Marines top three of five small business goals in 2015

The Marine Corps Systems Command and Program Executive Officer Land Systems surpassed three of its five small business targets for fiscal year 2015.

The Marine Corps exceeded the targets for small disadvantaged businesses, service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses and women-owned small businesses, said Dave Dawson, the associate director of the Marine Corps Systems Command Office of Small Business Programs.

While 27.15 percent of contracts were awarded to small businesses, missing the target by 2.85 percent, the Marine Corps met and exceeded the federal goal of 23 percent.

Small businesses won $490 million in contracts out of the $1.8 billion that Dawson's group obligated in fiscal 2015. However, there was also significant small business subcontracting under contracts awarded to large companies, Dawson said during his presentation at the Washington Technology Industry Days at the ACQUIRE Show. 

The Marine Corps missed the mark on Historically Underutilized Business Zones, which aim to assist small businesses in economically depressed communities. The target for the 2015 fiscal year was 3 percent, while the achievement was 1.63 percent.

“We exceeded all of the goals for small business with the exception of HUBZone, which -as many of you may know- the 2010 census once it was completed, it negatively affected about 3,000 HUBZone firms, and so since then it’s been very difficult for us to ramp back up,” Dawson said.

The 2015 fiscal year targets and achievements are:

• Small disadvantaged business:
  • FY15 Target: 5%
  • FY15 Achievement: 10.64%
• Veteran-owned small business:
  • FY15 Target: No specified target
  • FY15 Achievement: 6.37%
• Service-disabled veteran-owned small business:
  • FY15 Target: 3%
  • FY15 Achievement: 5.42%
• Women-owned small business:
  • FY15 Target: 5%
  • FY15 Achievement: 7.42%
• HUBZone:
  • FY15 Target: 3%
  • FY15 Achievement: 1.63%