Winning the Government Contract

How does a business find more lucrative opportunities? This is a question that all companies face, and in the current economic climate, many construction organizations have found that the answer may be to compete for government business. Not only can government business be a good source of revenue, but it can be a constant source as well.

Although government entities are facing some of the same budgetary cuts as the private sector, the bottom line is that the public always requires a level of service that has to be maintained by those government entities. Many of these services involve the construction industry, and some projects are so massive that contractors need numerous subcontractors to satisfy the needs of the job.

Many government agencies are required to follow compliance guidelines in the vendor selection process. While such guidelines may seem to be a barrier, they can actually be a great advantage to construction companies because they require that the government entity make the project and its specifications public knowledge so that vendors can compete for the business. Additionally, both large and small construction companies have opportunities to win the work.            

In the past, the process of government bidding could be prohibitively difficult. Businesses would spend hours monitoring newspapers or government agency websites to find these opportunities. For the most part, unless the organization was large and had national reach, they would focus only on local opportunities instead of national projects.

Luckily, today a number of subscription-based services exist that are dedicated to providing bid opportunity notifications. Companies are able to easily identify lucrative opportunities both local and national without having to hire a full-time employee to do so.

Depending on the project type, sometimes government agencies are mandated to purchase goods and services from certain types of companies. In these cases, construction companies with established certifications can leverage those certifications and qualifications to win business. For example, many government agencies will consider a vendor’s offer more closely if they have a Small Business or Women-Owned Business Enterprise certification. Specifically, the weight is translated on the government agency’s end as a discount off the vendor’s offer, making it more attractive. However, certifications and potential discounts are specific to each government entity, so it is important to understand the requirements issued per agency when responding to bid opportunities.

In addition, construction companies should be aware of the fact that construction-related government projects are likely to include bid, performance and payment bond percentage requirements. This means that companies need to ensure that all requirements, forms, bonds and information are guaranteed before bidding and are included as part of the offer. When bidding on government work, thoroughness is vital.

The following tips can help companies discover and respond to government bid opportunities:

• Subscribe to one or more fee-based bid notification services. These will allow you to find bid opportunities quickly and easily.
• Fine-tune your offering descriptions and create a profile for your company on the bid notification service. This allows for more-accurate notifications of bids that align with your company’s expertise. Bid notification services should request a wide range of matching criteria to allow you to define what your company does, where you want to work and with whom you want to do business. These criteria allow for tailored notifications so your company receives high-quality leads instead of hundreds or thousands of notifications of jobs for which you are unqualified.    
• Ensure that all information has been meticulously reviewed when responding to bid opportunities, and always include all forms, documents and other items requested by the issuing agency.
• Document all applicable certifications and qualifications. If supporting documentation is requested, make sure to include them as part of the offer response.
• Make resources available to respond to follow-up questions or to attend pre-bid conferences that may be issued by the government agency.

Construction, landscaping, architecture and engineering firms across the country have a tremendous opportunity to seek jobs with government agencies because of the constant stream of projects available. Some of these projects are seasonally recurring, and some are one-off opportunities, but with jobs being announced by government agencies across the country on a daily basis, companies should consider subscribing to a reputable bid notification service. They not only help save time and effort; they create opportunities that otherwise would have gone to the competition. Knowing is half the battle, and in today’s highly competitive climate, the knowledge of government job opportunities can be a powerful weapon in a construction business’s arsenal.