Finding the right teaming partner can make or break a federal contract bid. Small businesses need prime contractors to access large contracts. Primes need small business subs to meet set-aside requirements. But how do you find who teams with whom?
The Teaming Data Problem
Federal teaming relationships are notoriously opaque. The government publishes who won contracts (USAspending) and who's registered (SAM.gov), but it doesn't publish a "teaming directory." Subcontractor relationships are often buried in contract modifications or not reported at all.
The only reliable signal is **co-occurrence**: when two companies repeatedly appear on the same contract awards or within the same agency/NAICS combinations, they're likely teaming.
295K Teaming Pairs via API
GovData Labs analyzes 30M+ contract awards to derive teaming relationships. Each pair includes:
- Relationship score — strength of the partnership based on co-award frequency
- Shared awards — number of contracts they've worked together
- Shared agencies — which agencies they team for
- Shared NAICS — which markets they collaborate in
# Find teaming partners for Accenture Federal Services
curl "https://api.govdatalabs.com/api/v2/data/entities/C47BNA8GM833/teaming?limit=5" \
-H "X-API-Key: your_key"{
"teaming_partners": [
{
"name": "DELOITTE CONSULTING LLP",
"relationship_score": 47.1,
"shared_awards": 21,
"shared_agencies": ["DOD", "VA"],
"shared_naics": ["541512", "541611"]
}
]
}How to Use Teaming Data
**For small businesses looking for a prime:**
1. Search for companies in your NAICS with large contract portfolios
2. Check their teaming partners — do they already work with a company like yours?
3. If they team with your competitors, they might be open to alternatives
**For primes looking for specialized subs:**
1. Search by capability using semantic search: "companies with TS/SCI clearance doing cloud migration"
2. Check their past teaming relationships — who do they usually work with?
3. Evaluate with capability profiles — technologies, clearances, certifications
**For PE firms evaluating an acquisition:**
Teaming partner concentration is a risk factor. If your target relies on one prime for 80% of their subcontract revenue, that prime's business decisions control your target's future.
Building a Teaming Intelligence Tool
With API access, you can build a teaming recommendation engine:
1. **Input:** Your company's UEI, target opportunity NAICS/agency
2. **Query:** Search for companies with high award volumes in that NAICS/agency
3. **Filter:** Check which ones already team with companies like yours (same certifications, complementary capabilities)
4. **Score:** Rank by relationship score, shared agencies, and capability match
5. **Output:** A ranked list of potential teaming partners with evidence for why each one fits
This turns a relationship-driven process into a data-driven one.