How DOGE Cuts Are Hitting Small Businesses. Plus: Break The Cycle Of ‘Crunch Mode'

Forbes

28-03-2025

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Over the past month, we at Forbes have reported a lot on the Department of Government Efficiency's job and budget cuts and what it all means for Social Security benefits, postal service operations, aviation safety and more. As the shape of these cuts and their ramifications continues to unfold, one of my many questions has been, 'what does this mean for small business owners who depend on government contracts?'
And so, this week I connected with Mary Faith Mount-Cors, the founder and president of EdIntersect, a North Carolina-based company that works with international governments to create early education programs for children around the world. Mount-Cors has successfully built education programs in countries including Mali, Nigeria and Rwanda through USAID and UNICEF contracts, but said that the projects she was working on at the start of the year—in Malawi and Tajikistan—are 'gone' following the Trump administration's slashing of USAID operations.
'We don't know what ways we will be able to recover, but [as] you can imagine [with] any small business: We don't have six months or twelve months of capital just sitting there,' Mount-Cors said, adding that there's a real chance her company faces 'dissolution.'
I asked Mount-Cors if private donors and foundations could step in and fill the gaps—after all, the world's top philanthropists can and do deploy tens of billions of dollars every year—and her reply was a measured 'maybe,' because what's at stake is more than just dollars: It's logistical know-how and, more broadly, the ability to execute on diplomacy goals through development. 'Larger foundations, like the Gates Foundation, can maybe step into the breach more if they choose to, but they're still not the U.S. government; they're not going to be playing the same role in building trust and stability between the two countries [involved in these projects],' she said.
This summary is really just a snippet of what we touched on, so if you too have been wondering about the effects of DOGE cuts on small businesses, I recommend watching our conversation in full, here.
Cheers,
Maggie
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NEW YORK, NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 23: U.S. House of Representatives, The Hon. Chrissy Houlahan speaks during the 2024 Concordia Annual Summit at Sheraton New York Times Square on September 23, 2024 in New York City. (Photo byfor Concordia Summit)
This week, Representative Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA) joined ForbesWomen editor Maggie McGrath to talk about Trump administration cuts to USAID and how these cuts pose risks to female students from Afghanistan studying abroad on USAID-funded scholarships. 'If those young women are sent back [to Afghanistan], it's not only at the detriment of their education and their advancement, but it's also in some cases physically dangerous to them to return to what amounts to an apartheid state for women,' Houlahan said. Click here to watch the full interview.
Walter Smith for Forbes
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1. Break free from the cycle of crunch mode. Do small breaks feel like a luxury? Do work thoughts keep you up at night? These are some signs that you're trapped in a cycle of too much hustle and stress. Here's how to reset your work style.
2. Disarm office gossip. While studies show that some people think office gossip can foster team building, more professionals feel that it's toxic in the workplace. Here's what you need to know about nipping these harmful conversations in the bud.
3. Avoid job-search burnout. Even the most motivated job seekers start to feel drained after getting ghosted over and over by generic job postings. And here's the kicker: cold applying alone puts the odds squarely against you. The good news? There are smarter, more sustainable strategies to stay energized in your search— and actually get the results you want.