The ultimate guide on the Business Development program
The Business Development program is an assistance program for small disadvantaged businesses in the United States. This program aims to offer a broad scope of assistance to firms that are predominately owned and operated by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals.
The program is a major instrument striving to assist socially and economically disadvantaged entrepreneurs in hopes of helping them obtain the resources necessary to achieve the American dream: upward mobility. Moreover, the program helps thousands of aspiring entrepreneurs to acquire a foothold in federal government contracting.
With the program, aspiring entrepreneurs can expect support in the following business development areas:
Mentoring
Procurement assistance
Business counseling
Training and business education
Financial assistance
Surety bonding
Management and technical assistance
Note that participation in the program is broken into two phases over a nine-year-long period. That is a four-year developmental stage and a five-year transitional stage.
Benefits of the program
As understood, there are a series of advantages associated with being in the program. Here are the main benefits of participating in the Business Development program.
Participants can receive sole-source contracts of up to $4 million for the provision of goods and services and at least $6.5 million for manufacturing. While the program helps firms build their competitive expertise, they also encourage entrepreneurs to participate in viable acquisitions.
Firms participating in the program can form joint ventures and teams to bid on contracts. This boosts the ability of such firms to perform larger prime contracts. The firms can also overcome the effects of contract bundling – combining two or more contracts into one large contract.
Requirements and goals of the Business Development program
The overall goal of the program is to elevate firms to thrive in a competitive environment. Nonetheless, there are some requirements in place to help achieve this goal. Below are some of those requirements.
One of those requirements is the regulation of the total dollar value of sole-source contracts that an individual participant can receive while in the program. The dollar value should be at least $100 million or five times the value of its primary North American Industry Classification System code.
The SBA district offices ensure firms are on track to accomplish their goals and are following requirements. The office monitors and measures the progress of participants through annual reviews, business planning and systematic evaluations.
Participants may utilize the specialized business training, counseling, marketing assistance and high-level executive development provided by the SBA. As a participant, you are also eligible for the following:
access to surplus government property and supplies
SBA-guaranteed loans
Bonding assistance
Eligibility requirements
The primary eligibility requirement is that a small business must be owned and operated by a socially and economically disadvantaged individual. A person must display economic disadvantage by submitting a narrative and personal financial documentation about income, assets and overall net worth.
Under the Small Business Act, certain individuals are assumed socially disadvantaged. These are African Americans, Asian Pacific Americans, Hispanic Americans, Native Americans and Subcontinent Asian Americans.
Currently, the program may admit an individual who is not a member of the groups above. This is only possible through a ‘preponderance of the evidence’ that he or she is socially disadvantaged. For example, an individual may show social disadvantage due to race, ethnic origin, gender or physical handicap. Long-term residence in an environment isolated from the mainstream of American society may be a good justification.
A business can also qualify for the Business Development program if the following groups own the business.
Indian natives
Alaska Native Corporation (ANC),
Native-Hawaiian Organization (NHO), or
Community Development Corporation (CDC)
Applying to the program
Before applying for the program, individuals and firms should invest in online training and self-evaluation courses. The course is accessible via the Business Development Suitability Tool.
There is a detail explanation of what the program is about in the first section of the online course. It ends with an eligibility self-assessment test. The test includes a series of simple yes or no questions that assess whether an individual or firm meets the basic qualifications for the program.
If one does not meet the eligibility criteria, the site redirects you to the SBA resource. Notably, this is most appropriate to help in this case.
How to apply
We recommend that you submit your application online. It is the fastest and the surest way to ensure the program will process your application in due time. However, if you are less concerned about time, you can always fill out a physical form. Contact your local SBA district offices to obtain a paper application and apply to the Business Development program.
For more information or questions about the Business Development program, feel free to contact us! Our business specialists will be happy to assist you.
