Happy New Year from NASA OSBP

This year will bring unique challenges to the NASA Office of Small Business Programs, including the ongoing administration transition. While we are prepared to carry on serving the NASA small business community and the incoming leadership, I’d like to take a moment to thank former NASA Administrator Charles Bolden. Since 2009, his recognition of the contributions that small businesses make to NASA has allowed us to grow our small business base and achieve critical mission successes. Both the agency and I will miss his steadfast leadership and we wish him nothing but the best moving forward.

We are ready to face the challenges of 2017 head on. It currently appears that NASA surpassed our negotiated FY16 Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB) goal; however, we will fall short of achieving the statutory goals for Historically Underutilized Business Zone (HUBZone), Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB), Service-Disabled Veteran–Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), and overall Small Business goal. 

In an effort to achieve these goals in the future, NASA developed a Small Business Improvement Plan for fiscal years 2016 and 2017. Moving forward, we will continue to focus on the following initiatives:

1. Advocacy:  Promote small business programs through advocacy and collaborative efforts with internal and external partners/stakeholders.

2. Outreach:  Promote small business awareness and participation, utilizing innovative techniques at non-traditional venues in geographically targeted areas, to enhance all categories of small business.

3. Small Business Sub-Category Improvement:  Improve Agency performance in small business subcategories by identifying, increasing, and promoting small business prime contracting opportunities.

In addition to the above initiatives, we will continue to discover innovative ways of reaching our small business base. A prime example is our ongoing HBCU/MSI Technology Infusion Road Tour with the NASA Office of Education and the Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD). The Road Show is designed to assist educational institutions integrate new technology that supports the Agency’s mission while aiding NASA in making and exceeding our 1% goal for Historically Black Colleges and Universities/Minority Serving Institution. I was excited to attend our first successful Road Show stop of the year last week at the University of Nevada Las Vegas.

We will look back on 2016 with fond memories and face 2017 with determination. Happy New Year from all of us here at the NASA Office of Small Business Programs. We look forward to working with you.

Counseling for Small Businesses

One on one counseling is a fantastic way for small business representatives to get some key information regarding doing business with NASA; however, before signing up for a counseling session, I highly recommend that all those interested first visit our website, www.osbp.nasa.gov. The site contains an abundance of information, including a step-by-step guide on how to do business with NASA.

If you still feel like one-on-one counseling would provide some additional benefit, there a few ways to go about it. I mentioned our outreach events in a previous post. Most Industry Day events provide a block of time for counseling sessions. Signing up for these sessions is a great way to get some guidance from a NASA Small Business representative.

Make sure to do your homework! Research the agency to see if you are able to support a specific requirement before making any appointment. Have a detailed list of requirements that you are interested in, many of which can be found on NASA’s Acquisition Forecast at http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/procurement/forecast/. Contact the referenced POCs and prime contractor small business liaison officers (SBLOs) if you are interested in subcontracting opportunities. 

As I’m sure many small business owners are aware, NASA’s procurement is decentralized, with each of its Centers having their own procurement office and small business specialist (SBS). Being one of the best teams in the federal government, many of our center SBS’s are working hard, but if you have a specific question that’d you like answered, feel free to reach out to a center near you. Contact information for our Center SBS’s can be found at http://osbp.nasa.gov/map.html.

As always, we here at the Headquarters Office of Small Business Programs (OSBP) will be happy to point you in the right direction if you have a particular question you’d liked answered. Feel free to call at (202) 358-2088 or reach out to us via smallbusiness@nasa.gov. 

Small Business Outreach

Reaching out to small businesses is one of the most important functions of the Office of Small Business Programs (OSBP). I continue to stress the importance to small businesses of getting face-to-face interactions with small business specialists and decision makers at the multitude of events that take place throughout the country every year.

As part of the 2012-2013 NASA Small Business Improvement Plan, OSBP instituted an initiative focused on increasing outreach in the following low performing socioeconomic areas: Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned, Women-Owned, and Historically Underutilized Business Zones. Industry Days are one way we are meeting this goal. Attendees can expect active participation from the hosting Center’s SBSs, Technical Advisor(s), Technical Coordinator(s), and Office of the Chief Technologist representative. Of course, all companies are welcomed to attend as space provides. Upcoming Industry Days include: 

• Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) Industry Day at Ames Resarch Center on February 5, 2013 - Register at http://arc022013.eventbrite.com

• Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) Industry Day at Goddard Space Flight Center on August 13, 2013

An updated calendar can always be found on our website, http://osbp.nasa.gov/calendar-osbp.html. For those who are unable to make it to industry events, OSBP produces a fantastic newsletter that can also be found on our website, at http://osbp.nasa.gov/newsletter.html. As always, the website also hosts a wealth of information that can help small businesses get the most out of their partnerships with NASA. 

NASA Vendor Database Online

I hope everyone had a great new year. I know we did here at the Office of Small Business Programs (OSBP) and cannot wait to get started working hard with small businesses across the country in 2013.

On that note, I’m happy to announce that the NASA VendorData Base (NVDB) is back up and running. For those unfamiliar with this powerful tool, it is a database for both large and small vendors who wish to do business with NASA. The NVDB is accessible to all NASA employees to assist them in conducting thorough market research during the early phase of acquisition planning and is used to decide if the procurement will be a small business set-a-side or full and open.

Through the NVDB, businesses are able to post capability briefs for review, sign up for e-mail notifications regarding Sources Sought Notices, Requests for Information (RFI), and Request for Proposals (RFP). A quarterly newsletter is also sent out to all those with an account.

OSBP uses the database as a tool to reach out to small businesses on a regular basis. Upcoming outreach events, including industry days and conferences, are often announced to members of the NVDB. Other pressing information regarding small business at NASA may be sent out as well.

I highly recommend that any small business interested in doing business with NASA visit https://vendors.nvdb.nasa.gov/ and create an account. And for both new and old members, don’t forget to subscribe to the OSBP emails!