“Last week, the SBA’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued a report, entitled ‘SBA’s Business Development Assistance to 8(a) Program Participants.’ The report detailed the OIG’s recent audit of the SBA’s 8(a) Business Development Program to ‘determine to what extent SBA measures and monitors an 8(a) firm’s progress toward achieving individual business development goals” and “to ensure 8(a) firms receive the help needed to meet their goals and if the program adapted during the Coronavirus Disease 2019 pandemic.’ Let’s take a closer look at the details and findings…”
“The OIG found that the ‘SBA did not have consistent practices in place to ensure program officials assessed the 8(a) firms’ development needs, counseled participants, or conducted field visits.’ In the OIG’s words:
SBA’s approach to monitoring 8(a) firms is more focused on reviewing for program eligibility rather than the progression of the 8(a) firm’s business development. Without processes in place to objectively monitor an 8(a) firm’s progress and measure program performance, stakeholders cannot determine success of the program.
Specifically, the OIG found that 15 of the 40 firms it reviewed did not have approved business plans, making them ineligible for a whopping $93 million in 8(a) Program contract awards…”
“But on a more positive note, the OIG did find that the SBA had adapted its business development assistance model in response to the COVID-19 global pandemic and had offered flexibility to all 40 of the 8(a) firms the OIG reviewed based on the impact of the pandemic.
Based on its findings, the OIG made eight total recommendations for the SBA 8(a) Program officials ‘to measure, monitor, and better deliver training and other business development assistance to 8(a) firms.’…” Read the full article here.
Source: SBA’s Approach to Monitoring 8(a) Firms is Focused on Eligibility Rather than Business Development, Says SBA’s OIG – By Nicole Pottroff, February 24, 2022. SmallGovCon.
