Company Overview

Incorporated in Texas in 1989, Barrera Associates (BAI) was formed as a family business by principals possessing over 20 years of experience in management consulting, federal government operations, and public policy issues.  The firm’s initial concentration was in two main fields of endeavor, education and the environment.  The foundational philosophy that guided the formation of the company was a desire to provide the highest quality management and administrative support services that large organizations require to help bring government programs and services close to people with a focus on excellent customer service.  In late 1989, the company relocated to Washington, DC where we remain today.

Since its founding, Barrera Associates has been retained by large multinational corporations, private non-profit organizations, universities, law firms, small businesses, and the federal government, to provide professional management consulting services involving diverse issues in environmental information management and education policies and practice. In 2002, Barrera Associates turned its focus to research and administrative support services area in five areas

• Information Resources Management
• Communications and Outreach
• Conference Management
• Program Management Support Services
• Desktop Publishing and Editorial Services

In every project our firm undertakes, communications is paramount to our success.  Whether outreach services are provided to customers of federal government services through conferences, publications, reports, or website development, our commitment is to design clear, concise, and correct messages to present the ideas, practices and outcomes intended.

Barrera Associates is a certified Hispanic and woman-owned U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) 8(a) business development company.

Barrera Associates is a certified contractor in the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 8(a) business development program.  We are listed in the SBA’s pro-net database under Pro-Net Number PO232244. We are authorized by the U.S. Small Business to perform on contracts in the following NAICS Codes:  541611 (Administrative Management and General Management Consulting), 541618 (other management consulting), 512110 (motion picture and video production), 541430 (graphic design services), 541930 (translation services), and  541720 (Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities). Barrera Associates meets the small business size standard of $6 million.

Contract Vehicles

Small Business Administration 8(a) Business Development Program
Barrera Associates, Inc. is certified as an 8(a) company from the U.S. Small Business Agency (SBA). Barrera Associates also qualifies for the Small Disadvantaged Business Certification Program (SBD). While the 8(a) Program offers a broad scope of assistance to socially and economically disadvantaged firms, SDB certification strictly pertains to benefits in Federal procurement. Companies which are 8(a) firms automatically qualify for SDB certification.

Benefits of the Program
Barrera Associates can receive sole-source contracts, up to a ceiling of $3 million for goods and services and $5 million for manufacturing. While SBA helps 8(a) firms build their competitive and institutional expertise, the agency also encourages them to participate in competitive acquisitions.
Federal acquisition policies encourage Federal agencies to award a certain percentage of their contracts to SDBs. To speed up the award process, the SBA has signed Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) with 25 Federal agencies allowing them to contract directly with certified 8(a) firms such as Barrera Associates. 

Recent changes permit 8(a) firms to form joint ventures and teams to bid on contracts. This enhances the ability of 8(a) firms like Barrera Associates to perform larger prime contracts and overcome the effects of contract bundling, the combining of two or more contracts together into one large contract.
For more information on this program please visit http://www.sba.gov/8abd/.

Lisa L. Barrera