Case study · IT & Cybersecurity
8(a) IT firm wins first prime on a DoD modernization IDIQ
A 40-person 8(a) firm with strong sub past performance but no prime wins needed to cross the line from subcontractor to prime.
The challenge
Strong technical team, but proposals read like resumes. No win themes, no discriminators, and pricing set by gut feel. Two prior prime bids were rated "Acceptable" and lost on best value.
What we did
- Ran a 9-month capture plan with customer engagement, competitor black-hat and teaming strategy
- Built evaluator-facing win themes tied directly to Section M factors
- Developed a price-to-win model that kept the bid competitive without stripping labor quality
- Executed Pink, Red and Gold Team reviews with former DoD evaluators
The result
$18MIDIQ ceiling
OutstandingTechnical rating
1stPrime award
“For the first time our proposal sounded like the customer wrote the requirements for us.”
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