Budget to Operate, Not Just to Launch: Financing Federal Contract Growth

How much cash does a new federal contract really need before the first payment lands? Most contractors budget to win and launch the work, then run short in the months the contract consumes before cash arrives. Evan Henris, CEO of Parabilis, a McLean, VA lender that finances growing small and mid-size federal contractors, joins Chelsea Roberts on GovCon Unscripted to break down The Launch Budget Trap. Evan joined Parabilis in 2018, when the company had four people, and worked through underwriting, operations, and capital markets before being named CEO in early 2026. You will hear when invoice factoring stops making sense, why rescue cash after a lost recompete usually costs more than the hard decision it delays, and when debt is the wrong answer altogether. Evan also covers what lenders look at beyond the award itself, how to build a cash flow model a lender can read using AI, and the calendar test every owner should be able to pass. Chapters 00:00 Welcome to GovCon Unscripted 00:26 Meet Evan Henris, CEO of Parabilis 01:27 From kitchens to contract finance 03:45 What keeps him in GovCon 05:23 Why contract financing is so confusing 08:44 Bank versus non-bank lenders 10:11 Budgeting to launch versus budgeting to operate 10:55 When invoice factoring stops making sense 13:35 Is factoring a federal invoice legal? 15:03 Merchant cash advances and rescue cash 16:44 When a recompete does not go your way 19:14 How the DOGE period hit contractors 21:05 When debt is the wrong answer 24:39 When is a company big enough for a credit line? 27:17 Sizing growth with a lender 28:42 What lenders look at beyond the award 30:16 A lender-ready cash flow model with AI 32:51 Evan's path to CEO 34:36 The calendar test 36:14 Growing Parabilis 38:47 How to reach Evan #federalcontracting #contractfinancing #workingcapital