JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas (April 29, 2021) -- Small business professionals from across the Mission and Installation Contracting Command conducted approximately 700 one-on-one virtual meetings with more than 290 small businesses during a matchmaking event April 19-20.
The two-day event followed a command-wide advance planning briefing to industry, or APBI, over five days in March attracting more than 1,000 small and large business representatives that could not permit time for individual engagement, according to MICC Office of Small Business Programs officials from Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston, Texas.
Almost 50 small business professionals, contract specialists, contracting officers, division chiefs, procurement analysts and directors from throughout the MICC and mission partner representatives teamed with the Virginia Procurement Technical Assistance Center to conduct the virtual meetings.
“The two-day matchmaking event was an extension to our APBI and first ever command-wide matchmaking event,” said Mark Massie, the director of the MICC Office of Small Business Programs. “This event was an excellent opportunity for small businesses to meet one on one in a virtual environment with our small business professionals and contracting professionals to market their capabilities. The event was a huge success for the MICC and for our industry partners.”
The March APBI kicked off with remarks by MICC leadership followed by briefings on forecasted acquisitions from the Army’s major commands and key stakeholders, including the Installation Management Command, Army Office of Small Business Programs, Training and Doctrine Command and Army Test and Evaluation Command. The follow-on matchmaking event last week allowed for the flow of vendor capability information for those forecasted government requirements while ensuring fairness in the integrity of the acquisition process.
Amy Ulisse, an assistant small business director from Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia, led March’s APBI effort. She agreed the virtual matchmaking event was a great success for the MICC and that it may serve as a model for future engagement as it minimizes expenses by small businesses to communicate the capabilities they can bring to the Army.
“The virtual engagement allowed the MICC to maintain contact and open communication with our small business partners under the unique challenges and restrictions presented by the COVID-19 pandemic,” Ulisse said. “It provided a sense of normalcy during these uncertain times to our small business community by allowing industry to connect ‘face to face’ with team MICC.”
Jim Keetch, the director of MICC-Dugway Proving Ground, Utah, said the virtual characteristic of the matchmaking event proved valuable.
“When we execute our local small business vendor fairs we attract mostly local small businesses. If we get attendees from surrounding states we feel very fortunate,” Keetch said. “In this event, I was able to meet with vendors from across the nation. Being able to connect with vendors who offer possible services and/or supplies needed by Dugway Proving Ground gives us more sources for possible acquisitions.”
Consolidated daily slide briefings for the APBI were posted to beta.SAM.gov on April 11 for those who were not able to attend. For additional information or to submit capability statements, small business representatives can contact the MICC small business professional nearest them from the small business tab at www.army.mil/micc/.
About the MICC
Headquartered at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston, Texas, the Mission and Installation Contracting Command consists of about 1,500 military and civilian members who are responsible for contracting goods and services in support of Soldiers as well as readying trained contracting units for the operating force and contingency environment when called upon. As part of its mission, MICC contracts are vital in feeding more than 200,000 Soldiers every day, providing many daily base operations support services at installations, facilitate training in the preparation of more than 100,000 conventional force members annually, training more than 500,000 students each year, and maintaining more than 14.4 million acres of land and 170,000 structures.
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