U.S. SBA Administrator Isabel Guzmán recently announced the three companies that will be named Top Contractors of the Year during the upcoming U.S. Small Business Week. She also announced the winner of the Dwight D. Eisenhower Award and the finalists for the National Small Business Person of the Year.

The chosen contractors are Delta Solutions & Strategies, LLC, a defense support services company owned by Colorado service-disabled veterans; Dicin Electric Company, a Connecticut woman-owned electrical contracting company; and Multi Air Services Engineering Corp., a Puerto Rico-based HVAC engineering company.

Guzmán noted:

President Biden has prioritized equity in ensuring these opportunities lift up all communities and these awardees exemplify the giant impact small businesses from across the country have on our nation’s economy and global competitiveness.

Know more about the winners and their awards

1. Small Business Prime Contractor of the Year — Mark Wayne Stafford, President/CEO, Delta Solutions & Strategies, LLC, Colorado Springs, CO
2. Small Business Subcontractor of the Year — Cynthia Elaine Hersom, President, Dicin Electric Company, Inc., Waterford, CT
3. 8(a) Graduate Firm of the Year — Israel Álvarez, Chief Executive Officer Multi Air Services Engineers, Corp., Rio Grande, Puerto Rico

Joined @RepHorsford and @North5thBrewing owners Amanda and Matt Payan, third generation business owners who received assistance from the SBA which helped them open their business and thrive. pic.twitter.com/wkU260ALMj

— Isabel Guzman (@SBAIsabel) April 6, 2023

Dwight D. Eisenhower Award for Excellence

The Dwight D. Eisenhower Award for Excellence recognizes large prime contractors that have excelled in the utilization of small businesses as suppliers and subcontractors within the construction, research and development, services, and manufacturing industries. 

Winners were selected for the following Eisenhower Award categories: Construction, Research and Development, and Services.

• Construction — Holly Hutson, Small Business Liaison Officer at WSP USA Environment & Infrastructure Inc., Kennesaw, GA
• Research & Development — Barbara Wade, Vice President of Subcontracts & Procurement at KBR Wyle Services, LLC (KBR), Fulton, MD
• Services — Diane G. Dempsey, Director of Small Business Programs; Katelyn Russell, Small Business Liaison Officer; Dawn Dunlop, Senior Supplier Diversity Analyst at BAE Systems Technology Solutions & Services, Inc., Rockville, MD

“The federal government depends on small businesses to innovate, drive competition, and deliver products and services to support critical agency functions such as national defense and disaster recovery, as well as to implement the Biden-Harris Administration’s historic investments in infrastructure, clean energy and more,” added Casillas Guzmán.

The federal government's contracting goals

According to figures provided by the SBA, the federal government awarded more than $154.2 billion in federal contracts to small businesses in the 2021 fiscal year.

$72 billion was used on subcontracts granted to small companies, which translated to the creation of more than 1 million jobs.