This session revolves around the basics of doing business with the government (state, local or federal) and is intended to provide key information around the four basic elements of doing business: processes, relationships, homework/research, and niche vs. need.

Moderator:
Mr. Dan F. Sturdivant, Assistant to Director for Outreach / Veteran-owned Small Business Advocate, Department of Homeland Security

Speakers:

Mr. Rick Horn, Director, Nevada Procurement Technical Assistance Center

Mr. Timothy G. Tweed, Director, Region Contracting Center-Fort Bragg Installation Contracting Command

Why does it seem like some vendors have better success in winning contract awards? Are some vendors luckier than others? This session will provide vendors with insight into how to effectively plan and respond to government solicitations (including Requests for Proposals, Invitation for Bids, and Request for Quotes).

Moderator:
Ms. La Juene Desmukes, Director, OSDBU, Department of Commerce

Speakers:

Mr. Michael Chang, Supplier Diversity / Programs Deputy, Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company

Ms. Wendy Despres, Assistant Director for Subcontracting Policy, DoD Office of Small Business Programs

Mrs. Michele N. McCoy, Branch Chief for Simplified Acquisitions, NOAA, Department of Commerce

Ms. Tracey L. Pinson, Director, Office of Small Business Programs, U.S. Department of the Army

Mr. Scott F. Denniston, Director, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

This session will provide an opportunity to discuss problems and/or success in obtaining Federal Contracts. It will feature the processes, policies and procedures to become certified as SDVOSBs as well the benefits of affiliation with The Elite SDVOSB Network.

Presenters:

R.C. "Chuck" Forrest III, PE, National Board, Elite SDVOB Network, President, KMEA

Mr. Bob Mulz, Chairman, The Elite SDVOSB Network

Ms. Tracey L. Pinson, Director, Office of Small Business Programs, U.S. Department of the Army

Mr. Scott F. Denniston, Director, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

Federal agencies tasked under Executive Order 13360 will provide an update on action taken and final product delivered. Each agency will also discuss future initiatives that will support the Executive Order.

Moderator:
Ms. Tracey L. Pinson, Director, Office of Small Business Programs, U.S. Department of the Army

Presenters:

Mr. Billy C. Jenkins, Veterans Procurement Liaison, Office of Veterans Business Development, Office of the Assistant Administrator, U.S. Small Business Administration

Mr. John Phelps, Chief of Staff, U.S. General Services Administration

Mr. Anthony Martoccia, Director, Office of Small Business Programs, U.S. Department of Defense

Mr. Frank J. Anderson, Jr., President, Defense Acquisition University

Mr. Scott Denniston, Director, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

This session will discuss the current legislative outlook and objectives, and how legislation can benefit service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses.

Moderator:
Mr. Scott F. Denniston, Director, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

Speakers:

Mr. Juan Lara, Staff Director and Council, Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity, House Committee on Veterans' Affairs

Mr. Gregory Willis, Staff Counsel, U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business & Entrepreneurship, Majority Staff

The Center for Veterans Enterprise (CVE) Awards Program has been recognizing significant contributions by organizations and individuals who are dedicated to expanding business opportunities for veterans and service-connected disabled veterans since 2001. The Enterprising Veteran Award is CVE's most prestigious honor. This award recognizes veterans whose quality performance provides advocates with specific success stories, a critical tool in promoting the program nationwide.

Presenter:
The Honorable Gordon H. Mansfield, Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

This seminar provides an overview of the GSA Schedules program, as well as a step-by-step interactive forum to teach businesses how to prepare a quality offer. Topics include: how to download the appropriate solicitation; what information should be included in the offer; past performance evaluation criteria; the commercial sales practices requirement; what to expect after the proposal is submitted to GSA; and how federal agencies use schedule contractors to fulfill requirements for goods and services. This workshop will also assist businesses in developing new ways to market their products and services once they have a GSA Schedule contract and feature techniques designed to set you apart from your competitors.

Moderator:
Mr. Michael J. Rigas, Deputy Associate Administrator, Office of Small Business Utilization, General Services Administration

Speakers:

Mrs. Floree C. McCullough, Industrial Operation Analyst

Ms. Pamela Smith-Cressel, Director, Regional Office of Small Business Utilization

Government (sponsored) entities educate attendees on the free services and resources they provide to Veteran businesses. Learn about no-cost consulting, low-cost training, and how to remain competitive in the complex marketplace of an ever-changing global economy.

Moderator:
Mr. Scott Denniston, Director, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

Speakers:

Mr. Morris R. Hudson, Missouri PTAC

Mr. James F. Mingey, Managing Director, National Economic Opportunity Fund

Mr. Don Wilson, Association of Small Business Development Centers

This session will feature the benefits and risks of teaming/partnering with foreign businesses, advantages and disadvantages of doing business in another country, legal issues, rules, regulations and applicable trade agreements. Representatives of the Canadian and Danish Embassy will discuss their current opportunities and the rules that apply.

Moderator:
Mr. Gary Cook, Business Development Specialist, IT Marketing Division Customer/Vendor Relations GSA/FSS IT Acquisition Center

Speakers:

Mr. Jeffrey L. Gray, Trade Commissioner, Aerospace and Defence, Canadian Trade Commissioner Service

LTC Per Lyse Rasmussen, Assistant Defense, Military, Naval and Air Attaché, Defense Industrial Cooperation, Defense Section, Royal Danish Embassy

Mr. Gary L. Stanley, President, Global Legal Services, PC

This session on Army's most successful Quality of Life Initiative -- The Residential Communities Initiative Program - will give attendees an overview of the program, a status update, the economic impact it has had on communities and the potential for job opportunities throughout the program. There will also be an opportunity for feedback on the program from various Veteran Organizations.

Moderator:
Mr. Ivan Bolden, Chief, Public/Private Division, Assistant Chief of Staff for Installation Management

Speakers:

Mr. Michael Hale, Director of Preconstruction, Actus Lend Lease

Ms. Dale Andrews, Investment Manager, Pinnacle

Ms. Kimberlee Schreiber, AVP, Equity Residential

Need clearance for your company/staff? Learn how to get started as well as the specific procedures and methods to secure opportunities in classified contracts, clearances, and cleared facilities within the Federal Government.

Moderator:
Ms. Pamela Porter, Director, Office of Small Business Programs, National Security Agency

Speakers:

Ms. Sandra Broadnax, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) Director, Small Business Programs

Mr. Mark Gross, President/CEO, Oak Grove Technologies

Mr. Michael Peterson, Owner, Petech, Peterson Technology, LLC

Learn about trends and tactics to be more successful in increasing government contracting revenues. How do you identify and qualify new business opportunities to fit your business? Find out how to position your company to win, develop your winning strategies, and discovering business opportunities before they are advertised.

Presenters:

Ms. Gloria Berthold, President and Founder of Marketing Outsource Associates, Inc. and its division, TargetGov

Mr. Joseph P. Brady, Director Of New Business Development, Research & Development Center, Fort Monmouth

The Rules of the Recruiting Game are fundamentally changing. With fewer workers and growing demand for talent, recruiters are aggressively pursuing talent on all fronts and the competition for Veterans is intensifying. In this session, presenters will share with participants some key changes in how Veterans are being recruited and cost-effective ways in which you can compete to attract and retain Veterans to your business. Learn new ways of thinking about recruitment and reveal some of the techniques used by leading recruiters to capture Veteran talent.

Moderator:
Ms. Terese M. Herston, Director, Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business Program, SAF/SB

Speakers:

Mr. John C. Beckett, Air Force Survivor Assistance Program Manager, Directorate of Services, HQ USAF

Mr. William Offutt, Executive Director, Hire Vets First Campaign, Department of Labor

Dr. Vince Patton, Director, Community Outreach, Military Advantage, Monster Worldwide

Independent and private veteran organizations explain how they help veterans. These organizations will detail their mission and the benefits of joining their organization.

Moderator:
Mr. Scott Denniston, Director, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

Speakers:

Mr. Chris Hale, President, NaVOBA

Mr. Bob Mulz, Elite SDVOB Network

Mr. Richard D. Ramirez, President and Founder, United States Association of Veterans in Business (USAVETBIZ)

Mr. Richard Weidman, Veterans Entrepreneurship Task Force

A medical device may be defined as any physical object intended to be used specifically for diagnostic and/or therapeutic purposes. This includes items such as stethoscopes, x-ray machines, prosthetics, and vaccines. This workshop will explain how two of the largest government medical organizations (the Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of the Army) procure medical devices.

Moderator:
Mr. Dan E. Shackelford, Associate Director for Small Business, U.S. Army Medical Command

Speakers:

Ms. Joyce Nadeau, Chief of Policy and Compliance, Health Care Acquisition Activity

Mr. Len Nale, Director of Medical Sharing Department of Veterans Affairs Prosthetics and Clinical Logistics Office

Ms. Doris Richardson, RN, MA, MSN, Assist. Deputy Chief Prosthetics and Clinical Logistics Office, Department of Veterans Affairs

Speaker:
Ms. Diane G. Dempsey, Director, Small Business Relations, BAE Systems

A panel of OSDBU Directors will share "real workplace" examples of what they see on a daily basis from the vendor community: which vendor techniques work, which vendor methods fail and which vendor approaches "crash and burn" before you get through the door. This panel is designed to help you improve your ability to win contracts with the Federal Government.

Moderator:
Ms. Debbie Ridgely, Director, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Speakers:

Ms. Jeanette L. Brown, Director, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Mr. Glenn A. Delgado, Assistant Administrator, Office of Small Business Programs, NASA

Mr. Scott Denniston, Director, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

Ms. La Juene Desmukes, Director, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, Department of Commerce

Mr. Tim Foreman, Director, Office of Small Business Programs, Department of the Navy

Mr. Ronald A. Poussard, Director, Office of Small Business Programs, U.S. Department of the Air Force

Ms. Denise Rodriguez-Lopez, Director, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, U.S. Department of Transportation

Successful (service-disabled veteran-owned) small businesses will present their business profile, provide a brief overview of their business plan, and share the tips and tricks they use to successfully conduct business with the Federal Government.

Moderator:
Mr. James C. Lloyd, Assistant to the Director, VOSB/SDVOSB Program Manager, Office of Small Business Programs, U.S. Department of the Army

Speakers:

Ms. Dawn Halfaker, Chief Executive Officer, Halfaker and Associates, LLC

Ms. Lani Hay, Founder & CEO of Landmark Technology

Mr. Anthony R. Jimenez, President & CEO, MicroTech, LLC

Mr. Charles W. Scott, President and Chairman of the Board, J.M. Waller Associates, Inc., SAIC Subcontractor of the Year

This session will focus on issues that small businesses face within the construction industry. Specific topics covered are bonding, subcontracting, and basic fundamental Federal regulations related to construction contracts. The session will also provide you with information that will help you to succeed in the construction contracting arena.

Moderator:
Mr. Anthony Bell, Associate Director of Small Business, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

Speakers:

COL James B. Balocki, Chief, BRAC Division, Office of the Assistant Chief of Staff for Installation Management

Mr. Serjio Guzman, Dir. Of People and Processes Division, Naval Facilities Engineering Command

Mr. Wes Stith, Vice President, Clark Construction Group, Purchasing Department

This session will focus on challenges specific to service contracts, including staffing, performance-based contracting, response to performance work statements, and some specific focus on IT services as well as doing business w/GSA, DoD and the VA.

Moderator:
Mr. Vince Chaverini Jr., Division Director, Worldwide Operations Division, A/LM/AQM, U.S. Department of State

Speakers:

Mr. Jim Ghiloni, Director of GWAC Programs, U.S. General Service Administration

Mr. George Otchere, Corporate SB Development Program Office, Science Applications International Corporation

Mr. Arthur Salus, President, Duluth Travel Inc., A Service Disabled Veteran Owned Business

Learn who buys manufactured supplies for the Federal Government/Primes, where to find information regarding procurement opportunities in this industry, and where to go should you need more information.

Moderator:
Ms. Peggy Glasheen, SDVOSB Program Manager, HQs, Defense Logistics Agency

Speakers:

Mr. Luis E. Garcia-Baco, Director, Industrial Base Capabilities, HQ, U.S. Army Materiel Command

Ms. Peg Meehan, Director, Office of Small Business Programs, HQs, Defense Logistics Agency

Mr. Francesco A. Musorrafiti, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, EPS

Getting the Work – Doing the Work: From the Government’s Perspective. This session will provide information on how Government IT purchasing varies by Agency. The following representatives will be available to provide valuable insight into its IT requirements: GSA, Dept of Veterans Affairs, Dept of Homeland Security, Information Technology, E-Commerce, and Commercial Contracting Center (ITEC4).

Moderator:
Ms. Jackie Robinson-Burnette, Deputy Associate Director, Army Contracting Command

Panelists:

Ms. Mary Parks, Director, Small Business GWAC Center

Mr. David W. Peterson, Chief, IT Acquisition Center, VA Corporate Franchise Data Center, Department of Veterans Affairs

Mr. Dennis Smiley, Division Director, Information Technology Acquisition Center, Department of Homeland Security

Ms. Joann Underwood, Division A Branch Chief, ITEC4

This session will cover construction needs on various military bases around the country. Construction needs include dining facilities, barracks facilities, classroom facilities, administrative facilities, and other types of vertical construction. Both Prime and Sub-Contracting opportunities are available for VOSB/SDVOSBs.

Moderator:
Mr. Jack Beecher, Small Business Deputy, North Atlantic Division, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

Speakers:

Mr. Gary Bertrand, Director of Small Business, Picerne Military Housing

Mr. Jerry Franco, Chief, Procurement Assistance Division, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, U.S. Department of Transportation

COL Alvin B. Lee, District Commander, USACE-New Orleans

The single greatest area for growth in small business participation in the past has been the services sector. From gate guards to base operating support to major weapon system maintenance, small businesses have demonstrated success with excellent performance. Air Force and Army Procurement officials and a highly successful SDVOSB will offer some timely tips and the Do's and Don'ts with regard to the unique requirements of service acquisition.

Moderator:
Ms. Terese M. Herston, Director, Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business Program, SAF/SB

Speakers:

Ms. Angelena Moy, Program Director, AFPEO/CM

Ms. Kathie E. Potter, Small Business, SAF/AQCP, USAF

Ms. Angela Skodacek, General Manager, Group 7 Associates Inc.

Ms. Gabrielle Y. Ward, HQ Army Contracting Agency (ACA), Director, Operations and Policy

This session will feature organizations that provide technical and managerial assistance to small businesses with a desire to enhance their capabilities as Manufacturers.

Moderator:
Ms. Peg Meehan, Director, Office of Small Business Programs, HQs, Defense Logistics Agency

Speakers:

Ms. Teri Lesicko, Sr. Business Development Manager, CSSS.NET

Mr. David G. Robinson, DMSMS IST & GEM Program Manger, Vet-Biz Initiative for National Sustainment (VINS)

Mr. Phillip A. Roth, Air Force Small Business Solutions Center MTAPP, Program Manager AFOPO/CCM

Mr. Paul Simpkins, DOD Office of Small Business Programs, Mentor Protégé Program Manager

Getting the Work – Doing the Work: From the Contractor’s Perspective. This session will focus on ideas to consider when pursuing contracting opportunities and when you’ve won the contract. Topics include: Small Business as the Prime – Strategies small businesses should consider when proposing to do work as the prime contractor; Teaming Arrangements – How to go after and maximize teaming arrangements with businesses, both large and small; Mentoring – Benefits of developing mentoring relationships with large businesses.

Moderator:
Ms. Simone Jackson, Associate Director for ACA Information Technology, E-Commerce Commercial Contracting Center

Speakers:

Ms. Linda Couch, Business Development Exec, IBM Small Business Programs, Federal Sector

Ms. Michelle McKinney, President/CEO M&M Technical Services, Inc.

Ms. Rose Wang, CEO, Binary Group

This session will provide an overview on how to team and establish joint ventures to increase contracting opportunities within the Federal Government.

Presenter:
Mr. Ralph C. Thomas, III, Special Counsel, Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney PC, Washington, DC