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The credential roadmap, with dates and dependencies.

Round Digital holds no ISO, SOC 2, CMMI or socioeconomic certification in any jurisdiction. Publishing the roadmap instead of a badge wall is the more useful answer for a buyer trying to assess risk.

Why this page exists. Suppliers of our size are usually vague about credentials, which forces an evaluator to spend time finding out. Everything here is stated so you can score us accurately on the first read. Costs and timelines are planning figures to be confirmed with each certifying body — they are not quotes.

Certification roadmap

Tier 0 — free, ~30 days

No cost beyond staff time. Do these first.

SBA Dynamic Small Business Search profile

High priority

United States · dsbs.sba.gov

This is the database US contracting officers actually search when building a small-business source list. Most suppliers leave it half-completed, so a thorough profile is disproportionately visible.

Eligibility
Active SAM.gov registration. No ownership test.
Effort
Low — a focused day of writing.
Timeline
Immediate
Indicative cost
No fee
Dependencies
  • Active SAM.gov registration

SAM.gov NAICS and PSC expansion

High priority

United States · sam.gov

The registration is almost certainly filed under IT codes only, which makes us invisible to buyers searching survey research, training and staffing — three of our five pillars.

Eligibility
Existing registration holder.
Effort
Low — an afternoon.
Timeline
Immediate
Indicative cost
No fee
Dependencies
  • Active SAM.gov registration

CanadaBuys registration + Procurement Business Number

High priority

Canada · canadabuys.canada.ca

Mandatory prerequisite to every federal opportunity in Canada — the market where our women-owned status converts soonest.

Eligibility
Canadian business registration.
Effort
Low.
Timeline
Days
Indicative cost
No fee
Dependencies
  • Confirmed Canadian entity registration

NIST SP 800-171 self-assessment posted to SPRS

Medium priority

United States · csrc.nist.gov

A prerequisite for any work touching controlled unclassified information, and a visible signal of security maturity well before CMMC becomes relevant.

Eligibility
Self-assessment; no third party required.
Effort
Medium — a genuine control review, not a checkbox.
Timeline
30–60 days
Indicative cost
No fee
Dependencies
  • Documented information-security controls

Tier 1 — 60–120 days

Credentials that change what we can win this year.

WBE Canada

High priority

Canada · wbecanada.ca

The women-owned credential that converts today. Opens Canadian federal supplier-diversity initiatives and corporate diversity spend programmes.

Eligibility
51% ownership, management and control by women who are Canadian citizens or permanent residents. The control test — highest officer position, board control, signing authority — is where applications usually fail, not the share register.
Effort
Medium — documentary evidence plus an interview.
Timeline
60–90 days
Indicative cost
Indicative: low hundreds of dollars
Dependencies
  • Ownership of record corrected and evidenced
  • Highest officer position held by the qualifying owner
  • Corporate independence from related entities documented

WEConnect International

High priority

Global · weconnectinternational.org

One application that opens corporate supplier-diversity programmes across Asia-Pacific and beyond — the single channel where women-owned status monetises in all three target regions at once.

Eligibility
51% women ownership, management and control. No citizenship test.
Effort
Low to medium.
Timeline
~60 days
Indicative cost
Indicative: low
Dependencies
  • Ownership documentation package

ISO 9001:2015 — Quality management

High priority

Global · iso.org

Frequently a scored evaluation factor in solicitations. It is also the certification most aligned to our founder's professional background in audit and quality assurance, which makes it a build rather than a purchase.

Eligibility
Documented QMS operating for long enough to produce audit evidence.
Effort
High — process documentation, internal audit, management review.
Timeline
3–6 months
Indicative cost
Indicative: mid five figures
Dependencies
  • Documented delivery process
  • Internal audit cycle completed

ISO/IEC 27001:2022 — Information security

High priority

Global · iso.org

Effectively mandatory for enterprise and public-sector IT work above a modest threshold. Its absence is a disqualifier more often than its presence is a differentiator.

Eligibility
ISMS covering all delivery locations, including India.
Effort
High — risk assessment, Statement of Applicability, audit.
Timeline
4–8 months
Indicative cost
Indicative: mid-to-high five figures
Dependencies
  • Scope definition across Canada and India
  • Risk assessment complete

Tier 2 — 6–18 months

Differentiators that need audit preparation.

ISO/IEC 42001:2023 — AI management system

High priority

Global · iso.org

The strongest single differentiator available to us. It is the first AI management standard, almost no services firm holds it, it pairs with NIST AI RMF for federal buyers, and it sits directly on our founder's audit background. Scale competitors cannot answer it with headcount.

Eligibility
Operating AI management system with documented governance.
Effort
High.
Timeline
6–12 months
Indicative cost
Indicative: mid five figures
Dependencies
  • ISO 9001 or 27001 management-system experience
  • AI governance practice in operation

SOC 2 Type I → Type II

Medium priority

United States · aicpa-cima.com

Required to sell platform products into enterprise accounts, and the correct resolution of any existing SOC 2 representation on affiliated product properties.

Eligibility
Controls operating over an observation window for Type II.
Effort
High.
Timeline
Type I 3–4 months; Type II adds a 6–12 month window
Indicative cost
Indicative: mid five figures
Dependencies
  • Control environment documented
  • Evidence collection automated

CMMC Level 1 → Level 2

Low priority

United States · dodcio.defense.gov

The gate to US Department of Defense work. Level 1 is self-assessed; Level 2 requires a C3PAO assessment.

Eligibility
Level 2 realistically requires US-based performance and US-persons handling of controlled unclassified information — which depends on a US delivery presence we do not yet have.
Effort
Very high.
Timeline
12–18 months after a US delivery centre exists
Indicative cost
Indicative: high five figures and up
Dependencies
  • US delivery centre
  • NIST SP 800-171 implementation
  • SPRS score posted

Tier 3 — 12–36 months

Large unlocks with hard prerequisites.

GSA Multiple Award Schedule

Medium priority

United States · gsa.gov

The single largest US federal unlock. SINs 54151S, 541910 and 611430 map to three of our five pillars.

Eligibility
Two years in business, audited financials, and relevant past performance.
Effort
Very high — a proposal in its own right.
Timeline
12+ months from application
Indicative cost
Indicative: significant staff time plus advisory support
Dependencies
  • Two years trading as the current entity
  • Financial statements
  • Federal past performance

State term contracts — Texas DIR, Virginia VITA, NASPO

Medium priority

United States — state & local · naspovaluepoint.org

Real spend behind a fraction of the federal barrier. Should be pursued in parallel with GSA rather than after it.

Eligibility
Varies by state; several require in-state presence or a registered agent.
Effort
Medium per state.
Timeline
3–9 months per vehicle
Indicative cost
Indicative: low to moderate
Dependencies
  • US delivery or registered presence in the target state

Closed to us

Programmes we are not eligible for.

Listed so there is no ambiguity. We do not pursue these, we do not imply eligibility for them, and we would rather you know now than discover it during a responsibility determination.

  • WOSB — Woman-Owned Small Business

    Not eligible

    Requires 51% ownership by United States citizens.

  • EDWOSB

    Not eligible

    Requires 51% ownership by economically disadvantaged US citizens.

  • 8(a) Business Development

    Not eligible

    Requires 51% ownership by socially and economically disadvantaged US citizens.

  • SDB self-certification

    Not eligible

    Requires US-citizen ownership.

  • HUBZone

    Not eligible

    Requires US-citizen ownership and a principal office in a designated zone.

  • WBENC

    Not eligible

    Requires US citizenship or lawful permanent residency of the qualifying owner. Conditional — revisit only if that status is confirmed.

Partnership roadmap

Partnerships, sequenced by what each one unlocks.

Partnerships are listed as targets, not as relationships we hold. Where a partner tier already exists it will be published here with the tier named, once confirmed with the provider.

Tier 0 — free, ~30 days

No cost beyond staff time. Do these first.

AAPOR, Insights Association and ESOMAR membership

High priority

Global

Adherence to their transparency and disclosure codes is frequently required outright in public opinion research solicitations. Makes the research pillar credible in weeks rather than years.

Eligibility
Organisational membership; adherence to the code of conduct.
Effort
Low.
Timeline
Weeks
Indicative cost
Indicative: membership fees
Dependencies
None

Tier 1 — 60–120 days

Credentials that change what we can win this year.

Survey platform partnership — Qualtrics, Forsta or Voxco

High priority

Global

The highest-value single addition. A certified survey-platform partnership is simultaneously a delivery channel and a scored credential in 541910 bids. Voxco and Forsta are particularly strong in government and academic research.

Eligibility
Trained and certified implementation staff.
Effort
Medium — staff certification.
Timeline
2–4 months
Indicative cost
Indicative: training and licence costs
Dependencies
  • Named staff to certify

AWS, Microsoft and Google Cloud partner tiers

Medium priority

Global

Partner status is a scored factor in many enterprise and public-sector evaluations, and the public-sector tracks specifically unlock government-designated programmes.

Eligibility
Certified staff counts and, at higher tiers, referenceable customer deployments.
Effort
Medium — staff certification is the gating item.
Timeline
3–9 months per provider
Indicative cost
Indicative: certification and programme fees
Dependencies
  • Current partner tier confirmed for each provider

AWS and Azure Marketplace listing for Perfectum

High priority

United States

US federal buyers can purchase through cloud marketplaces against contract vehicles we do not hold ourselves. A genuine and under-used route into federal revenue.

Eligibility
Product listing requirements and seller registration.
Effort
Medium.
Timeline
2–4 months
Indicative cost
Indicative: marketplace fees on transactions
Dependencies
  • Perfectum listing content
  • Seller account

Innovative Solutions Canada, CATA Alliance, ICTC

Medium priority

Canada

Innovative Solutions Canada funds and buys from Canadian SMEs — a direct fit for the AI pillar. The industry associations provide buyer access and policy visibility.

Eligibility
Canadian SME status.
Effort
Low to medium.
Timeline
1–3 months
Indicative cost
Indicative: membership fees
Dependencies
  • Canadian entity confirmed

Tier 2 — 6–18 months

Differentiators that need audit preparation.

SBA Mentor–Protégé Program

High priority

United States

The most powerful growth lever available at our size: a mentor–protégé joint venture can bid on the mentor's past performance while the protégé retains small-business status. It also converts large integrators from competitors into mentors.

Eligibility
Small-business status and an approved mentor agreement.
Effort
Medium — finding the right mentor is the hard part.
Timeline
6–12 months to an approved agreement
Indicative cost
Indicative: legal and administrative
Dependencies
  • A willing mentor
  • Small-business status maintained

Registered apprenticeship sponsorship and workforce-funding listing

High priority

United States & Canada

Converts the training pillar into publicly funded revenue: workforce dollars pay for training delivered by listed providers. We already run the programmes; registration is what makes them payable.

Eligibility
Programme standards, employer partners and provider listing per jurisdiction.
Effort
High — jurisdiction by jurisdiction.
Timeline
6–12 months per jurisdiction
Indicative cost
Indicative: staff time
Dependencies
  • Curriculum mapped to programme standards
  • Employer partners

Authorised training partner status — CompTIA, PMI, Scaled Agile, AWS

Medium priority

Global

Each is a training-pillar credential and a content pipeline for our own platform. Cumulatively they make the training practice legible to enterprise buyers.

Eligibility
Certified instructors and programme agreements.
Effort
Medium per programme.
Timeline
2–6 months each
Indicative cost
Indicative: programme fees
Dependencies
  • Certified instructor bench

Databricks or Snowflake partnership

Low priority

Global

Platform credibility for the research and data pillar on larger analytics engagements.

Eligibility
Certified staff and delivery references.
Effort
Medium.
Timeline
3–6 months
Indicative cost
Indicative: training costs
Dependencies
  • Named staff to certify

Need a credential we do not yet hold?

Tell us which one and when you need it by. If it is on this roadmap we can tell you where it sits; if it is a hard gate for your solicitation, we would rather team with a prime who holds it than waste your evaluation time.