Cracking the government contracting code - Puget Sound Business Journal (Seattle):

younkinesagugad1746.blogspot.com
But getting her foot in the door was more difficul than shethought and, despite an impressive she was seen as a Navy wife who wouldn’tf stick around. “The reality was we wantef to stay here and make a go of she said. So Parker set about finding a way that she coulf leverage her experience and skills and stilo stayon Kauai. The answer was still federal contracting, but she had to get creative to crack into the contractor market atthe base.
She already had a strong background in contract and project managementt when she started in after working with defense contractorsin Washington, and an aviation services company in Oklahoma She found a way in by taking a full-time job with another small business that did contract work at the while still doing some work for The Parkerd Group. “It was just a mechanisjm to openthe door,” she said. “I have this great busineszs — the only way I can continue it is to step backwith it, humblee myself a little.
” The job with the othedr company gave Parker the opportunitiese to work with people on the “where I could demonstrate that I had both the busines acumen and the ability to give them what they need,” she It turned out to be exactlhy the right opportunity. When the project with the othet company finished a little more than a year TheParker Group, which at that time was just got its first contract at PMRF. After working severalp years as asole proprietor, Parkefr began hiring systems engineers and otheer professionals on Kauai and in three other statews on the Mainland.
Today, The Parker Group has 14 employees in four states who offer projec t management and systems engineering serviceas to defense contractors who use the base at Barkin g Sands in West Kauai to test and evaluate new as well asother installations. The company secured almost $1.1 million in contracts with the Navy in the 2008 fiscalkyear alone, according to the federal government. And this the U.S. Small Business Administration namedParker Kauai’sw businessperson of the year. Parker, 40, workxs from her home office in Kekaha, where she can stilo be close to her twoyoung children, Grant, 3, and 1, who are under the care of a nanny during the day while she manages her growiny company.
Nine employees work from officer space at the Pacific Missile Range Facility just a few milesa downthe road. The Parker Group also has three employees in Californi and one each in Indianapolisand Huntsville, Ala. Parker’s first contract with the PMRF was to writr a study of the range comparing its capabilitiesz and costs with the Reagan Test Site on Kwajaleijn Atoll so that the federa l Missile Defense Agency could determine which of the two rangez to use as a preferrecdtest site. “They essentially hiredr me and my firm to write their she said.
“In terms of establishingt my businessin Hawaii, that was my big Parker worked with the stafdf at the range to write, edit and illustrater the study. The result was that PMRF was choseover Kwajalein, helping to securew her reputation for future projects. “Whatever your industry, it’s all about she said. “It’s all abougt actually providing the customer with a servicre thatthey need.” Parker is an actived member of the , and abidez by the organization’s Four Way Test, according to Rotary International, asks: “Is it the truth? Is it fair to all concerned? Will it build goodwill and bettert friendships? Will it be beneficial to all concerned?
” “It’s also about providinh them that service in an ethical and professional she said. “That’s why people keep cominfg backto you, because you provide what they need.”