Most GovCon coaches learned the process from the outside — they were contractors who won some contracts and built a course. Ferdinand Risco's path was different. He spent decades inside government, controlling the very process his clients are trying to navigate. As a certifying agent he personally certified thousands of small businesses. As an agency CEO he managed contracting opportunities worth hundreds of millions of dollars and grew small business supplier participation from 13% to 57% — unlocking $475M+ in opportunity. He didn't study government contracting. He ran it.