A report released today by Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP) finds clear evidence that women-owned small businesses have limited opportunities to win some of the federal government’s most sought-after contracts, despite a proven ability to deliver innovative goods and services across the globe. The report also outlines steps policymakers can take to rectify the problem.
The report, DO NOT ENTER: Women Shut Out of U.S. Government’s Biggest Contracts, analyzed 19 Multiple Award Contracts—the large umbrella contracts favored by many federal agencies, which create a pre-approved list of businesses that can supply unlimited goods or services during a specified period—with a total value of more than $253 billion. It found that women business owners are at a disadvantage in these contracts. For instance, 12 of the contracts analyzed have requirements that guarantee certain socio-economic groups, such as service-disabled veterans and HUBZone small businesses, are allowed to compete for contracts. Only three of those 12 have such guarantees for women-owned firms.
Key findings in the report include:
- Most major contracts reserved awards for socio-economic groups but not for women-owned small businesses. Twelve of the contracts analyzed had such reserved awards, however 9—a full three quarters of the contracts—had no such reserved awards for women-owned small business owners.
- Some socio-economic groups have exclusive access to contracts worth billions of dollars, but women-owned small business owners do not, making it more difficult for contracting officers to use their services
- The disparities in contracting already found by the U.S. Department of Commerce were reinforced, if not expanded by this analysis: that women-owned firms are already 21 percent less likely to win government contracts
- However, once women-owned firms gain access to Multiple Award Contracts, they are winning 20 percent of the work. Considering women-owned firms only receive 5 percent of government spending overall, this is a vast increase and a strong indication they are providing high quality services
WIPP commissioned the report to determine if women entrepreneurs are being used in this significant portion of the federal marketplace across broad industry segments including information technology, human capital and training and office supplies. The research—that women are largely excluded from the federal government’s most sought after contracts—bears out the U.S. Department of Commerce’s conclusion earlier this year that women do not have equal opportunity in procurement.
“Women-owned firms are 21 percent less likely to win government contracts, despite the fact that they’re a growing force in the economy. They own more than a third of all businesses, employing 9 million people and contributing $1.6 trillion to the economy every year,” said WIPP President Jane Campbell. “If women do not have access to these large, multi-year contracts, they will continue to lose out on the most lucrative opportunities the federal government offers.”
To that end, the report outlines actions policymakers can take to ensure women-owned firms have equal access to the upper tiers of the federal contracting world. The recommendations include:
- Ensuring parity when adding set-asides for certain types of businesses to compete within the contracts: Socio-economic set-asides should be available for all groups, including women-owned small businesses.
- Creating a government-wide acquisition contract for women-owned small businesses to provide IT services to all agencies: This has already been done for other socio-economic groups, leading to billions of dollars of contracts in those communities.
- Adding and enforcing a robust on-boarding process for contracts already underway, as some contracts are 10 years long, presenting a barrier for women-owned firms overlooked in the award process: This would effectively allow more women-owned firms to join an existing contract.
- Requiring all agencies to report the socio-economic status of businesses on the pre-approved list: This would help contracting agencies identify women-owned small businesses that can assist the agency in reaching contracting goals.
“We learned from our efforts on the WOSB procurement program that trickle down contracting excludes women. Unless agencies commit to utilizing women-owned firms in these large contracts, it simply will not happen,” said WIPP Chief Advocate Ann Sullivan.
For the full report, visit: http://www.wipp.org/news/
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About WIPP
The Voice for Women in Business in our Nation’s Capital, Women Impacting Public Policy, Inc (WIPP) is a national nonpartisan public policy organization that advocates for and on behalf of women business owners in the legislative processes of our nation, creating economic opportunities and building bridges and alliances to other small business organizations. Through WIPP, our collective voice makes a powerful impact on Capitol Hill and with the Administration. In 2016, WIPP partnered with the National Development Council (NDC) to provide support for WIPP’s coalition activities. In her role as Director of the NDC Washington office, Jane Campbell also serves as President of WIPP. www.WIPP.org.
