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Upcoming vendor conferences are valuable — if you do your homework

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October 14, 2011 by

In the next few weeks and months there are many government-sponsored conferences being held to attract small businesses to, and inform small businesses of, government agencies’ upcoming contracting opportunities.
But before jumping to attend, the Georgia Tech Procurement Assistance Center (GTPAC) suggests you take a few preparatory steps.  After all, it’s important that you make a sound decision about whether it’s worth the time, effort, and expense to attend a particular vendor conference.
First of all, small businesses should make no mistake about it: government agencies may need you more than you need them. Federal agencies are under the gun to ensure that small businesses — including 8(a) firms, companies in HUBZones, service disabled veteran owned small businesses, and others such as women-owned businesses at the subcontract level — get their share of the “contract spend.”  Keep in mind that the federal government is nearing the end of its fiscal year (Sept. 30th), so there is money to be spent before then, and small business goals to be met.  That’s why agencies host conferences — to demonstrate that they are reaching out to the small business community — and that may be why there are always so many government events scheduled toward the end of each year.
But regardless of the timing of a vendor event, should you try to attend as many governmental vendor conferences as you can in hopes that, by attending, contracts will begin to fall in your lap?   Hardly.
From GTPAC’s perspective, government-sponsored vendor conferences run the gamut in value.  Some are well-organized, featuring details on specific, upcoming opportunities as well as access to the decision-makers.  Other conferences, however, can be disappointing, consisting of little more than “a dog and pony show.”
So how do you select a good conference to attend?   How do you reduce the risk that you’ll be attending a conference that has little value to you?
There are several things you should do before deciding to go to a government-sponsored vendor event.  Here is a checklist:
1. Research the conference sponsoring agency’ s forecasted contract opportunities. Look for the sponsoring agency’s annual procurement forecast on that agency’s website.  Use www.google.com/unclesam and type in the name of the federal agency and “procurement forecast.”  (If that search fails to produce the results you need, check https://www.acquisition.gov/comp/procurement_forecasts/index.html.) One thing for sure, before you attend an event, you want to make sure the sponsoring agency buys what you sell.
2. Find out what contract opportunities will be the subject of the conference. Even if an agency buys what you sell, you’ll want to make sure that will be the focus of the conference.  Look in the conference announcement — see if the agency identifies specific goods and services that will be the focus of the conference.  Are the NAICS codes for future contracts identified, and do they match-up with yours?
3. Determine whether you’ll get access to decision-makers. Look for opportunities to meet one-on-one with the people who make the buying decisions.  Good vendor conferences will provide you with the opportunity to meet, on an appointment basis during the event, with agency contracting officials.  See if you can make appointments as a part of the registration process or whether such opportunities exist on-site at the event.  Think outside the box: If you arrive early — or stay late — will you be able to spend time with the people who award contracts?
4. Once you select a conference, prepare yourself. Remember, only one-third of the “action” occurs at the event itself.  You should spend the first third of your time preparing to attend.  And another third should be spent in follow-up, after the event.  If you are not prepared to make this much of an investment of your time, maybe you shouldn’t attend.  To help you prepare, attend, and follow-up, we recommend you read our detailed article at:  http://www.doughertysmallbiz.org/2010/05/14-tips-for-attending-a-government-expo-or-trade-show.  Your GTPAC Counselor will be glad to elaborate on this topic and provide you with additional advice.  You can find our contact information right here.
© 2010 Georgia Tech Procurement Assistance Center – All Rights Reserved.

Government contract fundamentals and local small business programs are topics of Oct. 18 free class

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October 14, 2011 by

Trying to decide whether to sell to government agencies? Interested in the government market but not sure where to start? Want to know how to do business with the City and County governments?    These questions and more will be answered by dynamic instructor Muriel Moton at our free class on Oct. 18 at 10:00 a.m. at the Albany Microbusiness Center.

Our one-hour briefing will be followed by a light lunch and then an orientation to the small business programs operated by the City of Albany and Dougherty County. 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, Dougherty County and sothwest Georgia-area small businesses interested in registering for local small business programs.

Don’t miss this free class!  Register now at http://gtpac.ecenterdirect.com/ConferenceDetail.action?ID=7096.

Business development in the government market is topic of free Oct. 20 class

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October 14, 2011 by

If you’ve ever wondered how State agencies, cities, counties, school boards, and authorities buy their goods and services, then our Oct. 20th class is for you.

You’ll 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 will be given to doing business with the City of Albany, Dougherty County, other local governments, and the State of Georgia. Dynamic guest instructor Muriel Moton will be conducting this two-hour class. Light lunch will be served.

This class will be held from 11:00 a.m. until 1:00 pm at the Albany Microbusiness Center.

Register today at http://gtpac.ecenterdirect.com/ConferenceDetail.action?ID=7097.

Learn how to do business with the government on Oct. 27

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October 14, 2011 by

We’re conducting two seminars on Thursday, Oct. 27 to help you learn how to do business with government agencies.  Come and learn — it’s free!

Our Oct. 27th seminars — conducted by our dynamic guest instructor Muriel Moton – are a must for anyone thinking about doing business with the government. You will learn how the government buys goods and services and what you must do to win government contracts. We will tell you all about how to register as a vendor, how to find out about what the government buys, how government agencies advertise their purchases, how to respond, how to locate subcontracting opportunities with government “prime” contractors, and much more. You’ll also learn how to register for the City of Albany’s and Dougherty County’s small business programs.  Businesses throughout southwest Georgia can benefit.

Choose the class time most convenient for you on Oct. 27th:

Evening classes unveiled! Plan to attend Oct. 25 and 27!

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October 14, 2011 by

Too busy during the day to take a government contracting class?  Well, now you can attend our free classes in the evening!

Two terrific classes are now scheduled to be held at the Albany Microbusiness Center on the evenings of Tuesday, Oct. 25 and Thursday, Oct. 27.  Make plans now to attend — if these prove to be popular, we will schedule more evening events!

  • Business Development in the Government Market is the class scheduled for 6:00pm to 8:00 pm on Tuesday, Oct. 25, 2011.  By attending, you 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 will be given to doing business with the City of Albany, Dougherty County, other local governments, and the State of Georgia. Dynamic guest instructor Muriel Moton will be conducting this special evening two-hour class. A light snack will be served.  Register for this free class at http://gtpac.ecenterdirect.com/ConferenceDetail.action?ID=7098.

 

  • Introduction to Government Contracting is the class scheduled for 6:00 pm until 8:30 pm on Thursday, Oct. 27, 2011.  This seminar — once again conducted by our dynamic guest instructor Muriel Moton — is a must for anyone thinking about doing business with the government. You will learn how the government buys goods and services and what you must do to win government contracts. We will tell you all about how to register as a vendor, how to find out about what the government buys, how government agencies advertise their purchases, how to respond, how to locate subcontracting opportunities with government “prime” contractors, and much more. You’ll also learn how to register for the City of Albany’s and Dougherty County’s small business programs.  Businesses thrughout SW Georgia will benefit from attending.  A light snack will be served during this evening class.  Register for this free class at http://gtpac.ecenterdirect.com/ConferenceDetail.action?ID=7099.

Don’t miss these wonderful educational opportunities — register for one or both today!

Perry, GA is the place to be Nov. 15-17 to learn about business opportunities at Robins Air Force Base

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October 13, 2011 by

The Robins AFB and the Air Logistics Center will be holding its annual “Requirements Symposium” on Nov. 15-17, 2011 at the Georgia National Fairgrounds & Agricenter, Perry GA.

This is a unique 3-day event where senior leaders and managers at Robins Air Force Base share their current and future business requirements and organizational vision of the future. This insight into requirements at Robins AFB and the Air Logistics Center allows aerospace industries and businesses to appropriately plan for capabilities to support the needs at Robins AFB and the Warfighters they service.

The base and WR-ALC spend approximately $4.1 Billion dollars each year.  By attending, you can see if you can help provide what is needed.

The agenda looks like this:

  • Tuesday, November 15 – Optional Golf Tournament at Robins AFB Golf Course
  • Tuesday, November 15 – Pre-symposium registration at Museum of Aviation Century of Flight Building
  • Tuesday, November 15 – Contractor Vendor Booths, Century of Flight Building
  • Tuesday, November 15 – Evening Social, Century of Flight Building
  • Wednesday, November 16 – Thursday, November 17, 2011 – Symposium at Georgia National Fairgrounds and Agricenter

On-line registration for this event opens in July.  Watch this site — http://www.wrcoc-aic.org/Page8.aspx — for details.

Archives of previous years’ Symposium events may be found at: http://www.wrcoc-aic.org/Page9.aspx

 

Judicial building roofing job is upcoming contract opportunity

Filed under Dougherty County Contracting Info · Tagged with ,

October 11, 2011 by

The Dougherty County Board of Commission is advertising for bids to perform roof work on the Judicial Building.  The contract will involve removing the existing roof and furnishing and installing new roof materials, flashings, and miscellaneous materials on low slope roofs on the second floor of the Judicial Building, located at 225 Pine Avenue in Albany.

This procurement will be performed in two stages, the first being prequalification, and the second consisting of actual bid submittals.  The first stage submittal, or Pre-Bid Submittal, is due November 10, 2011 by 5:00 p.m. at 219 North Washington St., P. O. Box 1827, Albany, GA 31701 to the attention of Dwayne Greene.  The Pre-Bid Submittals will determine the vendors who will be permitted to submit a bid package on November 22, 2011.

All interested Contractors are strongly encouraged to attend the Pre-Bid Conference which will be held on October 25, 2011 @ 10:00 p.m. at 219 North Washington Street, Albany, in the Conference Room. County staff will be on site to explain the job and answer questions.

Several important documents are posted below to assist you in determining your interest in this contract opportunity.  Click on the document title to open it up: