I'm a retired Navy vet and would like to open my own business. I'm sending you a copy of my resume to show you my work history.
Sincerely,
Retired Chief
Dear Chief,
Thank you for serving our country in the military, and for sending me your resume focused upon your naval and civilian career in mechanical, maintenance and QA (quality assurance) skills that you honed during your 26 years in the U.S. Navy and working for DART.
While it can sometimes seem daunting at your age as well as mine (at 54, I am 4-5 years older than you) to venture into a new career path and away from the military one that we know so well, ... you are starting out on the right track, ... and you have so much life left in you.
As you read my "So You Want to Be a Government Contractor" e-book, it will take you through all of the steps necessary to get your own company set up and running. The U.S. government recently migrated over from Central Contractors Registry (CCR) to what they now call SAM.gov for government registrations. It is a little more confusing, but there is guidance at the SAM.gov website. I can answer any questions that you have, too, as you progress to that point of government registrations ... just send me email questions. I am also publishing a Volume-2 Advanced Government Contracting for my SYWTBAGC e-book that will also include the SAM.gov instructions.
I reviewed your resume and was a little confused by your overlapping jobs (military 1981-2007 versus DART Rapid Transit 1997-present). I assume that you were working for DART and also doing National Guard or reservist duty with the Navy. Is that correct?
You certainly have a lot of skills, along with past performance experience in mechanical, engineering and production logistics work. That is very useful for government contract pursuits. In the past 90 days, the U.S. federal government has announced 1,145 mechanical and electrical-related projects. Some examples of these includes contracts for:
- Mechanical power transmission
- Boiler-plant upgrades
- Physical access control/security
- Building and dormitory HVAC and power system upgrades
- Lots of contracts for facilities modernization and renovations
- Mechanical maintenance services
- Coast Guard drydock maintenance services
- Pumps maintenance
- Combat/tactical equipment refurbishment, sustainment and Repair (equipment in storage maintenance, such as corrosion control, motor testing and repair; combat warehousing maintenance, etc.)
- Lots of elevator repairs
- Many contracts related to generators and UPS systems
There have also been more than 4,600 announcements related to preventative maintenance, more than 9,300 logistics-related contract announcements and 653 contract announcements in the past 90 days related to Texas, with 119 contract announcements just for Dallas (though not all of them will be in your field of focus).
It is safe to assume that nationwide, the federal government reserves about 20% of all federal programs as small business set-asides. There were more than 29,546 small business set-aside contract announcements nationwide within the past nine days. I am positive that you can find many that pertain to your capabilities in that roster. When you get your company started, you should be able to claim Veteran-Owned Small Business (VOSB) status as well as regular small business status. Then you can get started on capturing your share of the billions of dollars in federal contracts every year.
Don't get discouraged.
Please tell me when you advance past each startup step (e.g., the selection of a company name; itemization of your personal and corporate skills/capabilities to be offered; creation and incorporation of your company -- I used Delaware because of tax and protections; creation of your company webpage; creation of your capabilities statement to send out to government customers; search of government opportunities, etc.).
Keep reading Miltiary.com for more insights into civilian career development (and perhaps more of my government contracting advice columns).
Warmest Regards,
Michael J. Erickson
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