idea how to read the contracts. In most, there were dozens of pages of instructions, and half the time we weren't sure which were worth bidding on. We also didn't have any contacts at the time and when we made friends in the industry, we weren't sure who we could trust. We've grown since then, having completed contracts and found trustworthy individuals within the contracting community and hope to help others grow as well through Gateway to the Government.

Now when I say the words 'poker night,' I'm sure the majority of people think of roughly the same thing: a night of boys sitting around a table, smoking cigars, placing bets, having a drink, and yakking about their jobs/girlfriend/whatever. Never does the phrase 'fiscal responsibility' pop up when mentioning poker. Neither does 'planning for the future.' I'm sure most people don't even find that the word responsible can be attributed to gambling at all.

One thing that I learned from my recent poker night, as I'm sure my friends did too, is that planning ahead makes everything better. My roommate had taken the precautionary steps: talked to everyone involved to find the best time to host, figured out what needed to be worked on, and set everything up ahead of time. Because of all of these steps, the night went very smoothly. No one was upset by the end of the night, nothing was broken or lost, several people had learned a new game, and there wasn't any confusion regarding who had won or why. I found out that my roommate had hosted many such friendly poker nights during his college days and knew exactly what needed to be done. Government contracting is the same way - having someone who has experience and knows what needs to be done can ensure that everything moves smoothly. Businesses can benefit from taking risks - just like a poker player - but until the player knows the rules, it can be a great way to gamble and lose, especially to the experienced players. A friendly contractor such as Gateway is willing to take the "gamble" out of contracting, allowing your business to use our winning cards.