Tech company gets head start with SBA's government-contracting help.

When Yvonne Glenn founded her California technology company, she knew a key to startup success was winning federal contracts.

So early on she sought the Small Business Administration designations that would set her company apart. Today she can describe her company as woman-owned, service-disabled veteran-owned and as a small, disadvantaged business.

Those designations can mean a winning bid when it comes to business with federal agencies, which have goals to procure some goods and services from small- and disadvantaged business.

Glenn's company, Trofholz Technologies Inc., also applied to enter the SBA's 8(a) Business Development Program, which helps startups learn the ropes of government contracting.

"I entered the program as soon as my company hit the eligibility date," said Glenn, who had seen other companies benefit from participation.

Trofholz received 8(a) certification in October 2003, a year after Glenn incorporated the company that's named in honor of her grandfather and hired her first employees. It was two years after she began operations as a one-woman consultancy.

The Federal Technology Center in Sacramento, a nonprofit that provides assistance to small firms that want to learn how to do business with federal, state or local governments, helped Glenn put her 8(a) application together.

"So many companies are applying and the application process can take a long time," said Glenn, who got her start in the technology field during her six years in the Air Force. "You have to be proactive and take charge of your company and your application process."

That take-charge attitude has contributed to Trofholz' success, said Jim O'Neal, SBA Sacramento district director. A lot of firms that want to do business with the federal government wait for contracts to come to them. Not Trofholz. "They have been aggressive in ensuring they go in and market themselves and position themselves as best they can," O'Neal said.

Trofholz gets much of its work through open bidding, but there are sole-source opportunities for 8(a) companies. With (8)a designations, firms can get up to $3 million in sole-source money.

"The designations help you learn to self-market for government contracts and offer training, assistance and guidance," Glenn said. "They help you build strategic alliances."

Trofholz has proved to be adept at establishing alliances. All the firm's 23 active contracts are with the federal government, primarily with the Department of Defense.

Services Trofholz provides include information technology, network-support applications and equipping audio/visual training rooms.

One of Trofholz' major contracts is with the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center. Trofholz provides training, multimedia, networking and audio/visual services to the DLI and has redesigned and constructed classrooms for the world's largest foreign language institute. Trofholz also provides help-desk support, system-application training and teleconferencing services.

The firm is still in the initial phase of its nine-year 8(a) participation. The program aims to have companies graduate with a diverse client base that includes private-sector work. Trofholz is beginning to work on state and local contracts, but in the next year will focus on stabilizing infrastructure.

"We are constantly trying to keep up with growth and keeping the right people and systems in place," Glenn said. "We purposely slowed down in the past year to deliver quality growth."

Trofholz was the 10th-fastest growing company in the Sacramento area in 2006, according to the Sacramento Business Journal with 238 percent growth from 2003 to 2005. Revenue was $3.69 million in 2003, with 23 employees, and hit $12.49 million in 2005, with 81 employees. In fiscal 2006, revenue was $18 million and Glenn expected 92 employees by March.

Glenn relies heavily on technicians and engineers, and says having good employees, many with military backgrounds, has helped fuel growth. Speaking the same language as her security-minded clients is also a benefit.

"We've developed a good reputation and that's very important to us. The company starts selling itself and we're presented with more opportunities."

That's exactly what the 8(a) program is designed for, O'Neal said. "If you've taken advantage of the program, you will have not just federal contracts but a blend of work. When you graduate, you can compete equally as a competitive firm without added advantage."

To Glenn, that proactive component of the program is appealing. "I think of myself as an entrepreneur," she said. "The 8(a) program does not guarantee success, but it can help enable you."

LEARNING TO LEAD

Yvonne Glenn went straight from high school to the Air Force and then to California State University Hayward, where she earned a degree in business administration. In the service she was a security specialist and held systems administration and intelligence posts.

In starting her company, she used credit cards and a personal loan, which caused a lot of sleepless nights.

Now that Trofholz Technologies is up and running, Glenn is learning how to lead her fast-growing technology company. That role hasn't always come naturally to Glenn, who now must manage the balance between keeping contracts in the pipeline and keeping her work force at the optimum strength.

With the help of the 8(a) program, she is learning the business-development skills she needs, she said.

"It's just been in the past year that I am becoming more used to my role as CEO," she said.