Govcon Giants

In this episode, we have Lori Smith, the CEO of Acu-Elligent LLC. Lori shares her expertise in government contracting, to educate on how you can efficiently and effectively do business with the government. Her organization, Acu-Elligent, aims to dissolve the myth surrounding government contracting and help people navigate the contracting process with ease. Lori talks about her experience in federa...

In today's episode, we discuss the changes in the law related to veteran-owned small businesses. The removal of the requirement of the business to demonstrate good character in order to receive SDVOSB service-disabled veteran owner certification was highlighted. Now, you could be a veteran on a small business and not even be in good character. The direct ownership qualification requires veterans t...

In today's episode, we have an interesting conversation about the Veteran Affairs program that helps veterans start businesses. Renona Brown shared her experience with the VA and what she learned about the program, such as how they will pay for preliminary things like LLC and incorporation fees, website, professional photo, insurance for up to one year, and anything else needed to get ready for th...

In this episode, I answer questions from listeners on a variety of topics related to government contracting, including using local Apex accelerators, partnering with construction companies, choosing between large firms or small businesses, and the use of 1099 workers versus payroll workers. I also provides advice on responding to source of sought letters and how to build out pricing for bids. If y...

In this episode, we navigate through the Unison Marketplace and look at various opportunities that can help small businesses bid and respond to contracts from the government. We take a deep dive into one particular opportunity for an electric forklift and discuss how it is easy to navigate through the marketplace even for those who are new to it. We also discuss how Unison Marketplace is an excell...

In this episode of GovCon Giants, I sit down with Devoski Boyd, a 27-year-old trailblazer who's rewriting the rules for young entrepreneurs in the federal contracting space. Starting as a college pressure washing business owner, Devoski now heads Boyd Construction Group, a thriving government contracting business. He's landed long-term federal contracts, including a game-changing waste management...

In today's episode, we'll be discussing how to find and sell valuable information to potential clients. You might be surprised to learn that you have information that can be sold, particularly because businesses are busy trying to run their operations and don't have time to do the research themselves. By doing research on a company's buyer's list, types of contracts, and government buyers, you can...

In this episode, we have Manish Gorawala who talked about his background in entrepreneurship and his interest in technology and finance. He shared that he grew up in India, where his father was an entrepreneur, where he learned a lot about business by joining his father's meetings and conversations with friends. He also talked about his mantra of doing more with less resources and finding creative...

In today's episode, we discuss the process of working with FEMA in the aftermath of a disaster and give you some advice for small businesses seeking government contracts. It is important to note that FEMA has to plan for disasters in advance and cannot wait until after a disaster to identify contractors and vendors. With that, I encourage businesses to look for bid opportunities with FEMA before a...

In this conversation, we talk about 'price to win'. A specialty that is usually outsourced to find out the range of prices the government is willing to pay for a particular procurement. We recommend hiring an independent party to conduct a price to win assessment as it is a conflict of interest for them to do so. Additionally, we discuss the services for cost accounting and government contracting...

In this episode, we'll be discussing two approaches to achieving financial success. The first approach involves reaching a goal of making $200,000-$400,000 a year through organic growth, which may take several years to achieve. The second approach, which I teach my clients, is the consultant approach. This approach involves working with clients who are already making $20 million a year in business...

In this episode, we hear from our guest who started a heating oil delivery business despite the challenges of the market in 2007. He shares how he bought a used oil truck, paid for it with a combination of personal savings and an SBA loan, and started as a C.O.D company to get in the game. This episode, my guest highlights how word of mouth spread and how his connections to the blue-collar communi...

In this episode of the GovCon Giants Podcast, we have Astrelain Josue, the managing partner of Astral Appraisal Management, to discuss his inspiring journey from running a traditional real estate appraisal business to becoming a powerhouse in the federal contracting world. Astrelain shares how he secured 15 federal contracts with the USDA Rural Housing Division and his involvement in a billion-dol...

In this podcast, we talk about life lessons and success in business. We share the things and strategies that we do, for example, The "stick and stay," which means staying in the same place but getting increased opportunities. In real life situation, it is starting with a two-day training class and then moving up to a two-year contract, a three-year contract, a five-year contract, and other contrac...

In this podcast episode, we talk about when shoud small businesses need to start doing cost accounting. Small businesses engaged with the federal government, either as a subcontractor or a prime, should understand how to do cost accounting or have someone do it for them so they can have a good conversation with contracting officers and others about their real costs. They should also have a good es...

In this episode, we discuss the importance of having knowledge of federal agency needs and market demands when selling to the government. First off, you need to know how the government was organized, the location of military installations, and which markets to satisfy. We also stress the importance of knowing what products or services to sell and how to deliver them. My guest shares her internatio...

In this podcast episode, our guest speaker, Lynn from Avanti Corporation, describes her company's work providing science and engineering studies for federal regulatory agencies. The company helps regulators, such as the EPA, to develop rules and regulations in an environmentally responsible way. Lynn mentions that the company's main competitors are large firms like TetraTech, Aecom, and HDR. She a...

In this episode, we talk about the different business opportunities available on Sam.gov. I discuss opportunities related to facility support, maintenance, repair, flooring services, aircraft fire trainer, veterinary consultant services, network infrastructure support systems, engineering and technical assistance, roof building repair, restoration of real property, interpreter services, real estat...

In this episode, we talk about the difference between pre-solicitation and source sought. Source sought is the government's market research phase to determine if they should make the requirement a small business or one of the socioeconomic categories. At this stage, the government can determine if they should negotiate directly with small businesses or make it a veteran-owned set-aside program. Pr...

In this episode of the GovCon Giants Podcast, we welcome a visionary entrepreneur Delali Dzirasa, founder and CEO of Fearless, a company that creates software designed to make meaningful social impact. Delali shares his inspiring journey of building Fearless from a small two-person operation into a nationally recognized leader in government technology solutions. The discussion dives into the compa...

Today, we're diving into a mind-blowing conversation with Kevie Hendricks, a 20-year veteran in the government contracting world and founder of National Materials Supply Company. Known as the DLA Guru , Kevie has secured thousands of contracts for both federal and commercial customers. He'll reveal how his journey from working at Anheuser Busch and Boeing on multimillion-dollar foreign military sa...

In today's episode, we reconnect with a guest who left a lasting impression back in 2019 — Mr. Jon Tellier, founder and president of JetCo Solutions, a trailblazer in the federal contracting space. If you've been with us for a while, you'll remember Jon's incredible story of building JetCo Solutions from scratch. With nothing more than a small nest egg, a leap of faith, and a lot of grit, he and h...

The Department of Veterans Affairs has stopped accepting applications for the certification or re-verification of veteran-owned small businesses, effective October 24, 2022. Starting on January 1, 2023, the Small Business Administration (SBA) will take over all verification processes. Firms that are already verified do not need to take any action except for Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Bus...

In this episode, we discuss certifications and programs that can be valuable for minority-owned businesses. Kevin joins us as shares how he was able to win a contract with Wells Fargo by leveraging his NMSDC certification. National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC) certifies minority-owned businesses, while Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) is a certification issued by a different org...

In this episode of the GovCon Giants podcast, I'm bringing back a true powerhouse in the world of government contracting — Michelle Burnett, Executive Director of the HubZone Contractors National Council and President of HubZone Council, Inc. If you've ever wondered why billions in HubZone contracts go unclaimed or how to position your business for success, this episode is for you.   Michelle brea...