Mentor-protege program to aid small businesses launched by Shapiro Administration

A mentor-protégé program to help small businesses compete for contracting opportunities in Pennsylvania has been launched by the Shapiro Administration. 

The Department of General Services (DGS) announced Monday the launch of its Mentor-Protégé Program (MPP) that will help small businesses (SBs), small diverse businesses (SDBs), and veteran business enterprises (VBEs) compete for more contracting opportunities. 

“The introduction of the Mentor-Protégé Program is the latest action by the Shapiro-Davis Administration to create more opportunities for small, diverse, and veteran-owned businesses,” DGS Secretary Reggie McNeil said in a statement. “By participating in mentorships, these small businesses will gain familiarity with the commonwealth’s contracting procedures, respond to more contract opportunities, and ideally, eventually serve as mentors themselves.”

The program pairs prime contractors with SBs, SDBs, and VBEs to develop their technical and administrative capabilities and help them improve their business management and contract bidding skills which could be useful in acquiring additional business. 

“Pursuing state contracts might seem daunting for a small business, so having someone who can help — especially another business that knows how to navigate the whole process — will be enormously beneficial,” said Lieutenant Governor Austin Davis, who heads the Pennsylvania Advisory Council on Inclusive Procurement. 

The inaugural MPP cohort comprises twelve proteges and six mentors who will collaborate for a year. DGS’ Bureau of Diversity, Inclusion, and Small Business Opportunities (BDISBO), which developed and manages the program, chose the mentor and protégé pairings, and monitors pairing activities. 

Mentor and protégé firms must be registered suppliers in good standing with the commonwealth to participate in the MPP. In addition, mentors must have served as a prime contractor on a contract worth $300,000 or more during the past three years. Protégé firms must be a DGS-verified SB and complete mandatory training to participate in the program.

Initiated under the Executive Order signed by Gov. Shapiro in September 2023, the MPP is one of several measures DGS is heading to expand contracting opportunities for SBs, SDBs, and VBEs.

DGS is also working with the Department of State to gather voluntarily submitted information from small businesses when they register their businesses with the commonwealth. The department’s Bureau of Corporations and Charitable Organizations has made it easier for filers to voluntarily submit information about whether their business qualifies as a small business, small diverse business, or a veteran business enterprise, and shares that collected information every week with BIDSBO.