Not a Typical Recompete: What the Army $4B RFI Signals

The U.S. Army recently released an RFI for its ~$4B marketing and advertising program—one of the largest opportunities in the public-sector communications space.

We were fortunate to be cited in this week's AdAge article covering the release (link). Since then—and even in the days leading up—we’ve received a steady flow of inbound questions from agencies across the market trying to make sense of what this could mean.

A few observations:

This is not shaping up as a typical recompete. There are clear signals the government is considering alternatives to the traditional single-AOR model—potentially breaking the program into discrete components (e.g., advertising, experiential, lead processing, etc.).

If that direction materializes, it meaningfully changes the competitive landscape.

Historically, opportunities of this size have concentrated competition among a small group of holding companies. A more modular structure introduces the possibility for small businesses and mid-sized independents to compete on substantial scopes that would not have been accessible as a single, consolidated contract.

Importantly, this RFI matters more than usual.

This is not just market research—it’s a shaping moment. The government is actively evaluating how to structure the program, and industry input at this stage can influence that direction in a meaningful way. We expect perspectives around models like Method B (decentralization) to carry weight as the acquisition strategy takes form.

More broadly, this is not isolated. We’re seeing similar conversations emerge across agencies—rethinking contract structure, opening access to innovation, and moving away from monolithic models toward more flexible, component-based approaches.

In parallel, we’re also seeing increased reliance on GSA MAS, GSA OASIS+, etc. as a primary path to market—changing how agencies buy and how firms need to position themselves to compete.