A hot topic at last week’s CMS networking event was an RFP that is expected to be released as a woman-owned small business (a rarity at CMS) in the weeks ahead, but the takeaway for the OrangeSlices team centered around the buzz generated by how one small businesses managed to entice an industry leader to serve as its Chief Executive Officer, especially when that leader brings a track record of success driving innovation within government, as an entrepreneur, and as CEO guiding a fast-growing Digital Transformation company in the years leading up to an acquisition.
First off, let’s talk opportunity – The aforementioned solicitation that is expected out as a woman-owned small business set-aside action in mid to late April is a recompete of the Medicare Coverage Information Management (MCIM) contract. This contract supports and maintains the Medicare Coverage Database (MCD) front end webpage which includes the National Coverage Determination (NCD) Database suite (National Coverage), and the Local Coverage Determination (LCD) and Articles Database (Local Coverage), while furthering transparency goals for CMS. The incumbent is a company called Fu Associates You can see the spend to date on the current contract here and more details that were shared at last week’s event are shared here. We should note that the latest CMS forecast, which was posted yesterday still shows MCIM as small business set-aside and not woman-owned small business set-aside, so it is worth keeping an eye on this.
Now, let’s talk leadership and perception – Fu Associates is not a new face at CMS by any means, as they can lay claim to serving as a Prime contractor supporting the agency for the better part of two decades. FU also brings a history of winning and holding its own at the agency, but they were not viewed by many as a significant threat or competitor – as is the case for any company who is still a small business after more than two decades.
This perception started to change when Fu managed to entice rising industry leader Lena Trudeau to join the company in in 2021. Trudeau, who brings a varied set of experiences, to include having served as the Associate Commissioner for the GSA Office of Innovation and as Head of the Amazon Web Services Public Sector business unit in Canada, was initially recruited to serve as Fu’s new Chief Operations Officer supporting then President Lois Fu. After serving as CEO for multiple fast-paced high energy companies, to include as the top executive for Public Sector Digital Transformation leader U.Group, prior to its acquisition in 2021, there was some thought that Trudeau might stay satisfied with a more limited supporting cast role.
That did not last long as, in January of 2023, Trudeau was appointed as CEO of Fu Associates. What does that mean about the future growth trajectory for Fu? That is still to be seen. What we do know is that big investments typically align with big intentions and many in the CMS community, especially those who have seen what she can do, are now moving this established (but in some ways new) CMS player, up higher on their list of competitors (and potential partners) to keep an eye on.
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- Two Dozen CMS focused Women-owned Small Businesses drawing attention
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Most Viewed Woman Owned Small Businesses supporting CMS today
Included below are two dozen women-owned small businesses which stood out as the most viewed profiles on the OrangeSlices partner platform thus far in FY 2023
- Next Phase
- eSimplicity **
- C-HIT
- A Square Group **
- CORMAC
- Sparksoft **
- SoftDev
- J29 **
- Edwards Performance Solutions
- iAdeptive
- Snowbird Agility
- Radiant Infotech
- Bixal
- Premier Enterprise Solutions
- A1M Solutions
- Lantana Consulting Group
- Williams Consulting
- DAS Federal **
- Arch Systems
- Centeva
- Signature Consulting Group
- AMDEX **
- APV (A P Ventures)
- Rainmakers Strategic Solutions
- AEIO
** An Elev8 GovCon Honoree, noted for a corporate culture that demonstrates excellence, making the company a beacon for talent, for partners, and for clients.
We cannot and will not speculate here as to the reasons for the increased interest, but whether it is a company evaluating them as a potential partner; a federal acquisition leader doing their due diligence; or a consultant weighing their next job move, this group of companies has been receiving increased interest.
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