“SMALLTOFEDS” By Ken Larson “In dealing with government officials the small business owner must be aware of regulations regarding procurement integrity. This body of law has come into being through trial and error in dealing with conflict of interest and undue influence by industry on government officials and vice versa.” _______________________________________________________________________________ “ FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION 3.104 The section of the Federal Acquisiti

1. It is easy to become established in the federal marketplace by founding a start up in small business contracting to the federal government Very few do so. The principle reason for this is lack of past performance records either commercially or as a registered government contractor.  Past performance is a major factor in awarding government contracts: The Small Business Federal Government Contracting Past Performance Challenge Small enterprises who succeed in federal govern

“WASHINGTON TECHNOLOGY” By Robert Smith, Former Director, Navy SBIR/STTR Programs “ A proposed change to the SBIR program would deprive the military of some of its best problem-solvers. Put simply, punishing multiple award winners for their successful track record would be disastrous for our efforts to develop and field new technologies as we are struggling to outpace our adversaries .” ________________________________________________________________________________ “One of t

“SMALLTOFEDS” By Ken Larson “Focused and direct, your CAPE must be informative, concise and a snapshot of the very best you can offer.” ________________________________________________________________________________ “Federal government contracting is all about relationship development.  Marketing to influential agency personnel, industry partners, prospective team members, employees, associate contractors and others who can help you requires a hard hitting synopsis of what

The defense industry in America has utilized the threat of war and self-fulfilling prophesies to promote engagements by our country in several countries in the last 65 years. From Vietnam to the Balkans, from Iraq to Afghanistan, from Ukraine to Gaza and now Venezuela, many of the largest defense companies have paid more in lobbying costs each year than they pay in taxes. _________________________________________________________________________________ There have been two maj

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By Rieva Lesonsky, CEO Grow Biz Media “Supporting women entrepreneurs has long been a mission of mine, so I’m always searching for organizations that share my passion. In alphabetical order, here are 26 of my favorite online resources for women entrepreneurs. Some have membership fees, but even without joining, you can get a lot of information from their blogs and newsletters. https://rosecoveredglasses.wordpress.com/2025/12/27/25-essential-sites-for-veteran-women-owned-busin

“SMALLTOFEDS” By Ken Larson “ Values-Based’ marketing does not relate to a client’s perception of your product or service value.  Rather, it relates to your understanding of the client’s personal values and using that knowledge to motivate the client to buy. It occurs when you become uniquely aware of what motivates specific personnel internal to a customer company, a buyer or a prospective teaming partner to make favorable decisions regarding your product or services.”...

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TASK AND PURPOSE By Nicholas Slayton “ Auditors had to go through the department’s roughly $4.7 trillion in assets, and another $4.7 trillion in liabilities. The  Fiscal Year 2025 Financial Agency Report  found 26 material weaknesses and two “significant deficiencies in the department’s controls for financial reporting. The report was released a day after President Donald Trump  signed  the massive 2026 National Defense Authorization, a record $901 billion in spending for the

“SMALLTOFEDS” By Ken Larson “Service contracting to the federal government is a natural venue for small business. It does not require a product with a niche market or capital intensive manufacturing facilities.” _________________________________________________________________________________ “Service contracting does require skilled management and labor resources capable of performing a scope of work for which the government has identified a need and for which outsourcing to

CLICK IMAGE TO ENLARGE “BREAKING DEFENSE” By Valerie Insinna “While all eyes were on the efforts to avert a government shutdown at the end of September, a lesser known tool used by the Pentagon to support small companies was left fighting for its own life: the Small Business Innovation Research program.” _______________________________________________________________________________ “Funding for  SBIR   lapsed, and while it could be restored, lawmakers are at a hard impasse a

DEFENSE OPINION – By Thomas J. Wilson, III and Christopher R. Fee “Those in command and those actually pulling the triggers are well advised that their  actions may not be soon forgotten  and that the “I was just following orders” defense was rebuffed in  Nuremberg  and at the  My Lai trials  of the Vietnam War era. ______________________________________________________________________________ When Adm. Alvin Holsey relinquished his command Dec. 12, it was amid  growing criti

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“MILITARY DOT COM” By  Blake Stilwel “ Navy Veteran, Author and JMARK CEO Thomas H. Douglas – “You must put a real system in place to maximize the outcomes for everyone involved. When alignment occurs between the customers of a business, the team within the business and the business leaders or owners, awesome things occur . “ _________________________________________________________________________________ “There’s a military axiom that non-commissioned officers are the back

“SMALLTOFEDS” By Ken Larson “A conversation with an astute, anonymous interviewer for those who may be confused at times with regard to some of the nuances between fixed price and cost plus federal government contracting.” ______________________________________________________________________________ “Anonymous: Why are cost-plus-fee government contracts less profitable for defense companies than fixed cost contracts? KEN They are extremely low risk because the contractor is

WASHINGTON TECHNOLOGY By Nick Wakeman “Certain small business sectors such as veteran-owned firms are expected to benefit from the government’s new posture, but others such as 8(a) and other socio-economic categories will suffer because of the rollback of policies and the dismantling of small business offices at many agencies.” _________________________________________________________________________________ “Few segments of the federal market have faced the amount of disrup

“SMALLTOFEDS”By Ken Larson “ The challenges and difficulties for the small business in government contracting are not so much in the areas of barriers as they are in lack of knowledge (which I concede is a form of barrier but one that can be dealt with). Successful Traits in Government Contracting Exclusivity in teaming is one of the most practical ways to go on any given large scale program. Team early and exclusively then give it your all and be a winner. Your reputation i

“WASHINGTON TECHNOLOGY” By Nick Wakeman “Jeff Koses [GSA’s Senior Procurement Executive] says cultural changes will determine the ultimate success of acquisition reform, not just regulatory ones.  We need industry at the table to engage in every aspect of the things that are changing.” ________________________________________________________________________________ “Despite a delay during the government shutdown, the General Services Administration is moving full steam ahead

“SMALLTOFEDS” By Ken Larson “A growing small enterprise can enhance competitive rate development and cost management by effective cost center utilization in federal government contracting.” _____________________________________________________________________________ “A growing small enterprise can enhance competitive rate development and cost management by effective cost center utilization in federal government contracting. A cost center is a single, pricing, accounting, and