The Department of Defense spends more than any other federal agency. In FY2023, total DoD contract obligations exceeded $400 billion. Small businesses captured $90.8 billion of that, according to DoD's Office of Small Business Programs (OSBP). If you are a certified diverse business and you have not looked seriously at DoD as a customer, you are ignoring the largest procurement market in the world.
This is not a market you walk into unprepared. The contracting processes are specific, the security requirements are real, and the competition is stiff. But the statutory set-aside goals mean contracting officers are actively looking for qualified diverse suppliers every fiscal year.
What the DoD buys
The DoD buys across an unusually wide range of categories. Most people think "defense" means fighter jets and missiles. Those contracts exist, but they represent a fraction of total spend by volume.
Major spend categories include:
- Information technology: cybersecurity, software development, IT services, cloud infrastructure
- Professional services: management consulting, financial analysis, program management support
- Facilities and construction: base operations, building maintenance, facility management
- Logistics and transportation: supply chain management, warehousing, distribution
- Healthcare: medical staffing, healthcare IT, behavioral health services for military personnel
- Research and development: engineering studies, prototype development, test and evaluation
- Administrative and operational support: training, human resources, administrative services
The Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Defense Logistics Agency (DLA), and dozens of subordinate commands each have their own contracting offices and procurement budgets. DLA alone processes millions of purchase orders annually for consumable supplies ranging from medical equipment to fuel to food.
Set-aside goals and how prominently they're used
DoD has statutory small business contracting goals set by Congress. The primary goals for FY2023 were:
- 23% of prime contract dollars to small businesses
- 5% to Small Disadvantaged Businesses (SDB), which includes 8(a) certified firms
- 5% to women-owned small businesses (WOSB)
- 3% to HUBZone-certified businesses
- 3% to Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSB)
DoD has historically met or exceeded the SDB goal and the SDVOSB goal. The WOSB and HUBZone goals are areas where performance varies by component. When a contracting officer is approaching fiscal year-end and a specific set-aside category is short of goal, urgency increases. September is often the most active month for small business awards.
SDVOSB contracts get particular emphasis at DoD because the veteran connection is culturally and politically valued across the department. If you hold an SDVOSB certification through the VA's Veteran Small Business Certification (VetCert) program, DoD is one of the strongest markets for it.
How to find DoD opportunities
SAM.gov is the primary search tool. At beta.SAM.gov, filter by agency under "Department of Defense" and then select the specific component (Army, Navy, Air Force, DLA, etc.). Use the "Set-Aside Code" filter to narrow to SDVOSB-only, 8(a), HUBZone, WOSB, or SDB opportunities.
A few filters that matter:
- NAICS code: Know your primary NAICS codes before searching. DoD contracting officers assign NAICS codes to solicitations, and if yours doesn't match, you may be ineligible even if you can do the work.
- Place of performance: Many DoD contracts require on-site work at military installations. Filter by state or region to find opportunities near your office or willing to consider remote delivery.
- Contract vehicle: DoD uses Multiple Award Contracts (MACs) heavily. Getting on an existing vehicle like SeaPort-NxG (Navy) or OASIS+ (GSA, used by DoD) is often more practical than chasing individual solicitations.
FPDS-NG (Federal Procurement Data System) at fpds.gov shows historical award data. Search for awards in your NAICS code going to small businesses over the past three years. This tells you which contracting offices actually award to small businesses in your category, which primes consistently subcontract to diverse firms, and what the average contract value looks like. That data shapes where you invest your business development time.
DoD Forecast of Contract Opportunities is published annually at sam.gov under the forecast section. Component-level forecasts (Army, Navy, Air Force) are sometimes published separately on their OSBP websites. The Air Force OSBP at afsbdc.af.mil publishes an annual forecast. The Army OSBP at osbp.army.mil does the same. Check these in October at the start of each fiscal year.
Registration and portal requirements beyond SAM.gov
SAM.gov registration is the baseline. DoD adds several layers on top.
DUNS/UEI: Your Unique Entity Identifier in SAM.gov is required. If you have not migrated from DUNS to UEI, do that first.
Certifications: For set-aside work, your certification must be active and verifiable. For 8(a), that means active SBA certification. For SDVOSB, that means active VetCert registration (the VA's platform replaced the old CVE database). For HUBZone, your SBA HUBZone certification must be current. Contracting officers will verify status before award.
DCSA and security clearances: Many DoD contracts require personnel with security clearances at the Secret or Top Secret level. If your contract requires cleared personnel, your business must be registered in the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA) system and have a facility clearance (FCL). Getting an FCL takes months and requires sponsorship from a cleared government customer or prime contractor. Start this process early if your work category involves classified information. For unclassified IT and services work, clearances are often not required.
Electronic Data Access (EDA): Contracts are executed through the Electronic Document Access system. Your finance team needs access to receive contract documents and invoices.
WAWF / IPP: Payment is processed through Wide Area WorkFlow (WAWF) or the Invoice Processing Platform (IPP). You must register and submit invoices through these systems. Failure to do so is one of the most common reasons small businesses experience payment delays.
Subcontracting through major primes
Prime contractors with DoD contracts over $750,000 (or $1.5 million for construction) are legally required to have a Small Business Subcontracting Plan. This creates real, enforceable demand for diverse subcontractors.
The major DoD primes by contract volume include Lockheed Martin, Raytheon Technologies (now RTX), Northrop Grumman, Boeing Defense, General Dynamics, L3Harris Technologies, BAE Systems, Leidos, Booz Allen Hamilton, and SAIC. Each of these companies maintains a supplier diversity program with a dedicated team.
Specific entry points:
- Lockheed Martin: Supplier diversity portal at lockheedmartin.com/suppliers. They publish a Supplier Diversity Annual Report with spend data and have specific HUBZone, SDVOSB, and 8(a) goals.
- RTX (Raytheon/Collins/Pratt): Supplier registration at raytheon.com/suppliers. RTX has consistently ranked among the top corporate spenders with diverse suppliers in DiversityInc data.
- Northrop Grumman: Supplier portal at northropgrumman.com/suppliers. Northrop has Small Business Liaison Officers (SBLOs) at each major business unit.
- Boeing Defense: Supplier registration at boeing.com/company/supplier-portal. Boeing's Defense division maintains separate subcontracting goals from its commercial division.
- General Dynamics: SBLO contacts listed by business unit at generaldynamics.com/suppliers.
SUB-Net at sam.gov/subcontracting is the federal subcontracting opportunities database. Primes post subcontracting needs directly on SUB-Net when they are looking for small business subcontractors on a specific contract. Search by NAICS code and keyword. This is an underused tool—most diverse businesses do not know it exists.
Attend industry days. When a major DoD program office issues a draft RFP or hosts an industry day, primes send their business development teams. Those are the people who control subcontracting decisions. Meeting them in person at an event is more effective than a cold email to a supplier diversity portal.
Practical first steps
Step 1: Get your certifications current. If you are a service-disabled veteran, get VetCert active before you do anything else. If you qualify for 8(a), HUBZone, or WOSB, those certifications belong in your file.
Step 2: Identify your target NAICS codes. Look at what DoD has actually awarded in your category using FPDS. Find the specific NAICS codes that match your capabilities and that have a track record of small business awards.
Step 3: Identify three to five contracting offices. Not all DoD contracting offices behave the same way. Find the ones that consistently award to small businesses in your NAICS, and build relationships with their Small Business Specialists. Every major installation and command has a Small Business Specialist whose job is to help small businesses connect with contracting officers.
Step 4: Register with two or three major primes. Pick primes whose contracts align with your capabilities. Complete their supplier portals and reach out to their SBLOs directly.
Step 5: Get on a contract vehicle. Competing for individual DoD solicitations as a new entrant is slow. Getting on an existing vehicle—OASIS+ (professional services), CIO-SP4 (IT), Polaris (small business IT), or a component-specific MAC—gives contracting officers a faster path to award you work.
Step 6: Attend PTAC events. Procurement Technical Assistance Centers (PTACs) operate in every state and provide free one-on-one counseling specifically for businesses trying to win government contracts. DoD funds PTAC operations. Use them.
The DoD market rewards persistence and preparation. The first contract is the hardest. After one successful performance, the path to follow-on work and referrals across the department opens up considerably.
