JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas (May 15, 2024) -- Service officials recognized the deputy director of contracting at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, as the 2023 Army Contracting Professional of the Year in Support of Small Business Programs during a May 2 ceremony for promoting the utilization of small business to the maximum extent possible in government contracting.
Kimberly Buehler, director of the Army Office of Small Business Programs, presented Stephen Heath the award for his contributions as part of the annual Defense Department Small Business Training Week in Chicago for members of the department’s acquisition workforce.
The award recognizes Heath’s collaboration with small business efforts at Mission and Installation Contracting Command-Fort Campbell not only contributing to the contracting office exceeding all of its assigned small business goals but also realizing the top small business achievement percentage among the command’s contracting offices nationwide at 97.86%.
“Every single day I get the distinct honor and privilege of working with the very best contracting professionals at MICC-Fort Campbell. I owe all of the credit for this award to each and every member of the MICC-Fort Campbell family,” he said.
Heath added that collaboration and teamwork are not only vital to the small business execution and Army contracting overall, but they are also the keys to success that led MICC-Fort Campbell in not only meeting but also exceeding its small business goals year after year.
“The MICC-Fort Campbell family constantly steps up to every challenge, and I am very proud and thankful to be part of this amazing group of professionals working to make not only Fort Campbell but also the Army better every single day,” he said.
Related: AMC earns Army Small Business Awards
Heath added he was honored, blessed and very appreciative to be nominated by Army Materiel Command and earn the award.
“Mr. Heath exemplifies the true advocacy of the AMC small business program,” said Thaddeus Martin, director of the AMC Office of Small Business Programs at Redstone Arsenal, Alabama. “His commitment to supporting the program not only had a significant impact on our small business goals and objectives but will further increase the strength and capability of our defense industrial base.”
As the senior civilian contracting professional at the contracting office, Heath’s close collaboration with Fort Campbell small business professional Michael Pressley and MICC headquarters small business director Luis Trinidad drove the contracting office to exceed all assigned fiscal 2023 small business goals. That included exceeding the small business goal by 9.24%, small disadvantaged business goal by 10.60%; small disabled veteran-owned small business goal by 1.26%; women-owned small business goal by 2.37%; and historically under-utilized business zone goal by 44.87%.
A critical element in the MICC’s HUBZone success was Heath’s involvement in the award of a $495 million multiple award task order contract, or MATOC, for construction and design build requirements at Fort Campbell, which included market research efforts and support of a recommendation to set the contract requirement aside as a HUBZone action. He worked closely with Pressley and Trinidad to award the MATOC to 17 HUBZone contractors supporting a timely end-of-fiscal year project as part of the Army Installation Management Command’s Facility Improvement Plan. The MATOC award also allowed IMCOM to expedite the award of renovations to improve Soldiers’ housing at Fort Campbell previously projected across the next seven fiscal years.
“Historically, we have had great participation from HUBZone small business supporting our multiple award task order contract for construction service at Fort Campbell. When we recompeted this contract in fiscal 2023, we had 21 contractors who submitted proposals, and we made 17 awards, which is very unusual,” Heath explained. “(With) previous acquisitions, we struggled to get six to seven contractors. However, my team continues to take my challenges to exceed our small business goals to new levels by increasing our reach during our market research phase of the pre-solicitation phase.”
MICC-Fort Campbell acquisition professionals also worked closely with APEX accelerators in Nashville and Kentucky to attract more small businesses to Fort Campbell in effort to increase small business participation. Managed by the DOD Office of Small Business Programs, APEX accelerators throughout the nation focus on assisting businesses with pursuing contracts with the department as well as other federal, state and local government agencies.
Heath also credits Pressley for providing the necessary resources and support with finding additional small businesses to meet customer requirements.
“As we worked through the re-competition of our MATOC for construction services, it was truly a team effort that provided an ordering vehicle with a ceiling that allowed us to support a large variety of construction services supporting Fort Campbell for multiple years to come,” Heath said.
The MATOC award as a HUBZone set-aside represented 33.90% of all MICC, 20.03% of all AMC and 7.24% of all Army HUBZone contract obligations, a significant contribution, according to Trinidad.
“Army support for HUBZone small businesses is essential for promoting economic growth, creating jobs, empowering diverse communities, and driving innovation and regional development,” Trinidad said. “Thanks to the dedication of our outstanding contracting experts and mission partners at Fort Campbell, the MICC played a pivotal role in supporting higher headquarters’ small business goals across the board. Our support for small business is not merely a goal — it's a steadfast pledge to favorably influence local economies across the nation.”
Heath and his team’s success in contract awards to small businesses are also vital in stimulating entrepreneurship, encouraging competition and supporting diversity in the small business marketplace – often leading to cost savings for the government as smaller firms typically have lower overhead costs.
“I am extremely proud of each and every one of the individuals at MICC-Fort Campbell as they are always looking for ways to support the small business programs and increase or beat our goals year after year,” Heath said. “It is always good to have a little competition to see if we can do better than last year, and it makes me super proud we are able to support the socio-economic categories the Army and Department of Defense historically have a hard time meeting or supporting.”
Heath was among three nominees for the annual award, including Melissa Rada with the Army Corps of Engineers and Army Contracting Command’s Mark Scheper, recognized for their contributions during the DOD Small Business Training Week 2024 conference April 29 through May 3. Themed “Breaking Down Small Business Barriers: Strategies for Success and Igniting the Future,” the conference was attended by about a dozen MICC small business professionals allowing the opportunity to gain insights, strategies and tools to enhance their collective efforts in supporting small businesses within the defense industrial base.
In addition to the DOD Small Business Vanguard Awards program, last week’s conference included insights by acquisition leader keynote addresses; interactive workshops covering a range of topics including procurement processes, contract management and supplier diversity; and networking opportunities to share experiences and forge Defense small business collaborations.
In fiscal 2023, the MICC executed more than 24,000 contract actions valued at more than $5.5 billion, including approximately $2.98 billion to American small businesses across the socioeconomic spectrum.
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.
Social Sharing