How to Use an 8(a) Partner to Build Past Performance and Win Prime Contracts

The 8(a) program lets a small business team with an 8(a) prime, subcontract on its contracts, and build the past performance needed to win its own prime awards later. Eric Coffie walks through the exact teaming approach he used starting in 2019, from doing the business development for an 8(a) partner to negotiating $18 million in sole source contracts as a prime in 2025. What you'll learn in this episode: How to team with an 8(a) prime, do the business development, and subcontract to build your own past performance The DSBS search that returns active 8(a) companies by NAICS code and state, step by step Why targeting medium and large teaming partners, one that grew from $19M to $35M, beats chasing subcontract scraps The long-game path from subcontractor to prime that led to $18M in sole source contracts being negotiated in 2025 Chapters: 0:00 - Teaming with an 8(a) prime to win the work 2:00 - How the subcontractor built its own past performance 4:00 - The $4M five-year IDIQ task order example 6:00 - Finding 8(a) companies to team with on DSBS 8:00 - Choosing NAICS code and state in the search 10:00 - Leverage 8(a) to build a prime pipeline, not scraps 12:00 - Negotiating $18M in sole source contracts in 2025 Mindy gives you the federal opportunities, agency signals, recompete intel, and pursuit briefs that tell you not just what contracts exist, but which ones to chase and how to win them. Sign up for free Daily Alerts and get opportunities delivered to your inbox before the day starts. 👉 Get your free Daily Alerts here 🔗 https://getmindy.ai