Skyway Wire
Who are my real competitors? How can I win against them?
You may believe that your company is the only one that provides specific products or services in the federal marketplace. But that is rarely (if ever!) the case. Finding who your competitors are is...
How Do I Make A Compelling Case For My Company To Win?
With so much competition out there for every contracting opportunity, it is more and more challenging to win federal contracts. Those opportunities that are competed on a “Lowest Priced Technically...
Federal Government Breaks Contracting Record for Women-Owned Small Businesses
On March 2, 2016, SBA announced that the federal government met the 5% spending goal for WOSBs in FY15. 5.05% or $17.8 billion of all federal small business eligible contracting dollars were awarded...
OHA Clarifies Non-Manufacturer Rules for Procurements Using SAP
In 2014, the NMR was amended to require the non-manufacturer take “ownership” of the end item. This was done by adding language to section 121.406(d) stating that “the small business offeror must...
What is the Government’s Solicitation Process?
The Government’s solicitation process begins with the identification of the need for a product or service in order to achieve the user’s mission, and continues through delivery and final acceptance...
Getting to “Yes”
One of the most important aspects of being a contracting officer (CO) charged with serving a specified customer (government agency) is the critical understanding of customer service. A contracting...
What is the Difference Between a Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA) and an Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) Contract?
Sometimes in federal contracting the terminology we use seems to describe actions that are either identical or are so similar as to be indistinguishable. That appears to be the case with “BPA” and...
What is the Best Section of the Federal Market for Me to Target? What are the Best Agencies for Me?
This topic has been the subject of several of our webinars (Target or Forget It, May 2015), books (Save Your Time, by Kevin Jans, President, Skyway Acquisition), podcasts (Why Targeting Matters, Feb...
How Should I Structure and Organize My Proposal?
Organizing your proposal in response to a government solicitation is one of the most important aspects of proposal writing, and often, one of the most difficult. On the one hand you have the desire...
Gaining Past Performance with the Federal Government as a New Company
Whether you are a new company or you are new to the federal marketplace, it may seem that it is impossible to win your first contract. Every solicitation requires you to show your “past...
Contracting with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
The FAA has a unique set of contracting rules and regulations. While they use Federal Business Opportunities (FBO), it is not their primary site for posting opportunities. They have been given a...
How Do I Recognize an Organizational Conflict of Interest (OCI)?
According to FAR Part 2, “Organizational conflict of interest” means that because of other activities or relationships with other persons, a person is unable or potentially unable to render...
How Do I Select the Best Past Performance References for My Proposal?
Past performance is an important element of almost every government procurement process. The larger the procurement, the more importance you will see being given to past performance within the...
Finding the Right Point of Contact – Part 2
When you are getting ready to sell your product or service to a government agency, finding the right person to talk to, and knowing what’s important to that individual and what is not, can be...
8(a) Business Development Program
The Small Business Administration (SBA) created the 8(a) Business Development Program to help small, disadvantaged businesses compete in the marketplace. What is the 8(a) Business Development...
SBA Final Rule on Non-Manufacturer Rule and IT Contractors
On January 26, 2016, SBA issued its final rule regarding proposed size standard increases to numerous NAICS codes. However, there is a new clarification from SBA that Information Technology Value...