Tag: 8a

SOURCES SOUGHT: Synopsis for Air Force Air Surveillance Sensor

Posted on by Eric Coffie

This Sources Sought Synopsis is in support of Market Research being conducted to identify potential sources for Contractor Logistics Support (CLS) for multiple Air Force terrestrial-based air surveillance sensors used to detect and track threats in support of the air sovereignty and aerospace defense missions of North American Aerospace Defense (NORAD)/United States Northern Command (NORTHCOM). This is not a Request for Proposal (or solicitation) or an indication that a contractual commitment will exist for this requirement. The Government is interested in all businesses to include Large Business, Small Business, 8(a), Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned, Hubzone, and Women-Owned small business concerns.

  • Original Set Aside:
  • Product Service Code:
  • NAICS Code:
  • Place of Performance: USA
  • Original Response Date: Aug 27, 2021 05:00 pm EDT

Full details via beta.sam.gov

Top 10 Agencies for 8a this 2021

Posted on by Eric Coffie

If you’re a business owner eligible for 8(a) certification, any challenge to participating in the program, such as its lengthy application process, will be overshadowed by the opportunities it can offer.

Getting your 8a certificate can reduce competition for government contracts, give you access to sole-source contracts, and offer entry into the All Small Mentor-Protégé program.

However, a reality that many business owners seeking the certification fail to consider is that there is also competition among 8a firms and it’s vicious. How do you surpass that?

There are so many contracting officers in the federal industry looking for small businesses to spend their money on. There are different types of customers within each agency and different marketing strategies needed to win but don’t worry, we are here to help you.

Allow us to narrow down your target market. With that in mind, here are the Top 10 Agencies for 8a that you should keep your eye on this 2021.

1. Department of the Army (DA)

The United States Department of the Army is the Military Department within the United States Department of Defense. They are the agency that is capable of defeating enemy ground forces and indefinitely seizing and controlling those things.

The Army awards billions of contracting dollars annually. They have five buying commands and each has specific major buying command purchases, from combat systems to medical research and health services to construction projects. The Army has a very large secondary market: subcontracting, which is why they also encourage small businesses to pursue subcontracting opportunities.

2. Department of the Air Force (USAF)

The Department of the Air Force defends the country through the control and exploitation of air and space. 

The Air Force has small business specialists around the country who can help your company identify and respond to every type of procurement opportunity they offer. Business opportunities, relating to expiring contracts, facility engineering, and space force procurement, is found on their website.

3. Department of the Navy (USN)

The U.S. Department of the Navy aims to protect the country from wars at sea. The contracting functions of this agency are decentralized which means your market research should extend beyond the geographical bounds of your city, state, and region. 

The first presentation of your company’s capabilities should be directly given to the Small Business Professionals at the Navy and Marine Corps activities that buy your products or services so that you get additional points of contact for marketing the customer.

The Department of the Navy wants quality solutions for its requirements in a timely and cost-effective manner thus outstanding “past performance” is considered one of the most valuable assets.

4. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS)

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services provide high-quality care at lower costs to more than 100 million people through Medicare, Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program, and the Health Insurance Marketplace.

To support its own programs, CMS needs to procure a wide range of supplies and services including (but not limited to) the following: Research Studies and Demonstrations, Consultant Services, Utilization of Health Services, Provider Fraud and Abuse, Health Quality and Standards, Professional Advisory Services, Computer Programming, Data Processing, Office Supplies, Computer Hardware, and Software

5. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is America’s civil space program and the global leader in space exploration.  They develop and fund space technologies that will enable future exploration and benefit life on Earth.

If you are interested in working with NASA, as a small business owner, you can go to their website and identify which NASA Center is your target market. Each center has listed out the NAICS codes of the product or service that they intend to acquire.

6. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is one of the major operating components of the Department of Health and Human Services. They protect America from health, safety, and security threats, both foreign and in the U.S. 

This agency conducts critical science and provides health information that protects our nation against expensive and dangerous health threats, and responds when these arise. For small businesses engaged in scientific research and development (R&D), research funding is available.

7. Public Buildings Service (PBS)

Public Buildings Service acquires space on behalf of the federal government through new construction and leasing and acts as a caretaker for federal properties across the country. They are primarily funded through the Federal Buildings Fund, which is supported by the rent from federal customer agencies.

To get information on planned federal contracting opportunities, they have provided the GSA Forecast of Contracting Opportunities Tool, which assists vendors to learn about potential prime contracting opportunities early on in the process

8. United States Coast Guard (USCG)

The U.S. Coast Guard is the principal Federal agency responsible for maritime safety, security, and environmental stewardship in U.S. ports and inland waterways, throughout the 4.5 million square miles of U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), and on the high seas.

The Coast Guard Acquisition Directorate manages a multibillion-dollar recapitalization investment portfolio of acquisition programs across three major product lines: surface; aviation; and command, control, communications, computers, cyber, and intelligence (C5I) systems.

9. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)

The FAA issues and enforces regulations involving manufacturing, operating, and maintaining aircraft. They rely on equipment, systems, supplies, services, and construction provided by commercial, educational, and non-profit businesses to function as an agency.

The FAA’s contracting activities are managed by a headquarters office, two centers, and three service areas with eight regional offices. Among the many contracting methods, the FAA, like other agencies, has certain planned contracts reserved for small businesses that are 8a certified.

10. Department of State (DOS)

The Department of State works to fight terrorism, protect U.S. interests abroad, and implement foreign policy initiatives while building a more free, prosperous, and secure world

Available projections for contracting opportunities that small and small disadvantaged firms may participate in can be found on the agency’s website under its procurement forecast. 

RESOURCES

The list found in this article and their respective ranking was taken from usaspending.gov, wherein federal agencies were ranked from highest to lowest, according to their cumulative government spending in 2021 for 8a certified businesses.

SOURCES SOUGHT: Q508–On-Site Inpatient Hemodialysis Services

Posted on by Eric Coffie

VHA RPO West NCO 17 Health Care Resources Branch I is planning to solicit a vendor who can provide On-Site Inpatient Hemodialysis Services for Veterans within the area of the Thomas E Creek VA Medical Center. The Thomas E Creek VA Medical Center is looking for a Contactor that can provide all supervision, personnel, supplies, transportation, and equipment to perform inpatient acute hemodialysis treatments. VHA RPO West NCO 17 Health Care Resources Branch I is conducting a market survey to determine the existence of potential small business concerns (e.g., HUBZone, 8(a), SDVOSB, Woman-Owned, etc.) with the capability to fulfill this acquisition. Place of Performance: Department of Veterans Affairs Thomas E Creek VA Medical Center 6010 Amarillo Blvd West Amarillo, TX 79106-1991 Type of Contract: If this source sought notice leads to a future solicitation, the Government intends to award a firm-fixed-price contract.

  • Original Set Aside:
  • Product Service Code: Q508 – MEDICAL- HEMATOLOGY
  • NAICS Code: 621492 – Kidney Dialysis Centers
  • Place of Performance: Department of Veterans Affairs Thomas E Creek VA Medical Center Amarillo, TX 79106-1991 USA
  • Updated Response Date: Jun 28, 2021 02:00 pm EDT
  • Full details via beta.sam.gov

    govcon logo Check out our RESOURCES page for a sample letter that we use in response to government market research.

 

Helleni Moon: Breaking the Federal Arena through Agile and Streamlined Data Management Support Services

Posted on by Eric Coffie

Learn how Helleni Moon transitioned from an employee to building her own data management support services company!

BACKGROUND

Helleni Moon has over 15 years of hands-on experience in software and database management, business intelligence, and technical production support through her earlier affiliation with General Dynamics IT and Lockheed Martin, among others.  

Currently, she is the CEO of EIDOS Technologies, a company that she founded to provide information technology services such as data management and custom application design and integration.

Although EIDOS was just built in 2015, the company is already gaining recognition. In fact, it was nominated for the 2021 Prince William Chamber Business Award. 

BUILDING EIDOS TECHNOLOGIES

Moon had always desired to build a company of her own and after working for others, she built EIDOS Technologies in 2015. 

One thing that helped her in building EIDOS and getting her first two contracts is her previous relationships. She already has a network, and her colleagues were also very supportive of her. 

Even with that, she was continuously going to numerous outreach and agency events in order to show that she’s persistent.

“Luckily, you know, one of the contracting officers, eventually, they started knowing who I was and they said, ‘Oh, you know, I may have this opportunity, but that may be a really good fit.’ So, it’s being out there because you want to make sure, they want to make sure that you’re not just there for, you know, that you’re there for a long term.”

However, building her own company is not always easy. In fact, she wished that she would have done a lot of things differently. 

One of these is not waiting to be part of the 8(a) program because although she understood the proposal and the execution part, she still didn’t understand the marketing aspect of it. This then led to them losing six months without a contract.

“You need to be able to not only understand where your financials are and what your cash flow is like, but how are you going to get your next contract and how many things you have in the pipeline that will occur and you can get that you can close by the time the contracts end.”

ADVICE FOR SMALL BUSINESSES

1. Be patient.

Everything will take some time. So, be patient and don’t get disheartened if something is not happening yet. 

While waiting, why not do your research and build your network first? This way, you are not just waiting, but you are using your free time on matters that could be important in your business in the future. 

2. Spend your time efficiently. 

Consider what opportunities you should go after. Don’t just take every opportunity that you want because not all opportunities offer you the best returns. 

“All of these things are really critical because one of the things that I learned is when you first start off, you feel like you want to go after everything, but then you take a step back and then you say, you know, am I really spending my time in the most efficient way and am I getting the best return, you know, in doing this?”

3. Self-education is key. 

Regardless if you have the necessary educational background for what industry you want to go after, you should continuously educate yourself. 

Consider that there are more things that you don’t know about. So, instead of wasting your time, focus on educating yourself. 

“You have to do your research, and really understand what you’re getting yourself into, and what you’re going to need.”

RESOURCES

If you want to learn more on how Helleni Moon transitioned from being an employee to building her own data management support services company, then be sure to click the resources below.

You can also visit the GovCon Giant website or the new GovCon Edu where you learn everything about government contracting!

86: Data Management Support Services – Helleni Moon

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yj_T1AcRsv8

Donnie Harris: Retired Contracting Officer with an Unlimited Warrant to Write Billions in Contract Actions

Posted on by Eric Coffie

Navigate the government contracting market with retired military contracting officer Donnie Harris.

BACKGROUND

Donnie Harris is a retired military contracting officer who served two decades for the Coast Guard Office of Chief Counsel, Procurement Law Division, and the Clerk of the Court/Paralegal for the Coast Guard Court of Military Appeal.

Throughout his tenure, Harris participated on various radio shows and trained thousands of military and civilian personnel on topics ranging from preparing a statement of work to updates on the FAR.

Over the course of these years, he managed complex and high-profile procurements totaling $1.2 billion from the acquisition to the pre-award phase. 

After retiring, he was employed by numerous companies that wanted to utilize his procurement experience. 

CONTRACTOR PURCHASING SYSTEM REVIEW AUDIT

What that audit means is when you’re dealing with a cost reimbursable contract, you have to have an approved purchasing system that is approved by the government.

Huge companies like Booz Allen Hamilton use this process in order to ensure that everything, from the reqs and certs to the subcontractor agreements, are dated and signed correctly.

The reason is that if you fail too many audits, then that’s going to go into your past performance.

You may have an outstanding technical solution, but because you’re not able to pass an audit and it is reflected in your past performance, then you’re probably not going to win.

This is why Harris worked with a whole department in Booz Allen that was strictly dedicated to doing this audit. 

SUBCONTRACTING GOALS

Under the subcontracting goal, huge companies that do federal works need to subcontract a certain percentage of their work to small businesses. 

For instance, you’re not going to get a small business who can build a $3 billion bridge. The reasons may include the fact that they don’t have the infrastructure, the resources, and the technical knowledge and expertise to build a bridge.

Still, these small businesses can do some of the legwork, like dirt removal, concrete, and other of the small jobs. This is where the subcontracting goals come into place. 

However, depending upon the requirements, there are firms that really don’t have to adhere to the subcontracting goals, especially if there’s no subcontractors out there that can perform that type of work.

This happens when the vendor or the offerors have done their market research and found that no small business can fulfill the requirements.  

SMALL BUSINESSES ARE MISINFORMED

In Harris’ experience, he had to disqualify a lot of small businesses because they did not even maintain the basic requirements needed. 

For example, in putting solicitations online, they use keywords that only certain companies know. Why? Because this shows the level of expertise that that company has.

Apart from that, contracting officers have specific requirements depending on the contract. So, if you don’t follow any of these, then you can certainly be disqualified. 

For instance, if it is written that you need to use an 8 1/2 X 11 size of paper, then you need to really send your proposal using this size.

These are just the little things people on the government side uses in order to eliminate companies that could really not fulfill the requirements.

THE CONTRACTING PROCESS

The government usually receives two proposals: the technical proposal and the pricing proposal. 

The technical proposal is going to address how you are going to match or apply the requirements. Within this, the agency usually asks for your resumes, technical capabilities, resources, and past performance. 

Meanwhile, the pricing proposal is how are you going to price it. This includes what labor rates you are going to use and what labor categories you are going to use to accommodate these requirements.

Now, let’s say your technical proposal and your price proposal are both acceptable and you won a single award. Then, you will move to the negotiation, the final offer, and the kick off meeting about certain requirements. Lastly, you will start working.  

On the other hand, if it is going to be a multiple award, that’s when the agency will issue different task orders or requests for quotes towards you and other companies in the pool. 

What will happen in this kind of award is that you will price every time there’s a task order and that agency will choose the lowest bidder.  

RESOURCES

If you want to learn more on how to navigate the government contracting market with retired military contracting officer Donnie Harris, then be sure to click the resources below.

You can also visit the GovCon Giant website or the new GovCon Edu where you learn everything about government contracting!

011: Donnie Harris – Unlimited Warrant to Write Billions in Contract Actions

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_H15m0jKgY

Angela O’Byrne: Award Winning Architect and President of Internationally-Known Perez APC

Posted on by Eric Coffie

Learn how to win local and international federal contracts with award-winning architect and CEO of Perez APC, Angela O’byrne!

BACKGROUND

Angela O’Byrne came from Cali, Columbia where she was born and moved to the United States years later. 

She then earned two master’s degrees in architecture from Tulane University and in real estate development from Columbia University, respectively. 

Meanwhile, she became part of the Perez APC, a U.S. based architecture and planning company with international reach. A few years later, she was asked by the owner to take over the company. 

Currently, O’Byrne is a licensed architect in 15 states, a licensed general contractor in two states, a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects, and a LEED Accredited Professional.

She has also successfully led complex design and construction projects around the world, including a $500 Million USAID contract in Afghanistan— the largest infrastructure construction contract awarded to a women-owned business to date by the USAID-Afghanistan Mission.

With all of these, she was named as the 2016 Small Business Person of the Year in New Orleans and the first runner-up for the National Small Business Person of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration.

“Keep going around the world and keep doing more and more.”

ADVICE FOR BUSINESSES

1. Bid but ask for a debrief. 

O’Byrne doesn’t think that bidding is a bad strategy, in the sense that it’s a way to get your name in front of people. The only thing that you should do is ask for debriefs.

Although you don’t win every bid, you will be able to learn a lot from it through asking what’s wrong with your proposal and it also helps agency decision-makers learn from your company. 

“Like everything, if they don’t know who you are and they’ve never met you, at some point, you do have to look on FedBizOpps and start submitting proposals… You’re not going to win it the first time because they don’t know who you are.”

2. Market to international missions.

It’s not enough to just go after contracts in Washington D.C. because there are far more opportunities in the international market. 

With this, why not market to missions because these basically have their own budgets. 

Apart from that, you can meet people who are doing these jobs for years and learn from them. Although you will be spending money on marketing, the return on investment is far more advantageous.

3. Find the ones who want to help.

Avail all the resources that you can use in building your business and these include organizations and people who want to help you. 

In fact, it was years on being in the 8(a) program when O’Byrne got their first contract and she would have never done that without the help of their Procurement Technical Assistance Center person. 

So, you really have to find the ones who really care and then latch onto those people and they will help you. They really will. 

“You can tell quite quickly who in those agencies and which OSDBUs actually care about the mission and want to help you. And you can tell which ones don’t care. So, don’t waste your time with the ones that don’t care because they will waste a whole lot of time.”

ARE YOU COMMITTED ENOUGH?

Building a business is really difficult and it is easy to get discouraged, so O’Byrne recommends to do some soul searching and decide whether you’re committed enough to stick it out.

You have to decide, “Are you committed enough to stay the course?” Because if you’re not, don’t do it. 

Don’t put yourself through this because it’s going to be tough. There are going to be a lot of ups and downs. You never arrive, you’re always striving, and it’s always going to be difficult. 

“It’s not for everybody. You know, you really need to be real with yourself and don’t do it, if you don’t really feel like you’re up for it.”

RESOURCES

If you want to learn more on how to win local and international federal contracts with Angela O’byrne, then be sure to click the resources below. You can also visit the GovCon Giant website or the new GovCon Edu where you learn everything about government contracting!

005: Angela O’Byrne – Award Winning and Internationally Known Architect

https://govcongiants1.wpengine.com/podcast/2019/05/28/005/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BbcwfN57Y9Y

 

Leilani Lacusong: From Accountant to 8a Contractor

Posted on by Eric Coffie

For over five years, Leilani Lacusong learned doing government contracts and now, she shares her story and what she learned from winning her first contract!

 BACKGROUND

Leilani Lacusong has over 25 years of experience doing accounting in the architecture, engineering, and construction industry as a project and staff accountant all the way to becoming a Chief Financial Officer. 

Currently, she is the Principal at Leis Consulting Group where she does government contracts for over five years while also providing accounting services, on the side. 

Apart from that, Leilani is also working along with some of our GovCon Giants to gain contracts as a community. 

STARTING IN THE FEDERAL MARKETPLACE

When she quit her former job, Leilani was faced with the fact that she had no clients and no job. However, she believed in herself and started researching. 

She built Leis Consulting Group in 2015 and she went after 8a and other certifications.

She called people for three months regarding these small business certifications and instead of paying someone to fill the 8a application, she did it herself. 

Although, she was informed that she can’t be an 8a, she continued to pursue this certification until she became 8a certified in 2016.

However, reality hits her. Becoming part of the 8a program doesn’t mean having those VIP tickets that will provide you contracts. 

So, she reverted back to doing accounting while researching more and navigating different  govcon databases.

That’s when she learned about homeless veterans, traditional homes for the probationers, and other opportunities that she already had previous experiences with. 

GETTING HER FIRST CONTRACT

Leilani then got her first contract on September 23, 2017 where she did a carpet cleaning project in Abilene, Texas for three years.

“I thought I won a million dollars, but it’s only 65,000 for five years, so I  didn’t really look at it that way. I think it just affects the high of winning a contract. It didn’t matter if it was like twenty thousand, thirty thousand—”

Although this contract gave her a lot of challenges, it also strengthened the way she viewed government contracts. 

Primarily, the people that she hired to do the project didn’t show up, so she just did the job herself. Fortunately, a pastor assisted her in accomplishing the job for three years. 

Apart from that, the contract itself is $65,000 for three years which is a very small contract considering its time period. 

However, she still performed the project and viewed it as a very humbling experience.

“It’s like, ‘Wow, the government really trusted me, so, I have to perform, you know, like they trusted me and my company.’ So, you know what? I have to deliver what I need to deliver and maybe do more.”

SACRIFICES AND DRIVE

Between 2017 to 2019, Leilani continues to bid with no hits. This then affects her tremendously.

She began sabotaging her relationships and there comes a point where she needs to do accounting on the side just to pay her bills.

However, she knew that these sacrifices were needed to achieve her goals, so she never gave up. 

“I just did not give up, you know. I don’t know what kept me going. I think it’s because of that hunger… for trying to get the contracts. I’m like, ‘That’s all I want to do. I just want to work hard with contracts.’”

ADVICE FOR ASPIRING GOVCON GIANTS

1. Be patient.

Patience is very important when you’re doing every activity in order to win a contract. It will not happen as soon as you want it. You need to wait. You need to think. You need to continuously reinvent yourself. 

“You have to be patient. It’s not going to come overnight.”

2. Be humble.

Stay grounded wherever part of your govcon journey you are because no matter how huge your contracts are, you have to go right back to where you started again after accomplishing that.

In fact, why not share what you learned? Besides, there are tons of contracts and money for all of us in this marketplace, we have enough projects to pass around.

“You have to share… I think humility and being humble, I think it’s the key to, you know, so people really want to work with you.”

3. Be consistent.

Success won’t happen when you don’t do your activities consistently. You need to have a system. You need to have structure. You need to know what you are doing. 

“My advice to people is how to eat live and walk and really digest the government world because if you don’t, you’re going to get lost in the shuffle, you’re going to be frustrated, and you’re not going to know your next move. So, I said just be consistent.”

4. Be part of a community.

When you’re doing contracts alone, it will surely become lonely, but it will not be that lonely if you become part of a community who also have the same aspirations as yourself. 

“One thing I really, really learned is you have to have a community. You have to have a village. It’s kind of like having kids, you have to have a support system because there are things that you’re missing out.” 

RESOURCES

If you want to learn more on the sacrifices and lessons Leilani Lacusong learned, then be sure to click the resources below. You can also visit the GovCon Giant website or the new GovCon Edu where you learn everything about government contracting!

02: Making a Giant with Maria and Leilani Lacusong. From Accountant to 8a Contractor

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmJi3lamQUw&t=2606s

Cecil Whitlock: Did You Know that You Can PURCHASE an 8a Company?

Posted on by Eric Coffie

Did you know that you can purchase an 8a company? Let’s answer this question together with Cecil Whitlock!

BUYING AN 8A COMPANY

Cecil Whitlock started his career in the federal market by working with different large companies.

He was then hired at the J2 Engineering, Inc. when the company is close to graduating in the 8a program because the company already outgrows the necessary numbers that small businesses can leverage. 

Then, at some point, he bought the company when the owner approached him about buying it because he chose to go back to law school. 

As the new owner, he still needed to make sure that the company continued working even after the program, so he went and bid on some MATOC and SATOC contracts on top of the sole source contracts that the company was already working on. 

Whitlock highly recommends these to 8a companies as these contracts last for over five years and even if you graduate from the 8a program, you can still keep these contracts and continue bidding on it. 

“I suggest that, you know, everybody, especially 8as, learn how to bid these contracts… and once you learn how to do them and get involved into them, you see that it’s a great thing.”

Apart from that, the company also leveraged the partnerships that they have with some of the largest corporations, including AECOM.

They continued bidding and winning on different million dollar worth of contracts until they had tapped out on their bonding and Whitlock decided to sell the company to a much larger firm in 2015. 

WORKING FOR THE MIAMI NATIONS

After selling the company and retiring, Whitlock decided to work again and in this instance, as the Managing Director of the 8a tribally-owned company, Miami Nations Enterprises. 

When he came in, Miami Nations wasn’t even formed yet, so there are things that they should do in order to keep the business afloat. 

In this case, Whitlock brought not just sole source work, but also IDIQ contracts because he knew that going after sole source contracts is not enough to sustain the whole company. 

“You need these IDIQ contracts. I think those are the easiest way to grow and it limits your competition.”

Currently, the company is involved in a handful of million dollar contracts with different teaming partners in order to get more past performance bonding for the company. 

ADVICE FOR SMALL BUSINESSES

1. Offer value. 

Consider that Miami Nations has a handful of teaming partners and these companies offer value in the contracts that they’re going after. 

Not because you’re an 8a or a tribally-owned company, someone will already give you a contract opportunity. This market doesn’t work that way. 

So, what are you bringing to the table? 

“I don’t give people business. I team and we work together on getting business or I’m out there getting business myself.”

2. Team with other companies.

Aside from being able to go after million dollar worth of contracts with a teaming partner, this could also help you in getting your past performance. 

Consider that when you team with someone, even if you only provided twenty thousand worth of work and the whole work is worth a million, you can still say that you did a million dollar job and you can also use that in your future projects. 

“I can’t stress how much past performance does for you. If you’re out there and you don’t have any past performance, if you team with somebody, you get that past performance for that… So, that’s pretty nice.”

3. Take advantage of the SBA. 

The Small Business Administration (SBA) is a helpful organization, but you need to use their services to your advantage. 

You should not just wait for them to do the work because if you think that the SBA is just going to give you a sole source project, you’re going to be sitting at home with no money on hand. 

Rather, you should prepare everything needed for them to do their job. 

“I like all the SBA people that I work with. They do a very good job, but you’ve got to help direct them to do the job for you.”

RESOURCES

If you want to learn more on how Cecil Whitlock bought an 8a company, then be sure to click the resources below.

You can also visit the GovCon Giant website or the new GovCon Edu where you learn everything about government contracting!

Did you know that you can PURCHASE an 8a company? with Cecil and Eric

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZgQ1o3t_f0&t=343s

Andy Wells: From $1,400 to $90M Company!

Posted on by Eric Coffie

Achieve success like Andy Wells III and learn how he transformed his business from $1,400 to $90M!

BACKGROUND

Andy Wells III is the President and CEO of Wells Technology, a one-stop shop company providing different machineries and equipment to both government and commercial clients.

He founded the company in 1994 with a mere $1,400 investment to manufacture industrial tools and fasteners. 

Over the years, the company then achieved the million dollar annual revenue mark and was certified as an 8a, HUBZone, Small Disadvantaged Business, and a Minority Business Enterprise. 

But it was due to their SBA-approved Mentor-Protege agreement with Fastenal Company when Wells was able to transform his business. 

As of the time of this interview, the company’s revenue was $90 million and is still moving upward.

BUILDING WELLS TECHNOLOGY

With the goal of providing jobs to Native Americans like him, Andy Wells decided to quit his job as a university teacher and started Wells Technology. 

“Of course, it’s like driving at night with your headlights. You don’t see real far, you just see a little haze. I thought I might create two or three jobs. So, we started manufacturing with a machine.”

After trying on different projects for six months, Wells then came across to an air-powered scissor. They manufactured 50-100 at a time and he began selling it on the back of his car across the United States. With this little success, they began to hire more people.

GETTING A MENTOR

However, when they seemed to be not going beyond their revenue, Wells went to their occasional buyer, Fastenal, and asked them to be their mentor. 

With this, they started helping them with their marketing efforts to grow their business by bringing them to trade shows and other events across the country.

“So many small entrepreneurs will start a business with a service or manufacturing something. And they don’t realize how difficult marketing is. So they go into it, not allowing enough time or labor or capital money to fund a real good marketing effort. And we found out then that the marketing expense is just as much as same work and expense as the manufacturing part.”

STRUGGLES AND SUCCESS

Throughout the years, Wells faced different challenges in dealing with both the business and her family.

He wasn’t able to give more time to his youngest son and now, his wife with cancer needed both emotional and physical aid. Meanwhile, he still needs to stir the ship correctly for his employees. 

“That’s one of the things when you are a small business, you drive in to your parking lot in the morning and you see all these cars of your employees. Them and their families depend on you.”

However, with all of this, Wells continued to be optimistic because these people believed in him and without them, Wells Technology won’t be successful as it is today. 

“I get an award… but to tell you the truth, there are hundreds of people that are making it happen behind the scenes. And these are the positions that are truly important.”

BUILDING SOMETHING FOR THE COMMUNITY

Andy Wells is recognized by former US President Barack Obama for providing jobs and other opportunities to his community.

“There comes a time when I can say that, ‘That’s Okay,’ to get that experience and all but there comes a time in our life when we need to come back to our communities and give back to our communities. We can’t just be leaving because it’s like a brain drain or a success drain in our communities when we have our best and brightest leaving all the time.”

Apart from that, Wells also teaches character and the value of trust, honesty, respect, and integrity for these people who want to work with him. 

Although Wells gathered bigger awards as a business owner, the greatest reward that he achieved was being able to see these people get their paycheck and go home to their families.

“We invest the profits back in our communities. And you know, so we can  help others, because we have that connection. And it allows our people to be part of the American dream that way.”

ADVICE FOR SMALL BUSINESSES

1. Be the first to hand a card.

You need to network yourself by going to different events. But in order to leave a mark, you should be the first person to hand your card and turn that simple conversation to a lasting relationship.

“You remember the first and the last person that asked you for something.”

2. Do what you said you’re gonna do. 

You need to take account of your words in order to earn other people’s trust and respect.

If you said you’re gonna meet them at a certain time, be there 5 minutes early. Don’t be late. 

“Do what you say you’re gonna do. And earn their respect. And it takes a while…. Some of them like Lockheed Martin, I worked with them for 10 years before I got my first business opportunity. It takes a while, they got to see you, they got to begin to trust you. You know, know you and kinda see the direction you’re heading. See if there’s a fit between you and them.”

3. Find people who have the same interests as you. 

Not all your friends before will understand your current interests, so you need to find others who are also interested in what you do. 

“The friends I had before are more into education and teaching. So they didn’t have any interest in entreprenuring, while I was excited about helping them know it. They didn’t have any interest at all; they wanted to change the subject. So I had to find new friends who were also in business of some sort. And they certainly were a good help.”

4. Be careful with working with family members.

When you have your family members working with you, you need to make sure that they don’t abuse their power or do anything that would cause disagreement over at family dinner. 

As much as possible, you need to separate your problems at home and in the office.

“For example I brought my son in, he’s the Vice President now and it would be really easy for him to abuse his authority… and money and personal things. But he knows because I’m with him almost every day, you got to be very responsible. And I tell him, ‘It’s like walking on a fence, you can fall off real easy.’ A little temptation to lean one way or the other you can fall off the fence.”

5. Surround yourself with believers.

We always have times that we think of ourselves as failures and during these times, we need someone to remind us of our strengths and capabilities. 

“I think my wife has always believed in me. Everybody needs to have somebody, you know a friend, a leader or somebody who believes in you, cause there’s time when you begin to sometimes doubt yourself.”

6. Don’t be afraid to ask for help.

There are a lot of people who will break your trust but there are also a handful of good people who will help you whenever you need it. You just have to find them.

“Sometimes, you feel alone but there’s a lot of people out there who’ll help you. You never have to be lonely and don’t be afraid to ask for help.”

7. Keep going. 

It took Andy Wells six months to come up with something that will help grow his business. So, experiment with things and strategies, but never give up.  

“When I asked these people, ‘What are your goals?’ They say, ‘I just want to get through today.’ And unfortunately, sometimes, they self-medicate themselves in alcohol or drugs just to get through the day. And I always tell them, ‘There’s always a future for you.’ And if you want to be a successful person, we got to… develop it.” 

8. Help others.

Like Andy Wells, you should be able to help others because no matter how many awards you get, there’s no greater reward than seeing someone achieve success through your help. 

“Always do it in a sense of trying to help other people, not just yourself. Your mission should be to help other people, through your product or your service or sometimes just generosity.”

RESOURCES

If you want to learn more on how Andy Wells III transformed his business from $1,400 to $90M, then be sure to click the resources below. You can also visit the GovCon Giant website or the new GovCon Edu where you learn everything about government contracting!

037: From $1,400 to $90M Eric interviews Andy Wells, Wells Technology

https://govcongiants1.wpengine.com/podcast/037-2/

From $1,400 to $90M!! Stands for more than money!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JvunRe0nycI

Teresa Jacobsson: Alaskan Woman Helping ANCs and Tribal Entities Succeed!

Posted on by Eric Coffie

An Alaskan woman herself, Teresa Jacobsson shares her story in building her own firm and what drives her to help other Alaskan-Native Corporations (ANCs) and tribal entities succeed!

BACKGROUND

Teresa Jacobsson held different positions for several ANCs and tribal entities for over 15 years before founding JW Industries Group, an 8a, Alaskan-Native, and woman-owned management consulting firm.

Through this company, she provides professional and industrial services including contract management, SBA 8a application and development, and construction management among others. 

Apart from this, Jacobsson also founded these non-profit organizations: the Alaska Tribal Administrators Association, the Alaska Women’s Leadership Forum, and the Jacobsson Foundation. 

She also served as a director of The Eva Foundation and volunteered to mentor women in business and those recovering from trauma. 

In 2017, Jacobsson was recognized as the Women Entrepreneurs of Alaska Mentor of the Year.

JW INDUSTRIES GROUP

Even before building her own company, Jacobsson is already fascinated with the structure of businesses.

“I love the structure of business. I love to see the growth. I like when people can share a product or a service and it’s needed and it’s well received. I think that that in itself is an art form.”

Then, instead of renewing her contract with an ANC, she built JW Industries Group in 2011, and then approached the 8a program in their second year. 

Her business continued to grow and they were able to help more ANCs and tribal entities.

Still, even with this success, Jacobsson wants to further improve their capabilities. In fact, she’s looking for a mentor who will help them achieve this.

“I told one of my employees the other day, I said, ‘You know, we have got to constantly be evolving and growing and needing demands.’ And especially right now, all the things that are going on, how do we make, remain a viable company? You know, how do we have to adapt? What new technologies do we have to, you know, embrace?”

ALASKA TRIBAL ADMINISTRATORS ASSOCIATION

Jacobsson built this organization to help over 200 tribal administrators in Alaska with their roles as the head of their tribes.

This is because, in most cases, they are tasked to be the first responders on matters including federal funding sources, reporting, public safety, and others. 

“My belief is if we have a supported tribal, we have a healthy and supportive tribe, which means we have a healthy and supported community, which means we have a healthy and supported Alaska.”

ALASKA WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP FORUM

During any event and conferences that Jacobsson went, there’s always a group of women who would get together and start a little impromptu sessions during breaks.

Realizing the reason behind it, she decided to do it for women in Alaska in order for them to have a group of people who can help them with their journey.

“This isn’t a nonprofit for women leaders, it’s a nonprofit for all women because all women lead, whether you’re going to school, whether you’re running a home, whether you’re a federal contractor, while women lead and women should be supported that way.”

ADVICE FOR SMALL BUSINESSES

1. It’s about relationship-building.

Looking for opportunities is sometimes daunting but when you have a good relationship with other business owners, they will be happy to ask you to work with them. 

“You know what I tell my folks who are clients, who are here, who are new to it, is, you know, it really is about relationships. It’s about who you can work with, that joint venture partnership where you can build that experience and put it on your own list of past performance.”

2. Keep your eyes on the prize.

Over the course of years, Jacobson did everything to gain success. She reached out to others, sent her capability statements, and built relationships.

Although most of the time, she didn’t hear anything from these people, she didn’t give up. She just continued doing it until the right people came in. 

“Don’t give up. Keep, you know, keep your eyes on the prize. Where (do) you want to be? Visualize that. If you can hold it in your head, you can hold it in your— If you can see it in your head, you can hold it in your hand.”

3. Be a good steward of your time.

Don’t let everything be only about your business, you also need to keep account of your time on other matters, especially your family and your health. 

In order to do this, take note of your schedule and inform your employees and your clients regarding it. 

“I’m a really good steward of my own time. And I make sure that I set those boundaries with clients right off the bat, because when I first started my company, I’d be getting texts at 11 o’clock at night, ‘Hey, the board meeting is still going. You need to call in,’ and things like that. And I learned, you know, I learned that it’s better for us and it’s better for the client that we respect one another’s boundaries.”

4. Hire slowly, fire quickly.

When you bring people on board, you need to assess if they really believe in your mission because if they do, you have a community and a family helping you achieve your goals. 

“Just because they look good on paper, doesn’t mean that they’re necessarily a good fit and believe in what you’re doing.”

5. Do your homework in looking for a mentor.

You need to do your own research in order to ensure that your mentor wasn’t previously disbarred or is a problematic one. 

Also, they should be responsive and will provide you a mentor-mentee relationship, not just to win contracts.

“You’re worth it. You’re worth having a good mentor. You’re worth being a good mentor. And you know, especially for the, you know, the individuals who own an 8a company like I do. You know, we have to have that mindset. We’re worthy of good mentorship.:

6. Appreciate the small things.

Sometimes, you need to appreciate the little things like getting a gift card and buying a butter dish, instead of just getting into the ebb and flow of things. 

“You know, all that hard work really, what’s it about? It really is about moments like this, you know, where you appreciate small things.”

7. Remember why you formed your company.

When you have those days where you don’t like getting up, remember why you started your company. Your work may be so difficult, but how do you make it joyous?

If you have to put your mission and your vision statement somewhere on your wall, then do it. Just make sure that in everything you do, you remember the excitement that you felt when you first created your business. 

“I had to remind myself, ‘Remember, girl, you formed this company. Not anybody else start your own company.’ They said, it’d be fun, they said. You started this and you started it because you felt that there was a need out there. I want you to remember that and remove that energy of franticness and, ‘Oh my God, I need a contract.’ And, you know, there has to be joy in what you’re doing. Always remember why you formed it.”

RESOURCES

If you want to learn more on how Teresa Jacobsson built her own firm and what drives her to help other ANCs and tribal entities succeed, then be sure to click the resources below. You can also visit the GovCon Giant website or the new GovCon Edu where you learn everything about government contracting!

073: Teresa Jacobsson – Alaskan Women driven with a purpose to help Alaska Native Corporations and Tribes succeed

https://govcongiants1.wpengine.com/podcast/073/

Alaskan Women driven with a purpose to help Alaska Native Corporations and Tribes succeed

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=74RsdRHAxr4