Federal contract recompetes

Every federal contract ends. That is when it becomes winnable.

A recompete is what happens when an existing contract reaches the end of its period of performance and the agency has to buy the same work again. The incumbent is not guaranteed to keep it — and unlike a brand-new requirement, you can see this one coming years in advance, because the end date is in the public award record.

That lead time is the whole advantage. By the time a solicitation posts to SAM.gov, the agency has usually already talked to the vendors who introduced themselves months earlier. Working backward from expiration dates is how a small business gets into that conversation instead of reading about it afterward.

What to look at first

• Who holds it now.The incumbent’s award history tells you the size of the work and whether they are a specialist or a generalist defending a long tail — look the company up.
• Which agency buys it. Buying patterns, vehicles and where each office posts its work differ sharply by agency — browse the agency directory.
• Whether it is set aside. A recompete reserved for 8(a), HUBZone, SDVOSB or WOSB firms is a much shorter list of competitors — see the programs.
• What it is classified as. The NAICS code on the original award is the one the recompete will almost certainly carry — find yours.

New to this? The GovCon glossary defines the terms, and the latest big federal contracts shows what is being awarded right now.