Government contracting is how the federal government enters into a contract with a large or small business. Once these businesses successfully bid on any contract opportunities, they are called government contractors or vendors.
Federal government contract opportunities come with statutory law, restrictions, regulations, and federal claims because public funds are used to pay for them. While private businesses are applicable to create the proposal and terms of agreements, the government strictly follows their law for these resources contain sensitive information.
Do you feel lost about the government contracting industry? Make sure you read along to get a great answer to the top five questions about government contracting!
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What is a US government contractor?
United States Government allot billions of dollars every fiscal year to successfully purchase products or services from any business. Government contractors become employed by government agencies by winning contract opportunities out for bid. Government contractors can win contract opportunities by submitting with the lowest cost bid.
Like the United States Government, federal contracting vendors come in different industries, classifications, and sizes. They are composed of small businesses, minority-owned businesses, service-disabled veteran-owned businesses, small businesses under the Historically Underutilized Business Zones, women-owned small businesses, and more.
Products, services, and technology assistance are the federal government’s common contracts with the United States Government contractors. However, the top contractors working with the federal government usually provide Military services for the Department of Defense, Army, Navy, and Homeland Security.
How do you get into government contracting?
Register your business
Getting into the industry takes a lot of processes. The following are the fundamental processes and requirements that your business will need to be qualified on government contracting:
System for Award Management (SAM)
SAM is an official government organization that stores a federal contracting database. You must register on SAM for your business to be identified as a government contractor by the federal agencies.
DUNS Number
DUNS Number is a unique code used to identify businesses instantly. It is also used for monitoring companies’ financial information and transactions worldwide. This ensures that you do not have any unauthorized activities that may lead to criminal prosecution.
Taxpayer Identification Number
A North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code is always required for businesses for the federal government to collect, analyze, and publish statistical data of the United States government business economy.
Employee Identification Numbers
Many small business owners use their Social Security Number (SSN) when starting a business. However, federal agencies require Employee Identification Numbers whether you have a large or small business.
Commercial And Government Entity
CAGE code is a unique five-character given to your business to represent your company’s physical address for the General Services Administration’s mailings, payments, and administrative records. CAGE code is the replacement to the Federal Supply Code for Manufacturers (FSCM) and the National Supply Code for Manufacturer (NSCM)
How do you get a government contract?
The United States government contracts are posted on different gov websites that you should be part of. You may also use the following website as a resource to take advantage as your prepare your bid.
SAM.gov
As mentioned above, the System for Award Management is an official government organization that stores a contracting opportunities database. You can use the gov site as one of your resources to analyze contract opportunities, previously awarded contracts, and performance evaluations, which can benefit you from preparing your proposals.
SubNet
Another official government organization called the Small Business Administration also provides a searchable database, highlighting only the enterprises with large government contracts and subcontracting possibilities. Small Business Administration Subcontracting Network or SubNet is a great place to start if you want to gain experience and learn more about how federal agencies work.
General Services Administration (GSA)
The General Services Administration (GSA) is helping federal agencies to connect with a procuring company. This organization is also known as the Federal Supply Schedule and Multiple Award Schedule (MAS), where long-term products and services are offered. “Getting into the GSA Schedules” is a common phrase in the federal marketplace referring to obtaining contract opportunities with the GSA.
What is SAM in government contracting?
SAM or System for Award Management is more than just an official government organization that handles contracting databases. With the SAM and its website, you can do the following:
A. File a record to do business with the United States Government.
B. Check the status of your registration, update it, or renew it.
C. Lookup for government contracts records.
D. Access publicly available award information using the data extracts and user accounts in the system’s database.
Please note that the registration for SAM is free of charge, and they offer assistance to any businesses in need. However, since the SAM is a federal public database, you may receive online marketing campaigns unexpectedly. Still, you do not need to be alarmed because all your sensitive information is not broadcast to the public.
What is required to bid on government contracts?
Place Your Bid
When you have completed all the necessary processes mentioned above this read, you can then place your bid proposal for the contract opportunities. But, before entirely sending any proposal, make sure that you do the following:
- Scrutinize each contract since federal agencies firmly comply with its laws and regulations. Your participation in the competition could be revoked if you make a single mistake.
- To avoid legal implications, make sure you study all of the contract’s terms and conditions. The Federal Acquisition Regulation is the source of the notion for contract conditions, always stated in the agreement.
- Avoid annoyingly following up because contracting officers may take thirty to one hundred twenty days to review a bid proposal successfully.
If you face a hard time preparing for government contracts, you can employ government procurement consulting services to help you bid. But be reminded that their consulting fees may affect your profit.
Consider subcontracting
If you think working with consulting services will not work for you, you may want to consider subcontracting. As a subcontractor, you will be working with a larger company or prime contractor awarded a contract.
Subcontracting will not hinder your growth in the industry. Hence, this will serve as your stepping stone that can sharpen your skills and understanding of the industry as you prepare for applying for a prime contract in the future.
