Anna Urman

As a kid, I watched and helped my parents learn how to build a life, figure out the US laws and regulations, and build a small business. When I had the opportunity to study public policy and law, explaining complex regulations to small businesses to help them thrive quickly became a lifelong passion. Today, as Director of Strategic Outreach and Communications in the Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization at the Department of Veterans Affairs, I help small businesses figure out how to sell their products and services to government agencies. In this role, I assist the Department of Veterans Affairs in meeting its goal of contracting with small, veteran-owned, women-owned, and disadvantaged businesses. I enjoy figuring out complex puzzles of government contracting, and making those puzzles plain for small business owners.

One of the more fulfilling experiences in my career occurred while I was on a 4-month temporary assignment, assisting another office within the State Department with streamlining its contracting processes and records. During this time, I became familiar with a small woman-owned business named WIlbur Technical Services, of New Hampshire, which was one of the office’s contractors at the time. Wilbur Technical Services sent technicians and scientists all over the world to help US embassies track and combat air quality, leading to worldwide gains in air quality. In 5 weeks, I organized a "double whammy" event: (1) a site visit at Wilbur's workshop, with 7 state and federal agencies in attendance, and (2) a small business workshop where small businesses based in New Hampshire had an opportunity to network with those 7 agencies. Ultimately, the Small Business Administration named the owners of Wilbur Technical Services “2022 New Hampshire Small Business Person of the Year”.

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