The Government gives out $115B dollars in small biz contracts each year, are you missing out? PART 1 with Adrianne Callahan

23% of Government Contracts are designated for small and minority business owners every year, this amounts to over $115 Billion dollars in contracts a year and that is only at the federal level. Federal, state, and local governments all have various funding that is designated specifically to work certified small businesses and the unfortunate truth is many of us are missing out on it. These government contracts can be a great stream of income. And an opportunity to grow small business ideas for women.

In this episode, we talk with Adrianne M. Callahan a Small Business Specialist (SBS) and Disadvantaged Business EnterpriseProgram Manager for the United States EnvironmentalProtection Agency (EPA) Region 5, Chicago, IL.

As the SBS and DBE Manager, Mrs. Callahan is responsible for the socio-economic programs carried out through the Region’s acquisition and financial assistance programs. In short, she helps small businesses like ours get government contracts and ensures that Women and Minority businesses get a shot at the millions of government dollars spent on vendor contracts each year.

Adrianne joins the show to talk about what small business can do to get certified and secure contracts. She breaks down things like NAICs codes, MBE (Minority Business Enterprise) and WBE (women business enterprise) certifications, and gives a ton of resources for us to get started on your journey.

This interview is so good I had to break it up into 2 parts.

In this Episode you’ll learn:

• MEB/WEN Minority Enterprise Businesses
• Why you should get the DOT DBE Certification first
• What kind of jobs and contracts can you get from the government?
• How long it takes to get certified
• Do you need to be full time in your business to go after government certifications and contracts
• How to research if agencies have to meet their small business goals and what they may be looking for upcoming projects
• Where to get free help to get certified and find contracts.

Resources for getting your small business certified for government contracts:

• NAIC Code – https://www.naics.com/naics-search-results/
• PTAC- Procurement Technical Assistance Centers http://www.aptac-us.org/
• https://www.sba.gov/local-assistance/find/?type=Procurement%20Technical%20Assistance%20Center
• USspending.gov

A little about Adrianne

Mrs. Callahan has been instrumental in increasing EPA Region 5’s small business outreach efforts by: 1) co- sponsoring an annual small business conference for veterans in conjunction with Veteran’s day; 2) holding monthly counseling and capabilities sessions with small businesses; and 3) helping to identify MBE/WBE firms to State agency assistance agreement recipients. In addition, Mrs. Callahan has served as a panelist and instructor, providing training at a number of small business conferences. Mrs. Callahan works closely with local, state and Federal government agency partners and resource agencies to identify and assist small businesses in doing business with the government. Mrs. Callahan is the recipient of numerous performance based awards: Special Act, Cash, On the Spot and Chicago area Federal Executive Board Federal Employee of the Year for Outstanding Program Specialist (2013) and Team awards. Mrs. Callahan is the principal negotiator with Region 5 State agencies for establishing their Fair Share goals. These goals are included in ALL EPA Region 5 Assistance Agreements (grants). Mrs. Callahan is responsible for a large volume of public (external) contact with small and large businesses, public interest groups and nonprofits..