Every federal IT modernization push triggers the same cascade. An agency issues a cloud RFP. The RFP requires FedRAMP High authorization, a cleared workforce, on-soil data residency, and a track record of handling classified workloads. Those requirements are not accidents — they are the product of years of compliance investment. And right now, only a handful of providers can clear all four bars simultaneously. That structural bottleneck is the trade.
Federal cloud procurement runs through a layered system: GSA schedules, agency-specific IDIQs (Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity contracts), and massive multi-award vehicles like the DoD's cloud enterprise programs. When Congress authorizes IT modernization funding — routed through the Technology Modernization Fund and annual NDAA appropriations — contractors do not compete on an open field. They compete inside a pre-qualified cage. The cage was built by the three companies that spent the most time, money, and lobbying effort getting inside it.