Tag: federal market place

Helleni Moon: Breaking the Federal Arena through Agile and Streamlined Data Management Support Services

Posted on by Eric Coffie

Learn how Helleni Moon transitioned from an employee to building her own data management support services company!

BACKGROUND

Helleni Moon has over 15 years of hands-on experience in software and database management, business intelligence, and technical production support through her earlier affiliation with General Dynamics IT and Lockheed Martin, among others.  

Currently, she is the CEO of EIDOS Technologies, a company that she founded to provide information technology services such as data management and custom application design and integration.

Although EIDOS was just built in 2015, the company is already gaining recognition. In fact, it was nominated for the 2021 Prince William Chamber Business Award. 

BUILDING EIDOS TECHNOLOGIES

Moon had always desired to build a company of her own and after working for others, she built EIDOS Technologies in 2015. 

One thing that helped her in building EIDOS and getting her first two contracts is her previous relationships. She already has a network, and her colleagues were also very supportive of her. 

Even with that, she was continuously going to numerous outreach and agency events in order to show that she’s persistent.

“Luckily, you know, one of the contracting officers, eventually, they started knowing who I was and they said, ‘Oh, you know, I may have this opportunity, but that may be a really good fit.’ So, it’s being out there because you want to make sure, they want to make sure that you’re not just there for, you know, that you’re there for a long term.”

However, building her own company is not always easy. In fact, she wished that she would have done a lot of things differently. 

One of these is not waiting to be part of the 8(a) program because although she understood the proposal and the execution part, she still didn’t understand the marketing aspect of it. This then led to them losing six months without a contract.

“You need to be able to not only understand where your financials are and what your cash flow is like, but how are you going to get your next contract and how many things you have in the pipeline that will occur and you can get that you can close by the time the contracts end.”

ADVICE FOR SMALL BUSINESSES

1. Be patient.

Everything will take some time. So, be patient and don’t get disheartened if something is not happening yet. 

While waiting, why not do your research and build your network first? This way, you are not just waiting, but you are using your free time on matters that could be important in your business in the future. 

2. Spend your time efficiently. 

Consider what opportunities you should go after. Don’t just take every opportunity that you want because not all opportunities offer you the best returns. 

“All of these things are really critical because one of the things that I learned is when you first start off, you feel like you want to go after everything, but then you take a step back and then you say, you know, am I really spending my time in the most efficient way and am I getting the best return, you know, in doing this?”

3. Self-education is key. 

Regardless if you have the necessary educational background for what industry you want to go after, you should continuously educate yourself. 

Consider that there are more things that you don’t know about. So, instead of wasting your time, focus on educating yourself. 

“You have to do your research, and really understand what you’re getting yourself into, and what you’re going to need.”

RESOURCES

If you want to learn more on how Helleni Moon transitioned from being an employee to building her own data management support services company, then be sure to click the resources below.

You can also visit the GovCon Giant website or the new GovCon Edu where you learn everything about government contracting!

86: Data Management Support Services – Helleni Moon

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yj_T1AcRsv8

Donnie Harris: Retired Contracting Officer with an Unlimited Warrant to Write Billions in Contract Actions

Posted on by Eric Coffie

Navigate the government contracting market with retired military contracting officer Donnie Harris.

BACKGROUND

Donnie Harris is a retired military contracting officer who served two decades for the Coast Guard Office of Chief Counsel, Procurement Law Division, and the Clerk of the Court/Paralegal for the Coast Guard Court of Military Appeal.

Throughout his tenure, Harris participated on various radio shows and trained thousands of military and civilian personnel on topics ranging from preparing a statement of work to updates on the FAR.

Over the course of these years, he managed complex and high-profile procurements totaling $1.2 billion from the acquisition to the pre-award phase. 

After retiring, he was employed by numerous companies that wanted to utilize his procurement experience. 

CONTRACTOR PURCHASING SYSTEM REVIEW AUDIT

What that audit means is when you’re dealing with a cost reimbursable contract, you have to have an approved purchasing system that is approved by the government.

Huge companies like Booz Allen Hamilton use this process in order to ensure that everything, from the reqs and certs to the subcontractor agreements, are dated and signed correctly.

The reason is that if you fail too many audits, then that’s going to go into your past performance.

You may have an outstanding technical solution, but because you’re not able to pass an audit and it is reflected in your past performance, then you’re probably not going to win.

This is why Harris worked with a whole department in Booz Allen that was strictly dedicated to doing this audit. 

SUBCONTRACTING GOALS

Under the subcontracting goal, huge companies that do federal works need to subcontract a certain percentage of their work to small businesses. 

For instance, you’re not going to get a small business who can build a $3 billion bridge. The reasons may include the fact that they don’t have the infrastructure, the resources, and the technical knowledge and expertise to build a bridge.

Still, these small businesses can do some of the legwork, like dirt removal, concrete, and other of the small jobs. This is where the subcontracting goals come into place. 

However, depending upon the requirements, there are firms that really don’t have to adhere to the subcontracting goals, especially if there’s no subcontractors out there that can perform that type of work.

This happens when the vendor or the offerors have done their market research and found that no small business can fulfill the requirements.  

SMALL BUSINESSES ARE MISINFORMED

In Harris’ experience, he had to disqualify a lot of small businesses because they did not even maintain the basic requirements needed. 

For example, in putting solicitations online, they use keywords that only certain companies know. Why? Because this shows the level of expertise that that company has.

Apart from that, contracting officers have specific requirements depending on the contract. So, if you don’t follow any of these, then you can certainly be disqualified. 

For instance, if it is written that you need to use an 8 1/2 X 11 size of paper, then you need to really send your proposal using this size.

These are just the little things people on the government side uses in order to eliminate companies that could really not fulfill the requirements.

THE CONTRACTING PROCESS

The government usually receives two proposals: the technical proposal and the pricing proposal. 

The technical proposal is going to address how you are going to match or apply the requirements. Within this, the agency usually asks for your resumes, technical capabilities, resources, and past performance. 

Meanwhile, the pricing proposal is how are you going to price it. This includes what labor rates you are going to use and what labor categories you are going to use to accommodate these requirements.

Now, let’s say your technical proposal and your price proposal are both acceptable and you won a single award. Then, you will move to the negotiation, the final offer, and the kick off meeting about certain requirements. Lastly, you will start working.  

On the other hand, if it is going to be a multiple award, that’s when the agency will issue different task orders or requests for quotes towards you and other companies in the pool. 

What will happen in this kind of award is that you will price every time there’s a task order and that agency will choose the lowest bidder.  

RESOURCES

If you want to learn more on how to navigate the government contracting market with retired military contracting officer Donnie Harris, then be sure to click the resources below.

You can also visit the GovCon Giant website or the new GovCon Edu where you learn everything about government contracting!

011: Donnie Harris – Unlimited Warrant to Write Billions in Contract Actions

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_H15m0jKgY

Contract Awards: Atlantic Diving Supply Inc. awarded $100M contract for patient monitoring systems, accessories and training

Posted on by Eric Coffie

Atlantic Diving Supply Inc.,* doing business as ADS, Virginia Beach, Virginia, has been awarded a maximum $100,000,000 firm‐fixed‐price, indefinite‐delivery/indefinite‐quantity contract for patient monitoring systems, accessories, and training. This was a competitive acquisition with 54 responses received. This is a five-year contract with one five‐year option period. The location of performance is Virginia, with Feb. 28, 2026, ordering period end date. Using customers are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and federal civilian agencies. The type of appropriation is fiscal 2021 through 2026 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE2D1‐21‐D‐0007).

Atlantic Diving Supply. Inc. provides tactical equipment for military forces and emergency professionals. The Company markets its products to commercial customers, emergency responders, and military forces. Atlantic Diving Supply serves customers worldwide. (www.bloomberg.com)

Learn From These Millennials in Government Contracting

Posted on by Eric Coffie

Learn from Mebz Manji and Branden Coffie, the two millennials of government contracting!

USHER THE NEXT GENERATION IN!

As we get older, we become more fearful to try new things because the world has beat us up and the world has stolen our sense of imagination and wonder.

With this, GovCon Giants want to inspire you out there by bringing the youth in this marketplace.

We may have this thought that millennials and the new generation of youth are lazy but we want to show you that these people are courageous and fearless to do something new. 

“We’re going to go against the myths and we’re going to show you about people who are actually not lazy and we’re going to show you that the millennial generation that really, they want to get up and they want to make stuff happen, and they’re working with us, supporting the movement, supporting what we’re doing. We are bringing the next generation of government contractors and ushering them in.”

MEBZ MANJI

Mebz Manji came from East Africa and moved to the US to study. He built his company a year ago and decided to build a business in the government marketplace.

His first contract was an $8,000 contract to supply clay targets to Westchester county. Then, this contract was followed by more contracts of the same product. 

After that, he and his friend moved to other products like staples, and decided to find a mentor to guide them. That’s when they found us, GovCon Giants. 

1. Provide more than what’s needed. 

The reason why Manji’s first contract was followed by more contracts was because he ensured to provide the best service. He went all the way to Westchester, New York to make sure that the clay targets were perfectly delivered.

So, if you want to have this kind opportunity come knocking on your door, make sure that you know what your target market wants and give your best to deliver what they need. 

“One of the things that I say all the time, the government does not get the best people, they get the people who actually go to them. So, that’s why there’s so much room and opportunity for all of us who want to be better contractors, who want to actually give good service, to charge even a higher price because they’re not getting the best people, they’re just getting the people who respond and oftentimes that’s people who are accustomed to doing government contracts they take it for granted.”

2. Reach out to people.

The other reason why Manji is with us right now is because he reached out to people. Aside from reaching out to GovCon Giants, he also reached out to the guy whose story was used as the basis for the movie, War Dogs. 

“I think a lot of us we, so many of us have watched the movie War Dogs, I don’t know how many of us actually thought to reach out to the guy who was the movie based off.”

BRANDEN COFFIE

Branden didn’t graduate in college and was pursuing acting before he joined the GovCon Giants team. 

He has no knowledge or experience about government contracting and never really cared about where the money came from. However, just recently, he started working with us while also working with his first consulting client. 

1. Just do it. 

While editing some of the GovCon Giants videos, Branden stumbled upon one of Maria Martinez’ videos where she talked about how she got her clients. Then, fascinated how Maria thought of consulting as not difficult, he decided to do it. 

He basically just followed what Maria did from market research to calling possible clients. Right now, he has one client out of three people he talked to. 

2. Educate prospects.

One thing that Branded did when he called his prospects is he educated them about the opportunities on their door and how he can help them get it. 

He’s just 23 years old but because he knew who he was calling and what they lacked in getting contracts, they agreed to work with him. 

If you want to know some parts of his opening spiel, here it is:

“Listen, I’m not selling you anything. It’s not solicitation. This ain’t got none to do with that okay? I’m presenting to you an opportunity to just expand your company in the government arena. You guys had three contracts last year. That’s great. Very small contracts, but we can make that way bigger. We can get way more contracts, like it’s not a problem because you have it, you know, you have very big selling points.’”

3S TO REMEMBER

1. Stop giving excuses.

All of us are afraid. The person on the other end is afraid. The business owner’s afraid. The executives are afraid. We are all afraid. No one is completely confident and positive that these things are gonna work. 

Mebz Manji and Branden Coffie are just like us. Whether you have a degree or not or you entirely know everything about this marketplace or not, you can do things that they did, you just have to try. 

“No one has absolute certainty with any or everything that they do. So, we’re just, remember that in your head that we’re all operating out of some fear, right? Some of our fears are stronger than other fears. Some are more prevalent than others but I just want to continue to encourage you, continue to be able to show you, demonstrate you, give you other examples.”

2. Stop comparing yourself to someone else.

To be transparent with you, both Mebz and Branden did not feel that what they did were accomplishments and that’s because they’re comparing themselves to others. 

“That’s the wrong way to do it. We should not be comparing ourselves to someone else because for what they’ve done and what they’re doing is huge, right?”

3. Solve problems not sell things. 

One thing that makes these two young people different is they are not afraid to do their own research.

Branden found an industry and place where there is limited competition and limited opportunity and Mebz found a small municipality in New York where a customer has a need.

“How many times do I tell everyone, find someone who has a need, solve that problem. You’re a problem-solver and the more problems you can solve, the bigger problems you can solve, the more money you make. You’re providing solutions. We’re not selling anything. I keep telling people this. We’re not selling them.”

RESOURCES

If you want to learn more on how to start in government contracting and get inspiration from successful people, then be sure to click the resources below. You can also visit the GovCon Giant website or the new GovCon Edu where you learn everything about government contracting!

Learn government contracting from MILLENIALS!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tk23zoNhUW8