There are startups that in fact ONLY have government contracts. There are mechanisms that allow small startups to be awarded contracts without the need to compete with larger companies. The advantage in this approach is that founders don't need to go find venture funding, allowing them to retain more ownership of their company. This gives them the ability to have more to offer to new and talented employees. The disadvantage... well the government work slowly (which is counter to the silicon valley culture of rapid development, growth, and sell).
Why Can't Startups Get US Government Contracts?
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Re: Why Can't Startups Get US Government Contracts?
#52Oddly Khanna's paper, while referenced, is not linked. Here is the original if anyone is interested: http://lincolnlabs.com/innovation_report
Re: Why Can't Startups Get US Government Contracts?
#53Oddly Khanna's paper, while referenced, is not linked. Here is the original if anyone is interested: http://lincolnlabs.com/innovation_report
Thanks for sharing - I don't know why they wouldn't link it.
Re: Why Can't Startups Get US Government Contracts?
#54Startups can and do get government contracts, but the government isn't going to come court you. You (the startup) have to figure it out yourself. Selling to the government is very similar to selling to any other industry/company: you (the seller or maker) have to understand the customer's acquisition process. The big difference is that the federal government is the largest customer--millions of people and trillions o…
My understanding is that it's entirely possibly for just the contract pursuit process to overrun a project before one jot of work is expended on actual fulfillment. That's less likely than in transactions with private companies - although for IT projects...
I once had a 60 day contract take a year and a half to get signed after I won it. We had to be ready each and every day of that year and a half to start the work...
Re: Why Can't Startups Get US Government Contracts?
#55In my own experience working in defense, there are tons of small businesses working on contracts, the government is forced to spend so much money on small business that they often simply throw away money. I worked on R&D for a military system which I 100% knew the gov't didn't care about and threw in the garbage. All the big projects force the big guys to subcontract to smaller companies The problem is actually compl…
Its true, but as long as you aren't chasing the next billion and you have a solid product, SBIRs aren't a bad deal and you can win sub contracts from the larger companies and agencies.
Re: Why Can't Startups Get US Government Contracts?
#56Startups can and do get government contracts, but the government isn't going to come court you. You (the startup) have to figure it out yourself. Selling to the government is very similar to selling to any other industry/company: you (the seller or maker) have to understand the customer's acquisition process. The big difference is that the federal government is the largest customer--millions of people and trillions o…
There's also the fact that your business needs to be built to handle long term contemplative projects. Stereotypical Silicon Valley startups are built for fast, reckless growth which cannot and will not happen with a government contract.
Re: Why Can't Startups Get US Government Contracts?
#57In my own experience working in defense, there are tons of small businesses working on contracts, the government is forced to spend so much money on small business that they often simply throw away money. I worked on R&D for a military system which I 100% knew the gov't didn't care about and threw in the garbage. All the big projects force the big guys to subcontract to smaller companies The problem is actually compl…
The other problem with SBIRs is that products and sales are usually not deliverables for the money that the government gives via SBIR grants. So it is hard to scale up without other investment.
Re: Why Can't Startups Get US Government Contracts?
#58Earlier quoted context omitted.
Not to side on the side of onerous regulations, but this is a little naive. There is good reason that many of these laws are as long as they are. Things have to be explicitly laid out in legal language.
Still, laws must be written before they can be enforced. Some adjustment should be expected. I've occasionally wondered if it would be possible to have a "Deletionist Party" who's sole political aim is simplification of the legal code.
I think they would quickly find out why there are the nuances carved out in the legal code. Writing laws for millions of people, let alone 300+ million, is insanely complex.
Re: Why Can't Startups Get US Government Contracts?
#59Startups can and do get government contracts, but the government isn't going to come court you. You (the startup) have to figure it out yourself. Selling to the government is very similar to selling to any other industry/company: you (the seller or maker) have to understand the customer's acquisition process. The big difference is that the federal government is the largest customer--millions of people and trillions o…
We run a data/dev shop inside a non-profit 400 person company that is mostly gov contracting. _We_ will come courting. Most of our contracts require us to satisfy some percentage from five to 20% small business/woman/minority-owned. This could be services, consulting, pencils, you name it. We. Cannot. Find. You. The small businesses we know and love are not suitably registered with the fed/state certifications. We ro…
Very interesting. I'm going to be in "next gig mode" next year and am a Vet. Was thinking about what kind of company to start. Would you be available for a short chat? My email in my profile.
Re: Why Can't Startups Get US Government Contracts?
#60In my own experience working in defense, there are tons of small businesses working on contracts, the government is forced to spend so much money on small business that they often simply throw away money. I worked on R&D for a military system which I 100% knew the gov't didn't care about and threw in the garbage. All the big projects force the big guys to subcontract to smaller companies The problem is actually compl…
The other problem with SBIRs is that products and sales are usually not deliverables for the money that the government gives via SBIR grants. So it is hard to scale up without other investment.
Yep, and because all the projects are done with zero enthusiasm and only because they have a small business budget to blow, they often have no inclination to consider a Phase II or III