Next small business orientation is Nov. 17
October 25, 2010 by cs
If you missed the City of Albany’s Oct. 18th kick-off and orientation to its new Small Business Procurement Program, take heart!
It’s not too late to register for the next orientation session — on Nov. 17, 2010.
Registration is easy — just click here.
The orientation session — held from 10:00 am until noon — consists of a complete explanation of the City’s Small Business Procurement Program, the benefits of participating, and how to enroll.
This event also provides special instruction for Albany and Dougherty County small businesses who are interested in doing business with the City of Albany and other units of government.
All businesses are welcome to attend.
Oct. 18th small business program kick-off successful; more events planned
October 23, 2010 by cs
The City of Albany unveiled its new small business program in a public orientation program on Monday, Oct. 18, 2010. Over 50 businesses were represented at the event, along with numerous representatives of community organizations and government buying units.
You can view Fox 31′s report of the event by clicking right here.
The kick-off event came as a result of the recent adoption of a small business program by the City Commissioners of Albany. The program is designed to increase the number of City contract awards, and other procurements, to local small businesses, and thereby build business capacity, create jobs, and strengthen the local economy.
To be eligible to participate in the City’s program, a business must be located in the city limits of Albany or in Dougherty County.
There are many benefits that Albany-area businesses will realize by participating in the new Small Business Procurement Program, including:
• Customized training on how to do business with the City of Albany, including instruction on how to prepare bids and proposals.
• Instruction and counseling on all aspects of government contracting, including how to effectively market your business in the government arena.
• Detailed information about upcoming contract opportunities with the City, other local governments in the area, the State of Georgia, and federal agencies – as often as daily.
• An on-line vendor directory for use by the City, other local governments, prime contractors and local small businesses to identify business sources and develop relationships.
• Exclusive access to bid on City contracts valued at less than $50,000, through the City’s sheltered market program.
• A purchasing preference on City contracts involving requests for proposals and other solicitations involving proposal evaluation factors.
• Invitations to attend matchmaking and networking events, exclusively designed to help Albany-area businesses build business relationships and partnerships.
To participate, a company first must be certified as an Albany Small Business Enterprise (ASBE). Help is available to assist Albany businesses with this application process. There will be a one-time $25 fee to cover the City’s cost of program administration.
The City of Albany recently partnered with Georgia Tech to provide management and administrative support to the Small Business Procurement Program. Experienced government contracting experts from Georgia Tech will providing the training, instruction, and counseling to the Albany-area small businesses participating in the program.
If you missed the Oct. 18th kick-off event, it’s not too late to enroll in the program. You can do so by one of two ways:
- You can attend the next orientation session. They are scheduled on Nov. 17, 2011, and Jan. 5, Feb. 9, and Mar. 16, 2011. To register to attend any of these free orientations, simply click here.
- You can apply to participate in the City of Albany’s Small Business Procurement Program by downloading an application form here.
For more information or assistance, contact Clovia Hamilton at moc.liamgnull@hcetag.notlimahc.
Learn the fundamentals of government contracting on Nov. 10
October 23, 2010 by cs
Are you trying to decide whether to sell to the government market?
Are you interested in the government marketplace but not sure where to start?
Do you need to know how to be considered a viable contractor by government buyers?
These questions and more will be answered in this one-hour, rapid-fire briefing on government contracting on Nov. 10, 2010 from 10:00 am until 11:00 am.
The briefing will be conducted on the 1st floor conference room at the Microbusiness Enterprise Center located at 230 S. Jackson St., Albany, GA 31701-2885.
The briefing is free of charge, but you should register in advance. You can register by clicking right here.
The one-hour briefing will be followed by a question-and-answer session.
This briefing is the perfect place for a busy business person to learn what you need to know – and what you need to have in place – in order to effectively market yourself in the government sector.
This class will provide special instruction for Albany-area small businesses interested in doing business with the City of Albany as well as other units of government. All businesses are welcome to attend.
Attending orientation is the key to participating in Albany’s Small Business Procurement Program
October 11, 2010 by cs
It’s important that Albany-area businesses desirous of taking full advantage of the City of Albany’s Small Business Procurement (SBP) Program attend one of several orientation sessions that will provide a complete explanation of SBP Program benefits and how to get certified as an Albany Small Business Enterprise (ASBE).
The orientation sessions are scheduled to be held on Oct. 18 and on Nov. 17. In 2011, these sessions will be held on Jan. 5, Feb. 9, and Mar. 16. To register to attend any of these free orientations, simply click here.
Many special contracting classes being offered in Albany in 2011
October 11, 2010 by cs
Want to learn more about Business Planning, Development and Management?
How about government Contract Accounting?
Need a class on basic Contract Law?
How about Subcontracting with Prime Contractors?
And what about Surety Bonding or Business Financing?
Classes on each of these topics — and more — are now planned to be offered in Albany as a part of the City of Albany’s Small Business Procurement (SBP) Program, through special arrangements with Georgia Tech. Each of these classes are being offered free of charge.
Interested parties can find the complete schedule of classes being offered in Albany, and register for any of them, by visiting http://www.doughertysmallbiz.org/training/training-video.
Learn how to prepare successful bids and proposals
October 10, 2010 by cs
Through arrangements with Georgia Tech, special classes are being offered on Preparing Successful Bids and Proposals.
The classes are designed to help companies understand the bid proposal preparation process when responding to government solicitations with emphasis on bid offerings issued by the City of Albany.
Topics covered include: preparation for bidding, identifying the bid package, reading the solicitation, technical proposal development insights, developing your bid price/cost proposal, and more.
Preparing Successful Bids and Proposals is scheduled to be taught on Oct. 21, 2010.
In 2011, this class will be presented on Jan. 12, Mar. 9, May 26, July 13, and Sept. 7.
You can find the schedule of all Albany classes, and register to attend any of them, by visiting http://www.doughertysmallbiz.org/training/training-video. All classes are free of charge.
How to develop business in the government market
October 9, 2010 by cs
A key to winning government contract work is learning about how to market your firm to the government sector.
Now, through arrangements with Georgia Tech, the City of Albany is sponsoring free training on Marketing to the Government.
This particular class is ideal if you’ve ever wondered how State agencies, cities, counties, school boards, and public authorities buy their goods and services. B yy attending,ou will learn how to register as a vendor, who to contact, where to find opportunities, what the requirements are for bidding, and how to get paid. Specific attention is given in this class to doing business with units of local government in the Albany area as well as the State of Georgia.
The Marketing to the Government class is being offered on Oct. 21, 2010. You can register for this class by clicking right here.
Future dates on which this class is being offered are: Mar. 24, 2011; May 26, 2011; and July 28, 2011. You can find these class listings — along with many others — at http://www.doughertysmallbiz.org/training/training-video.
Albany’s basic bid instructions described here
October 7, 2010 by cs
Bid documents for the City of Albany can be obtained from the Procurement Division or via Turbo Bid. Click here to view Current Bids.
Please download bid if applicable. Bidders are responsible for obtaining and acknowledging all addendums. Therefore, prior to submitting your bid, please check the TurboBid website or call the Procurement Office to obtain any addendums that mentsay bid docum have been issued subsequent to the original bid documents.
Sealed bids are received by the City of Albany, Procurement Division, 222 Pine Avenue, Suite 260, Albany, Georgia 31701, until 2:30 p.m. on the advertised dates listed in indiviudual bid and proposal solicitations.
Vendors are encouraged to complete their Vendor Registration before submitting a bid.
Albany area small businesses are encouraged to submit bids.
How to register as a vendor with the City of Albany
October 6, 2010 by cs
The City of Albany’s Vendor Application may be obtained by contacting the Procurement Division at 229-431-3211 or printing a copy of the Application from the link below. A List of Commodities is also available from the link below and is needed to complete the Vendor Application.
The City of Albany encourages local Small Businesses to submit a Vendor Application and bid on City contracts.
Free training on the fundamentals of working with government agencies
October 6, 2010 by cs
What could be worse than spending a lot of time and effort putting together and submitting a bid to a government agency only to discover that you missed a fundamental step?
Businesses can avoid this problem by learning about the Fundamentals of Working with the Government. A special class on this topic is now being offered through the City of Albany’s Small Business Procurement (SBP) Program and Georgia Tech.
By attending Fundamentals of Working with the Government, you will get answers to questions like:
- Is it worth my while to try to sell to the government market?
- I’m interested in the government marketplace, but where do I start?
- How can I be considered a viable contractor by government buyers?
These questions and many, many more will be answered in this one-hour, rapid-fire briefing on government contracting.
The briefing will be followed by a question-and-answer session and is the perfect place for a busy business person to learn what you need to know – and what you need to have in place – in order to effectively market yourself in the government sector. This is an ideal way to “put your toe in the water” before jumping into the vast ocean that is the government marketplace.
Fundamentals of Working with the Government is being offered in Albany on Nov. 10, 2010.
In 2011, this class is scheduled to be repeated on Jan. 12, Mar. 9, May 26, and July 13. You can see the complete schedule of classes, and register for any of them, by visiting http://www.doughertysmallbiz.org/training/training-calendar.