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There is an adage that simply says, “Perfection is attained by slow degrees; it requires the hand of time.” This adage is quite apt for the Chief Information Officer-Solutions and Partners 4 (CIO-SP4) solicitation. In our ongoing quest to bring to market the best Government Wide Acquisition Contract (GWAC), we’ve, unfortunately, had to wait on the hand of time. Although waiting has admittedly caused me both frustration and impatience, it has not stopped NITAAC from continuing to provide any federal agency, government-wide, with an easy, cost-effective and accessible method for acquiring information technology for citizen services or mission delivery. If there is no other takeaway from this month’s Director’s Corner, please understand that we are open for business and both the CIO-SP3 and CIO-SP3 Small Business GWACs are available, and will continue to be available, for agency use. Both GWACs have been extended through April 29, 2024, to ensure there is no gap in contractual coverage between CIO-SP3 and CIO-SP4. The extension allows our customers to continue to acquire mission-critical information technology on our fast and cost-effective GWACs through the remainder of the fiscal year. Rest assured, we are ready and capable of fulfilling all your task and delivery orders to ensure all your mission-critical information technology (IT) needs are met. NITAAC was developed specifically by the government for the sole purpose of speeding up IT acquisition for the government. I am grateful we have provided acquisition support to virtually every federal agency, department and program in the federal government since we launched over 25 years ago as part of the Clinger-Cohen Act. No matter how large or how complex your IT challenges may be, you can count on NITAAC contractors to get IT done quickly and get IT done right. From operations and maintenance of legacy systems to complex, emerging technologies like Cybersecurity and Artificial Intelligence (AI), NITAAC contractors are ready to help federal agencies excel. As we head into the end of the fiscal year and approach buying season, NITAAC is here to help you. Our three GWACs, CIO-CS, CIO-SP3 and CIO-SP3 Small Business have everything you need to get IT done, from a pool of highly qualified contractors to robust labor categories, multiple task areas and a multitude of socioeconomic categories to help you meet your goals. NITAAC is your one-stop shop for all things IT. The perfection of CIO-SP4 has not changed the one fundamental value every NITAAC team member upholds and that is our commitment to customer service. Customer service is not something we take for granted. We've geared our operations around your needs, so whether you are just beginning a solicitation and need help with research, or you’ve already placed a task or delivery order on one of our vehicles, NITAAC is committed to making sure you get answers faster, so you can keep your acquisitions and mission critical IT needs on tracks. This commitment to service is something we will continue through the close out of CIO-SP3 and the introduction of CIO-SP4. I invite you to experience our customer service firsthand. To obtain a complimentary, Technical Assessment of your Statements of Work, Statement of Objectives and Performance Work Statements, or to simply learn more about all the ways NITAAC can help you exceed your IT goals, contact our customer support team at NITAACsupport@nih.gov.

According to Bloomberg, information technology (IT) continues to be a large source of federal market growth, accounting for more than $76.4 billion dollars. Most of these dollars are typically spent through commodities, solutions, and services purchased from a myriad of companies operating within the United States. But, with so many vendors competing for federal dollars, how can government agencies ensure fair opportunity in government contracting? Before we answer this question, let’s first examine what fair opportunity is and why it is important. What is fair opportunity? The concept of fair opportunity is mandated by Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 16.505(b). It is intended to level the playing field so that agencies cannot give an unfair advantage to one contractor over another. Fair opportunity is a mandatory requirement and is applicable to all federal agencies purchasing IT products and services when using a multiple-award contract. According to the (FAR) 16.505(b), fair opportunity must be exercised when a purchase exceeds the $10,000 micro-purchase threshold. When this happens, an agency must give every company that holds that contract an equal opportunity to respond to a request for proposal (RFP). Why is fair opportunity important? Encouraging competition has a myriad of benefits. Competitive contracting often results in lower overall costs for the government as contractors are more likely to submit more competitive bids to win the business. This results in lower direct public service costs and reduced internal costs. Additionally, competition opens the door for everyone to participate in contracting. According to a recent survey by Zippia, 70.6 percent of most government contractors are white. In 2021, only two percent of federal contracts were awarded to minority-owned firms. Although fair opportunity does not guarantee equity, it does ensure that every qualified offeror receives consideration. In fact, last year, the Biden administration set a goal of increasing the share of federal contracts going to small, disadvantaged businesses to 15 percent by 2023, a 50 percent increase from recent spending levels. This lofty goal has left many agencies wondering how they can achieve this goal. NITAAC can help. Ensuring fair opportunity in federal contracting Let’s face it. Most agencies do not have the time or manpower to sort through multiple contracts to ensure every eligible offeror is included. As a result, the federal government still struggles with ensuring parity in contracting. According to a January 2023 FedScoop article, the world’s largest software companies, received at least 25% to 30% of government sales over the last 10 years through less than fully competitive procurement processes. NITAAC has the solution for this problem. NITAAC has designed an electronic Government Ordering System (e-GOS) to ensure that fair opportunity is carried out correctly on every order. This web-based, secure system is fast and easy to use—allowing contracting professionals to walk through the entire solicitation process seamlessly. NITAAC’s commitment to fair opportunity does not stop there. Leveling the playing field NITAAC is committed to leveling the playing field for all contractors. In FY22, seven of the top ten performing CIO-SP3 Small Business contract holders were Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSB), 8(a) or Historically Underutilized Business Zones (HUBZone). NITAAC boasts one of the highest numbers of socioeconomic categories compared to most other GWACs. Agencies can award opportunities in a number of categories, including: 8(a) – 131 Historically Underutilized Business Zone (HUBZone) - 22 Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) - 53 Small Business (SB) - 311 Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) – 21 Agencies looking to get fair opportunity done right, need to look no further than NITAAC. The three NITAAC GWACs, CIO-SP3, CIO-SP3 Small Business and CIO-CS are multiple award IDIQ contracts for IT that can be used by any federal agency. Our Electronic Government Ordering System (e-GOS) takes the guess work out of fair opportunity and ensures that fair opportunity is carried out correctly on every order. To learn more, visit https://nitaac.nih.gov/resources/e-gos.

On January 20, 2021, President Joe Biden signed his first Executive Order (EO), EO 13985, which called for “a comprehensive approach to advancing equity for all, including people of color and others who have been historically underserved, marginalized, and adversely affected by persistent poverty and inequality.” At NITAAC, we are committed to advancing equity across the Federal Government and strongly believe that by leveling the playing field for all socioeconomic groups, we create a federal contracting experience that benefits everyone. That was the spirit behind our CIO-SP3 ramp on. In support of EO 13985, the CIO-SP3 ramp on increased the number of Service-Disabled Veteran Businesses (SDVB), 8(a) and Historically Underutilized Business Zones (HUBZone) small businesses to ensure equal access to contracting opportunities. The ramp on added over 200 Small Business Contract Holders to the vehicle, including 40 SDVB, 20 HUBZone and 81 8(a) contractors. In fact, in FY22, of the top ten performing CIO-SP3 Small Business contract holders, seven were ramp on contractors. The top 10 contractors contributed to $1.7 billion of the dollars obligated. $1.2 billion of the obligated dollars came from ramp on contractors. As a result of the CIO-SP3 Small Business ramp on, the percentage of NITAAC Small Disadvantaged Businesses increased by 75%, with over 70% of our awarded contracts being spread out over small business/socioeconomic categories. 8(a) – 131 Historically Underutilized Business Zone (HUBZone) - 22 Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) - 53 Small Business (SB) - 311 Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) – 21 But our efforts have not stopped there. In support of EO 13779, which was designed to strengthen the capacity of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU’s) to participate in federal programs, access federal resources, including grants and procurement opportunities, as well as available partnership opportunities with federal agencies, the Chief Information Officer-Solutions and Partners 4 (CIO-SP4) Government-Wide Acquisition Contract (GWAC) solicitation allowed offerors to provide up to three examples of Information Technology projects that directly supported HBCU’s. Each example was worth 100 points with a maximum total of 300 points possible. The federal government’s goal in advancing equity provides everyone with the opportunity to reach their full potential. We are proud of the strides we have made to promote equity in federal contracting and take the President's orders to remove systemic barriers to opportunities and benefits for people of color and other underserved groups, quite seriously.

On behalf of the team at NITAAC, let me be the first to wish you a Happy New Year! As we usher in 2023, I know there is a lot of anticipation about the Chief Information Officer-Solutions and Partners 4 (CIO-SP4) Government-Wide Acquisition Contract (GWAC). CIO-SP4 has been in the news lately, but unfortunately much of the press has covered the procurement with some incorrect information. Nevertheless, we continue to strive to serve our customers—federal information technology (IT) employees, who have IT requirements with tax-payer dollars, to support their agency missions and be a resource with numerous acquisition solutions for them to consider. Although it is still very much an active procurement, and I can’t comment on the specifics or answer many of the questions I am sure you might have, I did want to take this time to assure you of one thing — CIO-SP4 will be a viable GWAC and a trusted resource for federal agencies. We are steadfastly working to bring this next great IT vehicle to market. The $50 billion GWAC will focus on enabling emerging technologies in IT — such as blockchain, cybersecurity technologies, agile software development and “as-a-service-solutions" — as well as reducing administrative burden on the competitive process behind the GWAC. CIO-SP3 and CIO-SP3 Small Business Extended to 4/29/23 to Ensure No Lapse in Service In the meantime, I wanted to assure our agency customers that while we await the arrival of CIO-SP4, there will be continuous coverage for those who use our contracting vehicles. To ensure there is no break in service during the award of CIO-SP4, NITAAC has extended the CIO-SP3 and CIO-SP3 Small Business GWACs through 4/29/23. The CIO-SP3 and CIO-SP3 Small Business GWACs offer everything IT with services and solutions across ten Task Areas, ranging from biomedical research to software development. Whatever your IT requirements, our GWACs can help. CIO-SP3 is an excellent choice for agencies looking to develop innovative solutions based on cutting-edge technology. The GWAC includes 137 different labor categories (and more can be added at the task order level) and supports every contract type in the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR). From IT modernization to cyber to software to Health IT, the CIO-SP3 and CIO-SP3 Small Business GWACs offer a variety of options to help you meet your most pressing IT needs. Direct orders easily can be made through NITAAC’s secure, online ordering and competition management system known as e-GOS (the Electronic Government Ordering System). What’s more, the CIO-SP3 Small Business GWAC features a wide variety of leading small business innovators and can be used by any federal agency, civilian or DoD, to fulfill information technology requirements and meet socioeconomic goals such as HUBZone, 8(a), Woman-Owned, Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business, and Small Business. Don’t Wait — Place Your Orders Today The future of CIO-SP4 is promising but please remember, you do not have to wait on CIO-SP4 to conduct your acquisitions with NITAAC. CIO-SP3 and CIO-SP3 Small Business are both options that you can exercise today to meet your critical IT missions. The Future is Now For twenty-six years, NITAAC has been a trusted source for federal IT procurement. As we look to the next chapter in our GWAC history, we plan to continue serving as the premier option for federal IT needs. As always, if you have questions, feel free to reach out to us at NITAACsupport@nih.gov, or contact NITAAC Customer Support at 888.773.6542

Since NITAAC was founded in 1996 as part of the Clinger-Cohen Act, our federal acquisition program has been focused on reimagining information technology procurements with outstanding customer service. In that time, NITAAC has proudly served nearly every federal agency and department in the United States through multiple iterations of our popular technology contracts. In fact, in the last decade, since the inception of the Chief Information Officer – Solutions and Partners 3 (CIO-SP3) suite of Government-Wide Acquisition Contracts (GWACs), we have helped compete more than 2,000 task orders for federal agencies and awarded more than $40 billion in federal information technology acquisitions. Annual Award Totals By GWAC CIO-SP3 CIO-SP3 SB FY Count Amount Count Amount 2012 16 $127,460,274.93 9 $34,544,360.00 2013 48 $1,621,588,463.94 73 $910,907,874.64 2014 81 $2,294,093,294.73 118 $1,918,423,820.44 2015 79 $2,208,431,658.80 152 $1,509,447,910.31 2016 82 $3,357,499,727.16 134 $1,077,394,767.87 2017 71 $2,202,708,072.18 119 $1,644,946,844.45 2018 58 $1,829,336,183.50 77 $1,581,462,261.25 2019 69 $3,622,932,693.76 113 $1,934,128,119.70 2020 74 $2,051,144,970.04 148 $2,098,475,831.63 2021 62 $1,396,951,448.27 203 $2,747,905,800.68 2022 48 $1,037,071,531.64 180 $3,606,488,222.95 Grand Totals 688 $21,749,218,318.95 1326 $19,064,125,813.92 This is a history we are very proud of and appreciate your partnership in making NITAAC the easiest, fastest and cheapest IT contracting vehicle of its kind. As we embark on the next great chapter in NITAAC history, bringing the Chief Information Officer – Solutions and Partners 4 (CIO-SP4) GWAC to fruition, the same foundation upon which we built NITAAC remains intact. Perfection takes time and for that reason, we have decided to extend our CIO-SP3 GWAC, both unrestricted and small business, through 1/06/23 on our latest modifications. This ensures there is no break of service during the award of CIO-SP4. More importantly, it ensures continued coverage for our customers who rely on NITAAC to fulfill their IT agency missions. If the COVID-19 pandemic has taught me anything, it is that in life, sometimes you must pivot for a better level of success. From working remotely to wearing masks to virtual learning for our children, we’ve all learned to be nimble and adjust to our changing environment. CIO-SP4 has taught us all those valuable lessons. Admittedly, our journey to CIO-SP4 has had many pivots and has better positioned us for future goal attainment. There has been much dialogue among our industry partners about the number of amendments and even our recent round of notifications to those who were deemed ineligible. Please ignore the chatter. Every action we have taken to date has been done with one goal in mind—bringing to market the most effective and efficient IT GWAC, with the most qualified contractors to meet our agency customer IT needs. Although a lot of things around us have changed, customer service and our commitment to excellence remain the same. You will see that commitment continue to shine through with the extension of CIO-SP3 and, more importantly, as we bring to market CIO-SP4. I am excited about what the future holds for NITAAC and look forward to ushering in the next chapter of NITAAC’s history.

NITAAC Strategic Priorities for FY22 The New Year brings resolutions and a renewed emphasis on change. In fact, data from YouGovAmerica suggests that about a quarter of Americans will make resolutions, and 20% think they'll accomplish them. In the spirit of New Year traditions, I wanted to share with you the NITAAC strategic goals and priorities for FY2022. Priority #1: Accept No Substitutes: Nobody Does Federal IT Acquisition Quite Like NITAAC Although many things change, customer service and our commitment to excellence remains the same. Customer service is not something we take for granted at NITAAC. We've geared our operations around our customers’ needs so whether they are just beginning a solicitation and need help with research, or they’ve already placed a task or delivery order on one of our vehicles, NITAAC is committed to making sure they get answers faster, so they can keep their acquisitions on track. In 2022, we will seek ways to continually improve upon our service delivery. To that end, we will be developing new training programs, website resources, white papers, blogs, videos and other resources, such as virtual industry days, to support our federal partners and their information technology (IT) missions. Priority #2: Revolutionize IT Acquisitions with CIO-SP4 We are steadfastly working to bring the next great Government-Wide Acquisition Contract (GWAC), Chief Information Officer-Solutions and Partners 4 (CIO-SP4) to market. The $50 billion GWAC will focus on enabling emerging technologies in IT — such as blockchain, cybersecurity technologies, agile software development and "as-a-service-solutions" — as well as reducing administrative burden on the competitive process behind the GWAC. On January 11, 2021, we posted Amendment 013. Additionally, the CIO-SP3 and CIO-SP3 Small Business vehicles are currently being extended for up to one year to ensure there is no gap in contractual coverage between CIO-SP3 and CIO-SP4. This will push performance of task orders well into Q3 2028, giving agencies plenty of runway to place their acquisitions now and get the benefits of FAR 16 flexibilities. The new projected award date for CIO-SP4 is no later than November 11, 2022. Priority #3: Leverage DITAP Certification The current push for modernization is not just about updating or replacing old technology. It’s about “creating the platform for change”— that is, finding more cost-effective, innovative approaches to delivering IT and improving service to the citizen. A common component of the push for IT modernization is delivering data, information and transactional services across multiple platforms to enhance how citizens engage with the government. Unfortunately, buying digital services is not a skill that is gained through the Federal Acquisition Certification in Contracting (FAC-C) curriculum. Many seasoned Contracting Officers are now facing a start-of-FY2022 deadline to learn and apply new skills for Digital Services (DS). In 2022, we plan to leverage our Digital IT Acquisition Professional (DITAP) certification to assist federal agency partners whose Contracting Officers have not yet achieved this distinction. Unfortunately, COVID-19 and remote working have made it increasingly difficult for Contracting Officers to take the six-month training. All NITAAC Contracting Officers and specialists are already DITAP certified, and are specially trained to handle procurements on each of our three Government-Wide Acquisition Contracts for IT – CIO-SP3, CIO-SP3 Small Business and CIO-CS. Not only have they completed the rigorous training process, but they are also experienced in implementing the most innovative and streamlined strategies in IT acquisitions. Priority #4: Continue to Leverage Best in Class (BIC) GWACs: CIO-SP3, CIO-SP3 Small Business and CIO-CS There is much promise in leveraging BIC. A significant portion of our revenue resulted from being able to leverage our BIC status. But, even more importantly, the designation will result in even further cost avoidance for our agency partners. In 2022, we will continue to educate agencies about the value and cost-savings leveraging our BIC-designated vehicles affords. Priority #5: Eliminate Redundancies and Deliver More Value with NITAAC Government-Wide Strategic Solutions (GSS) NITAAC delivers quality IT equipment at competitive rates. In fact, federal agencies who use NITAAC realize dramatic savings when purchasing commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) IT products. Using NITAAC allows federal agencies to reduce the administrative cost of establishing their own IT contracts and leverage the buying power of civilian agencies for laptops and desktops. The more federal agencies participate, the greater the overall savings. Agencies get the same low price regardless of the quantities ordered. In FY22, we will have a renewed emphasis on helping federal agencies understand how they can realize dramatic savings when purchasing COTS IT products through NITAAC GSS. Although most resolutions are abandoned, our commitment to our strategic priorities is unwavering. I am excited about the promise of FY2022 and look forward to continuing to reimagine acquisitions and deliver procurement excellence.