The 2025 Baroni Center Government Contracting Trends and Performance Index revealed a counterintuitive trend that deserves attention from business development and proposal teams across the federal market.
Companies with high customer concentration (i.e., those who earn the bulk of their revenue from a few clients) are submitting fewer proposals, have fewer in-process bids, and yet they’re outperforming their peers in new win rates and overall revenue.
This insight upends the long-held assumption that success in government contracting requires a relentless volume of proposals – a point that we at ProposalHelper have been advocating for more than 15 years. It points to a more disciplined and targeted approach, one that prioritizes precision over saturation.

What the Data Shows:
According to Figure 39 of the Baroni Center report:

• High-concentration firms ranked Revenue as their #1 KPI.
• They submitted fewer proposals [Proposals Submitted] and had even fewer Proposals in Process.
• New Win Rate remained strong, implying that they win a higher percentage of the (fewer) bids they pursue.

In contrast, companies with low customer concentration placed a much heavier emphasis on proposal activity, but did not show the same win rate performance.

Why It Works:
Firms with a concentrated customer base typically:

• Know their customers deeply and invest in those relationships.
• Avoid distractions from poorly matched or speculative RFPs.
• Leverage highly tailored capture and proposal strategies.

They may have fewer irons in the fire, but each one is hot.

Implications for ProposalHelper and BidExecs Clients:
This is a moment of validation for the “fewer, better” philosophy.
BidExecs helps build strategically aligned pipelines. We don’t just add volume; we rigorously qualify every opportunity so that every pursuit is defensible and worth the effort. To complement your months and months of focused efforts, we work with our experts at ProposalHelper to bring the win home.
ProposalHelper’s model aligns with this approach: instead of pushing out boilerplate responses or hastily crafted AI generated proposals, we craft tailored proposals that increase the odds of a win.
If your firm is aiming for sustainable growth, not just more activity, the collected data suggests that discipline, not hustle, is the better predictor of success.
Final Thought:
In the rush to show activity, don’t mistake motion for progress. The most successful contractors in 2024 didn’t bid more – they bid smarter. But here’s the twist: as agency spending begins to tighten, relying too heavily on a small set of customers could expose even the smartest contractors to greater risk. Diversification is the next frontier, and we’ll explore what that means for your business development strategy in our next report. In the meantime, if you’re looking for deeper insights and real-world tactics to strengthen your pipeline, download our reports on NAICS specific Cracking the Code reports at BidExecs.com. These free reports break down federal market shifts and agency-level trends. Reach out to us to learn how smart contractors are adapting their capture and proposal strategies.
Source: Baroni Center Financial Performance Survey, George Mason University, 2025