Competitive Intelligence · AI Strategy

Federal AI procurement doesn’t fail on technology. It fails on evaluation.

Strata Advisory Group builds the evaluation frameworks program managers and prime contractors use to compare AI vendors — and to defend the decision when it comes under review.

Atlanta, Georgia · Serving federal program offices & prime contractors

Services

Three decisions we support

None of this work is a sequence. Each service exists because a program office or a capture team is facing a different kind of decision — and each one ends in a deliverable you can put in front of reviewers.

When you’re choosing a vendor

AI Vendor Competitive Analysis

Structured landscape assessments that surface real differentiation between vendors — beyond FedRAMP status and proposal language — in a market that is crowded and moving fast.

What you get
A landscape assessment your evaluation panel can cite.

When you’re reading a market

Market Intelligence Briefs

Sector research written for decision-makers, not technical staff. Every brief is built to be presented in a program review and to survive the questions that follow.

What you get
A written brief that holds up in front of program leadership, budget reviewers, and contracting officers.

When you’re setting direction

Technology Strategy Advisory

Translation between what AI and cloud vendors claim and what an agency can actually deploy, with capabilities mapped to mission priorities rather than product roadmaps.

What you get
Recommendations a program manager can act on.

Methodology

The MERIT Framework

Most vendor evaluations default to FedRAMP status and lowest price. MERIT documents the methodology first: five dimensions, weighted against mission priorities before a single proposal arrives, so the decision holds up under inspector general review or contract protest.

Select a stratum to see the question it asks and the evidence it demands.

Stratum M · Mission Fit

Does this capability address the agency’s actual operational problem?

What we examine

  • Domain training relevance
  • User population alignment
  • Prior deployments in the mission area

A capable product that misses the mission is still the wrong buy.

Stratum E · Evidence of Performance

Can the vendor prove what they claim?

What we examine

  • Benchmark results
  • Reference contacts
  • Documented accuracy rates

Marketing language does not count as evidence.

Stratum R · Risk and Compliance

What is the agency exposed to if this goes wrong?

What we examine

  • FedRAMP status and data sovereignty
  • Model training provenance
  • Supply-chain risk and vendor financial stability

Authorization alone is not the full picture.

Stratum I · Integration

Will it run inside the systems the agency already operates?

What we examine

  • API availability
  • Compatibility with existing agency infrastructure
  • Track record integrating with legacy federal systems

Implementation debt erodes ROI before go-live.

Stratum T · Total Value

What does it cost across the life of the decision?

What we examine

  • Implementation, training, and maintenance costs
  • Switching cost if the vendor fails to perform
  • Three-year total cost of ownership

Three-year TCO, not base price.

Fig. 1 · The MERIT evaluation column. Dimension weights are set against mission priorities before proposals arrive.

The MERIT Framework is available as a full white paper with the evaluation matrix, vendor scoring guidance, and an illustrative procurement scenario.

Read the white paper

Featured Insight

The white paper

White Paper · 2026

How Federal Agencies Should Evaluate Competing AI Vendors

The paper sets out the MERIT Framework in full: where standard evaluations break down, what each of the five dimensions asks, and how to document a decision so it survives inspector general review and contract protest. Written for program managers and capture teams, not technical staff.

AI Procurement Vendor Analysis MERIT Framework
Request a copy

The Founder

Dominique Glenn

I founded Strata Advisory Group to bring Fortune 500–grade competitive analysis discipline to the federal technology market. The gap between enterprise analytical rigor and what most government consulting delivers is wide — and program managers pay for it in procurement decisions they struggle to defend.

I built that discipline at SAP Concur, where I developed the S.U.R.E. competitive analysis framework and earned the Indi SPEND Sable Award, then moved into enterprise analytics and segment strategy at UPS. Strata Advisory Group brings that combination — structured methodology, enterprise scale, market discipline — to every engagement.

Strata Advisory Group operates as a subcontractor and independent consultant, serving prime contractors and federal program offices in competitive intelligence, AI advisory, and market research.

Dominique Glenn, Founder, Strata Advisory Group

Dominique Glenn · Founder

Credentials

  • Microsoft Azure AI-900
  • Pragmatic Institute PMC
  • Google Project Management Foundations
  • IBM Accelerate, UX & Design
  • MBA Candidate, Technology Concentration, University of Georgia (2027)
  • Indi SPEND Sable Award, SAP Concur

Actively Seeking Subcontracting Opportunities

Bring a defensible evaluation to your next procurement.

Strata Advisory Group is available for subcontracting engagements: vendor evaluations, competitive briefs, and analytical support on active contracts.

Location
Atlanta, Georgia
Email Strata Advisory Group SAM.gov Registration In Progress · NAICS 541910 · 541690 · 541511