We know – it’s been a while.

Like many small businesses navigating the federal contracting landscape in 2025, we’ve been deep in the weeds – responding to shifting priorities, adapting to sudden changes, and living with uncertainty. We didn’t mean to go quiet, we’ve just been focused on weathering a storm. Our last update was around New Year’s, and somehow January 2025 feels like both yesterday and a different lifetime. If you are wondering how we lost track of time, odds are you are not a federal contractor.

It’s no secret that this spring has been tough for federal contractors. Major changes to the federal landscape, the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) contract cancelling efforts, payment delays, and watching friends, family, and colleagues lose their livelihoods, have all contributed to an air of uncertainty in the federal contracting space. Small businesses, in particular, may be feeling vulnerable as they have fewer contracts to fall back on if one (or more) ends up being affected by agency cuts or contract cancellations. These changes haven’t just been policy shifts – they’ve been personal.

Catalina has not been immune to this. We have spent many heavy days in meetings, talking over what-ifs, reassuring staff, and being as open and honest as possible about what the future may hold. And yes, there are many unknowns, but we also feel confident about the value of our work. We’ve leaned into our strengths: transparency, agility, and a relentless focus on delivering value. Most days there is nothing to do except keep moving forward, so we are choosing to focus on what we can control – providing the best possible quality of work to our clients and looking towards the future.

We know that many contracts have been cancelled. We also know the government continues to provide essential services, and that new federal opportunities in critical sectors continue to be released. Small businesses are sometimes better positioned to respond to and win new work if they are flexible and ready to respond quickly. We are staying in the game – actively monitoring SAM, keeping up with agency forecasts, and making sure we’re ready to move when opportunity knocks. By staying active in SAM and other contracting databases, focusing on our business development capabilities, and continuing to perform to the best of our ability, we know we are doing everything we can to keep the future looking bright.

The landscape may have shifted, but our mission hasn’t. We’re still here, still working, and still believing in what a small business can accomplish, even in hard times.