Supplier Training Excellence Program
The Supplier Training Excellence Program (STEP) is a virtual collection of educational and learning resources designed to help small enterprises navigate and succeed in the defense industry. You will find live webinars on a variety of topics, recorded webinars, videos, and links to collateral information on specific topics as well as webinar information from various affiliates in which as a small enterprise, you can take part in free of charge. Take a STEP in the right direction!
Select from the links below for available training. Come back and visit in order to register for upcoming STEP program webinars.
2024 Upcoming Live Webinars
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Affiliate-led Webinars
The Veteran Institute for Procurement (VIP) offers programs to help veteran small businesses and service disabled veteran owned small businesses increase their ability to win government contracts.
- Are looking to become "procurement ready?"
- Are you currently supporting federal customers either as a sub or prime contractor and are ready to scale?
VIP offers a three-day 27 hour training program in the Washington, D.C., area just 11 miles from the White House. Participants receive hands-on, market-based instruction that helps establish best business practices for federal government contracting. The program is offered at no cost to veteran owned small businesses nationwide. To learn more and to apply visit the company website.
The National Center American Indian Procurement Technical Assistance Center (NCAIED PTAC) provides professional business consulting services and technical assistance to Native American-owned businesses regarding marketing and selling to the federal, state, local and tribal governments and large prime contractors. Assistance extends to all Native American businesses (American Indian, Alaska Native Corporations and Native Hawaiians) and includes tribes and individual businesses both on and off reservations.
Services are free and are provided from five office locations in Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Virginia, and Georgia.
For more information, please visit the company website.
APEX Accelerators Program
The APEX Accelerators was established to expand the number of business capable of participating in government contracts. The program is administered by the Defense of Defense (DOD) Office of Small Business in cooperation with states, local governments and nonprofit organizations.
Under the program, APEX Accelerators help businesses pursue and perform under contracts with the DOD, other federal agencies, state and local governments and with government prime contractors. Most of the assistance the APEX Accelerators provide is free.
APEX Accelerators support to businesses includes registration in systems such as the System for Award Management (SAM), identification of contract opportunities, help in understanding requirements and in preparing and submitting bids.
The APEX Accelerators have a local presence in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and Guam. Other APEX Accelerators specialize in assistance to federally recognized Indian tribes and Alaska Native entities, their members and reservations throughout the country.
The APEX Accelerators are funded through cost sharing cooperative agreements between DOD and eligible program participants, including states, local governments and nonprofit organizations.
For a list of APEX Accelerators and SBA training, visit SBA events.
Project Spectrum
The Core Mission of Project Spectrum is to educate, train, and equip the Defense Industrial Base (DIB) small- and medium-sized manufacturers, and other institutions with the tools necessary to strengthen cybersecurity resilience throughout the nation’s supply chain. The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) recognized Project Spectrum as a premier resource for the tools and training needed to increase cybersecurity awareness and maintain compliance in accordance with DoD contracting requirements.
Project Spectrum provides businesses and institutions with the most up-to-date cybersecurity compliance and policy best practices. This comprehensive platform educates users on relevant topics that affect business risk management. Project Spectrum offers heightened, cost-effective awareness tools and training. The program positively impacts manufacturing, research & development, knowledge-based services, and academic sectors by providing the tools and information needed to thwart exploitation of various vulnerabilities, such as phishing, malware, and other cybersecurity threats. Project Spectrum helps DIB companies and non-traditional businesses implement or bolster cybersecurity hygiene and compliance processes and programs.
Core Competencies include: Cyber readiness checks, customized dashboard for monitoring cybersecurity progress, risk assessment analysis, workforce development training, cybersecurity training courses, educational webinars, in-house cyber curriculum development, tool reviews, communal platform for secure collaboration, policy guidance on Federal Acquisition Regulation, Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement, and NIST Special Publication 900 Series.
