Foundations of Federal Business Development
This Government Business Development course provides essential skills in professional business development for contractors selling services and solutions to the Federal Government. It begins with an overview of the Federal business development (BD) process and what it takes to succeed in the profession, followed by the fundamentals of U.S. Government business. The course then covers the nuances of Government contracting that every Federal business developer must understand—such as small business socioeconomic program rules and how to leverage them strategically, even if your company does not directly qualify for their benefits.
You’ll also learn practical market research techniques to identify Federal agencies as target customers and build a strong opportunity pipeline. The course covers how to set opportunity search criteria, prioritize must-win pursuits, and use both free and paid Government market tools effectively. It then explores business development planning strategies, Federal customer engagement, and marketing approaches that help you become a trusted adviser. Finally, it introduces capture management concepts to prepare you for proposal writing and winning contracts.
Foundations of Federal Business Development
Original price was: $1,195.00.$777.00Current price is: $777.00.
Gain a deep understanding of the Federal Business Development life cycle and learn how to navigate the U.S. Government marketplace with confidence. You’ll perform strategic business development planning, explore Government market research and analysis, master Federal marketing and sales, understand the complexities of opportunity pipeline development, and learn how to qualify opportunities effectively — all to maximize your Government contract win probability.
This self-paced course features interactive exercises and real-world scenarios that help you practice and apply each step of the Government Business Development process.
The experts who designed this course are highly experienced, currently practicing Federal proposal professionals with years of success in Government acquisition and training. Through the course content, they share practical insights and actionable strategies based on current industry realities to help you succeed in your business development role.
Course Curriculum
Learning Objectives
By taking this Federal Business Development Training, the participants will learn and practice skills in:
- Understanding what skill sets and qualities it takes to succeed in the Federal Business Development profession.
- Getting and maintaining Government contractor registrations.
- Navigating Federal regulations.
- Taking advantage of the Government’s socioeconomic program benefits.
- Leveraging the SBA and other agencies’ Mentor-Protégé Programs.
- Correctly determining company’s business size and understanding its importance.
- Leveraging different forms of selling to the Federal Government.
- Understanding the rules for Government source selection and contract awards.
- Performing market research to identify target Federal agencies, Government contacts, key competitors, teaming partners, and bid opportunities.
- Building a solid Government bid opportunities pipeline.
- Using bid pipeline tools effectively beyond FedBizOpps and FedConnect.net.
- Qualifying a bid opportunity to ensure the highest Pwin.
- Setting strategies for winning bids for Government contracts.
- Calculating business development budget.
- Identifying Must-Win bid opportunities.
- Securing visits to Government customers.
- Understanding the rules of marketing to the Federal Government.
- Building effective relationships with Government officials.
- Developing business development collateral such as a high-impact Government capability statement.
- Identifying venues for effective federal business development.
- Targeting a potential teammate.
- Understanding capture management that’s required to win a Government bid.
Day 1 Highlights
Module 1: How to Succeed in Business Development
- Federal business development lifecycle.
- Four categories of actions for growth Government contractors have to take to succeed in the Federal marketplace.
- A perfect Federal Business Developer: how to become the secret weapon for your Government contracting company’s (and career’s) explosive growth.
- Federal Business Development skill set and essential qualities.
Module 2: Foundations of Federal Contracting
- The basics of doing business with the Government.
- Taking care of registrations (whether you are new to Government business or not).
- Minding your D&B rating and PAYDEX score.
- Federal market snapshot: who are the target agencies and Government buyers, and how to identify them.
- How to navigate the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) and Government agency guidelines like a pro.
Module 3: Government Procurement Process
- Government budgeting cycle and why it is important to understand it.
- Complex procurement process.
- Determining your target agency’s acquisition process.
Module 4: Socioeconomic Programs
- Small and disadvantaged business types in the socioeconomic program.
- Using socioeconomic programs to your advantage (small business, HUBZone, 8(a), WOSB/EDWOSB, SDVOSB, VOSB, etc.)
- Qualifying for an 8(a) and HUBZone programs.
- Benefits and pitfalls of the 8(a) and HUBZone programs.
- The scoop on SBA and other Mentor-Protege Programs, including what to ask from your mentor.
- Determining your business size using NAICS codes, and why size makes a difference in Government procurement.
- Primary and secondary NAICS selection strategy.
- Exercise: Using a case study, determine what the company is missing in order for it to succeed in the Federal Government Market.
Module 5: How the Government Enters into Contracts with Industry
- Forms of selling to the Federal Government.
- Competitive outlook in Government procurement to determine the market openness for your offerings.
- Government purchasing thresholds and micro-purchasing.
- Five tests to determine whether you need a GSA schedule.
- Government contract types and why they are important.
- Goals of Government business development and capture.
- Single award competitions.
- Multiple award contracts.
- Sole source awards.
- Becoming a Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) supplier.
- Reverse auctions.
- Grants.
- Public-private partnerships.
- R&D-related vehicles such as SBIR solicitations.
- Evaluation factors on the Best Value Continuum, from Lowest Price Technically Acceptable (LPTA) to Best Value Tradeoffs.
Scenario-based Discussion: Discuss strategies for Government procurement at different purchasing thresholds and evaluation criteria.
Module 6: Market Research to Find Customers for Your Company: Identifying agencies that buy what your company sells
- Identifying top Government contractors for the agency.
- Conducting Government market research like a professional analyst.
- Performing an initial competitive analysis.
- Finding Government contacts.
- Getting maximum help from OSDBUs, vendor outreach events, and other methods of entering Government agencies.
- Exercise: Research a customer and competitors based on a company’s core capabilities.
Module 7: How to Build Your Federal Opportunity Pipeline
- Creating a balanced pipeline that’s an engine of explosive business growth.
- Implementing an integrated, multifaceted approach to find Government bid opportunities.
- How to use pipeline tools effectively beyond FedBizOpps (FBO.gov) and FedConnect.net.
- Where to register to receive bid notices.
- How to get face time with the Government customers.
- How to leverage your workforce and partners to identify Government pipeline opportunities.
Day 2 Highlights
Module 8: How to Obtain Sole Source Awards
- How to reduce competition and win sole source awards.
- Adding scope to your existing Government contracts.
- Understanding regulations for issuing sole source Government contracts.
- Sole source contract award process for businesses not subject to statutory exceptions.
- How to write unsolicited proposals for Government agencies.
- How to work with Government to facilitate a sole source award.
- How to write proposals for sole source procurements.
- How to contribute to effective Justification and Approval (J&A) for a sole source proposal.
- How to receive an 8(a) sole source award.
- How to get an SDVOSB sole source award.
- How to get a WOSB and EDWOSB sole source award.
- How to get a HUBZone sole source award.
Module 9: Additional Methods of Building Government Opportunities Pipeline
- How experienced Government contractors create opportunities for themselves.
- How to identify immediate bid opportunities to add contract revenue.
- Additional techniques to attract Government opportunities to your company.
- Venues where to talk to Government customers.
- Qualifying an opportunity to ensure it fits within your strategic business development plan, has high win probability (Pwin), and low execution risk.
- Exercise: Qualify a bid opportunity based on a provided scenario.
Module 10: How to Create Your Business Development Strategy and a Strategic Business Development Plan
- Four main goals of a Strategic Business Development Plan.
- Methodology for conducting a business development strategy planning session.
- How to transition from subcontracting to priming in the Government market or enter Government market as a new business.
- How to develop a business development budget, and how many proposals you need to write to achieve the desired growth.
- Analyzing and expanding your core competencies.
- Identifying Must-Win bid opportunities.
- Strategies for winning Government contract bids consistently.
- Exercise: Calculate business development budget based on a scenario.
Module 11: Engaging with the Federal Government Customers
- How to market to the Federal Government.
- The rules of marketing to the Federal Government you cannot break at any cost.
- How to get a meeting with a Government official.
- How to become a trusted adviser to the Government customer.
- What marketing collateral you need for effective Federal business development.
- What information to include in a high-impact Government capability statement, specific to Federal customers.
- How to legally “wire” the Government bid to your company.
- Professional associations to join for Government business development purposes.
- How to target potential teammates to be added to a winning bid team.
- Four important goal of working with the customer.
- How to prepare for an effective capture and proposal process (and what an effective capture process will help you achieve beyond business development).
- How to attract Government customers to your company through Web and social media.
- Low, medium, and high-cost Government marketing activities.
Exercise: Critique a Government capability statement to identify missing information and recommend improvements.
Module 12: Transitioning to the Capture Process
- Qualifying a bid opportunity.
- Gate review that kicks off the capture process.
- Components of the capture process important for Federal business development and proper positioning to write a winning proposal.