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The Power of No

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After what can only be described as a waffling phone call earlier this week with a potential client, it made me want to issue this PSA:Saying “no” to an opportunity, a service, a contract, a teammate, or even a prospective employee, is one of the best gifts you can give.

When you concretely say “no,” you are valuing the other person’s time and energy. Whether that’s during recruiting, contract negotiation, or anything in between, it’s the right thing to do. They no longer have to put you on the follow up list, they no longer will spend mental energy trying to figure out where they stand in the process.  They are empowered to move on and spend their energy on other opportunities.  THIS IS A GIFT to all parties. 

Too many times people are scared to commit to an answer.  They are scared of losing out, so they drag out the relationship and suck up energy and effort on both sides.  They don’t want to hurt the other party’s feelings. They don’t want to own their decision. They don’t want to address their answer.   But what they fail to recognize is that this is a mental drain on themselves.

The best answer you can give anyone requesting something or a candidate during recruiting is “Yes.”  The second best answer is “No.”  Ambiguity or playing out the answers until you are 100% sure is a mental suck.  

Embrace making a decision.  Embrace follow up and providing a solid “Yes (or ‘no’ if applicable), or follow up with me in XX months.”

On another note, if the party who was told no asks for any feedback, most of the time it’s not because they want to change your mind (although that absolutely does happen on occasion).  If they are like me, they just want to know where they could do better.  What about our proposal didn’t resonate, what didn’t hit right with you?  It’s no different than asking for a debrief after putting blood, sweat and tears into an RFP response and losing.  Providing just 5 mins worth of feedback is incredibly helpful and allows that person to grow.  And isn’t that what we all want?

If you’ve just had it with recruiting, negotiating contracts, or any of the back-office work that comes along with operating within the world of GovCons, that’s totally okay. Sometimes the idea of having to deal with all your yes-or-no obligations is exhausting in itself. 

At BOOST, that’s what we do. We make operating your GovCon business that much easier by handling those things for you. Whether it’s HR, accounting, contracts, or recruiting, we’ve got you covered. 

Trust us, this is one of those things you’ll want to say “yes” to.

Lessons Learned | The CIO-SP4 Saga

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We can confidently say that even if you’ve been living under a rock in the govcon industry this past few months, you have still probably heard the shouts regarding CIO-SP4 delays, amendments, and drama. Short of rolling our eyes one more time at the craziness of it all, what lessons can we take and learn from to better prepare our proposal teams for the next big bid?

BOOST has teamed up with Cy Alba and the team at PilieroMazza to focus your attention on several key elements to better prepare for future bids (we’re thinking, Polaris!?).

Need: Teaming
CIO-SP4 required several specific areas of past performance from across the board making it very unlikely for single companies to have all of the boxes checked. This brought about the opportunity for teaming, but with a caveat, there had to be documented history, actual work completed or in progress. Gone were the opportunities to have a quick coffee and call it teaming. What’s a business to do?

Lesson:
Build out your relationships early and with purpose. This was a stark reminder that no business in our industry can exist as an island, even during a pandemic. Flexibility in opportunities, areas of work, and specialties is paramount to the successful teaming and documented history for a partnership to be deemed efficient. Look down the pike at what may be to come and how that might affect your current and future teaming opportunities. If you are looking to be a Prime, analyze what areas you’re weak in and find teaming partners to fill those holes. If you’re a Subcontractor, take the time to build and show value to the big guys to remain top of mind for new opportunities.

 

Need: Systems and Certifications
The Government provides draft RFPs and scorecards to help you make successful bid and no bid decisions. This isn’t the time to get creative in shoving square pegs into round holes. Though the requirements might seem like guidelines more than rules, more often than not they showcase the important parts of the RFP prior to the drop. Even the mundane counts here – really read through the entire scorecard, not just the past performance quals.

Lesson:
Implementations take time, period. Trying to slam in an approved accounting system or EVMS purchasing system within a 30-day crunch is unrealistic and paves the way for mistakes. Look at previous RFPs and similar proposal awards to see where you can get ahead of systems, processes, and implementations. Seek conversations with partners and industry friends to discuss what they’ve found useful and if it makes sense for your model of business.

Lesson 2:
Do not rely on your teammates for these certifications, especially large companies that you teamed with only to utilize their certs for your scoring. Prepare your go/no-go analysis with the assumption that you have to stand on your own credentials. Any additional latitude by the government is just gravy.

 

Need: CAGE Code Readiness
DLA has been taking between 20 and 30 days to issue CAGE codes recently. Under the FAR you must have a CAGE code prior to bidding on federal work. Thus, if you are required to form a JV to secure the points required to win or to overcome go/no-go factors, you cannot wait until the RFP drops or else you will likely have no time to set up the new LLC or partners, and secure a CAGE code in time to bid.

Lesson:
You need to plan ahead and perhaps set up a few LLCs to have in reserve. We used to recommend that small businesses or mentor/protégé teams form at least two JVs at any given time to make sure they always have one in reserve. Well, at this point, if more procurements start to limit the ability to use subcontractors it will become important to have a LLC or two in reserve (which already are fully registered in SAM and have CAGE codes) to be prepared to pivot. Otherwise, you are set to scramble to find friends, partners, or teammates who have dormant LLCs. Because DLA is taking, possibly, 30 days or more, and there is no way to expedite the CAGE code issuance, you cannot wait or reverse course at the last minute. Understand the SBA rules or other rules that agencies must follow and then focus on teaming in those areas because the RFP cannot overrule law. So you can use the law to plan ahead!

 

Need: Quick Turnaround

Assume that all agencies are working on tight turnarounds. The speed of government is one that is never constant. The hurry up and wait mentality is for the post-proposal process, not before. What you know and can prepare for now should be actioned ASAP.

Lesson:
Use previous RFPs and on-ramp information to inform your timelines. If you’re looking to get an 8(a) that could be a nine-month or more process. Waiting until an RFP drop to begin these processes is an inevitable failure. As the phrase goes, the price of success is eternal vigilance.

 

Need: Compliance
Contracting Officers put the requirements to write a winning proposal directly in the RFP. Everything you need is there so this is not a time to flash your creative spin on how you can slide something into a place it doesn’t necessarily belong. For CIO-SP4 the “CTA” issues were a major point of concern, many firms are trying to get creative by forming 9.601(1) CTAs not understanding what they really are and not understanding other FAR or CFR rules that apply on top of the RFP (like the SBA JV rules). Also, firms see “CTA” and thing “GSA CTA” which is wrong.

Lesson:
Focus on the law and the regulations required for the agency to allow. Prepare for the most restrictive plan. In the event that the requirements are lifted slightly, you’ll still be well within the means of compliance, but you’ve prepared to batten down those hatches. Also, knowing the specific regulations as they apply to your business (i.e. small businesses acting as JVs) and how creativity can invite increased risk will help you to mitigate some headache should there be an investigation or protest.

Overall, we’ve learned some specific yet helpful things throughout this CIO-SP4 process. While these were merely the highlights of items you can take action on right now we can’t leave you hanging. So, just wait, there’s more! On August 30th, 2021, Stephanie Alexander and Isaias “Cy” Alba joined the GovCon Untethered Podcast for a discussion surrounding how to best mitigate and prepare for this new season of GWAC RFPs. Listen here.

 

Learn More

If you have questions about the CIO-SP4 RFP and its impact on the government contracting community, please contact the blog’s co-author, Isaias “Cy” Alba, a partner in PilieroMazza’s Government Contracts Group.

PilieroMazza, a business law firm, serves as a strategic business partner to government contractors and commercial businesses from numerous industries that operate nationally and internationally. With attorneys from a cross-section of the Firm’s core practice areas––including Government Contracts, Mergers & Acquisitions, Labor & Employment, and Litigation & Dispute Resolution––working seamlessly as a team to support the legal and business needs of their clients, PilieroMazza attorneys offer thoughtful and thorough solutions to protecting their clients’ business interests.  Our knowledge on how laws are administered, productive relationships with decision-makers at various government agencies, and “boutique” business model, make PilieroMazza uniquely qualified to provide clients with highly valuable and exceptionally skilled representation. For more information, visit www.pilieromazza.com.

BOOST LLC provides government compliant and strategic corporate GovCon back-office operational support and candid business advice, combining our team of experienced and trained professionals with the drive of entrepreneurs to enable small businesses to become successful with government contracting. We have SMEs to support our clients’ growth in the areas of accounting, branding and marketing, contracts, HR, recruiting services for government contractors and strategic pricing.

About BOOST’s CEO, Stephanie Alexander

Stephanie Alexander has spent more decades than she wants to admit supporting high growth government contractors with an eye towards their bottom line. She is the CEO and founder of BOOST LLC which supports back-office functions for government contractors. She is a co-founder and Partner at govmates, a free teaming platform and technology scouting tool to connect business across the federal landscape.

Mid-Year Accounting for GovCons, What You Need to Know!

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Editor’s Note: This Article Has Been Updated On 7/5/2023

It is mid-year planning time, and our GovCon Accounting Team would love to share with you a few items that should be on your radar. We are here to help you succeed, and we are committed to Quality, Proactiveness, and Communication.

Let’s jump right in!

  1. Budgeting and Forecasting – Budgeting and Forecasting are very important to track projected gains or losses. A few items to think about: Are you forecasting quarterly? If not, you should! Ensuring full visibility on how your projections are going against actuals is extremely important for stability and planning for growth. Additionally, if your 2021 budget is not trending upward as expected, you need to know why, and what is causing the variance. For 2022 budgets, August and September are the perfect months to start planning before the end of the year rolls around and you are scrambling to get one set up.
  2. Pipeline – Planning for growth requires a lot of effort, specifically creating a healthy pipeline. Make sure you keep on top of your projections as well as your winning strategy. Review your pipeline no less than bi-weekly. What changes are needed to ensure success? Do you have the right partnerships/subcontractors? Are there any events occurring that would put you in the game? Are you marketing to the right people? Do you have the right credentials needed to win more work?
  3. Pricing – This is a big one. When was the last time you reviewed your pricing? Are you competitive enough? If you do not feel comfortable with your pricing, now is the time to take action. In the GovCon space, you cannot afford to be asleep on the wheel. Taking a proactive approach to monitoring your pricing and making adjustments is a must.
  4. Accounts Receivables – Cash is KING! How is your AR trending? Do you have a lot of uncollected cash sitting in your 60-90 days of aging? It is imperative that you review your AR monthly, and if in a cash crunch, review it weekly. Keep on top of sending collections reminders and make it very easy for your clients to make payments, whether that be offering ACH options or a 3rd party service like bill.com. Bottom line is to make it extremely easy for them to pay.  Additionally, do you have amazing clients that pay promptly? If so, and if your company can afford it, offer an incentive or discount for prompt payments! Relationship building is key to the success of your business.
  5. Accounts Payables – On the contrary, are you paying your vendors extremely fast? Are you seeing your AP aging is less than 30 days? It is important to know how these quick-pay behaviors impact your cash. It is ideal to keep vendor agreements to 30-45 days, and only priority vendors as less than 30 or pay upon receipt. It is a great time to review your vendor payment terms and renegotiate if needed.
  6. Vendor Analysis – How long has it been since you last negotiated payment terms with your vendors? When was the last time you looked at your priority vendors to ensure a mitigation plan is in place should such vendors cease to exist? When was the last time you rated your vendors’ performance, quality, and services? This is the perfect time to put thought and energy into these pieces!
  7. 1099 Preparation – Do you have W9s for all qualified vendors? 1099 submission deadline is right around the corner (end of the year) and taking a proactive approach to ensure you have all W9s would ensure compliance. If you find you don’t have W9s, reach out to your vendors now and give them plenty of time to reply with one. Create a folder to keep track of them, or make sure to upload them to your GovCon accounting system. Additionally, you should have them marked as 1099 in your system for reporting the total value paid. If you have paid a vendor more than $600, they will need a 1099 from you. Other considerations should be taken into account, however, it’s best practice to ask for one from all your vendors and keep records of such requests. Any vendor not complying, make sure to note that too.
  8. Indirect Rate Monitoring – When was the last time you looked at your actual monthly indirect rates and compared them to your company’s provisional billing rates? How are you trending? Have you had material change and need to submit a revised incurred cost submission? All things to consider before the end of the year.
  9. Salary, Wages & Bonuses – Have you heard of “The Great Resignation”? This is the time to review your employee’s performance bonuses, wages, and payouts. Are you competitive enough for the current job market? If not, this is the time to do a quick check for end-of-the-year bonuses and raises! How is your benefits plan matching up to your employees’ expectations? Do you need to set up a 401K matching program? Reach out to your HR representative to ensure the best benefits package is being offered, and if not, what changes are necessary? Cost-benefit analysis is key here to ensure your return on investment (ROI) is worth it.
  10. Policies and Procedures / Handbooks – Your Accounting Policies and Procedures manual should be up to date, however, if not, this is the perfect time to review and make sure it is. Do you have segregation of duties? Are you in compliance with all GovCon regulations; how about GAAP? Is it documented? What is your capitalization policy? Additionally, do you have a corporate handbook that you need to revise? This is the time to make sure all your ducks are in a row and it’s well documented. Policies for HR, IT, Accounting, et all need to be in place.
  11. Tax Strategy – Have you had mid-year tax planning with your CPA? If not, this is your friendly reminder to reach out to them ASAP! Are you making estimated quarterly payments? Are you trending for a high net income and need to plan for additional expenses before year-end? Do you have any capital expenditures on hold that need to be re-evaluated? Lastly, have you made sure your 2020 tax filings have been processed and submitted due to an extension? Any changes in equity? Mergers and Acquisitions are also a hot topic this time of the year – valuations are well underway.
  12. Legal Entity Re-evaluation – Make sure that the business structure you have is the right one for your legal needs. If you are not sure, reach out to your Tax CPA and ask! Additionally, make sure you know the legal implications of any changes should you decide to make one. Do not forget, that an unfortunate event can occur at any time, and you need to be prepared. Make sure you have a succession plan and or a trust set up if anything should happen to you or a business partner!

While we are positive that we provided you a lot to chew on, BOOST also has the SMEs to back it up. If you’d rather have a conversation to dive deeper into any or all of these pieces, reach out to our accounting for GovCons team at [email protected]. We’re ready to help get your books locked and loaded for your next phase of growth.

About BOOST’s CEO, Stephanie Alexander

Stephanie Alexander has spent more decades than she wants to admit supporting high growth government contractors with an eye towards their bottom line. She is the CEO and founder of BOOST LLC which supports back-office functions for government contractors. She is a co-founder and Partner at govmates, a free teaming platform and technology scouting tool to connect business across the federal landscape.

 

GovCon Leadership Issues – Whack a Mole Leadership

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Perhaps it’s the chaos of 2022 or maybe we all are trying to multi-task more than ever, but I’ve seen an uptick in what I would describe as “whack-a-mole” leadership.  You know, where one week there is a push to go in one direction.  The next week, that initiative changes or falls off the radar, and we focus on another thing.  The “Squirrel!” type of attention span that your dog has.  Or your 5-year-old.

By constantly shifting focus and redirecting the team, you see the following:

  • Lack of buy-in – if it’s changing next week, just hunker down, agree and ride it out until people stop asking about it
  • Worse…buy-in – Only to find that it’s not really a thing and then expectations and hopes are dashed. This can lead your team to NOT buy-in on something really good the next time. Don’t be the boss who cries wolf too many times.
  • Burn out – If you keep moving the ball, people get exhausted trying to get to the goal.  Let’s face it, we’re all exhausted this year anyway. This isn’t to say that if you meet your previously set goals that you shouldn’t keep moving. Just don’t pick up the finish line before the team has a chance to get there.
  • Lack of results – Everything is half done/half-implemented/half thought through.  Nothing is completed and nothing is moving, which means no one is making money. Leadership is failing to follow through.
  • Higher multiplier – Generally, this means lots of time on Overhead or G&A, driving your wrap rate up while not getting the results or efficiencies that you were probably striving for.

2020 continues to be a hell of a year.  It does require changing quickly, figuring out what works, and dumping what doesn’t efficiently.  That doesn’t mean that you can reverse course on absolutely everything. Foundations need to remain intact and stronger than ever. It’s hard to see what the next month brings, much less next year.  But while you do have to stay agile, you also need to be thinking longer term as we start edging closer to 2023 and budgeting/goal setting for next year. If you’re looking for a push in the right direction, connect with Stephanie, and let’s see where you can shift focus toward a more efficient direction.

 

The word of the quarter is: FOCUS!

Why Hire MilSpouses?

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As the local unemployment numbers continue to be a record low rates and we all talk about the war for talent, unicorn candidates and the ridiculous salary expectations for some of the workforce, there is a pool of talent that is often overlooked…the Military Spouse (also known as: MilSpouse). MilSpouse employment can be a wonderful staffing source for your GovCon.

Why should you consider these folks?  Our initial response is why not?
Off the top of our heads:

• Change agents
Businesses change quite a bit and who better to understand and go with it than someone who is used used to packing up their stuff and moving to a completely new environment every few years?  These folks don’t scare away from change…they sometimes crave it. MilSpouse employment brings you employees that aren’t afraid to adapt as the changes come in, and in GovCon, those changes can come quickly.

• New Environments
MilSpouses go into completely new environments all the time.  They can adapt and mold to their new circumstances, quickly.  They don’t waste months trying to figure out the new clients or getting up to speed on new technology.  They immerse and they adapt. MilSpouse employment gives you this edge in your employees, knowing that they’re ready to adapt to whatever may come.

• “Figure it Out” mindset
Often MilSpouses are on their own while their spouse is serving.  They don’t know all the answers, but they can figure stuff out in a hurry.  This extends directly to their work.  We don’t hire folks who know everything…we hire folks who are smart enough to know where to get the information needed.

• Community
While a MilSpouse can absolutely figure it out, they also are great at adapting and relying on others in their community.  Need something done?  They will organize and support with precision.  There is nothing a group of MilSpouses can’t tackle.  This extends to their teamwork approach.  MilSpouses are unique in that they can be a rock star individual contributor, but also play quite nicely on a team.  Did we mention that they are adaptable? You’re essentially employing the knowledge of a small community of MilSpouses, as they’re quick to look outward for answers if they don’t have any themselves.

As you struggle to fill your team, ask yourself if you’ve overlooked one of the best sources of employees in the business.

And a quick note to MilSpouses out there – There are employers out there who value the above.  Not every job needs to be 40 hours a week, nor does it need to be done in person.  Don’t put your own career on hold because you feel there aren’t companies that understand your needs. MilSpouse employment is best when you work with employers who understand your value.  “MilSpouse” does not equal unemployed or even underemployed.  Know your value, keep your skillset up to date and seek employers who get it. MilSpouse employment is something we’d strongly recommend to our readers.

 

Corporate Housekeeping

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As we turn our attention to back to school sales, last summer vacays, finishing up our trashy beach novels and start shifting towards the fall, it’s a good time to take a minute and do some general housekeeping. Face it – it will be the holidays before you know it!

GovCons, you are in the lull between the storm – proposals are submitted, awards are forthcoming but not here yet. It’s a great time to catch up on some of the mundane, but necessary parts of doing business.  It’s boring, and always gets pushed to the back burner as more revenue-generating opportunities come in.  But ignore these at your peril – they always come back to haunt you at tax time, during a transaction or with any litigation.

We’re kind of like sour patch kids, here at BOOST. Now that we’ve given you a bit of a gut punch, here’s a quick checklist to keep you sane:

1. Org Chart
When was the last time you actually updated it?  Do it now before you onboard all the new contract wins.  This way it’s readily available.  Now might also be time to consider if folks are really in the right positions/titles.

2. Articles of Incorporation
Time to dust it off and make sure it’s still legit and up to date.

3. Board meeting minutes
For privately held companies, this can feel like an administrative task you don’t want to do.  Remember that these board meeting minutes come in handy when you are looking toward a sale, are in litigation/disputes and are just plain good practice.

4. Tax Filings
Given all the changes, are you structured the way you should be?  If your uncle is still providing all of your advice, it might be time to get a second opinion.  Are you maximizing your tax status for your long-term strategy?

5. State filings
We always forget that when we add new employees in new states, we suddenly must start filing taxes.  Be proactive about registering and don’t let it be a nasty surprise year in arrears.

6. Insurance
When was the last time you sat down and went through what you are covered for and where you might have gaps?  I absolutely HATE this practice but make myself (and another person to get a different perspective) sit in the excruciating meeting and review everything.  Line by freaking line.  It’s horrible, my broker hates us, but we’ve discovered multiple things that weren’t covered or that we didn’t need to pay for.  It’s worth the investment of time (and sanity) once a year to know your risks.

 

If you need help with anything, we’re happy to give you our advice or introduce you to others that have that specialty.  Don’t slack off as we head towards the fall.  It will only come back to haunt you when you least expect it (or have time to deal with it!).

Wrap Rate Government Contracting

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Even if you are in a less competitive field or have a unique offering for a customer with a ton of funding, government contractors must monitor and maintain their wrap rates.

Companies can sometimes view this exercise as an annual corporate budget where you occasionally look at how you are doing and often look back and ponder, “What were we thinking?” This is not enough by a long shot.

The best practice is to review your financials each month and include an analysis of how you are performing. You should learn how to complete reviews monthly, make adjustments quarterly and consider a complete overhaul semi-annually to achieve your goals.

What Is a Wrap Rate?

Want an efficient way to determine the competitive cost of labor units before profit margins are added on? You can calculate the pricing of your services and products with wrap rate government contracting.

A wrap rate gives businesses insight into the pricing suited to buyers’ needs. The calculations can help companies decide if their proposal terms will be feasible or too high for the government to accept.

Additionally, the information can assist with forecasting and budgeting. As a result, businesses can plan how much to bid and predict where they stand compared to their competitors.

Calculating Wrap Rates

Calculating wrap rates for government contracting is essential for estimates. The calculation allows contractors to reflect their job costs on project bids accurately.

Generally, you multiply unit costs by the base pay of an employee. The result provides a unit of labor’s base dollar cost. Fringe, overhead and general and administrative (G&A) expenses are applied.

After determining the indirect costs, they’re added to the base dollar for hourly labor costs. Calculating the rates makes you better prepared to measure the actual costs of labor for future projects.

Benefits of a Wrap Rate Formula

An effective formula provides many advantages, including the following:

Effective Calculations

Save time and effort when you simplify the cost calculations for the prices in your proposals. The formula adds all indirect costs to get a single rate, so you don’t have to calculate each indirect expense separately.

Cost Visibility

Gain more transparency about indirect costs when determining the pricing for your proposals. The comprehensive view offers more clarity and accuracy so you can cover all necessary expenses when bidding on a government contract.

Easy Pricing Analysis

Analyze the impact of potential pricing changes so you can make informed decisions. The insight lets you determine the most cost-effective and competitive pricing strategy for your government proposals.

Compliance

Ensure compliance with cost accounting and pricing regulations with the calculations. The rates enhance the credibility of your proposals and minimize the risk of contract disputes or audits.

Flexibility in Developing Proposals

You can make adjustments to your direct costs and profit margins according to each contract’s requirements. The flexibility allows you to customize your pricing proposals to meet government agency needs while maintaining a beneficial pricing structure.

Ways to Lower Your Company Expenses

When evaluating your company’s performance and goals, consider the following:

  • Space: Do you really use it, do you need it and what is your company culture? Larger System Integrators are shedding their bloated infrastructure. Don’t build one unless you’ve got 5-year POP’s with all contractor site rates. And even then, keep it lean.
  • Wellness: When was the last time you competitively shopped your benefits? Or even your broker? Don’t get tied up in the same old “we only have a 2-5% increase, so that’s great” mentality. Depending upon your size, self-funding in some capacity may be of interest. Does anyone use the vision policy? What about dental? Have you considered reducing your contribution?
  • Training: With all of the online options these days, does your team really need individualized training or would an online package work? You could offer this benefit to more employees at a lower overall cost.
  • Education: Consider reducing the tuition reimbursement if very few people are using it. It’s nice to tout to potential new hires, but in reality, it’s not a deal-breaker. If it is, bonus the employee out to cover the costs.
  • Business development: Is the team on track to meet their goals this year, or has performance been underwhelming? It’s time to take stock of what’s working and address what isn’t working so you can make smart business choices and save money in the long run.

Achieve Your Goals With BOOST

Want to learn how to win and maintain more contracts in the GovCon industry? BOOST is ready to help! To learn about our consulting services, contact our team today!

GovCon Voices: A Culture of Compliance

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As seen on SmallGovCon.com

When we talk about the federal contracting industry, one of the first things that comes to mind is compliance. We are an overly regulated industry with a ton of laws to abide by, FAR changes to keep up with, legislation of which we need to stay on top. None of it is particularly easy or straightforward, and it sometimes takes experts to keep your organization in compliance. In short, no one can claim they are 100% compliant, nor can they claim to know everything with regards to this industry, especially a GovCon CEO. That’s the bad news.

The good news is that no one expects this of the CEO. However, your attitude towards compliance goes a long way within the organization. The example you set at the top will filter throughout the organization and will go a long way towards establishing and maintaining a company culture that follows the rules of this industry. We all talk about making sure that the company is not on the front page of the Washington Post for getting into hot water with the law or for debarment.

How can you contribute to that as a CEO?
How can you build your organization to take it seriously?
How do you keep from bogging down the wheels of progress and allow the mission goals for you and your clients to be met?

Lead by Example. It sounds so easy, is in every leadership book, and is touted on every trending article on LinkedIn. But ask yourself, who fills out your timesheet? Do you throw 8 hours of your time into G&A and call it a day? Do you have your admin fill out your timesheet? Do you approve your direct reports? Every GovCon has a timekeeping system that requires daily input and ultimately, signature submission and approval of direct reports time.
Do you travel according to JTRs and/or within the per diem rates? Do you expect your folks to abide accordingly? As a GovCon, you just don’t travel extravagantly. Ever.

Put your Money where your Mouth is.  How many emails from the Timekeeping Goon have you received? Do you ever take the time to find out who the repeat offenders are and to speak with them about these transgressions? Ever told your top sales person that they could have their pay docked or lose their jobs if they continue to be non-compliant? It’s that type of discussion (and action) that shows that the company values compliance and takes it seriously.

Have you had your HR folks scrub through your labor categories and the folks associated with them…proactively? Have you righted any salary discrepancies to ensure that your workforce is fairly and consistently paid according to skill set and experience? These suggestions all are dictated by FAR compliance and laws, but in general, they emulate good advice.

Be the leader that the GovCon industry needs and keep your company on the front pages for the work you are contributing to this country; not for running afoul of the rules.
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See the original article: http://smallgovcon.com/govcon-voices/govcon-voices-a-culture-of-compliance/#sthash.4Ahp75Xd.dpuf

Green

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Do the right thing. It will gratify some people and astonish the rest.
-Mark Twain

In today’s environment of competition, LPTA, race to the bottom (insert any other overused term we throw around in the GovCon world), we all talk about “greening the staff” as a way to cut our costs on proposals. But who really does it and more importantly, who does it successfully?

Typically, we say that in the execution of a 5-year contract, we can move the more seasoned employees to other contracts and replace them with more junior employees who will learn from the best, and do their jobs more efficiently and at less cost. In reality, this means we replace seasoned and expensive employees with less expensive employees under the guise of “career advancement.”

Contractors bet that a year into execution, the government will absolutely LOVE their seasoned SME’s, and therefore will cough up more funding in the out years not requiring the transition of staff.

What happens if that isn’t the case? 

Contractors tell their seasoned SME that they have to take a 20%+ hit on their base salary or they yank them to a more profitable contract and backfill to the minimum labor category requirements with little to no transition or cross-training. The result? A bad taste in everyone’s mouths, most importantly the government.

What if we did what we claimed we would do in our management plans?

What if we told our SMEs in contract kick-off that we were going to start grooming their replacements and incentivized them to help train them successfully?

What if we spent the time to recruit the right person for the transition? A person wanting to work with the agency and grow professionally. What if we made our government customer part of the transition plan and they knew all along that there would be new teammates in the out years?

Imagine if we actually provided the career growth for our SMEs, built our workforce with energized, well-trained folks who could help win the re-compete and, topping it off, actually *gasp* saved the government money?

Yes, it means forethought and planning. Yes, it is harder than just asking for more funding. If you want to grow your company and your team successfully and thoughtfully – try greening the staff.

Just do it the right way, the first time.

Goals

/in /by

New year, new you?  Yup, been there, done that.  How many GovCon business owners start with the best of intentions for the new year?  Any of these sound familiar?

  • This is the year I’m going to break $XM in revenue!
  • This is the year we’re going to follow a formal BD process.  No more bluebird bids!
  • This is the year we’re going after (huge IDIQ).  We’ll have our team solidified 30 days before the bid.
  • This is the year we’re going to invest in our employees.  We’ll do brown bag sessions and offer training courses.
  • This is the year we’re going to have and follow a strategic plan.  We’ll review it quarterly and assess our progress.

I’d venture to say every CEO in this industry has thought at least one of the above in the past week, with the best of intent.  Before this becomes another boring blog on goals and how to attain them, let’s stop and get real.   One of my mantras is that small business owners don’t have time or money to waste.  I know I don’t.  Achieving all of these goals this year would be great.  But in a world of tactical day to day operations, it’s hard to come out from the emails, status meetings, business development, and management of our people.  Let’s face it, running a company is not for the lazy!

So let’s focus on one goal.  One little goal.

Here it is – one goal every business owner should make (and actually do) is to THINK.  This sounds so simple.  I know.  But when was the last time you actually made time in your schedule to think about your company and its future?  When did you last turn off your phone/email/life and spend some time with your thoughts and plans?  Do you remember why you got into your field?  What your end game is?  Are you moving toward your goals?
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As owner/CEO it’s on you to have a direction and focus toward which your company is moving.  How can you provide leadership and oversight if you don’t know yourself?

Imagine what a few hours a week or even a couple days a month would do for your company if you took a step back and actually spent time thinking.  You’d know where you were on your goals.  You’d have time to think about the future, competitive landscape, trends, growth potential.  You would also feel like you had a better grasp on the company’s direction.  With a roadmap in front of you, you can spend the other time leading and executing effectively.  Who knows, you may even finally get to those training sessions.

Business owners spend too much time focusing on portions of their to-do lists that can be delegated to others. Every CEO wants to be an expert on all things, but let’s face it, sometimes we need a bit of guidance. Luckily some of us seek to assist leaders in creating plans and moving forward to reach their goals. In fact, if you have questions, I’m happy to offer support.

Need help building your corporate strategy in the federal GovCon space?  Feel free to shoot me an email at [email protected]