Government Contractors Consulting
From businesses that are new entrants to government contracting to experienced organizations, we understand the complexities that are frequently encountered with regulatory requirements like the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR), Cost Accounting Standards (CAS), and expectations from your Federal Contracting and Audit Agencies (such as DCMA, DCAA, and SBA).
With every new contract, you face challenges with compliance, budgets, risk mitigation, and meeting new accounting standards. All this, while your own team is focusing on delivering work to your own high standards.
We help you grow profitably while navigating the changing climate of working with the U.S. Federal Government.
Are you in survival mode? Or are you building for the future? Regardless of whether you want to increase cash-flow or build value, we can help you reach your goal.
Your ability to recover indirect costs can be the difference between profit and loss to government contractors, but making sense of FAR, allowable costs, unallowable costs, allocation basis, and consistency is challenging.
We assist in designing, maintaining, and reporting cost allocation structures to ensure maximum cost recovery and an equitable allocation of costs. Services include:
- Cost Allocation Structure Design
- Indirect Rate development
- Competitive Analysis
- Forward Pricing Rates
- Target to Actual Rate Analysis
- Annual Incurred Cost Submission Preparation and Review
- Audit and Final Rate Negotiation Support
Many business owners use entry level accounting products like QuickBooks in the early stages of their business, but when you enter the world of Government Contracting things change. To comply with the Federal Acquisition Regulations, Government contractors must have internal controls imbedded in the key business systems. We help make sure you are in compliance. We can help with:
- Accounting
- Estimating
- Purchasing
- Government Property
- Material Management
- Earned Value Management
Services include:
- Business system design and implementation
- Policy and Procedure drafting and reviewing
- Audit or review of existing business system for compliance with regulatory criteria
- Corrective action plan development
Even the best-run Government Contractors can find themselves in some form of contract litigation. Bid protest matters, legal claims against an audit finding, non-compliance claims, or qui tam claims (provisions of the False Claims Act (FCA) allowing whistleblowers to report fraud on behalf of the US government) can all result in legal actions.
These actions often require a cost expert to work alongside your attorneys.
Our Services include:
- Expert cost analysis and support
- Bid Protest support
- Expert witness testimony
- Statute and regulations interpretation
- Attestation of facts and circumstances
- Claims, Disputes, and Terminations
Government Contractors have an added complexity to reporting and billing due to the numerous FAR requirements. Most commercial businesses are not prepared to meet these requirements when awarded their first contract.
Our compliance and audit services are designed to help you to meet the regulatory reporting requirements and help navigate through a variety of Government audits. Our team of experts has over 100 years of combined experience successfully developing compliance and audit solutions.
- Compliance support for areas such as:
- Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR)
- Cost Accounting Standards (CAS)
- Disclosure Statement Development
- General Services Administration (GSA) programs
- Internal Controls
- Policies and Procedures
- Audit support for audits such as:
- Incurred Cost
- Business Systems
- Proposals
- Post-award/Defective Pricing
- SF1408 Pre-Award Checklist
- GSA
- Support of Disclosure Statements Audits
Today buying and selling businesses is a common way to grow your business, realize increased value, or execute a succession plan. Whether you are preparing to sell your business or acquire one, we are here to provide valuable insight into the process. Our consulting group, working in tandem with our audit and tax teams, can help you maximize the deal's value and minimize risk. We can help with:
- Due diligence
- Contract reviews
- Compliance reviews
- Program profitability analysis
The Federal Government has many opportunities to grow your business, but winning the bid and meeting compliance requirements can be daunting. To help you grow, we can guide the preparation of data elements needed in large proposals.
We can ensure your pricing aligns with your technical approach and maximizes your cost recovery. Helping to optimize the federal requirements to reach profitability is our specialty.
Ways we can help:
- Indirect Rate strategy review
- Salary survey gathering
- Cost model development
- Subcontract analysis
- Fee/Profit strategy
Christine Heckman Spano’s clients benefit from her thirty years of helping business leaders to take advantage of opportunities and solving challenges with Government Contracting, FAR Compliance, ERP System Implementations, Strategic Planning, Financial Modeling, and Management Consulting.
Christine’s experience spans both public accounting and private industry, providing her with a unique understanding of her client’s needs. Christine has significant project management and industry experience at the Controller level in the government contract industry. Christine is a Subject Matter Expert in FAR compliance, including implementing FAR-compliant accounting systems. In addition, she has recognized expertise in helping organizations strengthen their internal controls, developing forward pricing and pricing strategies, budgeting, and complex financial modeling.
In her ERP implementation assignments, she is experienced in Deltek, Unanet, Microsoft Dynamics, and GP.
Christine holds a BSBA from Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania. MBA from the John Hopkins University – Carey Business School and a Master’s Certificate in Government Contract Management from Villanova University. She is a member in good standing with the AICPA and MACPA and is a Certified Information Technology professional.
Robert M. Craig, MBA, CFE, has over 30 years of experience providing accounting and compliance solutions and services related to U.S. Federal government contracting and grants. Bob has provided Government Contracting Services to a wide range of industries including aerospace and defense, pharmaceutical and biotech sectors, manufacturing and professional services. He has worked with numerous departments within the Federal government including Department of Defense (DOD), Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) and many others.
He has served clients ranging from small start-ups to large, publicly held multi-national organizations. He has assisted a number of U.S. government contractors with cost accounting, compliance matters, implementation of new cost accounting and cost allocation structures, design and implementation of new ERP systems, audits of disclosure statements, preparation, submission and negotiation of termination for convenience settlement proposals including testifying with the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals, and much more. Bob also has experience working with internal control and reporting environments.
Bob graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and an M.B.A. from La Salle University. He is a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) and is involved in various professional organization including the American Bar Association, National Contract Management Association, Professional Services Council, Association of Government Accountants, National Defense Industry Association and the Maryland Tech Council.