[drzaiusapelord]

>that military veterans tend to be very successful in this space

Most, if not all agencies, have a mandate to prefer veteran run businesses. That means, you may have a great product with great pricing and a great reputation, but the mediocre product or service owned by a veteran will win out 100% of the time.

Some then have preferred women or minority run business as well. Then the bureaucracy, connections, patronage, etc on top of that. Its a very different game than what you're used to in the private world. This also explains why fed technology is so terrible. Its not remotely a meritocracy.

[USNetizen]

That is a stereotype. Of all procurements in the federal government, 23% are supposed to go to small businesses (i.e. startups) in general. Only about 8% actually goes to veteran owned companies.

Plus, that is not how it works. They set aside contracts for veteran owned, minority owned, small business owned, etc. Companies compete within those circles, of which there are thousands of them. The competition is very intense in many areas. It is, contrarily, the large billion-dollar "integrators" that develop that horrible software, not small businesses.

So, stop blaming people and perhaps do something about it. Veterans are not the issue. Startups that would rather make a few quick bucks short-term and sell out, not wanting to put in the time and effort to approach a great market over the long term, are the real issue. Complain all you want about bureaucracy and such, but what are you doing, or even trying to do, to improve it? Complaining won't fix anything. Do something, put in the effort, and you'll see change happen.