Learn government contracting

How the government actually buys, from the $2 trillion market down to the six-step purchasing process. Covers the levels of government, the procurement methods, and the dollar thresholds that decide when competition is required.

Match your capabilities to what agencies buy every year. Which service categories have steady demand, why services beat products on margin and differentiation, and how to find the low-competition markets where a new vendor can win first.

Everything you need in place before your first bid: entity registration, EIN, licenses, insurance, banking, your capability statement, and the federal certifications that open set-aside contracts.

Where every level of government posts its bids, from SAM.gov to state portals, school districts, cities, universities, and transit authorities. Build a system so you never miss a solicitation that fits your business.

Get registered before you find the bid. SAM.gov with your UEI and CAGE code, state procurement portals, local and school-district vendor systems, NAICS codes, and the registration mistakes that quietly disqualify contractors after they win.

Use free public data to bid smarter. USASpending.gov and SAM.gov award records, identifying the incumbent, researching the agency as a buyer, and finding the prices that have actually won.

Read a solicitation the way winners do. The IFB, RFP, and RFQ distinction, the Uniform Contract Format, the Statement of Work and evaluation factors, catching amendments, and the bid or no-bid decision.

Price to cover your costs and still win. Direct and indirect costs, wrap rates for service contracts, contract-type risk, market-based pricing, realistic profit margins, and the cost of bidding itself.

Treat the proposal like a scored exam, not a sales pitch. Build a compliance matrix, set your win themes, write the technical approach and management plan, handle past performance, and review before you submit.

The gates your proposal has to clear before anyone reads it. Required forms, Section K certifications, insurance and bonds, addenda acknowledgments, federal labor laws, and debarment checks.

Win work you cannot pursue alone. Teaming agreements versus joint ventures, what a compliant agreement must include, the limitation-on-subcontracting rule, and building past performance as a subcontractor.

Winning is the starting line. Reading the award, running the post-award kickoff, staffing, invoicing government contracts, progress reporting, and the contract-modification rules that protect you.

Perform well enough to earn renewals. CPARS and the 2026 evaluation changes, the four performance disciplines, quality control, the COR relationship, and the three doors a well-performed contract opens.

From one contract to a portfolio. The GSA Schedule, IDIQs and GWACs, agency relationship building, certifications that expand your access, and the systems a growing contractor needs.

Bonus module. How AI compresses opportunity discovery, solicitation analysis, and proposal drafting from days into hours, where it helps, and where human judgment stays in charge.

Bonus module. Build the documents every proposal needs once: the capability statement, past performance library, key personnel bios, and quality control plan.