New Small Business Strategy to Ease Access
The Department of Defense (DoD) released its small business strategy to align policy and business in the future.
After evaluating that small business participation in the defense industrial base declined by over 40% in the last decade, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had a warning: “If the Department does not work to reverse the decline of small business contracting, then the industrial base that equips our military will weaken,” according to a message signed by the official.
The strategy has three objectives:
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Implement a unified management approach for the sector.
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Ensure alignment between business and national security priorities.
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Engage and support small businesses.
The DoD engages small companies across the military services, defense agencies and other offices, including the Office of the Secretary of Defense. The policy argues that this has been known to cause confusion among executives trying to find the right program to develop their innovation. As a solution, it lays out a new structure to be adopted to “develop a unified small business professional workforce, and streamline entry points, and improve small business access to decision makers.”
The second objective seeks to “entice small businesses into the defense marketplace,” stated the document.
“Attending to commercial trends is critical, as today’s innovative companies have many choices for capital, are not reliant on defense spending, and, therefore, have other options for how to do business,” the strategy said, adding that this may make access to talent harder.
If the department does not work to reverse the decline of small business contracting, then the industrial base that equips our military will weaken.
A concern for engaging an inclusive pool of businesses, especially from underserved communities, is what drives the third objective. This is coupled with the need to “provide training and other resources to help educate small businesses and enhance their ability to resist cyber threats, IP infringement, and foreign ownership, control, or influence,” according to the strategy.
Focus is on innovative small businesses that will provide advantages to warfighters, according to William LaPlante, undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment.
The Pentagon's Office of Small Business Programs works to maximize opportunities for small businesses in defense. This area will coordinate management and goals under the new policy and it already runs many programs to encourage small enterprise growth.
