The New Rules of Selling Products to the Government -Wed, March 25, 2015

Selling anything to the federal government has become more complex and more difficult in the era of reverse auctions, LPTA and FSSI.

The New Rules of Selling Products to the Government  will cut through the clutter and give you both the information you need and tactics you can use.

There is limited seating so reserve your seat TODAY by emailing Mark Amtower @ mark@FederalDirect.net.

Wed, March 25, 2015, 8:00 AM-4:00 PM - Maryland Center for Entrepreneurship in Columbia MD.

Featuring two industry icons, Larry Allen of Allen Federal - for 19 years president of the Coalition for Government Procurement, and Mark Amtower, founder of Amtower & Company and the Government Market Master Forum, this session will address 

- the new rules of product procurement, including the rollout of FSSI and how to be part of a winning team

- when (if ever) to use reverse auctions

- low-price, technically acceptable (LPTA) and how to influence the TA part of the equation

- preparing for when FSSI comes to your Schedule

- Simplified Acquisitions

- when, why and how to partner with a reseller

- what your web site really needs to attract federal buyers and get them to buy

- the best lead(list) sources

- SmartPay charge card update

- event and conference selection criteria

- association and special interest group involvement

- how to leverage social media for lead generation (including blogs, videos and podcasts)

- leveraging LinkedIn for account development

and much more.

Together Larry and Mark will provide information you can use - no platitudes, just information you can use to grow your business.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND:
VP Sales, VP Marketing, VP Communications, VP BD, Sales managers

Speaker Information

Larry Allen, president of Allen Federal, former president of the Coalition for Government Procurement and widely recognized as a leading expert on government procurement, GSA issues and the government market. Larry is a member of the SEWP advisory panel (NASA SEWP V).

Mark Amtower, founding partner, Amtower & Company, founder & director, Government Market Master Forum. Amtower has advised hundreds of companies selling products to the government since starting Amtower & Company in 1985. Collectively his clients have made tens of billions of dollars.

March 25, 2015- 8:00 AM-4:00 PM - Teqcorner in McLean, VA

Seats are $595 until COB March 6; after that they go up to $695. Lunch, snacks and beverages will be provided. All attenders receive the 100+ page workbook.

We only have room for 30 attendees- so register today to guarantee your seat!

Advanced registration is required - Call 301 854 9493  or email

markamtower@gmail.com 

Maryland Center for Entrepreneurship, 9250 Bendix Road, Columbia MD 21045

May 5 2014 Deadline: Chief Acquisition Officers Council Opens a procurement Dialogue- Join In!

Offer your thoughts by May 5, 2014  at  http://cxo.dialogue.cao.gov/ 

Direct from the CAOC web site:

The Chief Acquisition Officers Council, in coordination with the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council, the Chief Information Officers Council, and the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP), is conducting a national dialogue to discuss burdens and barriers associated with the federal acquisition process and ways to address them.  This dialogue is part an effort to improve the economy and efficiency of the federal acquisition system by identifying impactful steps that can be taken to make it easier for agencies to do business with the best companies and enter into contracts that allow these companies to provide their best solutions for the taxpayer.

We are anxious to hear from you.  In order to engage in the Open Dialogue, you will need to register as a participant.

To Register, enter your email address in the indicated box on the landing screen.  The Open Dialogue is anonymous, but you must enter your email address to register for the software to enforce its own processing rules.  Your email address is converted to an algorithmically determined identifier by the software and your email address is discarded.

Once you are Logged In or Registered, you may proceed directly to the Tab which best describes your desired action:  Submit a Comment, Browse the Comments (which also allows youto comment on existing Comments or it allows you to vote on Comments for which the moderators have added Voting options.

When you complete your session simply exit the Open Dialogue site.

The following sections will direct you to either the full Federal Register Notice, FAQs that we’ve generated to help you answer questions that might be of interest to you.  The final section is your link to joining the National Dialague.

https://cao.gov/open-dialogue/

and here is the Federal Register Notice:

GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION

[Notice-GSA-OFPP-2014-01; Docket No. 2014-0002; Sequence 15]

Open Dialogue on Improving Federal Procurement

AGENCY:  Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP), General Services Administration (GSA).

ACTION:  Notice.

SUMMARY:  The Chief Acquisition Officers Council (CAOC), in coordination with the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council (FAR Council), the Chief Information Officers Council (CIOC), the General Services Administration (GSA) and the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP), is conducting an open dialogue to discuss improvements to the federal acquisition process.  This dialogue is part an ongoing effort to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the federal acquisition system by identifying impactful steps that can be taken by agencies to improve the way they do business with the best companies and enter into contracts that allow these companies to provide their best solutions for the taxpayer.

DATES:  Effective:  [Insert date of publication in the Federal Register.]

ADDRESSES:  Interested parties may participate in the dialogue through an online platform by reviewing the information and participation dates posted at www.cao.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  Mr. Jim Wade, OFPP, 202-395-2181 or jwade@omb.eop.gov; or Mr. Mathew Blum, OFPP, 202-395-4953, or mblum@omb.eop.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

The President’s Management Agenda lays the foundation for creating a 21^st century government that delivers better results to the American people.  This foundation includes an efficient and effective acquisition system that maximizes the value of every taxpayer dollar.

The federal acquisition system is governed by a myriad of rules, both administrative and statutory, that are designed to help agencies maximize results from their contracts, make sure that contractors are qualified to do business with the federal government, and ensure consistency with key economic and social policies.  Efforts to streamline, modernize, and improve requirements may allow contractors and agencies to execute in a more efficient and effective manner, while still supporting the execution of these policies.

The CAOC, in collaboration with the FAR Council, the CIOC, GSA and OFPP, seeks to conduct an open conversation to identify specific rules and requirements, tools, procedures, and practices that impact the efficiency and effectiveness of federal procurement and ways to improve them.  The CAOC is interested in hearing about proposed improvements that can be accomplished through executive (regulatory, administrative, or management) action, as well as potential legislative proposals where requirements are based in statute.  Dialogue will be encouraged in each of the following areas:

• Reporting and compliance requirements – e.g., opportunities where collection processes and systems can be reengineered or automated, duplicative reporting can be eliminated, the frequency of reporting can be reduced, and outdated compliance thresholds can be changed.
• Procurement practices – e.g., opportunities where acquisition strategies can be modernized (to support more efficient and effective acquisition of IT, in particular), where best commercial practices can be utilized, as well as efforts to promote greater consideration of innovative solutions and contracting practices.
• Participation by small and minority businesses, new entrants, and non-traditional government contractors – e.g., opportunities for improving existing technical or strategic assistance programs, making buying platforms for finding business opportunities and bidding more user friendly, and lowering the cost of doing business.

To facilitate feedback, an online platform is being launched so that interested parties may submit ideas, respond to questions posed by moderators, and comment on other ideas – including those that they think are most promising and impactful.  Information on the platform and the dates for participating in the dialogue are posted at www.cao.gov.

Dated:

/s/

William Clark,

Acting Senior Procurement Executive,

Office of Acquisition Policy,

Office of Government-wide Policy.

Offer your thoughts by May 5, 2014  at  http://cxo.dialogue.cao.gov/ 

Five Areas Contractors Need to Watch in 2013

Five Areas Contractors Need

to Watch in 2013

We live in interesting times.

There have been bad periods for government contractors several times in the 30 years I have been advising companies in this market, but beyond any doubt, these are the strangest and by far the worst of any I have seen.

To successfully stay ahead of the curve, to be as competitive as possible, certain activities must be monitored on a very regular basis. These activities require an investment, sometimes of time, sometimes of money or other resources, and sometimes a combination of several.

But make no mistake, these activities must be closely monitored if you are to remain or become successful.

1-      Careful attention must be paid to how your prospects and customers are being driven in their purchasing. Strategic sourcing is expanding; low-price, technically acceptable is the rallying cry of bean-counters inside OMB and elsewhere; and fixed-price contracting looms. Each of these have serious downsides for the government, but in their cyclic mind frame, they won’t figure this out for the next four or five years. Hundreds, perhaps thousands of companies will be removed from various GSA Schedules by then, and many of those will go out of business as a result. Study these issues carefully and be prepared to deal with each as it encroaches on your niche.

2-      ‘Fraud, waste and abuse’ is yet another rallying cry from those who have little or no clue as to what “common commercial practice” actually is. That does not remove it as a threat to the contracting community. Make certain you are getting the proper legal advice in all areas of contracting: pricing, partnering, prime/sub relations, audit and other activities which raise red flags inside IG offices. I am not saying that contract fraud does not exist, but I am certainly implying that over-zealous government lawyers often don't have a clue as to how the business world operates.

3-       All things “small business”. Small businesses continue to seek sub-contracting and other arrangements with primes, and primes seek to find competent sub-contractors for specific bids. With the number of bills in Congress impacting small business, in particular set-asides, both small and larger business must take into account all the rules impacting how they can work together. It does not appear that Congress, despite all their lip service, will make this easier for anyone. But keep in mind that missteps here can lead to #2 above.

4-      To get away from the pitfalls for a moment, let’s look at social networking. With the temporary demise of some major events sponsored by the government, new ways must be found to identify and influence prospective buyers and other influencers. LinkedIn is particularly well-suited to this task, and while many contractors are here, along with the governmental counterparts, few companies use LinkedIn to its maximum advantage. Invest in some training to see if you are among those missing this particular boat.

5-      Thought leadership has been a hot topic for a few years now, but like social networking, many really do not get what it means and how to develop a thought leadership platform. While many claim to be thought leaders, but few can substantiate the claim. Thought leadership is differentiation on steroids. It is the development of expertise in a niche subject area, and the sharing of that knowledge base in multiple venues throughout a defined community. And still, it is more. It is ultimately the acknowledgment of that community that you are among the thought leaders. You can learn the elements, but you never claim the status without broad recognition from the community.

There are other areas that may need to be monitored for you particular niche, but these five cut across the entire market.

Pay careful attention to the first three and start acting on the final two.

Best of fortunes in 2013.

 

 

GovCon Procurement Changes

I have been advising companies on doing business with the government since 1985, and I have never seen this much turmoil in the market, starting with but certainly not limited to the budget issues, fixed-price contracts, low price/technically acceptable (LPTA) and more.

The good news is the government still needs all the products and services they’ve always purchased. The bad news is how they are buying is changing, especially on GSA Schedules. If you are not totally aware of everything that is going on, you may be severely handicapped in how you sell to Uncle Sam. Worst case scenario- you could lose your ability to sell to the feds.

The next several months will be crucial for your business!

If you sell via GSA, do you know GSA recently announced the intention of cleaning up the outdated and oversaturated GSA Multiple Award Schedules program?  GSA’s goal is to move to a “Demand Based Model” that would maximize the use of GSA’s limited internal resources.

According to GSA memos and information from other sources, these are the pending changes which may be coming to the GSA Schedules:

1.         Ending contracts that are not meeting minimum sales criteria (contracts with vendors that are not performing on specific Schedules)

2.         Deleting some outdated Special Item Numbers (SINs) and/or entire Schedules

3.         Closing overpopulated GSA Schedules to new offers for annual periods of time.

While each of these may be valid, they impact the current landscape in a big way.

Add to this the current and upcoming Federal Strategic Sourcing BPAs (Schedule 75 and others), and there truly major shift in progress.

Understanding what the issues are is the beginning of developing ways to ensure you maintain more of your government accounts than your competition.

I am looking for up to 8 companies that sell products to the government to advise and work with between now and the end of the year to ensure each company understands the issues and are fully prepared to succeed despite the changes.

If you’d like to see the complete details for this five month program, let me know & I will send them ASAP.

Absolutely the best-

Mark Amtower

mark@federaldirect.net