An Interview with Joshua P. Frank, RSM Federal Founder and Managing Partner: ‘We Help Small Businesses Win Government Contracts’

“RSM Federal is a multi-award winning coaching and consulting firm that has helped small businesses win more than $2 Billion in government contracts.”

In the never-ending search for new clients and revenue opportunities, there’s one source of revenue that many small companies don’t recognize: the U.S. Government.

The federal government is a huge organizational entity – and just like any other business or organization, the government needs to purchase products and services in order to function effectively.

RSM Federal is an award-winning coaching and consulting firm that works with small, mid-tier, and large companies to accelerate their understanding of the government market and learn how to position for and successfully win government contracts – with exceptional results.

Providing the Art and Science of Government Sales™, RSM Federal has quickly become a nationally trusted educator, trainer, coach, and consultant to other companies, associations, and coalitions.

The company’s track record is exceptional but it’s their ethics and integrity that set them apart. With nationally recognized expertise and hundreds of resources, templates, and step-by-step strategies, RSM Federal has trained more than 25,000 companies over the last 10 years.

The company was incorporated in 2008 and is headquartered in St Louis, Missouri.       

Joshua P. Frank, RSM Federal Founder/Managing Partner, spoke exclusively to The Silicon Review. Below is an excerpt.

Q. Why did you start RSM Federal?

I decided to start my own company because most small businesses can’t afford to get what they need to successfully win government contracts. Consider GSA Schedules, one of the most recognizable contract vehicles in the government. More than half of companies with a GSA Schedule fail to make money. On top of that, there are thousands of small business counsellors, coaches, advisors, and other non-profit and paid consultants. Many teach or provide the same generic information. So after a year or two when a company says, “Well, I’ve spent a lot of money, haven’t won a contract, and feel like I’m spinning my wheels,” they eventually realize they need help.

I started RSM Federal to solve a key market challenge: to provide the training, resources, templates, and strategies; that allows any professional or company to accelerate their government sales; at a cost that any company can afford; at a fraction of the price charged by most consultants.

Q. When we first told you that RSM Federal was nominated as one of the 50 most trustworthy companies, we discussed the extent to which your services garnered trust with your clients. How did your company build such credibility?

Well, I would argue that trust does not come directly from working with another company. If our clients don’t win contracts, it’s unlikely they will say they ‘trust’ us. Trust goes hand-in-hand with success. If they don’t win a contract, they may trust that we’re experts in government contracting, but trust is simply an attribute. Simply being a ‘trusted’ advisor is not enough. We ensure our clients win contracts so that they tell their colleagues: “You need to call RSM Federal because they are one of the most trusted coaching and consulting firms in the nation and they helped us win several government contracts.”

Unlike most consulting firms that help small companies win government contracts, we have an extensive array of products, programs, and services. Our flagship product is The Government Sales Manual. In addition to our training and educational products, we also run the multi-award winning Federal Access Program. There are hundreds of companies that can help you identify opportunities to bid on. Federal Access helps you win these opportunities. Federal Access provides every template you need for marketing, prospecting, sales, teaming, proposals, and operations. It accelerates your success by providing the step-by-step strategies to help you properly apply the right strategies, at the right time, to ensure you properly differentiate, influence the acquisition, and win more contracts.

We provide the products, resources, and training at a cost that any small company can afford. We garner trust because of our best-in-class training and most importantly, because our clients win contracts.

Q. We noticed that the market’s trust in your solutions went beyond your clients. You have multiple relationships with other consulting and training firms. Can you talk briefly about your partnerships?

Ten years ago, if you were a government consultant, it was black and white. You were the competition. Jump forward ten years and we’ve doubled revenue by working with other companies. Today, our products, resources, and programs are integrated or bundled with other solutions. We’ve signed strategic alliances with the National Veterans Small Business Coalition, Govology, Repperio, and Andana Consulting. Several more are in process. None of these organizations or companies would partner with RSM Federal unless we could prove that our clients win contracts.

“Over the last decade, working as a federal contracting officer at the Department of Veterans Affairs, as an SBA Business Opportunity Specialist, a PTAC counsellor, and now the owner of Govology, I can tell you that it’s absolutely no surprise that RSM Federal was nominated as one of the 50 most trustworthy companies. They are super awesome at helping small businesses win government contracts.” – Carroll Bernard, Co-Founder, Govology

Q. What do you feel are the reasons behind your company’s reputation?

Our reputation is based on only one thing – the success of our clients and members. The best marketing comes from your clients, not your marketing team. Don’t take our word for it. Our clients speak for us. When more than 90 percent of your clients are winning contracts; when the industry average for government coaching and consulting firms is less than 25 percent – that puts our reputation on another level. Receiving awards from the SBA and SAME are also a testament to how RSM Federal is perceived by the government, our colleagues, and our clients.

Q. Is it true that striving for both ‘ethics and success’ in a business is a tough feat?

Absolutely! There is not a single company that we consult, train, or work with that hasn’t been screwed by at least one consultant. This is why I took a one-year sabbatical before I launched the company. I knew that to be successful, we had to be different. We had to be trusted. We had to provide a level of value that companies wanted but believed was too difficult to find or too costly to afford with other consulting firms. We had to have quantifiable and qualifiable proof that working with RSM Federal provided real ROI. That’s why being nominated as one of the ‘50 Most Trustworthy Companies of the Year’ is a big deal. It substantiates our corporate strategy and values.

Joshua P. Frank: A Dynamic Leader

An author, business coach, and professional speaker with 28 years in the government market, Mr. Joshua Frank speaks nationally on small business strategy and business acceleration. Mr. Frank is the author of The Government Sales Manual, received SBA’s Veteran Business of the Year award in addition to the SAME Industry Small Business Advocate of the Year award. Mr. Frank serves as Chairman of the Board for the Veterans Business Resource Center (VBRC) and supports the SBA’s Emerging Leaders Program.

Mr. Frank lives in St. Louis, Missouri with his wife, daughter, and son. He is a former intelligence officer with a degree in management information systems and an MBA.

“We provide the products, resources, and training at a cost that any small company can afford. We garner trust because of our best-in-class training and most importantly, because our clients win contracts.”