Mentor-Protege Relationships

GTSC encourages meaningful, valuable mentor protege relationships between our mentors and GTSC members.  Many agencies have formal mentor protege programs and those related to GTSC are listed below.  These are not all of the existing programs — only those related to our homeland and national security agencies.

U.S. Department of Defense Mentor Protege Program  (Go to DOD Mentor Protege homepage)

Since 1991, the Department of Defense (DoD) Mentor-Protégé Program (MPP) has offered substantial assistance to small disadvantaged businesses. Helping them to expand the overall base of their marketplace participation has produced more jobs and increased national income.

The DoD Mentor-Protégé Program assists small businesses (protégés) successfully compete for prime contract and subcontract awards by partnering with large companies (mentors) under individual, project-based agreements.

Traditionally, these partnerships have delivered a variety of products and services specialized in: environmental remediation, engineering services, information technology, manufacturing, telecommunications, and health care. Recently, new Mentor-Protégé agreements have focused on corrosion engineering, information assurance, robotics, circuit board and metal component manufacturing. The DoD hopes that future Agreements will focus on new technology areas such as radio frequency identification devices and enhanced security assurance.

Many Mentor firms have made the program an integral part of their sourcing plans; while the protégé firms have used their involvement in the program to develop much needed business and technical capabilities to diversify their customer base. Our protégé participants have established long-term business relationships with providers of government and commercial goods and services.

Successful mentor-protégé agreements provide a winning relationship for the protégé, the mentor, and the DoD.

U.S. Air Force Mentor Protege Program (Go to Air Force Mentor Protege program homepage)

The MENTOR-PROTÉGÉ Program assists eligible Small Disadvantaged Businesses (SDBs) (protégés) to successfully compete for prime contract and subcontract awards by partnering with major defense contractors (mentors) under individual, project-based agreements to help meet the Air Force mission. Several Air Force MENTOR-PROTÉGÉ teams have received prestigious Nunn-Perry awards for superior performance.

Mentor companies:

  • Provide developmental assistance and technology transfer to their protégés
  • Are directly reimbursed for services provided to protégés

Protégés:

  • Establish relationships with major Air Force contractors
  • Develop necessary business and technical capabilities to perform significant work on Air Force and other Department of Defense (DoD) contracts
  • Expand and diversify their customer base

Eligibility Criteria

Mentors must be:

  • DoD prime contractors eligible for the award of federal contracts, with at least one active subcontracting plan

Protégés must be one of the following:

  • A small disadvantaged business (SDB)
  • A women-owned small business (WOSB)
  • A service-disabled veteran-owned small business (SDVOSB)
  • A qualified HUBZone small business (HUBZone)
  • A qualifying organization employing the severely disabled

Note: Mentors and protégés are solely responsible for finding their counterpart. The Air Force Office of Small Business Programs does not participate in the teaming of mentors and protégés. Interested firms are encouraged to explore existing business relationships in an effort to establish a MENTOR-PROTÉGÉ relationship.

U.S. Department of the Army (Go to Army Mentor Protege Homepage)

The DoD Pilot Mentor Protégé Program is conceivably one of the most dynamic programs for enhancing the technical capabilities of small businesses.  This program is having a major impact on small businesses through incentivizing prime contractors, HBCU/MIs and PTACs to transform small businesses from a state of modest attainment to successful contributors to the defense of our nation.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security (Go to DHS Mentor Protege Homepage)

The Mentor-Protégé program is designed to motivate and encourage large business prime contractor firms to provide mutually beneficial developmental assistance to small business, veteran-owned small business, service-disabled veteran-owned small business, HUBZone small business, small disadvantaged business, and women-owned small business concerns.The program is also designed to:

  • improve the performance of contracts and subcontracts,
  • foster the establishment of long-term business relationships between large prime contractors and small business subcontractors, and
  • strengthen subcontracting opportunities and accomplishments through three incentives.

U.S. Department of the Navy (Go to Navy Mentor Protege Homepage)

The DoN Mentor-Protégé Program assists small businesses (Protégés) to successfully compete for prime contract and subcontract awards by partnering with large companies (Mentors) under individual, `project-based Agreements. The Department of Defense (DoD) Pilot Mentor-Protégé Program was established under Section 831 of Public Law 101-510, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1991 (10 U.S.C. 2302 note). The program has been extended through 2010 for new agreements.

The DoN MP Program is currently looking for agreements with focus in the following Developmental Assistance Areas:

    • Business Infrastructure
    • Certifications
    • Construction
    • Engineering
    • Manufacturing

The Navy MP Program Manager will accept Mentor-Protégé agreements submitted during the following three cycles:

    • March 31st
    • July 31st
    • November 30th

U.S. Department of State (Go to State Department Mentor Protege Homepage)

The Department of State Mentor-Protege program is designed to motivate and encourage large business prime contractor firms to provide mutually beneficial developmental assistance to small businesses (SB), veteran-owned small businesses (VOSB), service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses (SDVOSB), HUBZone small businesses, small disadvantaged businesses (SDB), and women-owned small business concerns (WOSB).  The program is formulated to foster the establishment of successful long-term business relationships between State Department large prime contractors and small business subcontractors thereby improving the performance of both.  The program is intended to strengthen subcontracting opportunities and accomplishments at the State Department.

Benefits to the State Department include, but are not limited to: acquiring an expanded base of qualified small businesses; strengthening subcontracting opportunities; and achieving a potential increase in small business program goal accomplishments.