Celebrating Women’s Small Business Month
By Kristie Arslan, WIPP Executive Director Women now more than ever are turning to entrepreneurship to take charge of their own career trajectory. According to American Express OPEN’s 2014 State of Women-Owned Businesses Report , it is estimated that there are nearly 9.1 million women-owned businesses in the United States, generating over $1.4 trillion in revenues and employing nearly 7.9 million people. As we celebrate Women’s Small Business Month this October, it is important to highlight the progress women business owners have made but also shed . . . Read More
Another Potential Option for Disappointed Bidders in LPTA Procurements
By Alex Levine In today’s contracting atmosphere, government agencies are increasingly relying on procurements conducted on a lowest-priced, technically-acceptable (“LPTA”) basis. It is not uncommon in such competitions for the winning offeror to be the contractor that did not fully understand the solicitation requirements. In such a scenario, the winning offeror submits a price far below that of the other offerors based on its flawed understanding of what is required under the awarded contract. Such low-ball pricing presents a distinct . . . Read More
Function over Form: The Impact of Separate Stock Classes on Veteran-Owned Firms
In my recent blog post about Employee Stock Ownership Plans (“ESOPS”), I discussed how the plans are treated differently under the Department of Veterans Affairs ’ program (the “VA Program”) for Veteran-Owned and Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses versus the Small Business Administration’s (“SBA”) program (the “SBA Program”) for Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business Concern (“SDVO SBCs”). Just recently, the SBA issued an SDVO SBC status determination which confirms that shares of stock held in an ESOP are treated as outstanding stock under the SBA Program, which is not always the case . . . Read More
Relying on an Affiliate for Past Performance to Win A Contract
Government contractors work hard to please their customers not only to fulfill their contractual obligations but also to establish a solid past performance record and to secure more work. When a company lacks past performance experience, it can find itself at a significant competitive disadvantage against its competitors. Companies without track records often try to address the problem by relying on the experience of an affiliated entity. The affiliate could be a new company they have acquired or, for example, . . . Read More
Mediation: The Conflict Resolution of Choice for Many Business Disputes
Chances are that your company, at some point, has entered into a contract that contains a provision requiring that the parties engage in a form of alternative dispute resolution (“ADR”) either in lieu of, or prior to, instituting a lawsuit to settle a dispute. Contractual ADR provisions usually call for the parties to either engage in binding arbitration, typically under the auspices of the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”), or to submit the matter to non-binding mediation prior to filing suit. It is a . . . Read More
SBA Regulation Invalidated by Court of Federal Claims: Nonmanufacturer Rule Applies to Supply Portions of Service Contracts
It has been the common understanding within the U.S. Small Business Administration (“SBA”), and the small business government contracting community as a whole, that the nonmanufacturer rule applies only to contracts for the provision of supplies (i.e., goods) and not to service contracts, regardless of whether or not such service contracts have a supply component. This understanding was even memorialized in a regulatory change that SBA made in 2011 whereby the agency stated that the nonmanufacturer rule did not apply . . . Read More
The Ins and Outs of NAICS Code Appeals
By Katie Flood In this time of heightened competition on all federal procurements, it is critically important that small business contractors use the tools at their disposal to help them stay competitive and secure work. While agencies are able to “set-aside” work for small businesses, a fundamental aspect of these set-asides ends up being the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes and the corresponding size standards which must be assigned. The NAICS code determines the industry which “best describes” the work to be performed . . . Read More
SBA’s Template for Joint Venture Agreements – Is it OK to Use for your 8(a) Joint Venture?
By Kimi Murakami The answer as to whether 8(a) firms can use the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (“SBA”) joint venture (“JV”) agreement template seems to depend on which SBA District Office your small business is governed by. Recently, some of our small business clients that are governed by the SBA’s Washington Metropolitan Area District Office received notice from their Business Opportunity Specialist (“BOS”) that the agency’s template for JV agreements would no longer be accepted. It is unclear whether this is true for all SBA . . . Read More
Attract and Retain Top Talent When You Cannot Compete Straight Up on Cash
One of the biggest challenges that a business owner may face is attracting and retaining top talent to help drive value and build their company. There are a variety of employee incentive compensation tools that can be used to attract and retain talent. Business owners need to consider: Which type of employee incentive tools will work best for that particular business owner’s company? To answer that question, a business owner needs to drill down on what goal is to be . . . Read More
Skipping Intervention in a GAO Bid Protest Can Be a “Pound Foolish” Exercise
Virtually everyone agrees that bid protests before the U.S. Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) are valuable tools to ensure the integrity, fairness, consistency, and predictability of the federal procurement system. However, for awardees of federal contracts, bid protests by their competitors are often a frustrating and costly process that can cause delays and uncertainties for their future operations. Because of the costs and distractions to the business, it is not uncommon for contractors—particularly those who are small—to choose not to intervene or otherwise participate in . . . Read More