By Debbie Gregory

Veterans are uniquely qualified to secure government contracts due to the skills and experience they obtained during their military careers. Every year, the federal government spends approximately $500 billion on goods and services.  To maintain a level playing field, the Small Business Administration (SBA) works with federal agencies to ensure that at least 23% of all prime government contracts are awarded to small businesses. These are called “set- asides.”

For Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSB), set-aside contracts can present outstanding opportunities.

There are two types of set-aside contracts: competitive set-asides and sole-source set-asides. With competitive set-asides, at least two small businesses may perform the work or provide the products being purchased, the government sets aside the contract exclusively for small businesses. With few exceptions, this happens automatically for all government contracts under $150,000.

Sole-source contracts are the type of contract that may be issued without a competitive bidding process. This usually happens in situations when only a single business can fulfill the requirements of a specific contract.

Pursuant to the SBA website, In order to qualify for the disabled veterans’ business program, your business must:

• Be a small business
• Be at least 51% owned and controlled by one or more service-disabled veterans
• Have one or more service-disabled veterans manage day-to-day operations and also make long-term decisions
• Eligible veterans must have a service-connected disability

The certification process varies depending on the SBA contracting program. In some cases, you may self-represent your business to the federal government as being owned by a service-disabled veteran.  You need to update the socio-economic status section of your business profile at in the System for Award Management (SAM) at http:www.sam.gov.

The VA sets aside contracts for veterans through their Veterans First Contracting Program. Their program is not the same as the SBA’s program. To obtain access to set-aside Veterans Affairs contracts, your business must be verified through the Vets First Verification Program at https://www.va.gov/osdbu/verification/

Veteran and Military Business Owners Association, VAMBOA,

By Debbie Gregory.

It’s tax time again, and many Americans who are uncomfortable with doing their own tax returns will hire a third party to do them. While there are many legitimate professional tax preparers who have solid reputations, not all tax preparers have your best interests at heart.

For example, the “Go Navy Tax Service” company, which was deemed off limits by the Marine Corps and located near Marine Base Camp Pendleton in California.  It is alleged that this would lure young Marines with promises of free tax preparation and other perks and subject them to high-pressure sales tactics to get them to deposit their refunds into various financial products.

There are very limited requirements for any type of certification, training, registration, or competency testing for tax preparers.  Anyone who is paid to prepare or assist in preparing federal tax returns must have a valid Preparer Tax Identification Number but that is about it.

There are three areas to check out when looking into a someone to prepare your taxes.   They include how long the preparer has been doing taxes, how much experience they have, and how they are making their money by doing your return.

In addition to the above alleged tactic used by Go Navy Tax Service, other red flags include a return with creative deductions, or any fabricated information in order to increase the size of your refund, or a “cash only” payment policy. Be wary of anyone promising large refunds.

Do not under any circumstances sign a blank return or allow your refund to be deposited into any bank account other than your own. Always double-check the tax forms before signing them and mailing or e-filing them. You’re the one who has to answer if you are audited by the IRS, and you could be in serious trouble for providing fraudulent information. Double check both the routing number and the account number to make sure they are yours and the refund is not going to anyone else.

Of course everyone wants to receive the largest refund possible, but don’t let the promise of a big payoff keep you from doing a thorough check on your tax preparer.

Many military installations and numerous community locations offer free tax preparation assistance through the IRS’ Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) programs.

For more military-specific resources, visit the IRS military page at https://www.irs.gov/individuals/military

Veteran and Military Business Owners Association, VAMBOA,

By Debbie Gregory.

One can start a business at any age.   When you are young, there clearly is more time to recover if things don’t work out.  At the same time, many younger Veterans are raising their families and cannot afford to take some of the risks associated with entrepreneurship and beginning a new business.     When one is more mature in years and life, often it comes with more time, experience, knowledge and financial stability.  It may be the perfect time to begin a new venture as a Veteran Business Owner.  Older Business Owners bring a lot of assets.  Can you imagine a dream team of both older and younger joining forces to start a Veteran Owned Business?  Below are some of the assets that older Veteran Business Owners bring:

• Financial Stability  – They  have had more time to build up savings and invest your money. As a result, they likely have more money to invest in a business without it being as a big of a risk.   They are often done with mortgages, car payments and college expenses.   It is much easier to secure investments and get loans with better terms as an older business owner too.
• They Know What You Want Now – Older Veteran Business Owners have had more time to consider what type of business they want to begin.  They know themselves better, what they like to do, what they are good at doing and can create a business that is the right fit for them.
• Their Level of Experience – Hands down older Veteran Business Owners have more experience than younger Veteran Business Owners.  They have already made more mistakes and can use this experience to avoid them in the future.  Their level of insight is much greater than someone younger without the same life, work and business experiences.  They understand how important it  is to have a comprehensive business plan or roadmap.  Additionally, they also understand how important it is to live within their means and adhere to their budget.
• Networking & Connections – They have been living life longer and have a much larger professional network of connections that are established in specialty areas of technology, finance and accounting, legal, marketing and more that can be a network of excellent “go to experts”.

I love the combination of young and more mature entrepreneurs joining forces.  Younger entrepreneurs have grown up with the latest technology and understand how to make it work.   Often older entrepreneurs make awesome mentors too.  They have a special level of energy and enthusiasm and a completely different point of view.  If you combine younger entrepreneurs with entrepreneurs with greater maturity who are more financially secure, with experiences and established connections, it can be a winning team.

We invite you to join VAMBOA, the Veterans and Military Business Owners Association.  Membership if free and here is the link to join:  https://vamboa.org/member-registration/

By Debbie Gregory.

Prime contractors work directly with the government. They are responsible for ensuring that the work is completed as defined in the contract. But most prime contractors work with subcontractors. In fact, some government contracts actually require large companies to subcontract with a small business. This creates more opportunities for small businesses to get involved in federal contracting.

So, what do you need to do to become a subcontractor?

The first step is to make sure you have all of your company’s registrations and ID numbers. This includes your Dun & Bradstreet (DUNS) registration, your System of Award Management (SAM) registration, including your NAICS codes (a free and user-friendly process) and any other designations that may qualify your business for set-asides, such as veteran-owned, service disabled veteran owned, woman owned, minority owned, etc. Keep in mind that a 51% ownership stake is required on the part of one or more of the business owners to be certified as eligible for one or more of the set-asides.

Make sure you have access to sufficient financing to cover the period between beginning the work and receiving invoice payments. You will likely be required to demonstrate the availability of this financing prior to being awarded a subcontract.

Next, identify the major prime contractors that do significant work for federal agencies where there may be a logical fit for the services you provide. There are a number of ways to identify these potential targets such as FBO.gov and the Department of Defense’s (DoD) Subcontracting Opportunity Directory.

Research the company and identify not only the contracts they have performed but also their small business and diversity initiatives, main mission and vision. Identify the Small Business Liaison Officer or Diversity Officer within the company and ask specific questions about identifying bidding opportunities. Have a targeted capabilities statement ready, identify the areas that you believe you could assist with, note specific projects that they worked on and discuss where you would be an asset.

Be sure to follow up. Remember, there is one of them and thousands of you, so you have to make sure you do what it takes to make them know YOU.

Veteran and Military Business Owners Association, VAMBOA,

By Debbie Gregory.

Government contracts can be very lucrative, and that’s the reason why so many big companies go after them. You may be wondering what separates the small firms that win government contracts from the ones that don’t?

First and foremost, before you invest your time, money and energy, make sure you’re selling what a federal agency is buying. It’s not uncommon for firms to invest tens of thousands of dollars in prep work applying for government contracts. You wouldn’t want to waste those resources if your product/service is not something they’re in the market for. Uncover their needs and deliver a proposal that solves their problem.

The federal government will want to see that you’re financially sustainable and reliable. Is your business financially healthy, and do your financials show positive cash flow? Does your company or any of its principals owe back taxes? Address these areas before presenting your business to procurement officials.

Small or new contractors should find teammates, alliance partners or mentors with whom they have a business and cultural compatibility. Doing so spreads the risk, extends the experience and gives them a much deeper bench of talent. This is especially important if you haven’t yet attained a proven track record of past performances with customers. Make sure your staff is able to respond to the demands of the contract. Consider outsourcing services if necessary.

Make yourself known to government agencies. Attend as many outreach events as you can. These events are excellent opportunities to meet key personnel as well as strategic partners for future collaboration. Network with your peers and other like-minds to bounce ideas off of or seek experienced advice.  Create brand consistency. Make sure your website, all of your marketing collateral and social media sites represent and reflect your organization in the best light.

Make sure that you have a strong, compelling and solutions-driven capability statement that focuses on your organization’s strengths. Identify what makes your company unique. What do you have that others don’t? Technology? Inventions? Patents?  Methodologies? Find a differentiator and highlight it. Be sure to include your certifications.

Remember, the government values past performance above almost all other criteria. If you win a bid, do a great job so that you can use that agency as a reference of past performance, and continue building your government business one contract win at a time.

Veteran and Military Business Owners Association, VAMBOA,