Government contractors brace for spending cuts

• Revenue: Under $20 million
• # of employees: 60
• Based in: Washington, D.C.

The spending cuts could actually spur more government business for Censeo Consulting, which specializes in helping agencies and businesses cut costs.

About 90% of the Censeo's clients are government agencies -- the military, the Commerce Department, Department of Homeland Security and the Small Business Administration.

Censeo has guided federal agencies on simple issues, such as negotiating with vendors on the best price for PCs to more complex work involving reorganization, said Steve Krauss, the firm's corporate development officer.

"Because of what we do, we expect that government agencies might need our services even more as a result of the budget cuts," said Krauss.

Government contracts, especially longer term ones, can be lucrative, he said.

But lately, with fewer contracts to go around, and competition for them increasing, it's allowed the government to pay less for its business.

"Still, there's one thing that's nice about working with the government. The government pays its bills," Krauss said. "Maybe not fast enough but they do get paid."

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