AI has officially made its way into government contracting workflows, and for small businesses that creates both opportunity and risk. The opportunity is obvious: tools can move faster than people on certain tasks. The risk is easier to miss. Government contracting is not an industry where “mostly right” is good enough. One plausible-sounding mistake in […]
If you’ve ever Googled “how to get government contracts” or “is government contracting worth it”, you’re not alone. Most small business owners hit the same point: you’re doing fine in the commercial world, but you keep hearing that the government buys everything… and you start wondering if you’re leaving money on the table. Here’s the […]
If your company is “DHS-curious,” FY2025 is a good reminder that the Department of Homeland Security isn’t one monolithic buyer. It’s a federation of mission-driven components, each with its own buying habits, contract vehicles, and recurring requirements. Your advantage as a small business is that DHS has to buy fast, buy often, and buy specialized […]
Small businesses don’t lose in government contracting only because they lack capability. They often lose because they burn limited time and proposal dollars on the wrong opportunities. Bids that were never a strong fit, were structurally hard to win, or carried enough hidden risk to outweigh the upside. A disciplined Go/No-Go process is one of […]
If you’ve held a GSA Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) for a while, you already know the “paperwork side” of the program is real. Sales reporting, keeping your pricelist current, modifications, mass mods, and option renewals all come with the territory. One important nuance, though: quarterly sales reporting still applies under the traditional (aggregate) model, but […]
A lot of small businesses treat SAM.gov like a compliance box: register, keep it active, renew annually, move on. And yes, an active registration is non-negotiable if a company wants to receive federal awards. SAM is the official system where entities register to do business with the federal government. But here’s the problem: compliance and […]
The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026 (2026 NDAA) isn’t just another annual budget bill. For government contractors, especially small and mid-sized firms, it represents a significant shift in acquisition policy that reduces longstanding compliance hurdles and opens up the defense marketplace in meaningful ways. Among the most consequential changes are increases to […]
If your pipeline felt sluggish during the continuing resolution (CR) period, you weren’t imagining it. A CR doesn’t just slow down “new” work. It changes how agencies are legally allowed to execute work. Now FY26 is entering a different phase. OMB has begun issuing apportionments, and that matters because apportionments are one of the clearest […]
If you’re in the SBA’s 8(a) Business Development Program (or planning to apply), you’ve probably seen the headlines: the SBA suspended over 1000 8(a) firms (1,091 total) from the program in late January. That number is big enough to get anyone’s attention, especially when the 8(a) Program is often a cornerstone of a small business’s […]
If you’re a small business owner looking to break into the $680+ billion federal contracting marketplace, understanding NAICS codes isn’t just helpful—it’s absolutely essential. The North American Industry Classification System serves as the backbone of government procurement, determining everything from which contract opportunities you’re eligible to pursue to whether your business qualifies as “small” under […]