Sadly, I have to agree. With the now open ended ability to do a single source BPA with no stopping the CO/KO unless an agency FAR supplement requires further approvals or justification it is going to be a game of who you know and being a Schedule holder if you sell anything considered "common products or services". And that will be a lot. Thanks for the thought leadership on this subject.
Wow, thank you for pointing that out, Shauna. I now see that the overhauled Schedule procedures remove the preference for multiple-award BPAs when awarding above $100 mil. It would be an interesting question whether the single-source BPA authority complies with the existing statute on enhancing competition on the Schedule and other multiple-award contracts.
It appears that GSA significantly under-performs with Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business as they (SDVOSBs) tend to be younger and smaller as SD vets themselves are later to the private entrepreneurship market place because they spend years in service to America before their discharge into America's private sector. This may mark the first time in more than a decade that the SDVOSB goal may not be reached going forward, at a time when European Country's are reporting that veteran owned small business are leading the way as Europe rebuilds and qrow's their domestic defense supplier base. Hmm
You're right, Bill--that's a big disparity between what GSA awards on SDVOSB set-asides and what other agencies do. They will have to make a concerted effort to award moreso through SDVOSB to meet their agencies' goals. Thanks for your advocacy.
Sam; Thank you for sharing the insights and the real data. At a recent Conference, I was asked what should we do regarding all the changes in the air, I replied. "Tell the truth" as that is what seems in such short supply these days. Back in my days, Tony I was the GSA point man on SDVOSB contracting, do you know if GSA has such an internal advocate on staff anymore and who they might be?
A note on this data set....there's an important business practice GSA AAS has that impacts its small business outcomes (in terms of spend). AAS doesn't usually take on small procurements. Many procurements are large, over, $25 million life cycle (for FEDSIM awards, over $50 million). AAS followed/follows the same market research and set-aside practices as other procurement offices do, but when you're awarding large procurements a majority of the time, the results won't mirror what you see from other civilian agency procurement offices in government.
Consolidation will likely have impacts on which companies are able to compete for these procurements, but GSA -- or any other agency awarding this work -- will (or could) face a challenge ensuring small businesses can participate.
Sadly, I have to agree. With the now open ended ability to do a single source BPA with no stopping the CO/KO unless an agency FAR supplement requires further approvals or justification it is going to be a game of who you know and being a Schedule holder if you sell anything considered "common products or services". And that will be a lot. Thanks for the thought leadership on this subject.
And there's no five-year limit either! Wow--unlimited amount and unlimited duration.
Wow, thank you for pointing that out, Shauna. I now see that the overhauled Schedule procedures remove the preference for multiple-award BPAs when awarding above $100 mil. It would be an interesting question whether the single-source BPA authority complies with the existing statute on enhancing competition on the Schedule and other multiple-award contracts.
It appears that GSA significantly under-performs with Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business as they (SDVOSBs) tend to be younger and smaller as SD vets themselves are later to the private entrepreneurship market place because they spend years in service to America before their discharge into America's private sector. This may mark the first time in more than a decade that the SDVOSB goal may not be reached going forward, at a time when European Country's are reporting that veteran owned small business are leading the way as Europe rebuilds and qrow's their domestic defense supplier base. Hmm
You're right, Bill--that's a big disparity between what GSA awards on SDVOSB set-asides and what other agencies do. They will have to make a concerted effort to award moreso through SDVOSB to meet their agencies' goals. Thanks for your advocacy.
Sam; Thank you for sharing the insights and the real data. At a recent Conference, I was asked what should we do regarding all the changes in the air, I replied. "Tell the truth" as that is what seems in such short supply these days. Back in my days, Tony I was the GSA point man on SDVOSB contracting, do you know if GSA has such an internal advocate on staff anymore and who they might be?
Very interesting take. Thank you for sharing.
A note on this data set....there's an important business practice GSA AAS has that impacts its small business outcomes (in terms of spend). AAS doesn't usually take on small procurements. Many procurements are large, over, $25 million life cycle (for FEDSIM awards, over $50 million). AAS followed/follows the same market research and set-aside practices as other procurement offices do, but when you're awarding large procurements a majority of the time, the results won't mirror what you see from other civilian agency procurement offices in government.
Consolidation will likely have impacts on which companies are able to compete for these procurements, but GSA -- or any other agency awarding this work -- will (or could) face a challenge ensuring small businesses can participate.
(Note: opinion is my own.)
Great point, Tiffany. Thank you for adding that and for contributing.