Northrop Grumman [NOC] yesterday said it has signed a Defense Department Mentor-Protégé agreement with Juno Technologies, a teammate on Northrop Grumman’s Consolidated Afloat Networks and Enterprise Services (CANES) program.
CANES is the Navy effort to streamline and update shipboard networks to improve interoperability and affordability across the fleet.
The mentor-protégé relationship was formalized Aug. 6.
Juno Technologies is a women-owned small business specializing in the application and adaptation of commercial off-the-shelf products to meet DoD information technology requirements.
“We are committed to advancing dynamic and creative small businesses, and see the mentor-protégé program as a unique opportunity for us to help Juno enhance its company presence and business opportunities,” said Dave Wegmann, CANES program director for Northrop Grumman.
Under the 24-month agreement approved by the Defense Contract Management Agency, Northrop Grumman will mentor Juno Technologies in several areas, including business development and industry conference participation, foreign military sales and International Traffic in Arms Regulations and proposal development.
DoD’s Mentor-Protégé program was created to help small businesses increase their participation in federal subcontracts by establishing long-term relationships with large defense contractors.
Since 1992, Northrop Grumman has mentored approximately 100 small businesses, and currently has 15 active mentor-protégé agreements. Since 1995, Northrop Grumman has received 20 Nunn-Perry Awards from the Defense Department for its work with protégé companies.