Georgia Tech Procurement Assistance Center

Senator calls on agencies to streamline programs for entrepreneurs

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One lawmaker wants agencies to reexamine their efforts to support entrepreneurs after a watchdog group determined more could be done to streamline many often inefficient and redundant programs to assist small businesses.

On Nov. 17th, Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., sent letters to Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and Small Business Administration leader Linda McMahon requesting analyses of their agency’s entrepreneur assistance initiatives and information on how they measure the effectiveness of the programs.

The Government Accountability Office reported in 2012 that each of the 52 entrepreneur support programs at Commerce, SBA and other agencies overlapped with at least one other program in the type of assistance they offer or the type of entrepreneur they serve. The fragmented system was often difficult for business owners to navigate, and GAO advised agencies to collaborate to streamline the process and also create a system to monitor the performance of individual programs.

Keep reading this article at: http://www.govexec.com/management/2017/11/senator-calls-agencies-streamline-programs-entrepreneurs/142682

Business owner says soliciting government business worth the hassle

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[Note: This article was written by Michelle Shoultz, president of Florida-based Frazier Engineering.]

For more than 20 years, Frazier Engineering had a strong commercial and municipal/county government customer base that comfortably sustained our small business.

But as the economy changed, we knew we had to change.

We decided to pursue unique certifications that would enable us to compete for federal work in a smaller competitive pool certifications such as 8(a), Disadvantaged Business Enterprise/DBE and Minority Business Enterprise/MBE).

Through the Small Business Administration 8(a) program, we were given opportunities that we would not have had before. However, if we did not already have the knowledge and manpower to support the requirements of those opportunities, our certification would only have been as good as the paper it was printed on. Our success to date has been the result of a solid team, being financially and technically sound, having a strong work history, and being actively responsive.

I’d like to share some lessons we’ve learned over time.

As a small-to-midsize, growing business leader, I would definitely recommend the time and effort involved in pursuing government contracts.

Keep reading this article at: http://www.floridatoday.com/story/money/business/2014/04/01/business-money-edge-chamber/7146529/ 

 

House committee approves bills to increase agencies’ small biz goals and more

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The House Small Business Committee has marked up and approved a six-pack of contracting reform bills, including legislation that would raise the current agency goals for steering work to small businesses.

The package approved Wednesday would particularly affect the construction industry, women, and disabled veterans. It includes a plan to raise agencies’ small-business prime contracting goal from 23 percent to 25 percent and establish a 40 percent goal for small-business subcontractors.

“Greater small business involvement in federal contracting benefits companies and taxpayers alike,” said panel Chairman Sam Graves, R-Mo., who sponsored the bill outlining the new contracting goals. “Small firms are innovative, and increased competition often leads to savings for the taxpayers.”

A second Grave bill would “improve transparency and accountability” by discouraging bundling of contracts to give an advantage to large companies over small businesses. Bills sponsored by Rep. Richard Hanna, R-N.Y., would restrict the government’s use of reverse auctions in awarding construction contracts and increase construction companies’ access to surety bonds for use in federal procurement work.

Keep reading this article at: http://www.govexec.com/contracting/2014/03/committee-approves-bill-increase-agencies-small-biz-contracting-goals/80023 

Federal programs to aid entrepreneurs overlap

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Agency efforts to support private entrepreneurs are ineffectual and fragmented, according to Government Accountability Office research on 52 programs in such departments as Agriculture, Commerce and Housing and Urban Development.

In a paper dated Aug. 23, auditors identified overlap among initiatives to offer grants, loans and technical training to businesses and found that too few agencies track the assistance they provide, resulting in a failure of 19 programs to meet performance goals.

The report said Agriculture and the Small Business Administration, for instance, “entered into a formal agreement in 2010 to coordinate their efforts to support businesses in rural areas; however, the agencies’ programs that can support startup businesses — such as USDA’s Rural Business Enterprise Grant program and SBA’s Small Business Development Centers — have yet to determine roles and responsibilities, find ways to leverage each other’s resources, or establish compatible policies and procedures.”

Keep reading this article at: http://www.govexec.com/contracting/2012/08/federal-programs-aid-entrepreneurs-overlap/57677/

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