The FedSavvy Strategies Takeaways
- Technical SMEs are an important part of competitors’ bids, as they represent expertise and the technical ability to fulfill contract requirements.
- While looking to identify your competition’s SMEs, narrow the scope of your research. Consult the SOW to focus your research on the types of SMEs relevant to a specific contract opportunity. Look for specialized facilities and innovation groups, patterns in titles, and publications about new hires.
- Don’t leave this information on the table. Use it to your advantage to understand threat levels of competitors and…perhaps…who you want to hire away.
Many sources of a competitor’s competitive advantage may often be categorized in one of four categories:
- People
- Processes
- Tools
- Past performance
We often refer to this as PPTP.
This blog focuses on the process of examining a competitor’s people, or more specifically their technical subject matter experts (SMEs).
What is a technical subject matter expert (SME)?
Technical SMEs provide knowledge and direct, hands-on experience with the unique work, systems, and operations performed under a contract. Typically, technical SMEs hold technical certifications, higher education, and many years of experience in their field.
Why do we care about technical SMEs?
Competitors will leverage technical SMEs to fulfill certain contract requirements, demonstrate their technical prowess, and often highlight their understanding of the customer. They are a key piece of competitors’ bids and therefore demand attention in any competitive analysis.
Though all SMEs provide technical expertise, they do not all serve the same function.
Some SMEs are mainly leveraged during the capture process.
- Solutions Architects leverage their technical expertise to develop technical solutions for bids.
- Chief Technology Officers often provide oversight of the technical solution and the personnel developing it.
Other SMEs are responsible for day-to-day service delivery once the bid has been won. Their titles may vary wildly.
How to start targeting SMEs
To examine your competition’s technical SMEs, you first have to understand which SMEs are germane to a given contract opportunity. In other words, you have to engage in modeling, the first step of the intelligence process, that defines the requirements of your analysis.
In this case, you have to carefully read through the opportunity’s Statement of Work (SOW). The SOW will typically include information, or even job descriptions, outlining the types of technical SMEs required to staff the contract.
The contract may require SMEs to:
- Possess a certain clearance
- Be located in a certain customer location
- Hold certain professional certifications (examples include DAWIA, PMP, CISSP, CEH, etc.)
- Possess certifications centered on specific technology (examples include AWS or Azure cloud certifications)
- Have specific knowledge or expertise in a certain technical area (examples include a focus on machine learning, analytics, cloud, engineering, training, etc.)
- Know specific systems involved in a pursuit (DCGS-A, JWICS, etc.)
- Have specific customer knowledge or experience
With an understanding of these requirements, you can tailor research for SMEs that fit specific criteria. Precision targeting helps sift through a competitor’s thousands of employees.
Tactics to use in your search
Pay attention to unique ways competitors organize and name their technical personnel by consulting company websites and press releases.
This may provide you with an easy avenue for further narrowing your research. The following includes typical patterns to look out for:
- SMEs can be housed within a company’s internal organization such as dedicated internal business units.
- SMEs can be housed in specialized facilities or centers of excellence.
- Some competitors may use specific naming conventions for their SMEs.
- Target press releases that feature SMEs.
Competitors will publish press releases about SMEs they have hired with distinguished careers to showcase an investment in certain customer relationships or technical areas. These personnel are likely viewed as valuable by the competitor and are often pulled into bids that complement their backgrounds.
What to do after your assessment?
- Assess how your personnel compare to the competitor’s personnel
- Consider this as a factor in teaming decisions.
- Review your prospects to win, especially if key personnel are heavily weighed in the evaluation.
- Evaluate the hiring of a competitor’s key personnel.
Frequently Asked Questions About Competitor SMEs in Government Contracting
What is a technical subject matter expert (SME) in government contracting?
A technical subject matter expert, or SME, is a professional with specialized knowledge and hands-on experience relevant to a federal contract’s work, systems, technologies, or customer environment. Technical SMEs often possess advanced education, professional certifications, security clearances, and extensive experience in their fields.
How can you identify the SMEs a competitor may use for a federal opportunity?
Begin with the opportunity’s draft solicitation or previous. Identify the required technical disciplines, certifications, clearances, systems knowledge, locations, and customer experience, and then use those criteria to focus your research on relevant employees within the competitor’s organization.
What sources can help identify a competitor’s technical experts?
Useful public sources include company leadership pages, employee biographies, press releases, job postings, conference agendas, professional association pages, technical publications, patents, and government contract announcements. Professional networking sites can also reveal relevant job titles, certifications, customer experience, and employment histories.
What qualifications should you look for when researching competitor SMEs?
The qualifications should reflect the specific opportunity. Depending on the contract, relevant indicators may include security clearances, customer or agency experience, knowledge of required systems, professional credentials such as PMP or CISSP, technology certifications from companies such as AWS or Microsoft, and expertise in disciplines such as cybersecurity, cloud computing, engineering, analytics, artificial intelligence, or training.
What is the difference between capture SMEs and contract-delivery SMEs?
Capture SMEs help shape the technical solution and support proposal development before an award. These personnel may include solutions architects, chief technologists, technical directors, and other specialists. Contract-delivery SMEs perform or oversee the work after award and may be identified as key personnel in the solicitation or proposal.
How can a competitor’s organizational structure reveal its technical capabilities?
Competitors may concentrate their experts within innovation groups, technical practices, laboratories, specialized facilities, or centers of excellence. Identifying these organizations can reveal where the company has invested in personnel, technology, recruiting, solution development, and customer support.
How should you compare your SMEs with a competitor’s SMEs?
Compare personnel against the solicitation’s actual requirements and evaluation factors. Consider each team’s technical expertise, certifications, clearances, customer knowledge, relevant past performance, availability, and likely role in solution development or contract delivery.
How can competitor SME research support capture decisions?
Competitor SME research can help assess competitive threats, identify gaps in your own team, inform teaming and recruiting decisions, and evaluate whether your company has a credible path to win. It can also help determine whether stronger personnel, a different technical approach, or an additional teaming partner may be needed before submitting a bid.
About the Author
Brian Lindholm is the Founder and Managing Principal of FedSavvy Strategies, a firm he has led since 2012 to help federal contractors navigate complex competitive landscapes. A former U.S. Naval Officer, Brian integrates a disciplined perspective with deep expertise in federal contracting. He is widely recognized as a master of Competitive Intelligence (CI), having designed and led more than 500 Black Hat Reviews while successfully building robust corporate intelligence functions.
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