Business Issues: When Sources Are Sought, Speak Up By Thomas D. Johnson Contractors know that the best ways to position the company for a win are (1) get in front of the program offices; (2) get information on an opportunity before it “reaches the street;” and (3) get the opportunity set aside to reduce the amount of competition. Yet very few contractors utilize their best opportunity to accomplish all three objectives. Every day contracting officers post “Sources Sought” listings in FedBizOpps. These listings are the government’s way of doing market research—identifying potential small businesses that are capable of doing the work. The Sources Sought listing announces a possible requirement well before the RFP is advertised. It explains what product or service is needed and gives industry a chance to suggest alternatives to the government’s intended approach. It may be months before the actual requirement hits the street as an RFP, but by responding to the Sources Sought, you can become part of the dialog with the contracting agency. The responses are shared with the program offices. The program officials will see your capabilities statement, will read of your experience and your interest in responding to the statement of work, and may even be inclined to hone the requirement to the capabilities of those who respond. Since the RFP is not yet advertised, the rules restricting government-industry communications about a specific bid are not yet in force. Consequently, there may be opportunities for respondents to meet with program and contracting officials, make presentations, ask and answer questions, and discuss options before the Statement of Work is in final form. Without your input, the contracting officer has no evidence that a small business or an SDV, HUBZone or 8(a) company is capable of doing the work. Furthermore, the contracting officer can only justify setting aside an opportunity if at least two companies respond. At many of our Federal Contracting Forums, our speakers have pleaded with small businesses to respond to the Source Sought notices. Jodie Paustian of IRS, Jeanette Brown of EPA and Tracey Pinson of Army have made it clear that they can’t negotiate on behalf of small businesses if there are no responses to these requests. Most of these notices require some work to create an appropriate response. Usually there is a specific set of instructions that will help the government know that you are capable and experienced. It’s not good enough to just send your standard one- or two-page capabilities statement. For the small business officials to be convinced that you can do the work, you must customize the response to satisfy the instructions. Otherwise, it’s all for naught—a waste of your time and a disappointment for them. On February 5 there were 77 Sources Sought notices posted on www.FedBizOpps.gov. They were posted by a wide variety of military and civilian agencies, geographically dispersed across the country. They included requirements for products, services, R&D, construction, repair and maintenance. Frequently the responses are limited to five, or even fewer, pages. This should not represent a big burden on any organization since a portion of it is always going to be boilerplate, but be sure to respond to the specifics of the request so you can position your firm as an active candidate. When you are preparing the respond, think of it as your chance to reach the program office and write with that focus. You want to give the program official confidence that small business can do the job. At the same time, you’ll be giving the small business official the ammunition needed to set that opportunity aside. Thomas D. Johnson is the publisher of Set-Aside Alert.