Let the Games Begin

Government agencies have a lot of information to hide from prying eyes. It ranges from the mundane, such as the personal information of their employees, to the spectacular, such as state secrets. Even if the information doesn’t have a top-secret classification, it needs to be disposed of in a responsible manner to assure it doesn’t fall into the wrong hands.

Document destruction companies bidding on government contracts for the first time are often in for a surprise, because the process can be vastly differnt from acquiring commercial contracts. The competition may be

Prior to bidding on government jobs, many in the industry recommend that destruction firms make sure they are qualified to bid by registering with organizations such as the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) or with databases such as Federal Business Opportunities (FBO) and Central Contractors Registration (CCR). Organizations such as the SBA provide aid and counsel to small businesses and can help businesses find available government contracts in their areas.

The SBA has made a free online course available through its Web site at www.sba.gov/training. Titled "Business Opportunities: A Guide to Winning Federal Contracts," the course is designed for small businesses, especially women entrepreneurs and small firms in underserved markets that have historically had a difficult time tapping into federal contract markets.

"They make sure that the small fish get just as much advantage as the large fish," Debbie Shannon, owner of Action Shredding in Marietta, Ga., says of the SBA.

It also may be beneficial for document destruction firms to become AAA Certified by the National Association for Information Destruction (NAID), which is based in Phoenix. A number of state and federal agencies, such as the Florida Department of Revenue, the U.S. Veterans’ Administration and the city of Seattle, have specified AAA Certification in their RFPs.

Brandon Collins, owner of Purchase Records Destruction (PRD) in Calvert City, Ky., recently found his company’s NAID certification helpful. PRD recently was awarded a federal contract through the Army because it is NAID AAA Certified, he says. "They actually asked us to put a bid together, which is rare, because they were looking for a small business in a HUBZone that was AAA Certified," Collins says.

Small businesses that obtain HUBZone, or Historically Underutilized Business Zone, certification can receive preferences for federal contracts through the HUBZone Empowerment Contracting Program, which is designed to stimulate economic development and jobs in urban and rural areas.

Prior to bidding, Collins also registered with the SBA and CCR as well as with Dun & Bradstreet, which offers small businesses tools and resources designed to help them grow.

"You have to have all your ducks in a row before bidding on work, so when opportunities come across, you know how to handle them," Collins says.

He adds that state government Web sites are especially helpful in procuring state contracts. Because some state information is public knowledge, Collins was able to look up a recent RFP and see what the previous bid was, who received it and at what cost.

Secure document destruction firms can also pay private companies that monitor state contracts to send them leads. Thomas J. Considine, CEO of Veterans Diversified Solutions, Fallon, Nev., is a member of the Nevada Procurement Outreach Program (POP), which sends him leads on contracts and bids across the country. The Nevada Procurement Outreach Center is a member of the National Association of Procurement Technical Assistance Centers, which can be accessed at www.aptac-us.org. On its Web site, the Nevada POP describes itself as working to increase the flow of federal, state and local contract dollars to Nevada businesses by providing training and technical assistance to local firms.

After making connections and learning the rules and regulations governing jobs, a secure document destruction firm is ready to start bidding on government contracts. The bidding process begins when a government agency places a bid either on its Web site or on organizational Web sites, such as those managed by the GSA, SBA, FBO and CCR.

"Plain and simple, the bid says, ‘This is what we need, this is the area that we need it done in, give us your best price,’" Shannon says.

Federal agencies want bidders to put together a technical plan describing how they intend to do the job and what type of equipment they will be using, along with the firm’s policies and procedures, Considine says. From here, destruction firms must come up with a reasonable bid.

The way Collins approached his latest contract was by quoting a per-container price. "For example, if they wanted 70 full containers picked up every week, we have to charge this much," Collins says. "For this particular bid, whether or not the containers are full, it’s still priced per container."

There are a few differences secure destruction firms should be aware of when it comes to bidding on state vs. federal jobs. "State bids are broken down into regions, so you can bid on as many regions as you want, while federal bids are more structured," Collins says.

"Another difference is destruction firms must become an approved vendor of the state before they can sell their services to state businesses, and even then state agencies like the DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles) have to check their budgets to see if they need the services," Considine says. "With federal jobs, they know they have a need, and so you’re bidding a specific job. And when you are awarded the contract, you start working right away," Considine adds.

Destruction firms also need to realize that even within each government structure, different agencies have different requirements. For a bid that PRD was recently awarded by a federal agency, Collins says the agency’s request for proposal (RFP) did not ask for a specific particle size, while another one of his federal customers did require a specific shred size.

Secure document destruction firms bidding on government jobs for the first time are often disillusioned, believing that price is the primary factor government agencies take into account. Other factors, such as whether a business is owned by a woman, veteran or minority or if it is a nonprofit organization, also play roles because by law a certain percentage of government contracts must be awarded to these companies. For instance, according to a Congressional Research Service report dated Aug. 7, 2007, on the topic of Small Business Administration programs for women, minorities and veterans, the SBA negotiates with government agencies to meet the following government-wide contracting goals:

NISH is one of two national, nonprofit agencies designated by the Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled, which is a federal agency designd to support nonprofit agencies participating in the AbilityOne Program (formerly the Javits-Wagner-O’Day program), which seeks employment opportunities for people who are blind or have other severe disabilities by procuring federal contracts for goods and services, according to the NISH Web site.

Four years ago, NISH expanded its services into the secure document destruction industry and currently has 30 nonprofit destruction firms in its growing network, according to Shawn Murphy, senior program manager, document destruction, for NISH, San Ramon, Calif.

Murphy’s job is to make contact with government agencies that have posted requests for quotes (RFQs) to ask them if they would like to participate in the AbilityOne Program. These bids are then posted on NISH’s network for its member firms to view.

"Procuring contracts is not easy, but NISH helps nonprofit destruction firms by taking the opportunity out of the competitive marketplace," he says.

Considine’s business is a service-disabled-veteran-owned business, which entitles it to 3 percent of all government agency procurement purchases. "It gives me a little more opportunity over the big international companies," Considine says.

Along with these government stipulations, a document destruction firm’s reputation also plays a role in whether it is awarded a contract. "Contracts can be given based off a referral from another department, so if you’ve done a good job for your past and present customers, you can be awarded the contract," Shannon says. "It’s not just about money, it’s about service too," she adds.

Government agencies can have very strict rules and regulations when it comes to the shredding of confidential materials. For example, unlike some companies, government agencies need a specific time for a pickup, not a four-hour window. "That’s because government buildings are bigger, security is tighter, and they have to reserve time on their loading docks," Shannon says.

Bidding on government contracts is also a very time-consuming process. For instance, Collins says he started the bidding process for his latest contract at the end of November and is setting up the job at the beginning of March.

"Each agency also has different requirements, so it’s not as if you can learn the format on how it’s done and then do it the same way each time," Considine says of bidding on government jobs.

To overcome these obstacles, Considine suggests that document destruction firms hire a retired government contracting officer to handle government bids, noting that pursuing government contracts can be a full-time job.

To remain competitive in the growing information destruction industry, Considine says he studied privacy and identity laws for two years before becoming a certified information privacy professional (CIPP) through the International Association of Privacy Professionals (www.privacyassociation.org), York, Maine. Becoming a CIPP took a lot of time and expense, and Considine also had to pass a comprehensive written examination.

"There are only 1,500 CIPPs worldwide, and I am the first in the state of Nevada. So, when people ask, we can now say we know what we’re talking about," Considine says. "We now develop security and privacy policies for our clients, ensuring they are compliant with federal and state privacy laws."

Collins has a different approach to staying ahead of the competition, and that is to focus on service. "We have to do what we say we’re going to do, be on time and have a good route and schedule," Collins says.