2014 SADBOC Government Procurement Fair

Transcription

1 2014 SADBOC Government Procurement Fair Wednesday, April 30, :30 a.m. 3:00 p.m. Earle Brown Heritage Center 6155 Earle Brown Drive Brooklyn Center WORKSHOP SESSIONS CARRIAGE HALL B The Basics of Selling to the Government John Kilian, MN Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) By now you must have some idea how huge the federal government marketplace is. The federal government market is the largest in the world, and one that is constantly changing! Would you like to participate in that marketplace but don't know where to start? Then attend this introduction to the basics of selling to the government. You'll get basic information on the market, how the market is segmented, buying channels, terminology, registrations and certifications involved and the starting points for positioning your company to sell into the government market. Understanding the GSA Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) Program Maureen Cruz, General Services Administration (GSA) GSA is a home to the most important contracting activity for all federal agencies. The GSA Schedules (also referred to as Multiple Award Schedules and Federal Supply Schedules) Program, establishes long-term government wide contracts with commercial firms to provide access to over 11 million commercial products and services that can be ordered directly from GSA Schedule contractors through GSA Advantage! an on-line shopping and ordering system for federal buyers. Learn how to locate their applicable Schedule application/solicitation, and receive marketing information as a means to aligning the businesses with opportunities within the GSA Schedules process as well as other current procurement needs, initiatives, and forecasts in the Federal sector. Selling to the State of Minnesota Brenda Willard, MN Department of Administration This workshop will provide an overview on How to sell to the State of Minnesota. Learn what the state buys, how to find opportunities, types of solicitations and contracts, how to register as a vendor and the most common vendor errors when responding to solicitations. Also, learn about the State s CPV Program (State contracts that are offered to other Governmental/Eligible Entities).

2 WORKSHOP SESSIONS CAPTAIN S ROOM Minnesota Multipurpose Stadium (Vikings) Project Update Lynn Littlejohn, Mortenson Construction This workshop will provide a broad overview of the stadium project, including building components, timeline, project goals, certification requirements, etc. Certification Panel Randy Czaia, U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA); Sheila Scott, State of MN-Dept. of Admin.; Pat Calder, MN Unified Certification Program (MnUCP); Vanessa McDuffie, North Central Minority Supplier Development Council (NCMSDC); Natasha Fedorova, Women s Business Development Center MN (WBDC); Dave Gorski, Section 3; Tisidra Jones, CERT How many certifications are there for small businesses and what opportunities do they provide access to? This session is designed to answer those frequently asked questions and more. You will learn: Who is eligible? What are the requirements? How does one become certified? What are the benefits? Doing Business with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) The United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), Region 5, covers the states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin. The mission of the USEPA s Office of Small Business Programs is to support the protection of the environment and human health by fostering opportunities for partnerships, contracts, sub-agreements, and grants for small and socio-economically disadvantaged concerns. The Region utilizes contracts, purchase orders, and the Visa purchase card to buy many of its requirements. The Small Business Specialist/DBE Program Manager (one assigned to each EPA Region) assists small businesses in locating procurement opportunities on the direct side (contracts) and the indirect side (grants). The SBS provides guidance and advocates to assist businesses in locating and meeting key personnel, including contract specialists, technical staff and grant specialists. Join, Region 5 s Small Business Specialist for an overview of the types of products and services Region 5 seeks in its procurement opportunities and how your small business can potentially do business with EPA. Prime Contractor Panel Are You Ready for Prime Time? Learn how to work with prime contractors - what they buy, how they buy, and where to register. Good starting point to know what questions to ask when you have your one-on-one matchmaking visits. Stacie Baures and Melissa Puchalla, Fastenal Christa Seaberg, JE Dunn Construction Jeff Marcus, Red Wing Shoe Company Mentor-Protégé Panel The Mentor-Protégé program helps build effective working relationships between leaders of mature established companies and emerging small business enterprises in order for the latter to benefit from the knowledge and experience of the established mentor firms. Learn about various MP programs.

3 Thomas Linnertz, U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Kathryn Bique, MN Department of Transportation Scott Ochsner, Meda Doing Business with GSA Public Building Service Ron Sieben, General Services Administration (GSA) General Services Administration s (GSA) Public Building Service (PBS) is the landlord for the civilian federal government; PBS acquires space on behalf of the federal government through new construction and leasing, and acts as a caretaker for federal properties across the country. Learn about construction, design, furnishing, real estate, historic preservation, and operations & maintenance projects available with this agency. Both construction and services contracts will be addressed. WORKSHOP SESSIONS HARVEST A Past Performance in Government Contracting Attention Contractors: You Will be Graded! Mark Blando, Eckland & Blando Past Performance Information (PPI) has proven to be an increasingly important factor used by the Federal Government in awarding contracts. Learn how PPI is collected and shared by Federal agencies and then used in the solicitation and award process. Also, what can you do to ensure that any PPI held by the government regarding your company is accurate and complete? This seminar will inform you on how to obtain and review the PPI the Federal Government is holding regarding your company, as well as how to challenge and correct that information as necessary and appropriate. Understanding the Past Performance regime will help your company maximize its opportunities in the Federal Government marketplace. Wage and Hour Corey Walton, Department of Labor The Wage and Hour workshop will offer an overview of the Service Contract Act and federal Davis-Bacon laws and the everyday application of these laws in the workplace. The workshop will cover the issues central to government contract compliance including prevailing wage and fringe benefit requirements, completing certified payrolls, specific recordkeeping requirements and guidelines for the correct payment of overtime. The workshop will also include tips on how to best avoid the pitfalls and problem areas most common in government contract work. Attendees will also receive helpful informational publications as well as a Wage & Hour CD with an array of educational materials. 1 HUBZone Certification Randy Czaia, U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) In 1997 Congress enacted the Historically Underutilized Business Zones (HUBZone) Program to encourage economic development in designated areas through preferences in federal government contracting. Attendees will learn which areas qualify as HUBZones, the requirements that must be met to qualify as a HUBZone small business concern, how to apply for HUBZone certification, and the benefits of becoming HUBZone certified.

4 8(a) Business Development Program Orientation Katherine Roth, U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) You will get an overview of the 8(a) program, application process and additional eligibility criteria. SBA s 8(a) Business Development program assists small disadvantaged businesses to become competitive enterprises in the U.S. economy. An eligible applicant firm must be a small business (based on SBA's Office of Size Standards' NAICS code); be unconditionally owned and controlled (51%+) by one or more socially & economically disadvantaged individual(s); be U.S. citizen(s); and, demonstrate potential for success (in business 2 full years in primary industry that applicant firm is seeking 8(a) certification). Capability Statements Pat Dotter, MN Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) This session will provide samples and evaluation checklists to assist you in making a statement in your marketing efforts with Capability Statements being the focus. Learn the key components, review good and bad examples, and make your business attractive to the government. You will receive all of the necessary tools and tips to create a great first impression! Bidding and Estimating George Costilla, MN Department of Transportation The process of bidding and estimating, from MnDOT e-learning on website, to historical Bidding data, where to find bids and guide to bidding. Search websites to bidding opportunities with different agencies. WORKSHOP SESSIONS HARVEST B The BioPreferred Federal Procurement Preference Program (GREEN) David Easter, U.S.D.A. Forest Service What are bio-based products? Why purchase bio-based products? Types of bio-based products? What is BioPreferred? Understand the BioPreferred designation process and tools and resources to help you purchase bio-based products. Contract language for BioPreferred products. Doing Business with the VA Medical Center Nathan Fry, VA Medical Center (VAMC) This workshop is an introduction to doing business with the Veterans Affairs Administration VISN 23. Learn what the VA buys and how your business can support the mission of the VA. Meet key points of contact and discover opportunities for contracting. You will learn about the small business program in VISN 23 and the Veterans First Program. Roll Call! Government Contracting Programs for Veteran-Owned Businesses Where Have We Been and Where Are We Going? Tim Connelly, The Law Office of Tim Connelly PLLC

5 President George W. Bush established the first major contracting program for Veteran-owned businesses by Executive Order in Since then Congress has passed several important laws to aid Veteranowned small businesses and many states, including Minnesota, have followed suit. These programs offer important assistance to all Veteran-owned businesses new firms and established firms, large, small, medium and large companies, and prime contractors and subcontractors. Tim Connelly is a servicedisabled Veteran lawyer with a government contract law practice. Tim will review the programs available for Veteran-owned businesses, including recent developments and best practices for successfully competing for and winning state and federal government contracts as a veteran owned company. Veteran Verification Mark Cooper, MN Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) If you are a veteran-owned business interested in doing business with the Department of Veterans Affairs or State of Minnesota agencies this workshop is for you. If you have been asked whether you are a verified or certified veteran-owned business this session is designed to help you learn the steps for applying for that status. The VA Center for Verification and Examination (CVE) manages the Veteran and Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned business Verification process. This process of verifying that your business is owned, controlled, and managed by veterans is complex. MN PTAC will outline in detail what the eligibility requirements are, what corporate documents are necessary, what to expect from the application review process, and what contract opportunities are available for veteran-owned businesses. The Basics of Selling to the Government John Kilian, MN Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) By now you must have some idea how huge the federal government marketplace is. The federal government market is the largest in the world, and one that is constantly changing! Would you like to participate in that marketplace but don't know where to start? Then attend this introduction to the basics of selling to the government. You'll get basic information on the market, how the market is segmented, buying channels, terminology, registrations and certifications involved and the starting points for positioning your company to sell into the government market. System for Award Management (SAM) Pat Dotter, MN Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) What about SAM? this workshop is designed to walk you through the process for creating an account in SAM and migrating your legacy CCR account. Focus of the workshop will cover a New Registry in SAM, updating your existing SAM record, User roles, and finding the SBA Dynamic Small Business Search (DSBS) profile. A tip sheet will be provided to assist in areas where PTAC has identified SAM issues.