Sign up for email updates from SBAReceive helpful business tips and upcoming events in your area.


Privacy Policy
Log in to SBA.gov:
Enter your SBA.gov username.
Enter the password that accompanies your username.

Community Header Banner

LIVE FROM NATIONAL SMALL BUSINESS WEEK – Interview with National Subcontractor of the Year Misty Mayes

by nicoj, Community Moderator

  • Created: May 22, 2012, 10:44 am
  • Updated: May 22, 2012, 11:13 am
Share:
0 comments

This week we’re live-blogging from National Small Business Week, a public-private partnership event to honor and empower America’s small business community.

We just finished a morning session honoring federal contractors and subcontractors. In addition to remarks from Administrator Karen Mills, we heard from Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan about their commitment to supporting small business procurement to achieve their agency goals.

SBA recognized winners for a variety of procurement awards, including the women-owned National Subcontractor of the Year, Misty Mayes of Management Solutions LLC in Knoxville, TN. In 2002, Misty’s company started with just one contract supporting a division of the Department of Energy’s National Oak Ridge Laboratory. Her company now supports 17 divisions of the lab, growing from 3 to 40 employees since its beginning. In 2009, the company helped Oak Ridge implement a system to manage Recovery Act funding – and it worked so well it was shared with similar national labs.

Right after the announcement, we caught up with Misty to congratulate her on the achievement.

                               SBA Officials with Misty Mayes

Congratulations on your award. What led you to start your business?

I was working for a large company and I recognized that going into business for myself would allow me to move faster than large companies and react more quickly to client needs.

Tell us a bit about what your company does.
We do anything and everything related to project management. That includes training, process improvement, cost estimation and system integration.

Do you have any advice for all the subcontractors out there looking to grow their business?

Understand the mission of your potential customer. Too many subcontractors overlook that. Understand the specific pain points that the customer is experiencing.

About the Author

nicoj's Profile Picture
My name is Nico and I'm serving as a moderator for the Community.
Tags: Official SBA News and Views, Open For Business, Government Contracting