Subcontracts and Purchasing

Procuring Subcontractors

Government subcontracting refers to the process where the Prime engages secondary contractors (“subcontractors”), or 1st or lower tier subcontractors engage tertiary+ contractors, to perform part of the work required under a federal government contract. Subcontractors are engaged for numerous reasons including specialized tasks or expertise, past performance enhancement, small business work share requirements, partnership development, etc. No matter the reason why a subcontract is entered into, the subcontractor is accountable to the Prime or higher tier subcontractor and the Prime has the ultimate responsibility to the government end customer. As part of the subcontracting process, there are several key steps: Click here to explore.

Your Compliance Requirements for Procuring Subcontracts

When engaging in government contracting, procuring subcontracts involves strict compliance requirements. As a prime contractor, ensuring that your subcontracting processes meet legal, regulatory, and contractual obligations is essential to avoid penalties, delays, and potential debarment from future contracts. Read more here.

Compliance requirements for procuring subcontracts in government contracting are extensive and vital to ensuring the integrity and legality of the contracting process.

BOOST’s Role in Helping GovCons With Federal Contracts

From assistance with writing, reviewing, and negotiating, to soliciting, administering and closing out subcontracts under federal government contracts, BOOST helps GovCons comply with all applicable requirements. Subcontractor related services may include:

Mandatory flowdown clauses – Need advice or a compliance matrix?
Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA), Teaming Agreement (TA), Subcontract Agreement (SubK), Independent Consultant Agreement (ICA) or Master Subcontract Agreement (MSA)- If it’s a contractual agreement- we can help draft, review, negotiate, and definitize.
From drafting from scratch to assessing and improving existing policies and procedures, we’ve got you covered.
Subcontractor and vendor evaluations
Documentation and reporting assistance

By providing expertise, strategic insight, and operational support, BOOST consultants enable GovCons to successfully secure and manage federal contracts and subcontracts while maximizing profitability, ensuring compliance, and minimizing risk.

What Makes BOOST a Reliable Partner for the Government Contracts and Subcontracts Process?

Navigating the complex world of government contracts and subcontracts can be challenging, but with the right partner, small and large businesses alike can effectively tap into the lucrative opportunities it offers. So, what makes a reliable partner in the government contracts and subcontracts process? Let’s break it down.

1. Expert Knowledge of Government Regulations. Government contracts come with a maze of rules and regulations. From the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to DFARS (Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement) and specific agency requirements, these rules dictate everything from pricing to performance standards. A reliable partner stays on top of these evolving regulations, ensuring that all steps in the subcontracts process—from bidding to delivery—are compliant. BOOST focuses solely on GovCons and has the expertise to handle the complexities of compliance, saving you time and preventing costly errors.

2. Clear and Transparent Communication. A reliable partner ensures that all parties involved in the government contract—be they the prime contractor, subcontractors, or government officials—are kept in the loop at every stage. BOOST consultants maintain clear, transparent communication, providing updates, addressing concerns, and ensuring that everyone is aligned with the project’s goals.

3. Flexibility and Adaptability. Government projects can evolve, requiring a partner who can be flexible and adaptable. Changes in scope, new priorities, or unexpected challenges require an agile partner who can pivot quickly without sacrificing quality or performance. BOOST is solution-oriented and can adapt to unforeseen circumstances, ensuring that the subcontracting process progresses smoothly despite any hurdles.

Whether you’re a prime contractor or a small business looking to subcontract, BOOST can make all the difference in successfully navigating the government contracting landscape.

Effective Purchasing Management – The Other Half of the Equation

Growth: It’s what successful business do. We invest in growth. We attend conferences to find new customers and foster new business opportunities. We hire Chief Growth Officers who are well connected in our industry. We focus time, energy, and brainpower on our business development activities with laser precision, gathering market intelligence and devising innovative strategies to bring in as much work as possible.

Yet we tend to regard the spend side of the equation with much less fervor, settling for a market rate that is within our price-to-win estimate from only one seller. But in doing so, we may be putting ourselves in an inferior negotiation position with our subcontractors and paying more than we should. We figure, especially if the prime contract is a Time & Material type, we’ll get our markup on top and it will be fine. Do you want your business to be performing fine or better than fine?

FAR 52.244-5 mandates competition in our subcontracts “to the maximum practical extent consistent with the objectives and requirements of the contract” and carved out a narrow exemption for a protégé to enjoy non-competitive awards from its mentor under the DoD Mentor-Protégé program only as recently as August 2024. Still, so many prime contractors award subcontracts without competition irrespective of the federal requirement. This is true for primes of all sizes, certainly until they become subject to Certified Purchasing System requirements, and even then, it seems old habits die hard.

FACT: There are only 2 ways to improve your bottom line – increase revenue and decrease expenses.

Businesses heartily spend money to increase revenue. They should invest just as heavily in decreasing expenses. A straightforward, fairly competed and negotiated purchase will naturally put downward pressure on prices. Using skillfully developed solicitation templates within a consistent, repeatable process will have a direct impact on your bottom line.

If you’re a growing small or medium sized company with revenue streams taking you toward CPSR and the other business systems, it’s not too early to evaluate your competitive profile and start building the foundation of your system. Full DFARS Purchasing System compliance is a heavy lift, however you don’t have to do the whole thing overnight. As a small/medium business looking to manage the spend side of the ledger as well as you manage the growth side, you will benefit from systematically implementing the best techniques the government uses to be good stewards of taxpayer money, beginning with a robust subcontractor competition program.

If you’re a large business that would benefit from a third-party review of your competitive subcontracting processes or want to strengthen your seller competition system with next-level techniques to put downward pressure on your purchases, let BOOST LLC help.

Reach out to Our Consultants With Government Contract Questions

By offering expertise, innovation, and a commitment to excellence, BOOST stands as a trusted ally in the often complex and high-stakes world of government contracting and subcontracting. Whether you’re a prime contractor or a small business looking to subcontract, BOOST consultants can make all the difference in successfully navigating the government contracting landscape.

In addition, we offer pricing, HR, recruiting, accounting, and other back-office support.

Let BOOST bring the specialized knowledge, strategic insight, and hands-on support you need to successfully compete for, manage, and execute federal contracts!