When Doors Don’t Open, Build Your Own: Helping Minority Businesses Win Big Contracts

‘This isn’t about waiting for a quota or a favour.’ The words belong to Rodney Greenup, and they cut through years of frustration that many minority business owners know by heart. Greenup, who started as an engineer with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in New Orleans, has spent decades watching talented people get shut out of opportunities that should have been theirs. Instead of accepting the status quo, he decided to help others step through the same doors he’d been knocking on for years.

Alongside Dr Karwanna D. Irving, a former schoolteacher who’s built her own multi-million-dollar empire coaching small businesses to land federal contracts, Greenup represents something different. They’re not asking for handouts or waiting for someone else to change the rules. They’re showing people how to win at a game that was never designed to include them.

The Unlikely Powerhouse Behind the Numbers

Rodney Greenup’s story starts where many New Orleans natives’ stories do: with Hurricane Katrina. After more than 16 years as a project manager with the Army Corps of Engineers, watching his city rebuild gave him a different perspective on what it meant to be the person making things happen rather than just following orders. He founded Greenup Industries in 2012, and today the company has delivered $250 million in contracts and supported over $1 billion in projects.

When Greenup Industries won a $102.5 million contract from the Army Corps of Engineers to build hurricane protection structures in Louisiana, it wasn’t just business. It was a former Corps engineer coming home to protect the community that raised him, this time as the person calling the shots.

Dr Karwanna D. Irving’s path was quieter but no less determined. A schoolteacher who saw what happened when people didn’t have the right information, she transitioned into government contracting and never looked back. Today, she’s helped over 200 businesses generate millions in federal contracts, with her clients turning investments as small as $23,000 into multimillion-dollar wins. Her biggest success stories include contracts worth $2.7 million, $700,000 and $800,000 – numbers that represent families whose lives changed overnight.

The Rules Nobody Teaches

‘This is about stepping into billion-dollar opportunities with preparation, partnerships, and proof,’ Greenup explains. The blueprint Dr Karwanna promises isn’t about connections or luck – it’s about understanding a system that most people never get taught how to navigate.

For someone sitting at her kitchen table wondering how any of this applies to her life, the answer is surprisingly straightforward. Federal contracting goals target increasing contracts awarded to small disadvantaged businesses to 15% by 2025, up from about 10%. That represents billions of dollars in opportunities, but only for businesses that know how to position themselves correctly.

The process starts with understanding what the government actually needs. Dr Karwanna’s approach focuses on helping businesses identify their natural strengths and match them to federal requirements. Her clients don’t just submit proposals and hope for the best – they learn how to demonstrate their capabilities in ways that government buyers can’t ignore.

It’s detailed work that requires patience and precision. Businesses need proper certifications, clear documentation of their capabilities, and the ability to prove they can deliver on promises. For those willing to do the work, the payoff can be extraordinary.

Creating Room at the Table

Rather than viewing other minority-owned businesses as competition, Greenup actively seeks teaming and partnership opportunities. Mentor-protégé agreements allow experienced contractors like Greenup to provide business development assistance to smaller firms, creating relationships that benefit everyone involved.

‘There’s room at the table, but only for those who know how to play the game,’ Greenup says. His company actively seeks partnerships in staff augmentation, professional services, construction and engineering – areas where smaller businesses can plug into larger opportunities and learn while they earn.

This approach addresses one of the biggest barriers minority businesses face: the catch-22 of needing experience to get contracts, but needing contracts to get experience. By creating pathways for smaller firms to work as subcontractors or joint venture partners, established businesses like Greenup Industries can help others build the track records they need to compete independently.

Greenup Industries has clocked over 500,000 safe work hours and earned recognition including the Gold Medal Award from Shell/Norco and the Contractor Safety Award from CAST. Behind those achievements lies something harder to quantify: the pride of building something that lasts.

Dr Karwanna’s clients tell similar stories. The woman who went from homelessness to signing federal contracts. The business owner who started with government assistance and now employs others. Building confidence in business mentorship works both ways – mentors often discover their own renewed purpose through helping others succeed.

Dr Irving’s approach emphasises persistence and crafting proposals that stand out, but her real gift is helping people see possibilities they never knew existed. Her clients’ testimonials consistently mention not just the contracts they won, but how her mentorship changed their entire approach to business.

Greenup and Dr Karwanna hosted ‘Multi-Million Dollar Power Plays in Government Contracting’ via Zoom. For the people who showed up, it was chance to hear from two people who’ve actually done what they’re teaching and who understand that behind every business decision is a person trying to build something better for themselves and their family.

The session is designed for minority business owners ready to scale, contract-ready entrepreneurs looking for real teaming opportunities, and newcomers eager to understand how the trillion-dollar federal marketplace actually works. Attendees walked away with a 2025 federal contracting playbook and direct access to industry leaders who are actively winning contracts and creating opportunities for others.

For someone who’s spent years watching doors stay closed, the idea of female leaders making a difference by building their own doors might sound impossible. Greenup and Dr Karwanna prove it’s not just possible – it’s happening every day, one contract and one partnership at a time. The question isn’t whether there are opportunities out there. The question is whether you’re ready to do what it takes to claim them.