The federal government is currently in its 4th quarter of its fiscal calendar year (July, August, September).
Please note: the federal government works by the following fiscal year:
- The First Quarter (Q1): October 1 – December 31
- The Second Quarter (Q2): January 1 – March 31
- The Third Quarter (Q3): April 1 – June 30
- The Fourth Quarter (Q4): July 1 – September 30
This is important to know because you will want to create a plan that will maximize your chances to win more Micro Purchase, as well as, Simplified Acquisition contracts.
In the government marketplace, Q4 is known for its urgency to spend, especially by utilizing Micro Purchase and Simplified Acquisition methods. Federal agencies must spend the funding that was allocated to them in that year before the end of Q4, September 30th. Agencies have a budget for that year, and if they do not use it, they lose it, so this is an opportune time for contractors to reach out to federal agencies.
Moving forward, here are suggested tactics. Start early, and conduct market research:
- Find contracts that will be expiring, and reach out to those agencies ahead of time. Building relationships is important with this approach!
- Find agencies buying your products and services, in addition to, having purchased utilizing Micro Purchase & Simplified Acquisition methods.
- If you had, or currently hold contracts, continue to build that relationship with that agency because you will eventually want to reach out to that agency again in FY22 around the month of July.
