DoD Small Business News

In The News

​July 18, 2023 - Program Executive Office (PEO) Summit held to improve acquisition collaboration. | defense.gov 
PEOs from across the military departments and other U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) acquisition entities held a summit to discuss common challenges and solutions in delivering capability at speed and scale.

July 18, 2023 - Record-breaking $163B in federal procurement opportunities to small businesses in FY22. | sba.gov
An all-time high 26.5% of federal contract dollars in FY22 were awarded to small businesses.

July 18, 2023 - Readout of the Defense Innovation Board (DIB) summer meeting in Washington, D.C. | innovation.defense.gov 
Topics include Strategic Investment Capital Task Force Study: Terraforming the Valley of Death (July 2023), National Defense Science & Technology Strategy: An Innovation Strategy for the Decisive Decade, and future DIB studies. 

July 17, 2023 - U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced reforms to transform public-private investment program. | sba.gov 
The Small Business Investment Company Program modernization will seed America’s next generation of fund managers while increasing funding for underserved and undercapitalized markets.

July 2023 - The DoD is seeking public input on improving the timeliness of payments to defense subcontractors. | regulations.gov 
Interested parties are encouraged to submit their comments by September 12 to the Federal eRulemaking Portal. 

July 17, 2023 - New “Military Spouse Pathway to Business Program" to create more economic opportunities for military families. | sba.gov
SBA District Offices and SBA Resource Partners to offer courses which empower military spouse entrepreneurs by providing the same counseling and training, access to capital, federal contracting, and disaster assistance available to service members and Veterans.

July 14, 2023 - Grant opportunity to host a Women’s Business Center (WBC) open through August 24. | sba.gov
This SBA-sponsored funding opportunity aims to provide grant dollars for two private, nonprofit organizations to host a community-based WBC in Oregon and the District of Columbia.

July 11, 2023 - Small Business Training Week is the Department's annual premier training event for members of the acquisition workforce. | defense.gov
Read more about the event, including highlights and the DoD Small Business Vanguard Award winners. 

July 10, 2023 - SBA Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman ceremonially swore in Dilawar Syed as Deputy Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration in Washington, D.C. | sba.gov

Department of Defense Office of Small Business Programs Director Mr. Farooq Mitha attended the swearing-in ceremony in support of the collaboration between DoD OSBP and SBA to expand small businesses' access to capital and services. 

July 5, 2023 – Air Force Innovation: Empowering Airmen | 15wing.af.mil

The United States Air Force relies on the innovation of Airmen and the support of Spark Cells, the respective unit offices that support innovation efforts ranging from work processes to physical assets to policy updates.

June 29, 2023 - Forbes spotlights Department's 'business backbone' | forbes.com 

DoD OSBP Director Mr. Farooq Mitha sat down with Rhett Buttle of Forbes to discuss the opportunities and resources our office provides for small businesses and the Department as a whole. 

June 20, 2023 - U.S., India Rapidly Expand Their Military Cooperation | defense.gov

On Wednesday, the DoD and the Indian Ministry of Defense (MOD) launched the India-U.S. Defense Acceleration Ecosystem (INDUS-X) to expand the strategic technology partnership and defense industrial cooperation between our governments, business communities, and academic institutions.

June 20, 2023 - This week, over 700 members of the Department's acquisition workforce attended DoD Small Business Training Week (SBTW23), an in-depth training opportunity for members of the DoD acquisition workforce. | dodsbtw23.com

Watch for a deeper dive into the event and award winners in the DoD Small Business Digest next Friday.

June 16, 2023 - DoD Small Business Training Week returns in person, June 20-23, in Baltimore, Md. | dodsbtw23.com

The federal acquisition workforce will engage in a week of training sponsored by the DoD Office of Small Business Programs (OSBP) in collaboration with the Small Business Administration (SBA). Follow @BusinessDefense and #SBTW23 on Twitter for session highlights and Vanguard Award winners.

June 16, 2023 - Project Spectrum is a DoD OSBP supported initiative that provides comprehensive training courses to improve cybersecurity readiness, resiliency, and compliance with DoD contracting requirements for small and medium-sized businesses and the defense industrial base. | projectspectrum.io

Create your free account at projectspectrum.io and explore courses such as “Understanding Foreign Ownership, Control, or Influence.”

June 14, 2023 - Immersive Acquisition Program Accelerates Adoption of Commercial Technologies for Warfighter | defense.gov

The DoD is promoting the broader use of agile acquisition methods by training a corps of acquisition professionals on the Defense Innovation Unit's (DIU) acquisition process.

June 12, 2023 - Defense Acquisition University's (DAU) event features ways to do defense differently. | dau.edu

The DAU flagship event highlighted the importance of innovation and also individual responsibility within the acquisition arena to embrace and foster innovation.

June 12, 2023 - Defense Civilian Training Corps kick-off marks a milestone in strengthening the DoD civilian acquisition workforce with a cohort of about 80 students from five universities. | defense.gov

This pioneering initiative aims to prepare competitively selected students for public service in vital DoD acquisition-related occupations and improve talent readiness in DoD critical skill areas.

June 5, 2023 - DoD Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office (CDAO) has an open call for two new innovative project opportunities. | tradewindai.com

Learn more and apply: AI Risk Management Framework and Assessments for Measuring and Evaluating Trust in AI-Enabled Systems.

June 5, 2023 -  Collaboration and Standardization Are Key to DoD's Battery Strategy, Meeting U.S. Energy Objectives | defense.gov
The supply chain report, published by the Defense Department's Office of Industrial Base Policy, was a response to Executive Order 14017, which directed assessment of potential supply chain risks and strategies to mitigate or overcome them. 

June 2, 2023 - U.S. Small Business Administration and National Pan-Hellenic Council to Expand Efforts to Support Black Entrepreneurship | sba.gov
Administrator Guzman and the Divine Nine participants will discuss ways for the Biden-Harris Administration to build upon its support for Black entrepreneurship, including expanded access to capital.

June 1, 2023 -U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) is Accepting Applications for Build to Scale Program | eda.gov

May 26, 2023 - Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) Has a Plan to Solve the Facility Clearances Conundrum for Small Businesses | Federal News Network
The small business needs a facility clearance to win contracts. But that same company can’t get a facility clearance unless they have a sponsor on a contract. Carlen Capenos, the director of small business programs for the Defense Information Systems Agency, said DISA has a plan to crack this conundrum.

May 25, 2023 - Biden-Harris Administration to Launch New Initiative to Increase Federal Contracting with Small Disadvantaged Businesses | sba.gov 

May 16, 2023 - Nominations for 40th Annual National Minority Enterprise Development Week Awards Open
The MED Week Awards are hosted by the U.S. Department of Commerce Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) to recognize the outstanding achievements of minority business owners and entrepreneurs, as well as individuals and organizations dedicated to advancing minority business enterprise.

May 15, 2023 - DoD Office of Small Business Programs Will Serve as Centralized Point of Access for Small Business | Signal 

May 11, 2023 - Biden-Harris Administration Announces New Development and Improvements on Loan Modernization Access for Small Business | sba.gov

May 11, 2023 - Congressional Hearing on the Role Small Business Plays in Federal Procurement | youtube.com
The Subcommittee on Contracting and Innovation held a hearing on the topic of “Leveling the Playing the Field: The State of Small Business Contracting.” Congressman Nick LaLota (D-NY-1), Chairman of the Small Business Subcommittee on Contracting and Innovation, discussed the role small business plays in federal procurement to ensure the government is fully utilizing these vital partners. The full hearing can be viewed on the committee’s YouTube page.

May 10, 2023 - National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) revises SP  800-171 Guidelines for Protecting Sensitive Unclassified Information | nist.gov

May 8, 2023 - SOF Week Keynote: OSD 2023 Small Business Strategy
Mr. Farooq Mitha, OSBP Director, was the keynote speaker at SOF Week in Tampa on May 8. Mr. Mitha’s keynote touched on promoting a strong, dynamic, and robust small business industrial base by focusing on reducing barriers to entry, increasing set-aside competition, strengthening the U.S. Department of Defense supply chain, and leveraging programs to grow the industrial base.

May 9, 2023 - DoD Announced Update to Progress Payment Policy | defense.gov
The Department announced an update to the progress payment policy, Class Deviation, 2020-O0010, Revision 2, Progress Payment Rates (the actual revision is not yet posted). Here’s what you need to know about the update:

  • ​Maintains “for now, the temporary 95% rate for small businesses”
  • Returns the progress payment rate for large businesses to 80%
  • Will apply prospectively for new contracts
  • Becomes effective in solicitations for contracts issued on or after July 7, 2023, and resulting contracts
  • Existing contracts, task orders, and delivery orders with large business contractors will retain the higher 90% rate for the life of a given contract 

May 2023 - The U.S. Army updated their long-range acquisition forecasts | osbp.army.mil

April 30-May 6, 2023 - DoD Celebrates National Small Business Week
The DoD was proud to join interagency partners and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) in celebrating National Small Business Week, April 30 to May 6. The occasion provides DoD the opportunity to acknowledge the major contributions small businesses make to the national defense supply chain. "There are more than 33 million small businesses in the United States contributing to our nation’s economy,” OSBP Director Farooq Mitha said. “Small businesses act as job creators, innovators, and support the DoD’s mission. They are crucial to national security. I encourage those interested in working with DoD to contact your local APEX Accelerator, which can identify and help a wide range of businesses enter and participate in the defense supply chain.” OSBP released a new publication, 10 Steps to Winning Your First DoD Contract, during National Small Business Week to help small business owners interested in working with the DoD. It’s been described as a “roadmap to success” and we invite you to download it and explore the other free resources from small businesses on business.defense.gov.

The DoD's Mentor Protégé Program held a Summit March 27-30 in Orlando, Fla. A record 600 attendees from government, industry, and academia gathered for networking, conversation, and knowledge sharing on the Summit’s theme “Strengthening Small Business Supply Chains.” DoD’s Mentor-Protégé Program (MPP) is the oldest continuously operating federal mentor-protégé program in existence and is managed by the Office of Small Business Programs (OSBP). Originally established during the first Gulf War, the MPP helps eligible small businesses expand their footprint in the defense industrial base by pairing small businesses with larger companies. In the past five years, these mentor-protégé relationships have successfully helped more than 190 small businesses fill unique niches and become part of the U.S. military’s domestic supply chain. ✅ Learn more about the Mentor Protégé Program and how you can be matched or serve as a mentor here.
March 22, 2023 - OSBP Directors Testify About Tools Being Used to Enhance DoD's Small Business Industrial Base | dvidshub.net
Mr. Farooq Mitha, Director of the Defense Department’s Office of Small Business Programs, and OSBP directors from the Army, Navy, and Air Force testify about the tools being used to enhance DoD’s small business industrial base during a hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee’s readiness subcommittee. Watch their testimony and the conversation with committee members on DVIDs. 

OSBP and NIST Partner for Small Businesses

The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) Office of Small Business Programs (OSBP), the principal advisor to the Secretary of Defense on small business matters, and  U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership Program (MEP) signed a memorandum of agreement on May 02, 2021 to collaborate on strengthening the national security of the small business industrial base.

The new partnership links two DOD organizations with a common mission to assist small businesses and  to achieve shared objectives:

  • Provide training and technical support to small-and-medium U.S. manufacturers engaged or planning to engage with the defense sector.
  • Promote and co-sponsor joint training events beneficial to national security, with an emphasis on cybersecurity for defense manufacturing.
  • Establish direct and consistent relationships at multiple organizational levels within both Parties to document and share complementary assistance best practices.  
  • Develop clear objectives, benchmarks and goals to measure success, added value, and synergy of collaborations between NIST MEP and OUSD(A&S) OSBP.

The OSBP and NIST partnership enables more DOD collaboration and support of small and medium manufacturers (SMMs). They will Collaborate to support the ongoing development and security of the Defense and Industrial Base.

This partnership will combine OSBP’s expertise in leveraging small businesses to close capability gaps for our armed forces with the MEP National Network.  The MEP operational base provides an opportunity for OUSD(A&S) OSBP to serve as a resource for the MEP Program of MEP Centers engages defense sector and defense-relevant manufacturing clients to promote and provide technologies, prototypes and products for National Security missions.

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