For consultants marketing to agencies and primes
Capability Statement Generator From Your Bio
A one-page capability statement built from your bio, resume or old deck, with a version for each buyer and nothing invented.
Free to start. No card needed.
How to write a capability statement by hand
Start with the buyer, not your company. Pick one agency or prime contractor and learn what it buys. For an agency, SBA suggests reading its procurement forecast1 and searching its past contracts on USAspending.gov, where each award shows the winning firm and the NAICS code. Then write one line on what you deliver for that buyer. SBA's capabilities statement guide2 says to frame what you do in relation to what the customer buys. A statement written for everyone reads like a brochure.
Next, list three to six core competencies in the buyer's own words, then the three past projects closest to its work. For each, give the customer, your role as prime or subcontractor, the dates, what you did and one result with how it was measured. SBA's guide notes that subcontract work can be more relevant than prime work for some buyers. Give every differentiator its proof in the same line. "Experienced team" proves nothing, while a line such as "four of our nine consultants ran public permitting offices" gives a buyer a reason.
Finish with company data and contact. Copy your UEI, CAGE code and NAICS codes from your SAM.gov registration, not from memory, and list only certifications you hold today. Delete any DUNS line: the UEI replaced the DUNS number in April 20223. Name one person, with a phone number and an email. SBA's guide allows front and back, but Norcal APEX Accelerator4, which offers free government contracting counseling, says most government buyers spend under 30 seconds on a statement. Fit it on one side, save it as a PDF and make a version for each buyer.
How it works
How does River write your capability statement?
River's capability statement generator starts from what you have already written about your firm. Paste your About page, bio or project list, or drop up to 10 files, such as a resume, an old deck and past proposals. River reads all of it before writing, noting each project's customer, your role, the dates and any result, plus every code exactly as written. Then it writes the one-page statement in your workspace: an overview line, core competencies, past performance, differentiators, company data and contact.
Nothing goes on the page that your material doesn't support. Any code, certification or figure River can't find stays in brackets and goes on a list to confirm, which says where to find each code. If your website claims more clients than your project list shows, the claim comes out and the list asks which is right. A client your files suggest is confidential becomes a description, such as "a regional hospital system." A table at the end shows the file behind each result, differentiator and code.
A short version follows for each buyer, with a new opening line and the closest project first. Ask River for a full page aimed at any one buyer. Use the statement before an agency meeting, with a sources sought reply or on your Small Business Search profile. To fill in a layout yourself, the capability statement template has two worked examples. When an agency issues a full RFP, switch to the RFP response generator. If a client wants ongoing advice, the consulting retainer agreement template sets out the fee, included hours and overage rate.
How it works
From your bio to one page
Paste or drop
Paste your website text or bio, or drop a resume, an old deck or past proposals.
River reads everything
It reads all of it first, noting every project, customer, result, code and certification with its source.
Get your statement
One page lands in your workspace, with short versions for each buyer and missing codes in brackets.
Confirm and send
Fill in codes from SAM.gov, answer the confirm list, ask River for changes, then download a PDF.
- Version for a federal agency (example)Cloud migration for federal regional officesLeads with the 38-server migration · UEI and NAICS [from SAM.gov]
- Version for a prime contractor (example)A cloud migration subcontractor: 38 servers moved, no unplanned downtimeLeads with the subcontract results · CAGE code [to confirm]
What you'll get
A one-page capability statement from your bio, tailored to each buyer
- One page built only from your own projects, results and wording
- A version for each buyer you name, or for an agency and a prime
- Every missing code, certification or figure listed for you to confirm
Before and after
What you've written in. One page out.
The founder's resume and a 2023 pitch deck that says "Northpeak Systems moves small agencies to the cloud." A project list: since 2023, 38 servers migrated for a federal regional office as a subcontractor, with no unplanned downtime per the prime's monthly reports. A help desk for 900 county staff since 2022. The deck mentions SDVOSB.
Capability statement: Northpeak Systems. Core competencies: Cloud migration for small federal offices. Help desk support for county government staff. Past performance: Federal regional office, subcontractor, 2023 to present. 38 servers moved to the cloud with no unplanned downtime, per the prime's monthly reports. Company data: UEI [from your SAM.gov registration]. CAGE code [to confirm]. Primary NAICS [to confirm]. SDVOSB [confirm your SBA certification]. To confirm before you send: Which NAICS codes are on your SAM.gov registration? Do you hold SBA's SDVOSB certification?
Every project and result comes from your files. Codes you didn't provide stay in brackets.
What lands in your doc
What's in your capability statement
- A one-line overview of what you deliver and for whom, with two sentences of proof from your files
- Three to six core competencies in your buyers' words, taken from work your material shows you doing
- Past performance with customer, prime or subcontract role, and a result only where your material states one
- Differentiators with their proof in the same line, such as a credential, a niche or a measured result
- A company data block where any UEI, CAGE code, NAICS code or certification you didn't provide stays bracketed
- Versions for each buyer, points to confirm, and the source file behind every result and code
Questions consultants ask
Common questions
What is a capability statement?
A capability statement is a one-page profile that small businesses give government buyers and prime contractors. SBA's capabilities statement guide2 lists five core elements: core competencies, differentiators, past performance, corporate data such as your codes, and contact information. Firms hand it out at meetings, attach it to sources sought replies and add it to their Small Business Search profile. Norcal APEX Accelerator4 likens it to "a resume for your business."
How do I write a capability statement with River?
Paste your About page, bio or project list into the box at the top of this page, or drop up to 10 files: Word, PDF, text, CSV, Excel or PowerPoint. River reads everything, then writes the statement into your free River workspace, with a version for each buyer and a list of points to confirm. Fill in the codes, answer the list and download it as a PDF.
Will it make up my codes or certifications?
No. A code or certification appears only if your material states it, copied character for character. River never guesses a NAICS code from a description of your work or turns "veteran-owned" into a certification. Anything missing stays in brackets, and the confirm list says where to look, such as your SAM.gov entity registration. It never adds a customer, a contract value or a result either.
Do I need a different capability statement for each buyer?
Often, yes. SBA's guide says you can have multiple versions for different audiences2, and Norcal APEX Accelerator suggests separate ones for federal, state and local agencies. River writes one for each buyer your material names, up to three, or for an agency and a prime by default. Each changes the opening line and what leads, while facts and codes stay the same.
Can I use it if I've never had a government contract?
Yes. Commercial, nonprofit and subcontract projects all belong in your past performance section, and SBA's guide asks for your most relevant experience. If your material shows no government work and names no buyers, River aims the versions at a corporate client and a larger firm that subcontracts. When a strong project has no write-up yet, the case study generator can turn its final report into one first.
Is my material kept private?
Yes. What you upload stays in your own River space unless you share it. River's privacy policy says it does not use your documents to train AI models, and its AI providers have agreed not to train on them either. If an old proposal holds a client's confidential details, check your agreement with that client before you upload it.
Is the capability statement generator free?
Yes, it is free to start. Your capability statement opens in a River workspace, where you can edit it, share it or ask River for changes, such as a full version for one agency. Paid plans add more AI use and access to the most advanced models.
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