DoD Increases Efforts to Bring Small Businesses into Defense Industrial Base | Hacker News Reader

DoD Increases Efforts to Bring Small Businesses into Defense Industrial Base

defense.gov

19 pointsjdmark9 comments

This is just a farming exercise for existing primes to either take you on and absorb you or steal your IP and crush you.

So many of the small business and other protected status contracts end up with shell companies and do a dis-service to the intent of the programs. "

Instead we need to break up primes and manage contract needs more realistically.

I definitely see the shell company problem, eg some tiny company that only exists to check a box and pass through the contract to a big prime...but what would you propose here? A two or three person company is going to be crushed by the DoD. Just think what it takes to get, say, FedRAMP approved or write up your STIGs or to get the magic FIPS certification. The asymmetry between DoD and a smallco is so vast that I feel the latter has no choice but to seek a big brother who can act as prime. But I agree, that is very risky for the smallco.

Yeah, it's an open secret that apex is just a way for the primes to squeeze out another drop from their current suppliers. Who themselves are basically stuck with the prime they're servicing because of the surreal[1] business and product requirements.

The IIP is, so far as I can tell, just plain exploitive. A good way to hire techs for 15 bucks an hour. But I haven't been under them directly.

I am gonna switch hats here, which is weird, because I am almost always on the side of suppliers and maintainers in this frickin' monkey farm. But devil's advocate. You might ask yourself, "what kind of small supplier is going to sign up for some cockamamie requirement that forces them to change all their business systems for a single customer?" The answer to that question is, "a desperate one", and maybe sometimes following that, "a supplier that maybe isn't really that good". Porque no los dos?

I'm specifically thinking of a anti-IED-thing that got attention around 2005. Some poor Marine started buying this off the shelf widget to save his and his buddies' lives. A big prime got wind of this, screamed and yelled, and immediately sourced their version of this thing from some supplier who turned out to be a Turkish-Russian-Singapore manufacturer. The DoD slapped the Prime playfully on their taint, then the prime turned right around and literally BOXED THE RUSSIAN BOX INSIDE THEIR BOX. Ship it! I swear I am not kidding. And yeah, it didn't work either. Meanwhile the original widget maker had gone on to other things - something to do with cell tech, I think. Good call.

Another small supplier, right around the same time frame, again bought directly by desperate Marines, this time it lasted for maybe a few months before a prime went up the Hill and cried hard enough for it to get pulled out of the line. The supplier got hoovered up for some cash. Well, very neat tool, right? Now it's got some capital to grow! Do you know how that tool's doing today, after making the prime well in excess of a billion dollars? It's EXACTLY THE SAME. The prime bought this cool doodad, and then they sat on it for nigh-on twenty years, sucking down that cash, still selling the same box of parts kludged up by hacker kids twenty years ago. Now with a few extra semi trucks of paperwork.

Anyway. The ones that go the distance with the primes maybe are not the creme de la creme, is what I'm saying. If you're lucky you'll get a tiny crew of burnout cases and retirees. If you're unlucky you get the Matrioshka Box of ITAR Violations and 20 year old software bugs. And if you're REALLY unlucky the prime buys you and you get to watch your product die slow from a prime latched onto its arteries.

[1] I'm not sure I can describe some of these requirements without sounding like a crazy person to those outside the industry. Stuff like switching your entire ERP - for s single contract - a single five year contract. Anyway, crazy. So let's leave it there: folks who are inside, you know what I'm saying; folks outside, take my word for it, it's absolutely crazy.

you're not sounding crazy at all. I've lived the life of startup culture within the D.o.D. apparatus. We started with solving a problem in our office, was told we couldn't use the product unless we made a requirement and let companies bid on it (only primes were told about it). It was a horrible experience. Fortunately we were able to leave the agency and bid on the exact contract. Needless to say, we had a prototype functioning and everyone else were pitching man power requirements and not even close. The reality is, after securing the contract, we still needed a prime to serve as our SSO and ultimately were acquired by one due to headaches managing contracts. We made money, but weren't happy.

One issue as you mentioned was when we applied the logic in in our process to other agencies, they have completely different requirements that weren't in line (over fundamentals not the output). It created an all or none commitment to multiple builds for multiple agencies. Even our development processes had to be documented differently.

It's a big part of why I left govt contracting and have only supported state level for the most part (unless it's a sole source research project type deal, and those are very very small financially).

It's a trope, but in this case actually the real truth, that hearing you say that makes me feel better. Thanks for that.

Double edged sword though. I "feel better" because for a moment I don't have that feeling like I've been snookered into wasting my life on pointless garbage spiced with mild fraud. Yay! It's normal! This is just the way it is - that can't be so bad! But in a certain way that's kind of worse, because it means it's everywhere. It leaves me godlessly praying harder-than-usual that the Chinese are even more corrupt and hopeless at making complex things. Then I look at my laptop, and at my phone, and at . . my everything . . ah, crap.

OK, let's just "feel better" for one second before going back to the default. Hell, look at the Mk14 Torpedo, we managed through that! That's what we're doin' now. Thank you again, and may you steer clear of defense contracting[1] forever more.

[1] As it is currently practiced - not in a future "fixed" state, where everyone should be able to pile in.

So much this.. Although I know the frustration and desire for change from those still in uniform is very real, sadly its congress and the beltway bandits that actually get to dictate policies and programs..

Existing DIB contractors are struggling to meet all the requirements imposed upon them, while trying to win contracts in the race to the bottom contract awarding style that the DoD utilizes.

If you want to see this showcased? Look at the chaos surrounding the DoD's rollout process for CMMC.

Won’t succeed.

Risk averse purchasers always tend towards buying from big business.

No one ever got fired for buying IBM

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