How to Strategically Enter the Department of Defense: Start with Your North Star

Working with the Department of Defense (DoD) is a goal for many technology companies—but few understand how to approach it strategically. The allure of multi-million or even billion-dollar contracts is real, but jumping straight into outreach with program offices is often premature and ineffective.

In this guide, we’ll walk through the foundational steps of building a DoD strategy, starting with identifying your North Star, and then explore how to assess your readiness and navigate alternative entry points.

What Is Your North Star?

When we talk about a "North Star" in the context of DoD contracting, we’re referring to a specific program office and ideally a program manager whose mission aligns with your technology.

Why is this important?

Program offices are the entities within the DoD that manage large-scale acquisition programs. They are responsible for planning, budgeting, and executing long-term initiatives—often with annual budgets in the hundreds of millions to billions of dollars. These offices are where companies can find annual recurring revenue (ARR) opportunities, not just one-off R&D grants.

Example: Space Domain Awareness

Let’s say you’re a space technology company with capabilities in satellite imaging or ground station communications. You suspect your tech could support space domain awareness.

Here’s how you might begin:

1. Search for the relevant program office—in this case, the Space Force’s Space Domain Awareness office.
2. Review their mission and focus areas—such as high-capacity ground radars or optical systems.
3. Download fact sheets and public documents to understand their priorities.
4. Research budget allocations via the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) and appropriations documents to see how much funding is directed to this office.

This process helps you validate that your technology fits within their portfolio and gives you a clear target to build your strategy around.

Are You Ready to Approach a Program Office?

Once you’ve identified your North Star, the next step is assessing whether your company is ready to engage directly.

You may be ready if you have:

• A mature technology that’s deployable in operational environments
• A team capable of supporting contracts worth tens of millions
• Significant investment backing to scale quickly

Case Study: Anduril—From SBIR to Billion-Dollar Defense Tech

Anduril is one of the most compelling examples of how a startup can strategically enter the Department of Defense ecosystem and scale rapidly.

Despite its current reputation as a defense tech powerhouse, Anduril’s journey began like many others—with a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I award. This initial contract was relatively modest in size, but it was a critical stepping stone. Why?

Because SBIR Phase I awards come with a powerful benefit: Phase III sole-source eligibility. This means that once a company successfully completes Phase I and II, they can be awarded follow-on contracts without competition, as long as the work is derived from the original SBIR effort.

Anduril used this pathway to its advantage. With Phase III eligibility in hand, they were able to secure larger contracts directly with program offices—contracts that would have been out of reach for a typical early-stage company.

But eligibility alone wasn’t enough.

Anduril had the technology—a mature, deployable platform that addressed real operational needs. They had the team—engineers, operators, and business leaders capable of executing at scale. And they had the traction—early wins, investor backing, and a clear vision for how their tech fit into the DoD’s long-term strategy.

This trifecta—tech, team, and traction—positioned them to move quickly from small R&D awards to multi-million dollar direct contracts with program offices managing billion-dollar portfolios.

Their story is a blueprint for other companies:

• Start with a strategic entry point like SBIR
• Build credibility through performance
• Leverage sole-source eligibility
• Scale into larger opportunities with program offices

Anduril didn’t skip steps—they stair-stepped their way into the defense ecosystem, aligning their growth with the DoD’s acquisition strategy.

What If You’re Not Ready Yet?

If you’re a small team or your technology is still in development, don’t worry—there are other pathways to build credibility and relationships.

Alternative Entry Points:

• SBIR/STTR programs: Start with Phase I (typically $75K), then move to Phase II ($1–$2M), and potentially Phase III (up to $15M).
• DIU (Defense Innovation Unit): Focuses on fast-track commercial tech adoption.
• Consortia: Collaborative groups that offer access to prototype and R&D opportunities.

These programs allow you to:

• Demonstrate your technology in real-world scenarios
• Get feedback from program offices
• Build relationships with key stakeholders
• Prove your team’s ability to execute

Building Your Roadmap

Think of this process as a stair-step strategy:

1. Start small with R&D funding and pilot programs.
2. Build credibility through performance and feedback.
3. Scale up to larger contracts and direct awards.

This approach mirrors what we call the traction, momentum, scale model—a framework for mapping out funding buckets and relationship-building milestones.

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Final Thoughts

Most companies don’t walk this path. They rush into outreach, hoping to land massive contracts without the foundation to support them. But if you start with strategy, identify your North Star, and build momentum through the right entry points, you’ll be far better positioned for long-term success in the defense space.

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This is the exact approach we use internally at Long Capture—Check out our case studies and see for yourself if it works.

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