Finding The Best Areas For Expansion
Custom Analysis
The BBA Market Analysis tool can create custom analyses to research and analyze potential areas for expansion. To access the analysis tool, go to Market Analysis in the sidebar or click here. Common filters to set include Agency (Awarding), NAICS, PSC, Set Aside, and Assistance Type.
Examples of typical analyses that can be used with each type of analysis include:
Trend: Understand trends in the total dollar volume of contracts or grants
Shares: Understand the relative importance of agencies, NAICS / PSC codes, or Programs
Categories: Understand trends in the share of awards over time
Maps: Understand the geographic dispersion of awards
Vehicle Rankings: Understand key contract vehicles
Awardee Rankings: Understand major incumbent Awardees
The below shows an example of an analysis to find the most attractive NAICS codes for full & open contracts within HHS.
First looking at the largest NAICS codes:
Then adding the 541330 NAICS code to see the trend in awards over time:
The Vehicles Rankings tab can be used to discover what multi-award contract vehicles are most key for the filtered market:
The Awardee Rankings tab can be used to discover who the market leaders in the filtered market are, either to identify potential partners or understand the strengths / weaknesses of the current leaders:
Detail Pages
In addition to running custom analyses, the Agencies, Defense Program, Grant Program, PSC, and NAICS detail pages have pre-prepared analyses that can be further customized as needed. These pages can also provide a launching point for understanding recent contracts and grants awarded, active opportunities, and more.
Finding Entrance Points
Vehicles
In some cases, winning a seat on a contract vehicle or schedule or partnering with an existing vehicle holder can greatly increase the chances of accessing a new agency. Looking at agency vehicle rankings and vehicle award share analysis can help to identify key vehicles at target agencies, vulnerable incumbents, and which current vehicle holders are likely to make the most effective teammates.
See more details at the below link:
Analyze Contract Vehicles
Teaming
Teaming with an awardee with relevant experience can help to build a relationship and past performance with the agency or to win prime contracts outright.
One method to find a strong teaming partner is to look at the largest contractors at a particular agency, program, or NAICS code (see discussion of the Awardee Ranking tool above).
See more details at the below link:
Find Teaming Partners
Contracting and Grant Officers
Establishing relationships with contracting or grant officers and learning about upcoming opportunities can greatly improve the odds of discovering and winning contracts. Two ways to do this effectively are to attend industry days and to build targeted relationships with key agencies.
Each Agency page has a listing of the key people at that agency and you can also search for people using the search bar at the top of each page or using the People search page (Market Intelligence --> People or click here). Additionally, you can use the Document search (Market Intelligence --> Documents or click here) to search for Industry Day presentations.
Finding Opportunities to Pursue
Once you have identified new potential agencies and products and services to pursue, you can use BBA's Contract and Grant Opportunity and Search tools (available in the sidebar under Business Development) to look for specific opportunities.
Learn more about how to find relevant opportunities at the below:
Federal Contracts
Federal Grants
Other Considerations
Agency Set-Aside Targets
Federal agencies have different targets for the level of funding set aside for small business contracts. The table below shows small business set-aside targets by federal agency. Depending on your set-aside status, you may want to consider targeting agencies that align with your business status.
Government Fiscal Year 2022 Small Business Contracting Goals by Agency. Source: SBA.
| Agency | Prime Contract Small Business Goals | Prime Small Disadvantaged Business Goal | Prime Service- Disabled Veteran- Owned Small Business Goal | Prime Women Owned Small Business Goal | Prime HUBZone Small Business Goal | Subcontract Small Business Goals | Subcontract Small Disadvantaged Business Goal | Subcontract Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business Goal | Subcontract Women Owned Small Business Goal | Subcontract HUBZone Small Business Goal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small Business Administration | 65.0% | 55.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 39.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| Agriculture, Department Of | 47.0% | 21.5% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 21.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| Interior, Department Of The | 45.0% | 28.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 44.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| Office Of Personnel Management | 42.0% | 29.3% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 25.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| Nuclear Regulatory Commission | 40.2% | 27.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 40.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| Environmental Protection Agency | 39.5% | 17.8% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 56.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| Commerce, Department Of | 39.0% | 19.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 30.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| Treasury, Department Of The | 39.0% | 10.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 25.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| Labor, Department Of | 37.8% | 28.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 60.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| Homeland Security, Department Of | 34.5% | 17.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 43.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| General Services Administration | 34.0% | 21.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 22.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| Transportation, Department Of | 34.0% | 20.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 46.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| Justice, Department Of | 31.0% | 15.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 40.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| State, Department Of | 28.0% | 21.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 42.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| Veterans Affairs, Department Of | 26.9% | 10.2% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 17.5% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| Social Security Administration | 26.0% | 9.3% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 50.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| Health And Human Services, Department Of | 22.9% | 13.1% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 32.5% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| Dept Of Defense | 22.5% | 9.5% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 32.3% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| National Science Foundation | 18.0% | 10.7% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 25.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| National Aeronautics And Space Administration | 15.8% | 8.2% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 35.5% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| Education, Department Of | 14.0% | 8.3% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 37.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| Agency For International Development | 12.5% | 7.4% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 16.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| Housing And Urban Development, Department Of | 6.0% | 6.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 28.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
| Energy, Department Of | 5.2% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 49.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 3.0% |
Agency Openness to New Awards
Some agencies are more likely to award prime awards to new contractors than others. The below table shows the percentage of contracts awarded to contractors new to that agency (by count).
Analysis includes any prime contract award worth more than $20K in GFY2021 made to a parent contractor that had not received an award from that agency in prior years. The above list is limited to the top 25 sub-agencies by total count of awards.
| Agency Name | % of Prime Contracts Awarded to New Contractor |
|---|---|
| All | 6.5% |
| National Park Service [DOI] | 20.1% |
| National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration [DOC] | 18.3% |
| Bureau of Land Management [DOI] | 16.9% |
| Office of Acquisition Management [DOS] | 13.6% |
| Forest Service [USDA] | 13.4% |
| U.S. Consulates and Embassies [DOS] | 11.9% |
| Offices Boards and Divisions [DOJ] | 11.4% |
| Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [HHS] | 11.3% |
| Indian Health Service [HHS] | 11.1% |
| Coast Guard [DHS] | 11.1% |
| Federal Aviation Administration [DOT] | 10.6% |
| Department of the Air Force [DOD] | 9.4% |
| Department of the Army [DOD] | 9.4% |
| VA Headquarters [VA] | 9.3% |
| Public Buildings Service [GSA] | 8.7% |
| Shared Services Center [NASA] | 8.2% |
| National Institutes of Health [HHS] | 6.6% |
| Bureau of Prisons [DOJ] | 5.8% |
| Drug Enforcement Administration [DOJ] | 5.5% |
| Veterans Health Administration [VA] | 5.4% |
| Department of the Navy [DOD] | 5.4% |
| Agricultural Marketing Service [USDA] | 5.0% |
| United States Transportation Command [DOD] | 3.0% |
| Federal Acquisition Service [GSA] | 1.2% |
| Defense Logistics Agency [DOD] | 0.9% |