Despite its popularity among growing businesses as a source of additional revenue, federal contracting is a tricky business to get into. Thousands register everyday hoping to strike it rich with a juicy contract only to fail. While there are many factors that contribute to this, one of the least understood and hardest to overcome is a lack of past performance.
Simply put, past performance is your company's contracting record - which agencies you've worked with, what contracts you've completed as the prime or subcontractor, whether the work was completed satisfactorily and what problems were encountered during the job. It's like a resume for your company, complete with references and past work experience. And just like an applicant whose resume is missing these key points of information, your chances of winning a contract with no past performance are going to be depressingly low.
Besides an understandable preference to work with experienced contractors, purchasing officers also look for a history of past performance because these vendors are expected to be more knowledgeable of the unique regulations and procedures involved in federal contracting. With voters' tax dollars and budgetary limitations involved, purchasing officers are also more focused on awarding projects to vendors they feel they can trust. Without past performance references to check, there is no way to know how well a vendor will perform on a contract.
So if purchasing officers don't want to award contracts to new vendors, how do new vendors get contracts? Besides bidding for prime contracts and crossing their fingers, there are a number of ways to build past performance. Subcontracting and teaming are viable options to help build past performance and can help businesses adjust to the rules and procedures in federal contracting. Another easy way to start doing business with the federal government is through Simplified Acquisition Program and micro purchases. These kinds of acquisitions are low enough in value that purchasing officers do not need to follow formal bidding procedures. In some cases, the agency will make two or three phone calls for quotes from small businesses and make the purchase on the spot with a credit card. Don't be fooled though - any purchase under the simplified acquisition threshold of $150,000 qualifies for this program - and depending upon the industry, the threshold may even be higher!
In order to help both new and established vendors take advantage of these opportunities, US Federal Contractor Registration has created the Simplified Acquisition Program. This package includes everything necessary to start working with the federal government as soon as possible. The Simplified Acquisition Program provides System for Award Management registration, a seven page website in the standard Federal Government format, branded domain name and hosting, search engine optimization, customized official government profile, monthly email bid notification and contract support. This program has already generated millions of dollars in additional revenue for thousands of small businesses.
US Federal Contractor Registration is the world's largest third party registration firm that offers assistance with everything from System for Award Management (SAM) to GSA Schedules. US Federal Contractor Registration testimonials and reviews are second to none, having registered over 65,000 businesses in System for Award Management.
Simply put, past performance is your company's contracting record - which agencies you've worked with, what contracts you've completed as the prime or subcontractor, whether the work was completed satisfactorily and what problems were encountered during the job. It's like a resume for your company, complete with references and past work experience. And just like an applicant whose resume is missing these key points of information, your chances of winning a contract with no past performance are going to be depressingly low.
Besides an understandable preference to work with experienced contractors, purchasing officers also look for a history of past performance because these vendors are expected to be more knowledgeable of the unique regulations and procedures involved in federal contracting. With voters' tax dollars and budgetary limitations involved, purchasing officers are also more focused on awarding projects to vendors they feel they can trust. Without past performance references to check, there is no way to know how well a vendor will perform on a contract.
So if purchasing officers don't want to award contracts to new vendors, how do new vendors get contracts? Besides bidding for prime contracts and crossing their fingers, there are a number of ways to build past performance. Subcontracting and teaming are viable options to help build past performance and can help businesses adjust to the rules and procedures in federal contracting. Another easy way to start doing business with the federal government is through Simplified Acquisition Program and micro purchases. These kinds of acquisitions are low enough in value that purchasing officers do not need to follow formal bidding procedures. In some cases, the agency will make two or three phone calls for quotes from small businesses and make the purchase on the spot with a credit card. Don't be fooled though - any purchase under the simplified acquisition threshold of $150,000 qualifies for this program - and depending upon the industry, the threshold may even be higher!
In order to help both new and established vendors take advantage of these opportunities, US Federal Contractor Registration has created the Simplified Acquisition Program. This package includes everything necessary to start working with the federal government as soon as possible. The Simplified Acquisition Program provides System for Award Management registration, a seven page website in the standard Federal Government format, branded domain name and hosting, search engine optimization, customized official government profile, monthly email bid notification and contract support. This program has already generated millions of dollars in additional revenue for thousands of small businesses.
US Federal Contractor Registration is the world's largest third party registration firm that offers assistance with everything from System for Award Management (SAM) to GSA Schedules. US Federal Contractor Registration testimonials and reviews are second to none, having registered over 65,000 businesses in System for Award Management.
About the Author:
US Federal Contractor Registration provides System for Award Management registration assistance, federal contractor support and professional marketing services to small businesses nationwide. Contact the Contractor Helpline today for more information about how the Simplified Acquisition Program can help your business succeed in the federal marketplace!. This article, US Federal Contractor Registration's Tips To Gain Past Performance is available for free reprint.
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