Jennifer Saha’s unique journey from California Governor’s appointee to founding Golden Bridge Strategies offers rare dual perspective on what really matters in public procurement
For businesses pursuing government contracts, understanding what truly drives procurement decisions can feel like decoding a black box. Jennifer Saha has lived on both sides of this divide—first as a decade-long state employee evaluating RFPs, then as founder of Golden Bridge Strategies, where she now guides technology companies through California’s complex procurement landscape.
Her perspective challenges conventional wisdom about what wins public contracts.
Price Isn’t Everything (And Sometimes Barely Matters)
“Vendors often think being cheaper means they should automatically win,” Saha explains. But government operates on fundamentally different motivations than the private sector. “They’ve already gotten approval to spend a certain amount. Saving them money doesn’t generate bonuses or profits—there’s no incentive.”
Instead, Saha identifies risk aversion as government’s primary driver. “Government’s main motivation is risk aversion. Stay out of the papers. Don’t want mistakes or failures. CYA all the time,” she explains. The private sector often misses this critical point: “They’re a fiduciary of taxpayer dollars.” This explains why government often chooses proven solutions over cheaper alternatives and why they demand what may seem like excessive liability and insurance requirements—it’s all about protecting taxpayer resources.
The mindset shift from “lowest cost” to “best value” procurement reflects this reality. While cost remains a factor, agencies increasingly prioritize comprehensive solutions that minimize risk and maximize outcomes.
The Hidden Power of Relationships
Despite procurement’s formal scoring systems, Saha emphasizes an uncomfortable truth: relationships matter significantly. “The people scoring your bid are people, and they’re subjective. If they know you, it doesn’t preclude them from scoring your bid.”
This doesn’t mean improper influence. Rather, it’s about strategic visibility. Saha advises clients to sponsor relevant conferences, conduct free workshops, and maintain regular meeting cadences with agencies. “When they see an RFP from your company, they should already know you. That factors in, even if there’s not a scoring box for it.”
Red Flags That Kill Proposals
From her government experience, Saha identifies immediate disqualifiers that vendors often overlook:
- Missing deadlines by even minutes. Saha warns against missing deadline, even by minutes, particularly those that are “bet the farm” opportunities.
- Failure to follow instructions precisely. “Government RFPs are very specific in what they want to see—even down to font size,” Saha explains. “If you can’t follow directions, we have a problem.”
- Spelling errors and poor proofreading. “Spelling errors show me you don’t really want it.”
The Q&A Period: An Underutilized Opportunity
Saha encourages active participation in Q&A periods, even if you’re uncertain about bidding. “You should always have questions if you’re reading with a discerning eye. It shows you’re engaged and might help you find partners.” However, she warns against breaking the “cone of silence” by attempting unauthorized contact with agency staff during the bidding period.
California’s Unique Complexities
Having worked across multiple states through CompTIA, Saha notes California’s particular challenges. Technology procurement sits separately from general procurement, creating additional bureaucratic layers. “IT procurement is out of the Department of Technology, not DGS where you’d expect it. Politics is a lot of it.”
The state’s mega-projects exemplify this complexity. Projects over $100 million face multiple levels of approvals, often with funding approved a year-by-year basis, which can create uncertainty for vendors signing multi-year contracts. Additionally, on mega-projects, multiple departments may be responsible for different pieces. For example, the California high-speed rail project: “It couldn’t just be Department of Transportation. They involved the Public Utilities Commission, gave DGS oversight, and Caltrans works on only certain parts.”
Surprisingly, California’s diversity focus has limitations. Constitutional amendments prevent consideration of minority or women-owned status in state contracting decisions. “For a woman-owned business in California, it’s really disadvantageous,” Saha notes. “It might matter at the federal level, and interestingly, in Texas, women-owned businesses may receive more benefits than in California.” Only small business or disabled veteran certifications provide scoring advantages in California
Public entities may also struggle with technology adoption. “Government technology and procurement can be up to 5-10 years behind the rest of the world,” she observes, noting that many entities still require wet signatures, physical document delivery, and don’t allow access to AI tools such as ChatGPT on government computers due to uncertainty around AI.
Looking Forward
While Saha sees promise in California’s “Request for Innovative Ideas” approach—where agencies present problems without prescriptive requirements—she remains realistic about the pace of change. Government technology may run 5-10 years behind and the newness of AI may mean continued reliance on methods the private sector is moving away from.
Her closing advice returns to fundamentals: “Tell them how you’ll help solve their problems. Understand their challenges and be a collaborative partner. Focus on being a great partner—the money will follow.”
About Jennifer Saha: Jennifer Saha is a former California Governor’s appointee who served under both Republican and Democratic administrations before founding Golden Bridge Strategies in 2019, where she helps technology companies navigate California’s complex government procurement landscape. With a decade of state government experience and national procurement expertise from her role at CompTIA, she brings unique dual-perspective insights to public-private partnerships.