Government Contracting Insights

I've done over $75M in government contracts. My students have done over $100M in just 5 years through the GovCon Winners® strategy. These are the 10 biggest lessons I've learned: 1. You'll Never Arrive: Regulations shift. Agencies restructure. Administrations change priorities. The contractors who last are the ones who never stop adapting. 2. There's No Fast Money Here: The revenue potential is real and significant. But it's earned through consistent execution over time. Short-term thinking doesn't just slow you down, it creates risk you won't see coming until it's expensive. 3. Winning a Contract Is Not the Business: Winning proves you can sell. Delivering profitably — on time, within scope, with vendors paid — is what builds a business. Most people prepare obsessively for the win and show up unprepared for everything after. 4. Cash Flow Will Make or Break You Before Strategy Does: Payment delays are not exceptions. They are the norm. Without access to capital or a plan for funding operations, growth becomes a liability instead of an asset. 5. You Cannot Delegate Accountability: Middlemanning is legitimate, but the contract is in your name. A working knowledge of proposals, pricing, and scope isn't optional — it's what separates operators from order-takers. 6. The Learning Tax Is Real, Keep It Low: Pricing errors, bad partnerships, compliance gaps, early mistakes are inevitable. The objective isn't to avoid them entirely. It's to shorten the cycle, extract the lesson, and not repeat them. 7. Vet Everyone, Especially the People Who Feel Like a Safe Bet: Familiarity is not due diligence. Some of the most costly partnerships come from people who present alignment first and expose capability gaps later. Check cage codes. Get teaming agreements in writing. Trust is earned through track record. 8. Pricing Is a Judgment Call, Not a Formula: No fixed percentage will save you. Effective pricing reflects your cost structure, your risk exposure, and what the market has historically paid. It requires data, iteration, and the willingness to leave work on the table when the margin isn't there. 9. "Oversaturated" Is a Narrative, Not a Market Condition: Most federal opportunities attract fewer than 20 qualified bidders. When results aren't coming, the problem is almost never competition. It's strategy, positioning, or execution — all of which are fixable. 10. Mindset is a Massive Operational Advantage: Scarcity thinking produces cautious bids and weak proposals. The contractors operating at scale share one thing: they make decisions, move forward, and correct in motion. They swing big. The market rewards people who learn, apply, adjust, REPEAT.

In 25+ years in procurement, I saw great suppliers lose business while weaker competitors won. At a recent keynote, I shared why. Price mattered. The product mattered. Yet neither was usually the deciding factor. Many suppliers believe they are competing against other suppliers. Often, they are competing against: ▪️ An incumbent supplier ▪️ A stakeholder who doesn’t support the change ▪️ A project that keeps getting delayed ▪️ A buyer worried about implementation risk ▪️ A business that decides to do nothing The suppliers who lost often: ▪️ Talked about themselves instead of the customer’s challenges ▪️ Focused on procurement while ignoring key stakeholders ▪️ Waited for the tender instead of building relationships earlier ▪️ Sold features when the customer was focused on risk One lesson stayed with me throughout my procurement career: If people like you, they’ll listen to you. If they trust you, they’ll do business with you. Every contract is ultimately a transfer of risk. The supplier who reduces that risk is often the supplier wins Follow Linda Reddy for more

Most small defense companies struggle to effectively conduct BD in the govcon space because they approach from a sales rather than a capture perspective. Sales pipelines have stages: prospecting, qualification, demo, proposal, close. I am a fan of a well run CRM and hove no problem with stages, per se. However, when companies default to believing the deal actually follows these steps they risk missing key government actions that indicate whether or not there will ever be a close. You see, it’s tough to sell anything to the government because it does not buy so much as it procures. Procurement is better thought of as the output of four processes. 𝗥𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁: someone has to define the problem in way that would compel decision makers to prioritize resourcing. This is often expressed in risk to mission or risk to force. 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁: someone has to choose the contract strategy and create everything from RFI’s to solicitations in Sole Source or full and open competitions. 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴: someone has to align money in the right color and the right year. 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆: someone has to decide this matters enough to push the other three forward. These are the four Mountains in my Capture Doctrine. They are often separate but inherently inseparable. At each step there is opportunity for shaping but rarely a clear opportunity to “close the deal.” Capture is the discipline of influencing each of the four Mountains as they come together. Sales is what happens when and after the contract is awarded. Treating capture as sales is the most common reason small companies waste effort and money in govcon. The CRM has a Close Date, often the date a purchase order is received. There are a dozen mini-closes along the way of aligning requirement, contract, funding, and priority before a purchase order is received. A capture may have a series of important events to check off that occur asynchronously. Capture work looks different. For each pursuit, you should be able to name the office that owns the Requirement, the office holding the Funding, the contract vehicle in play, and the person putting time against the Priority. You also need to know the customer processes that pull those four into alignment. If you cannot name them, that is your homework. Those gaps are your risk areas, and often your shaping opportunities. The point is knowing where you have influence on each Mountain, where you do not, and what you can do this quarter to move things along.

My Big Bets for Government and Public Sector Contractors In 2026! In 2026 the public sector isn’t looking for “vendors.” It’s looking for certainty. Budgets are tight, scrutiny is higher, expectations are faster and the winners in government contracting will be the service providers who make buying (and operating) feel low-risk. Here are my big bets for selling services into government in 2026: 1) Proof beats promises - Case studies with measurable outcomes will out sell big claims every time; response times, service levels, user satisfaction, compliance scores, and cost-to-serve. 2) Implementation is the product - The fastest path to “yes” is a clear transition plan; mobilization timeline, governance, onboarding, training, comms and a named credible delivery lead. 3) Compliance is a growth strategy - If you can translate policy into operational reality, security, data handling, audit trails, accessibility, you don’t just meet requirements… you become the safe choice. 4) Service resilience will be a differentiator - Redundancy, surge capacity, continuity plans, and operational transparency. Buyers want to know “What happens when it goes wrong at 2am?” 5) Tech-enabled services will pull away, not “AI” as a buzzword - automation that improves service; faster scheduling, fewer failures, better reporting, cleaner workflows, better user experience. My take: 2026 will reward service providers who de-risk delivery, not just price.

❓ Ever wonder why some businesses win government contracts repeatedly while others struggle? It’s not just luck—it’s understanding the Government Bid Contract Life Cycle.   Too often, I see entrepreneurs jump straight into bidding without knowing how the process really works. The result? Confusion, wasted time, missed opportunities, lost revenue & frustration. Create a winning strategy by understanding the 3 phases of the government contract life cycle, Pre-Award, Award, & Post-Award. Each cycle requires different levels of effort, stakeholder identification, & communication strategies to be successful. Here’s a breakdown of the some of the key actions every business should master to improve their chances of success throughout the contract life cycle. I’ve also attached a chart for your reference. ✅ Pre-Award 1. Market Research & Opportunity Identification 2. Identifying the right customer to focus on. 3. Create marketing assets to help buyers understand how you solve problems. 4. Meet with small business representatives & contracting officers 5. Solicitation & Proposal Development 💡 Pro Tip: Start engaging with government stakeholders before an RFP is released. Relationships matter! You must build authentic connections & gain trust with decision makers. 💡 Pro Tip: If you’re hearing about an opportunity for the first time when the RFP drops, you’re already behind. Engage early! Keep your SAM registration current. 💡 Pro Tip: The best proposals are customer-focused, data-driven, and EASY to evaluate. Make the evaluator’s job simple! Follow proposal instructions and evaluation criteria. ✅ Evaluation & Award- After submission, the agency evaluates proposals based on criteria like technical approach, past performance, and price. 1. Be prepared for clarifications, discussions, or negotiations 2. Understand why competitors win or lose (debriefs are gold for future success) 💡 Pro Tip: Learn how to receive feedback. Use debriefs to refine your strategy and come back stronger. ✅ Post-Award Execution & Contract Management Winning is just the beginning. Now, you have to deliver: 1. Meet performance requirements & deadlines 2. Maintain compliance & reporting 💡 Pro Tip: Your performance today determines whether you win tomorrow’s contracts. Strong contract management = repeat business. Final Thoughts Winning government contracts isn’t just about submitting proposals—it’s about strategy, relationships, and execution at every stage. If you’re serious about growing in this space, start by learning what is required for each part of the life cycle, engage early, and be consistent, and follow-up. 💬 Which stage do you find most challenging? Drop a comment below! #GovernmentContracting #GovCon #SmallBusiness #FederalContracts #Entrepreneurship #BidToWin #smallbusiness #entrepreneur

I keep giving founders the same advice, and it makes most of them flinch: make the government your first customer. It's one of the most underused plays in early-stage building, and I don't just theorize about it. I recently sat down with a founder, who ran this exact play. "A government contract is non-dilutive capital. We funded our first two hires off it instead of selling a piece of the company." "Past performance is currency. One contract, done well, becomes the reference that wins the next three." Government revenue is non-dilutive, credibility-rich, and stickier than any commercial logo. If you're starting to think through this angle, a few places to begin: 1. Start with the mission match. Which agency is already funded to solve the problem you solve? Sell to that mandate. 2. Find the small door. SBIR/STTR grants, pilots, state and local contracts, or subcontracting under a prime — you don't need to win a massive federal deal on day one. 3. Register where the money lives. Get set up on SAM.gov (and your state portal) so you're eligible before the opportunity appears, not after. 4. Read real solicitations now. Pull a few RFPs in your space and study how they're written and scored. That's your product spec. 5. Treat the proposal as the deliverable. You're not graded on the best tech, you're graded on answering exactly what they asked, in exactly the way they scored it. Compliance first, brilliance second. 6. Bank your first "past performance." Even a tiny contract, delivered well, becomes the reference that unlocks the next three. Full conversation in the video below 🎥 What are your tips for pursuing the government as a first customer? #NonDilutive #GovCon #Startups #Founders #Funding

Most Businesses Fail at Government Contracting. These are the 5 Mistakes I see the most often.. Breaking into the federal marketplace can be a game-changer for small businesses, but success requires a strategic approach. Many businesses stumble because they fail to navigate the unique complexities of government contracting. Here are the top 5 mistakes and how to avoid them: 1. Starting with the Solicitation Many businesses make the mistake of waiting for RFPs or RFQs to hit the market. By then, it’s often too late to influence the outcome. Relationships and meetings win contracts—and that starts in the market research phase. Engaging with government buyers early through Sources Sought and RFIs can put you ahead of the competition. 2. Not Having a Trained Sales Team Selling to the government is vastly different from commercial sales. Without a sales team trained in federal processes, from understanding FAR clauses to navigating SAM gov, businesses risk wasted time and missed opportunities. A specialized team is essential for success. 3. Failing to Research Federal Spending Does the government buy what you sell? If so, how much do they spend, and which agencies are purchasing? Too many businesses jump into federal contracting without understanding demand. Research tools like USAspending.gov provide the insights needed to validate your market and target efforts effectively. 4. Not Knowing Who Buys and How They Buy Winning contracts isn’t just about what you sell—it’s about understanding who buys it and how they prefer to buy. Different offices have different procurement methods, from GSA schedules to sole-source contracts. Learning these nuances is key to tailoring your strategy. 5. Underestimating the Timeline Government contracts don’t happen overnight. The process, from initial engagement to award, can take 6-18 months. Businesses that lack patience or fail to plan for the long sales cycle often burn out before seeing results. Avoid these pitfalls and set your business up for success in the federal market. Government contracting is complex, but with the right strategy, relationships, and team in place, the opportunities are endless. What challenges have you faced in government contracting? Share your experiences in the comments below!

Why first-timers struggle to win government bids - and what you can do about it. The founder of a disruptive company asked me why most government contracts seem to go to established companies. Here's what most first-timers and challengers get wrong: ✅ They put all their effort and trust into one golden opportunity. This is like shooting a silver-bullet. There is no silver-bullet. As everything in life, success is typically the result of effort, learning cycles, and strategic focus. ✅ They chase the wrong opportunity: New contractors often bid on high-value, complex tenders. With strong competition, entranched incumbents. Where track record is critical. Instead, start with smaller, niche contracts, where innovation and competitive pricing can win over experience. ✅ They underestimate paperwork. Winning a public tender is mostly about what you write, rather than what you do. Writing a proposal is a significant investment. Each tender requires compliance documentation, financial statements, and detailed technical documentation. Budget time accordingly. ✅ They misunderstand government priorities. Unlike private companies, governments care about more than only price. They consider political factors, social impact, and long-term value. This kind of political concern doesn’t usually matter to private companies, but it’s critical for governments. For example, the EU now emphasizes “sovereign” products, like sovereign cloud. They're concerned about U.S. companies like Microsoft, Google, IBM, and Amazon controlling key parts of the EU’s digital infrastructure. Some tenders even exclude companies from certain regions. For instance, in the Digital Euro project, the European Central Bank only accepted bids from EU-controlled companies. Government tenders may also favor specific groups, like SMEs, NGOs, female founders, or university spin-offs. To win these bids, your proposal should highlight things like sustainability, public health, consumer protection, local hiring, environmental impact, and other social benefits. ✅ They lack market intelligence: Successful contractors research the buying authority's history. Which suppliers have they used before? What's their typical contract size? What are their preferred technologies and past projects? What secondary benefits do they value? 💡 The solution isn't just better proposals: You need better opportunity qualification. Focus on contracts where your company matches what the buyer actually awards. Go for the blue-ocean strategy. At Hermix, we help companies identify these patterns before they invest months of effort in unsuitable bids. The data shows clear preferences in government buying behavior once you know where to look.