About Larry Fountan Expertise I can answer various questions dealing with Federal government procurement issues including CCR, preferential programs, subcontracting, GSA Schedules and etc.
Experience More than 33 years government experience in procurement, contracting and small business assistance.
Question How do I go about getting a GSA Schedule? Is it that we do research to find an existing schedule that has similiar requirements to what we offer and then apply to become part of that schedules' vendor list? If so where do we get to do that research and is it computerized so that we can do fast searches speeding up th esearch for the apprioriate GSA schedule? Please advise. Thank you!
Answer I believe you will find the information below helpful with the General Services Administration (GSA), Federal Supply Service (FSS), Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) process. .
Some Federal buyers/employees routinely tell vendors “you need to be on GSA” or “you need a GSA number” or “we can't do business with you unless you are on GSA” or “we can't do business with you unless you have a GSA number.” This normally occurs when you attempt to market your product or service. The statement may be factual or in some instances may be made because a buyer doesn't have time or doesn't want to deal with you. If appropriate, ask the person to identify the schedule that applies to you. Some Federal agencies have made it their individual policy to only do business with schedule contract holders even though their use is not mandatory.
If a GSA Schedule is right for you, your first step is to determine if there is a schedule covering the product or service you want to provide. (It is very difficult to determine which services/products are covered by merely looking at the schedule title.) You can find out by accessing www.gsa.gov When you get there, click on “GSA Schedules” and then click “Schedules e-Library.” Insert the description for your product or service in the ”What are you Searching For” block and click “Go.” If there is a match, the resulting screen will indicate the appropriate schedule and the “Special Item Number (SIN)” within the schedule. If there is not a match, there may not be a schedule covering your product or service. You can verify this by accessing FedBizOpps at www.eps.gov Click “Finding Business Opportunities” at the top left of the page. On the page that follows, select the option “Full Text Search” and insert the description for your product or service. Click on GSA as the agency and then click “Start Search.” If nothing appears, you may want to revisit the buyer and explain that you have been unable to locate a schedule that covers your product/service.
Assuming your search indicates there is a covering schedule (or if you knew by some other means) the next step is to find and download the solicitation for that schedule. There are two methods for doing this but I prefer the one I am about to describe. Go to www.gsa.gov and click the “GSA Schedules” button on the right side of the site. On the left side of the page that appears, click “For Vendors-Getting on a Schedule.” When the next page appears, click “GSA Schedule Solicitations.” Scroll down the list until you find the schedule of interest and download it to your computer.
The other method is to access FedBizOpps (www.eps.gov). When you get there, click “Finding Business Opportunities” at the top left of the page. On the page that follows, select the option “Search by Solicitation/Award Number.” Insert the solicitation number for the schedule of interest, and click “Start Search.” This should take you to the solicitation. This process becomes extremely complicated if you do not know the schedule solicitation number. That is why I prefer the method above. Again, you can perform a search using the “Full Text Search” described earlier.
The GSA schedule for Information Technology is the most popular and widely sought. If you have an interest and need that solicitation, I normally have the latest version on my desk top. I will be happy to email it along with other important information pertaining to the schedule.
After you print the solicitation covering your product or service, you should review it page by page. Highlight or place sticky notes at the places where you have questions. If your review indicates you are unable meet the solicitation's requirements (pricing, past performance and etc.), you need not proceed further. You should also be aware that you are not competing against other firms-only against the solicitation's “acceptability” evaluation criteria.
The GSA Schedules process is time consuming and complex. Contract award is generally slow and can take several months. Any orders pending on receipt of a GSA contract will probably be history by the time an award is received. Additionally, if you are awarded a contract, there is no guarantee that any business (orders) will be generated.
Having a GSA Schedule contract is only “another good marketing tool.” Your ultimate success or failure will depend on the amount of time you are willing to invest in marketing this tool. However, without a schedule contract, you will be excluded when Federal agencies elect to make purchases using this tool.
For additional assistance, I recommend you contact a Department of Defense funded Procurment Technical Assistance Center. You can find the nearest one at www.dla.mil/db/procurem.htm
