Stay Updated with Valuable Information About GSA Schedule

Some companies are built to do business in the federal marketplace. Long-term federal government contracts with federal agencies and commercial companies bring outstanding value to the businesses.

With the GSA schedule program, a company receives multiple new opportunities and tools to sell to the government. As a whole, a certified company can expand and become a renowned entity in the government space. It is important to note down that compliance and maintenance factors are attached to the award of a GSA Schedule.

To create a proactive entity in the federal market, contractors need to be aware of the latest news and changes that are happening constantly. Therefore, staying updated is essential to stay ahead of competitors. Most Federal Supply Schedules are Multiple Award Schedules. The MAS consolidates GSA’s services and product offerings into a single contract.

To excel as a business in the federal market, contractors need to know the necessary things that are associated with the GSA Schedule. You need to be well versed with GSA schedules, GSA contracts, the Federal marketplace, GSA Advantage, Government policies, legal rules and regulations, and many more.

There are uncountable elements that are present in the GSA Schedule program and you need to be aware of all of them as a federal contractor. We have conducted thorough research and explained the elements in great detail. Therefore, we are here to make sure you stay updated with GSA Schedule 2022.

About GSA Schedule

The term GSA stands for General Services Administration in the government sector. In simple words, it is a long-term contract with the federal agencies and commercial companies which involves all areas and departments of the government.

General Service Administration is an independent government organization that manages buildings, products, equipment, transport, and other important government services for the US government.

The GSA Schedule is also known as the Federal Supply Schedules (FSS) and Multiple Award Schedule (MAS). The GSA was established in 1949 to help manage and support the basic functioning of federal agencies.

The beneficial impact of GSA on federal businesses

Obtaining a GSA Schedule can be the change that a business needs in the federal market to escalate sales or to take a position in the government sector. A GSA-certified business gets opportunities with GSA schedule contracts.

Numerous beneficial factors impact federal businesses or contractors. Some of them are remarkable factors that we have covered in this section. Let’s find out.

Gain competitive advantage

If a contractor or a business is GSA certified then they gain advantages over competition outside of the government contracting world. Such federal contractors and businesses stand apart from their competition by having the ability to showcase all the federal agencies that they have worked with to provide products or services. It means they get boosts on their credentials by working with the federal agencies. As a result, it becomes a point of getting validated which is very convincing to the prospective customers. The competitors are left behind for not acquiring GSA Schedule. All of these show that the GSA-certified companies are perfect to consider.

Get benefits monetarily

Federal contractors and businesses draw monetary rewards that come from GSA Schedule. If a business knows how to navigate government contracting or GSA contracts then it will be able to reach success. Generating revenue helps business owners and contractors to expand their businesses. Expanding a business is only possible when there is a scope of scalability. Added revenue also helps businesses to expand their client portfolio. The monetary benefit is one of the most attractive factors that drives almost all federal businesses.

Ease in usage

It is no secret that getting a GSA contract can bring a huge amount of growth potential to a business. Once a contractor or a business starts with the system contract holders take advantage of the ease of being able to connect with the potential federal customers. The GSA program eliminates the need for discussion and negotiation on pricing because the contracts are enabled to set prices as a part of listing their company on GSA Advantage. Remember, the GSA Advantage is a federal marketplace that serves as a platform where certified contractors and businesses get listed in the directories. It helps them to connect with prospective clients. This GSA Advantage platform also brings ease of use to the contractors. Some points are mentioned below to explain the ease of use.

• No stress while negotiating prices.
• Quicker process.
• Based on the cause, being able to choose businesses that they want to work with.
• Easy expansion of customer portfolio.

Business growth

With GSA Schedule, there is no need to hunt for adding more customers to the list. Through the schedule, contractors and businesses can create a larger client portfolio that they can share with prospective customers outside of GSA. It helps to share the experience and expertise with larger clients. GSA schedule orders are usually large amounts, with such a thing, contractors can prove that they can take on other challenges. The schedule helps to find new customers in a simplified way.

Less time-consuming

Getting approved by the GSA creates a quicker selling process. It is because the certified companies can establish a price and decide the products or services and that’s all. The schedules were designed to be a streamlined process for the federal agencies to acquire products or services. Less time consumption opens up opportunities for businesses to obtain more customers and business.

Recent GSA updates in 2022

GSA already built an updated strategic plan for GSA Schedule 2022. GSA is outlining the changes that will be made to the MAS program. With the yearly event, GSA devotes itself to providing contractors and industry partners with developments on GSA. These events give insights into all the important updates that are expected to happen in the coming few years. The updates impact business tactics in various ways. Let’s understand the MAS updates now to know more about GSA Schedule 2022.

Recent General Multiple Award Schedule updates

GSA leadership has sent notifications to the attendees of some interesting MAS Updates. A list of the updates is mentioned below so that it will simplify understanding all the points.

• In the upcoming years, there will be a Transaction Data Reporting Expansion. This expansion will alter the requirements for future and current contractors in pricing requirements and reporting matters.
• TDR expansion will be fully transitioned to Unique Entity Identifiers from the Data Universal Number System by 4th April 2022.
• Contractors can expect a single point of contact with a Procurement Contracting Officer for all MAS businesses.

Business development in the GSA MAS program

GSA leaders have indicated that customer service will be one of their biggest priorities this upcoming year. The concern is not only for contractors but also for GSA customers as well.

GSA will be ensuring that the organizations purchasing off GSA Schedules will be receiving a quality experience. They will be encouraging them to continue working with the federal contractors.

The process will be monitored by making contractors deliver shipping and tracking updates for all of their orders to the federal clients. In this way, the purchaser will be able to figure out where their order is.

Through the Supplier Relationship Management tracker (SRM), GSA will be tracking customer services and will conduct virtual meetings to make sure that the federal businesses are not neglecting their customers. The shipping and purchase order management will be classified by colors which will work as indicators.

Customer service is also being encouraged by ensuring contractors upload photos of their products on GSA Advantage.

Updates of GSA Resources

In 2022 there are chances contractors and industry partners would be getting to know some important updates regarding GSA resources. Before the end of the year, 2022 new website would be launched. This update was announced by GSA to the Vendor Support Center. The website will have a search function and an improved design to find the information viewers would need.

The Vendor Education Center was officially decommissioned in December 2021. By the end of 2022 GSA wishes to roll out a beta test of new software called the Common Catalog Platform. This update would replace the legacy Schedule Input Program that would be serving as the backend for GSA Advantage. The new platform would also replace Contracting Officer Review System. To manage catalog details at a line-item level users will be ported from contracting systems to the CCP. To improve data quality and reduce the administrative burden it interacts with contracting systems.

Increase your GSA Schedule sales & learn about eBuy

40,000 Requests For Quotation already has been closed in GSA’s eBuy acquisition tool during the fiscal year 2021. Air Force, Army, Navy, Department of Veterans Affairs, and GSA are the agencies that most frequently utilize eBuy for getting supplies. A large volume of sales comes through eBuy. However, the average number of responses to an RFQ in eBuy is only 3 quotations.

Routinely monitoring and responding to the RFQs in eBuy can get you an advantage to increase your GSA Schedule sales. Through the GSA Schedule ordering process guide, your customer perfectly to limit the possible competitors. Increase your possibilities of obtaining additional Schedule sales by responding to RFQs in eBuy.

Contractors see the RFQs released under the Special Item Numbers that are awarded on the GSA Schedule contract. GSA is updating and adding SINs to the MAS Solicitation constantly. Your company may not be having SIN but don’t miss out on sales. Review your company’s capabilities against the available SINs to determine if you need to pursue adding SINs.

The strategy of the federal marketplace in 2022

The Federal Acquisition Service is an integral part of GSA that possesses the unparalleled capability of delivering comprehensive products and services across government at the best value. The commissioner of FAS continues to simplify the buying and selling experience through the schedules. GSA said that based on human-centered design, it will launch a new buyers’ experience effort. This particular development will automatically reduce the pain points that federal buyers, suppliers, and acquisition professionals have mentioned in feedback. The latest buyer experience will offer the buyers access to acquisition tools and market research solutions and other things that are associated with it.

GSA declared that the new tools have been developed to reduce burdens and simplify the customer agency’s experience. Further, the GSA has their work in progress to update the Multiple Award Schedule Roadmap to simplify suppliers’ onboarding processes.

Conclusion

Get ready for GSA Schedule 2022! The changes promotes contract holders to utilize their contract and support from GSA and GSA resources in the best possible ways. Though the updates are positive, the changes can be intimidating. Hope you could gather some valuable information regarding GSA and the updates to understand the current scenario.