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Before Hiring a GSA Consultant Ask These 5 Questions

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So, you are interested in a GSA Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) contract? Your government customer said that you should get ‘on contract.’  Or one of your competitors is leveraging opportunities by being a ‘pre-approved’ vendor (part of the club so to say). Or you have decided these challenging economic times call for a shift or pivot into the government industry to transfer your commercial expertise, products, and/or services. Never has there been an unprecedented amount of dollars flowing to federal, state, and local government agencies.

“Navigating the world of getting a GSA Contract is not for the faint of heart.”  That’s Normena Walton, Sr Contract Specialist at IHS Markit, the leading source of information and insight in critical areas that shape today’s business landscape.

You can seek to qualify for your own GSA MAS contract, however, consider what you do not know. On the surface, this may seem like a very straightforward process. When the rubber meets the road, you may find that it will not be the case. In terms of lost time, allocation of internal resources, missed opportunities and risk of rejection, it typically costs a company more overall to acquire and handle the GSA MAS proposal process in-house. 

The real success stories come from companies who understand what to look for when interviewing a GSA Consultant to help provide a ‘clear’ path to obtaining a comprehensive, flexible, and profitable GSA MAS Contract.

Here are 5 Questions you should ask a company providing GSA Consultant services to make sure they have your best interest in mind and can deliver a viable and lasting contract.

Question 1: HOW MUCH EXPERIENCE DOES THE CONSULTANT HAVE SPECIFICALLY WITH GSA CONTRACTS?

Helping companies qualify for a GSA MAS contract requires knowledge acquired through experience. It is truly a specialty niche area within government contracting.  Be sure to ask:

  • Who will specifically be preparing, negotiating, and getting YOUR contract through the process?
  • How much experience does that individual possess?
  • What is their specific track record with new GSA contract awards?
  • Why do they believe they are best suited to work with your company?
  • Do they possess experience with GSA offers in your specific industry vertical?

It is critical that you speak with the GSA consultant who will represent your company. Inexperience can result in errors causing your proposal to be rejected.

According to GSA, 60% of all offers are initially rejected. Investment in a well experienced and knowledgeable GSA Consultant who understands the nuances of the GSA MAS program is essential.  

Question 2: DOES THIS GSA CONSULTANT TAKE TIME TO UNDERSTAND YOUR GOALS AND OBJECTIVES UP FRONT?

Interview several companies to find the right partner. Look for a consultant that is asking about your goals and objectives. If they are quick to start ‘selling what they do’ before getting to know your company – that’s a red flag.

  • Are they interested in why you want to get a GSA MAS Contract?
  • Are they helping you to confirm that this path is a good one now?
  • Did they ask what you specifically want to accomplish with obtaining a GSA MAS Contract, such as:
  • Leverage current presence in government market?
  • Jump into the government market as a new vendor?
  • Find a better way to win contracts instead of the painful RFP process?
  • Do they understand your unique challenges? Large Business? Small business? Veteran Owned Business? Woman Owned Business?

A good GSA Consultant is more interested in your goals and success than communicating the details of how they do what they do. Yes – all that will come eventually. But if out of the gate, you don’t feel the love so to say – then best to move on. 

As John R. Crocker, Managing Partner, Enterprise Iron Financial Industry Solutions, Inc., says, “We interviewed a couple of firms to qualify for a GSA Contract who made us feel as though they wanted to just shove us into an assembly line. We wanted a company that didn’t run a ‘cookie cutter’ process.”

Question 3:  IS THERE A FORWARD-THINKING STRATEGY FORMULATED UPON KICKOFF?

Getting a GSA MAS Contract is far from completing an application. The turbo template approach will not cut it in a vetting process that is more in depth than any current competitive bid for a government contract. 

Following the MAS Roadmap presented by GSA identifies the blocks of information required. However, it’s what you don’t know that you don’t know that will result in either a viable and profitable contract or one in which your company is forever playing catchup with your offerings and pricing.

  • Is your hired GSA consultant asking about your products and services from a market share perspective?
  • Do they understand how interpret commercial sales practices?
  • Are they seeking to maximize margins? Limiting compliance risk?
  • Do they understand how to tell your story?
  • Have they conducted a detailed market analysis of product/service offerings to guide your proposed pricing to GSA?
  • Are they prepared with a strategy to deliver an offer which represents real value to the government but delivers recognizable revenue and success for you?
  • Have they discussed future growth and how this GSA Contract fits within the wider context of government contracting?

A forward-thinking GSA Consultant collaborates with you and your team to carve out a thorough and concrete strategy, and the plan to carry it out. No two companies are alike. There is no one size fits all. And no contract offer is boilerplate. Look for a GSA Consultant who can develop an individually tailored GSA strategy to ensure your offer travels through the process to achieve desired outcomes.

Question 4:  WHAT IS THE PROJECT MANAGEMENT PLAN FOR THE PROCESS TO QUALIFY FOR GSA?

Ask the GSA Consultant how will they manage the process through the life cycle stages of qualifying for a GSA Contract and beyond. It is important to understand your company’s role and responsibilities throughout the process. Setting the right expectations is key.

  • Does the GSA Consultant ensure that you understand the big picture first?
  • What GSA offerings or MAS large categories will be pursued?
  • Do they have a project checklist to manage data requirements, action items, tracking of completed tasks, etc?
  • Has a targeted submission date been discussed in advance to drive proposal activities tied to a project timeline?
  • What is the communication strategy between your company and the GSA Consultant?
  • Weekly calls or virtual meetings? Who will be the participants?

If a GSA Consultant doesn’t have a plan for how to manage the project then be weary.  This is when things fall through the cracks.  Your GSA Consultant is responsible to keep things moving to ensure clarity of focus in preparing and submitting a comprehensive offer. A great GSA Consultant leaves no stone unturned.

Question 5:  DOES THIS GSA CONSULTANT GO ABOVE AND BEYOND??

In today’s competitive world, it’s not enough to just be good or average.  You have to be great.  And you need partners who think about greatness in the same way by going above and beyond. Find a GSA Consultant who brings broader knowledge to the table beyond just getting a GSA Contract and wishing you good luck. 

  • What post award services will help your company leverage this newly awarded GSA Contract?
  • Is there post-award training to jump start the sales team to go after opportunities?
  • How does the sales team educate their federal, state and local government customers on the use of the GSA Contract?
  • What administrative internal tasks are required to stay compliant with the contract?
  • Are contract maintenance and management services for price adjustments, new offerings or other modifications provided to support our contract?

“As a Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), we needed someone to teach us solid B2G strategies that worked.” That’s Parish Morris, Military Veteran, CEO, Document Security Solutions, in response to next steps after getting a GSA Contract.  “We needed a company who could serve as a small business matchmaker and leverage our past performance in discussions with our government client network.”

WE’RE HERE TO HELP.

Hire a GSA Consultant who serves as your best partner.

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About ClearCoast

ClearCoast USA, LLC brings over 30+ years experience in the business-to-government (B2G) industry.  Since 2000, ClearCoast has helped 200+ clients qualify for a GSA MAS Contract.

Should Manufacturers Get A GSA MAS Contract?

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As the most widely used government contract vehicle, the GSA Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) is a valuable tool for manufacturers and their channel partners (i.e., distributors, value added resellers/dealers). By streamlining the buying/selling process, a GSA MAS Contract offers a pathway for these industry partners to deliver their innovative products and support services quickly to the government.   

Option 1:  Manufacturer and Channel Partners Hold a GSA MAS Contract

As the GSA MAS program has grown over the past few decades, GSA was eager to bring in as many industry vendors as possible.  This resulted in situations we see today where the manufacturer, distributor and VAR/dealers are simultaneously holding GSA MAS contracts for the exact same product line, more specifically the same part number. 

The price disparity created due to the varying margins results in significant differences in the final GSA Price to government customers for the same part number.  Most of the time, it’s the VAR/dealer who gets the short end of the stick as they are unable to compete with the lower pricing offered by the distributor or worse the manufacturer.

Historically, there was a clear line of outreach to the direct end user honored by manufacturers, distributors, and their VARs/dealers.  With the blurring of that line due to economics and the desire to control pricing and margins, manufacturers still seek to qualify for a GSA MAS contract without fully understanding all the ramifications. 

Here are some of the problems with this option in which the manufacturer and channel partners hold a GSA MAS Contract:

  • A Letter of Supply (LOS) must be issued by the manufacturer to their channel partners for selling the manufacturer’s products on the channel partner’s GSA MAS Contract.  For years, lack of oversight or permission for the issuance of an LOS resulted in vendors selling a product line unbeknown to the manufacturer. 
  • Manufacturers found themselves sending ‘cease and desist’ letters to these vendors to remove their products from their MAS GSA contracts.  These unauthorized vendors selling at rock bottom prices further exasperated the pricing issues. 
  • Manufacturers who compete directly with their channel partners show little trust in their relationships with these partners.  They are happy to compete and let the cards fall where they may in a cut-throat approach to business.
  • The business model for a manufacturer is not set up for compliance requirements with a GSA MAS contract.  The contract administrative and maintenance tasks are foreign to manufacturers including proper quoting, invoicing, tracking of sales, reporting of sales, subcontract goals and reporting, understanding mass modifications, etc.
  • The quoting and invoicing systems for accountability to track government sales differ from the internal systems used for channel partners.  These issues surface the first time a manufacturer must participate in a Contractor Assessment with a GSA Industrial Operational Analyst (IOA).
  • The mindset of selling direct from the manufacturer doesn’t provide a government customer with the technical support, integration services, or value-added experience which comes from an authorized VAR/dealer. 
  • Manufacturers must update their own MAS GSA contracts with contractual modifications through GSA.  Price increases, new products, discontinued items all must be continually updated requiring the manufacturer to understand this process or hire a consultant.  And they must rely on their channel partners to update the manufacturers prices and product offerings on their respective GSA MAS contracts.

Option 2: Only the Manufacturer Holds a GSA MAS Contract

Let’s look at a situation where a large manufacturer works with hundreds of VARs/dealers throughout the country.  Under this option, the manufacturer could benefit from authorizing VARs/dealers to use their GSA MAS Contract.  No letter of supply from the manufacturer is required.

Effectively, the manufacturer grants permission to a VAR/dealer through a modification to the manufacturer’s GSA MAS Contract.  That VAR/dealer can then ‘reference’ the manufacturer’s contract number for all sales to a government customer.  The VAR/dealer may have their own GSA MAS contract respectively, but they will not be authorized to resell this manufacturer’s items on their contract.

Things to consider with this option of only the manufacturer holding a GSA MAS Contract:

  • The manufacturer maintains control of the contract, pricing and the sale of their products through the MAS GSA contract.
  • This option requires an organized and well managed approach to ensure that both parties (manufacturer and VAR/dealer) understand how to quote, invoice, track and report sales as well as pay the Industrial Funding Fee (IFF). 
  • All VARs/dealers should sign an agreement with the manufacturer which outlines the terms and conditions of using the manufacturer’s GSA MAS contract.  Having a turn-key approach to making this option work is important so nothing falls through the cracks from a compliance standpoint. 
  • Manufacturer must have a dedicated contract administration individual(s) to ensure all administrative, maintenance and compliance contract items are satisfied for the contract.
  • As mentioned in Option 1, the manufacturer will still need to set up quoting and invoicing systems for accountability to track government sales through their GSA contract separate from all other sales.
  • The manufacturer will still have to update their own MAS GSA contract with contractual modifications through GSA.  Price increases, new products, discontinued items must be continually updated requiring the manufacturer to understand this process or hire a consultant.

Option 3:  Manufacturer Encourages a Select Group of Channel Partners to Get a GSA Contract

The final option consists of a more forward-thinking approach to leveraging the GSA MAS Contract with the least number of changes required to the business model of a manufacturer. 

Manufacturers should consider encouraging a select group of authorized resellers in their government market base to pursue qualifying for a MAS GSA Contract.  Select these candidates based on their performance, geographic coverage, or commitment to the manufacturer’s product and the value delivered to the end customer. 

The manufacturer may even elect to share in the cost of the authorized reseller obtaining a GSA MAS Contract with an experienced consulting firm.  The benefits from this option far outweigh those delivered under Options 1 and 2 for the manufacturer, including:

  • Manufacturer selects group of authorized VARs/Resellers and provides a LOS only to these partners for obtaining a MAS GSA contract.
  • Manufacturer is not required to quote, invoice, track or report sales or pay an IFF.
  • All contract administration, maintenance and compliance are the responsibility of the authorized reseller holding the MAS GSA contract.
  • Manufacturer provides updates to products and pricing directly to their authorized VARs/Resellers.   The channel partners take care of all contractual modifications to bring their MAS GSA contract up to date.

If you have any questions or would like to further discuss this topic, please reach out to us at info@clearcoastusa.com.  The content provided herein comes from over three decades of experience of working with manufacturers and their channel partners relative to the GSA MAS contract program.