Written by: Nic Perez, ThunderCat Technology’s Cloud CTO
Introduction
Public sector organizations—may they be the largest or the smallest; cities, counties, and educational institutions—are increasingly relying on modern procurement tools to meet evolving IT and cybersecurity demands. AWS Marketplace offers a centralized, secure, and scalable platform that helps agencies quickly access vetted technology solutions. By working with partners like ThunderCat Technology, government entities benefit from faster procurement cycles, an improved security posture, and streamlined acquisition processes.
Why Speed and Ease Matter in Public Sector Procurement
Procurement in the public sector is often slowed down by layers of regulatory compliance, reasons for change, outdated processes, limited access to trusted vendors and the old “But this is how we’ve always done it”. This creates delays that can impact cybersecurity readiness, operational efficiency, and importantly constituent services. Government IT teams are under pressure to find solutions that not only meet technical requirements but can also be deployed quickly and within budget constraints.
AWS Marketplace addresses these challenges by offering a streamlined platform where agencies can discover, purchase, and deploy software and services with speed and reliability. By providing pre-vetted vendors, automated billing, and deployment-ready solutions, AWS Marketplace removes many of the administrative roadblocks that typically slow down procurement in government environments. This allows agencies to not only focus on delivering results rather than managing paperwork, but also procure the tools needed when they are needed, not months later.
How ThunderCat Enhances AWS Marketplace Offerings for Government
ThunderCat Technology plays a key role in supporting public sector agencies by simplifying the process of procuring advanced cybersecurity and cloud solutions through AWS Marketplace. As an AWS Advanced Partner with deep experience in government IT, ThunderCat helps agencies identify the right tools to meet their mission-critical needs while ensuring compliance with procurement policies and security standards.
By integrating solutions directly into AWS Marketplace, ThunderCat reduces the time it takes for agencies to implement necessary technologies. Our team works closely with public sector clients to align technical requirements with marketplace offerings, enabling a smooth, low-friction procurement journey. This partnership helps agencies enhance operational speed while maintaining control and oversight of IT investments.
We help agencies identify all appropriate incentives, promotions and value-adds that are available. We do this via a Private Offer.
Benefits of Using AWS Marketplace for Cities, Counties, and Schools
All agencies have challenges with procurement, with local governments and educational institutions facing their own unique challenges in sourcing secure and scalable technology solutions. AWS Marketplace simplifies this by providing access to a wide range of software, infrastructure, and data products that meet various compliance and security requirements. This centralized access reduces vendor complexity and speeds up time-to-deployment for critical tools.
For cities, counties, and schools operating on tight budgets and timelines, AWS Marketplace offers built-in pricing transparency and flexible payment terms. Procurement teams can compare solutions, review usage-based pricing models, and make informed decisions quickly. The self-service environment, combined with automation and governance features, empowers public sector IT leaders to manage resources effectively without unnecessary delays.
Ensuring Security and Compliance Through Verified Solutions
Security and compliance are top priorities for public sector organizations. AWS Marketplace includes only thoroughly vetted software vendors, ensuring that agencies can confidently select tools that meet federal and local cybersecurity standards. These solutions often align with frameworks such as FedRAMP, NIST, FISMA, PCI and other government-mandated requirements.
This pre-approval significantly reduces the evaluation time typically needed for IT procurement. Agencies can quickly adopt technologies that are already compliant, eliminating the need for extended due diligence. As a result, IT teams can focus on the “How” of implementation and system integration rather than getting bogged down in administrative tasks which make up the “Why”.
Faster Implementation Through Pre-Integrated Solutions
One of the main advantages of using AWS Marketplace is the ability to deploy software that is already optimized for cloud environments. Many marketplace listings are pre-integrated with AWS services, which reduces the setup time and minimizes compatibility issues. This allows public sector agencies to quickly operationalize new tools without requiring custom development or extended testing phases.
By working with partners like ThunderCat, agencies benefit from guided implementation and expert support throughout the deployment process. This collaborative approach ensures that the technologies procured through AWS Marketplace are not only implemented faster but also configured to meet specific organizational goals, including scalability, security, and usability.
Supporting Long-Term Public Sector IT Modernization
The use of AWS Marketplace goes beyond one-time procurement. It supports long-term digital transformation by giving public sector organizations ongoing access to updated tools, services, and infrastructure. As technology needs evolve, agencies can continue to adapt without undergoing a lengthy procurement process each time a new requirement arises.
With partners like ThunderCat, agencies can develop a strategic roadmap for IT modernization that aligns with their budget, compliance, and performance needs. This partnership-driven model enables continuous innovation while maintaining control, transparency, and accountability in public sector IT investments.
How to Ensure Competitive Pricing in a Cloud Marketplace
If you are a procurement officer—or advising one—working in or exploring a cloud marketplace for the first time, securing competitive pricing requires a mix of compliance checks, market intelligence, and procurement best practices. Here’s a few tips to help you meet those requirements:
- Request a Private Offer or a Custom Quote. Use the Private Offer feature in cloud marketplaces to ask the seller for volume-based or term-based discounts and compare the marketplace price to what the vendor charges outside the platform. The AWS Marketplace enables value added resellers such as ThunderCat to have a seat at the table and use our buying volume to further reduce the price, we may be able to provide bundled pricing, extended terms, or support add-ons.
- Compare listed pricing terms (hourly, annual, Bring Your Own License (BYOL), or SaaS).
- Review how much your agency (or other agencies) paid for the same software:
- Internally: Ask acquisitions, finance or other contract teams for previous purchase records.
- Externally: Use tools like GSA Advantage, SEWP, or NASPO ValuePoint to compare similar contract awards.
- Release a Market Research Request (MRR) to receive multiple quotes.
- Look into structured pricing discounts, like multi-year and other pricing discounts that can be provided such as volume, term and bundling. ThunderCat can often passes these discounts and negotiates on behalf of our customers with the OEM’s:
- Tiered Pricing Discounts – based on usage or quantity
- Volume Discounts – based on purchasing large quantities
- Term Discounts – for longer contract durations (e.g., annual vs. monthly)
- Bundled Discounts – for purchasing multiple products/services together
- Enterprise Pricing – negotiated pricing based on enterprise-wide adoption
- Economies of Scale Discounts – reflecting lower unit cost with higher volume
- Additionally, guidance is provided in FAR 15.404-1(b)(2) for price reasonableness determination.
The Source and Type of Funding Used for a Purchase “Color of Money”
Even though public sector budgets are typically being asked to reduce and be lowered, practically every agency is investing in IT Transformation, Modernization and a land rush to gain AI experience. The cloud budgets do seem to have some very alluring capabilities as it relates to Cloud Marketplace purchases.
We typically see that agencies and departments have unspent or allocated funds for cloud services and larger cloud contract ceilings. Here’s where there is a strategic opportunity to optimize the procurement process; through accepting a private offer from a reseller via a cloud marketplace. Here are a couple of methods to tap into those budgets:
- Many cloud budgets are:
- “Use-it-or-lose-it” (e.g. end of fiscal year)
- Project-specific (e.g. cloud migration, cybersecurity)
- Meet with program managers, cloud COEs, and/or FinOps teams to identify:
- Remaining spend
- Allowable services (e.g. SaaS, IaaS, PaaS)
- Time sensitivity (e.g. obligation by end of Q4)
- High contract ceilings
- Existence of a Private Pricing Agreement with a committed spend requirement
Conclusion: Accelerating Public Sector Procurement with AWS Marketplace and ThunderCat
Public sector organizations face increasing pressure to modernize IT systems while ensuring security, compliance, and cost-effectiveness. AWS Marketplace provides a trusted, efficient procurement channel that helps agencies meet these goals with speed and ease. Through partnerships with experienced providers like ThunderCat, from large agencies to cities, counties, and schools; all can simplify technology acquisition, reduce implementation time, and maintain alignment with public sector standards.
As demand for scalable and secure solutions continues to rise, leveraging AWS Marketplace positions agencies for long-term success. It not only accelerates procurement but also supports ongoing digital transformation initiatives critical to public safety, education, and governance.
Discover how your agency can streamline IT procurement with AWS Marketplace and ThunderCat.