Government Contracts for IT Companies: Where to Look and How to Win

Okay, IT contractors have it good with government work

The federal government basically runs on aging IT infrastructure that needs constant work. Cybersecurity, cloud migrations, system integrations, custom software, infrastructure management—agencies are hemorrhaging money on this stuff because they can't build it in-house. They need contractors.

That means the market is enormous. And unlike commercial clients, government agencies have actual budgets. Real money. The advantages:

Revenue is predictable — contracts run 1-3 years, not month-to-month
Deal sizes are real — talking $50K to $5M+ per contract
Repeat business is common — do good work and agencies bring you back
Budgets don't disappear overnight — way more stable than commercial

What NAICS codes do IT contractors use?

If you're an IT shop, you're probably one (or more) of these:

For software and coding work:

541511 — Custom programming (this is the most common one)
541512 — Systems design
541519 — Other computer stuff

For infrastructure/cloud:

518210 — Cloud providers, hosting
541513 — Facilities management

For security-focused work:

541512 — (also covers cybersecurity)
541519 — (catch-all for other IT work)

The good news: if you're under $34 million in revenue, you qualify as a small business for all of these. That's basically the entire threshold for most government set-asides.

Which agencies are actually spending money on IT right now?

Basically all of them. But the big spenders are:

DoD — Defense is always hiring IT contractors. $600B+ per year budget. Cybersecurity is a huge priority.
VA — Veterans Affairs is modernizing old systems. Cloud work, health IT, all of it.
DHS — Homeland Security needs infrastructure work constantly. Immigration, border security, all IT-heavy.
GSA — General Services Administration literally sells IT services to other agencies. They're always hiring.
Social Security — Their systems are ancient and they're finally modernizing. Still hiring for this.
NASA — Space work requires mission-critical systems. Good money if you're cleared.

What contract types will you actually see?

Time & Materials (T&M)

You bill hourly plus costs. Less risky for you. Super common for dev, testing, consulting work.

Cost-Plus (CPFF)

Agency reimburses costs, you get a fixed fee on top. Good when scope isn't locked down at the start.

Fixed-Price

You quote a price, live with it. Risky but profitable if you know what you're doing. Gets more common once you've worked with an agency before.

Blanket Purchasing Agreements (BPAs)

Standing agreement to provide services as needed. Like a standing offer. Stable revenue if you've got one.

So how do you actually land one?

1. Get on SAM.gov first

No SAM.gov registration = no government contracts. Period. Need your UEI and relevant NAICS codes. This takes 2-4 weeks.

2. Think about certifications

Optional but they help:

8(a) — Opens sole-source contracts up to $4.5M if you qualify
SDVOSB — Service-disabled vets get priority, especially with DoD
HUBZone — If you're in the right area, gives you an advantage

3. Security clearances matter for some work

A lot of IT contracts need Secret/Top Secret clearances. If you don't have cleared people:

You can still go for unclassified work
Or subcontract to cleared firms (lower margins but gets you in)
Or help key people get interim clearances

4. Find the contracts (this is where GovRadar helps)

New contracts post every day on SAM.gov. You need to find the ones that actually fit your NAICS and skills. Manually searching is the time suck everyone complains about.

5. Write proposals that actually win

Need:

A technical approach that shows you've thought this through
Past performance examples (even commercial work if you haven't done government before)
Competitive pricing (but don't lowball—government budgets are real)
Follow their requirements exactly (if they want Section 508 compliance, include it)

Timeline expectations (don't expect fast)

Contract posted → 30-60 days to submit proposal
Proposal submitted → 30-90 days to hear back
Award → 1-2 weeks before you start work

It's slower than commercial sales, so start tracking multiple opportunities while you wait on your first award.

You can do this

Thousands of small IT companies win government contracts every year. If you know your stuff, have a SAM.gov registration, and can write a solid proposal, you're in the game.

The hard part—finding the right contracts before deadline—is exactly what GovRadar does. We handle the monitoring. You handle winning the work.

Try it free for 7 days →