In 2009, Strategic Business Solutions (SBS) was just a small startup consisting of four partners and no revenue. It has now turned into a multi-million dollar technology services company that specializes in systems integration, training, and network engineering, providing network support for mostly Department of Defense (DOD) contracts across the United States.
The four spent the beginning years developing a plan for the company and contemplating if they would focus on the private or government sector. After seeking the help of the Florida Procurement Technical Assistance Center at the University of South Florida (USF), Matt Cetta, a founding partner of SBS, said they chose government.
"We were a very young company. We had no clue on what to do or how to get started," Cetta said. "We had a couple of meetings with [our Procurement Specialist] that kind of set us on the right path."
HUBZone and Service-Disabled Veteran Certifications
Cetta went to the Florida Procurement Technical Assistance Center at USF looking for information on working with the government and getting HUBZone and Service-Disabled Veteran certifications, as two of the partners are service-disabled Veterans. There, he worked with an experienced Procurement Specialist, with more than 20 years of contracting experience with the DOD.
Cetta said that during his search, he found a lot of companies that charge thousands of dollars for the same certifications that he eventually received on his own by working with the Florida Procurement Technical Assistance Center at USF. The certifications have made a significant difference for the company, as they have become a big part of their business model and have allowed the company to compete for multi-million dollar bids with the government.
Government Contracting Fosters Revenue and Employment Growth
SBS officially launched in 2011 and generated revenue of $1.8 million. The company has continuously grown every year since. Cetta said that he projects revenue of more than $5 million in 2014, in part due to government contracts. Not only has revenue drastically increased, but so has the size of the business. SBS started with four employees in 2009, and now has a staff consisting of 50 full-time employees working at government sites in 14 states.
Because of the current cyber threat that companies like Target and TJ Maxx have faced, the company is looking to diversify into cybersecurity training.
