Description: The federal government’s Small Business Subcontracting Program is designed to create the maximum practical business opportunities for small businesses, veteran-owned small businesses, service-disabled veteran-owned small business, HUBZone small businesses, small disadvantaged businesses, and women-owned small business concerns.
The subcontracting program requires corporations that receive federal prime contracts in excess of $650,000 for general awards ($1.5 million for construction contracts) to make the maximum possible effort to create subcontracting opportunities. Corporations comply by submitting an acceptable Subcontracting Plan to the contracting officer. The Plan designates the goals and procedures for utilizing various categories of small business concerns. Furthermore, the failure to negotiate an acceptable subcontracting plan will make the corporation ineligible for the award.
The research sought to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of GSK’s ability to comply with the government’s Small Business Subcontracting Program by identifying suppliers that were available in each of the commodity areas within which GSK procured goods and services. Once identified, findings and recommendations were then designed to reduce the program’s burden and increase the benefits to GSK. The research outcomes included: (1) recommendations that would reduce the cost and paperwork burden of corporate compliance with the program, while simultaneously increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of the subcontracting program; (2) A statistical examination of the performance of the subcontracting program for corporations and for socially and economically disadvantage businesses; (3) recommendations for changes in policies that would improve the program’s efficiency and effectiveness.