Acquisition Excellence 2025 Awards

Acquisition Excellence Individual Award 
Brian McCormick, Supervisory Contracting Officer/Team Lead
Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Justice

Brian McCormick transformed the FBI's construction acquisition approach during the agency's strategic realignment to Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, one of the largest federal construction programs in recent history. He and his talented team of contracting officers confronted systemic inefficiencies, cost overruns, and a reputation as a difficult government owner that discouraged top-tier contractors. Mr. McCormick’s leadership pioneered a paradigm shift from rigid, adversarial procurement practices to an innovative, collaborative acquisition ecosystem. His multi-pronged strategy included facilitating healthy competition among the industry's most qualified firms, implementing proven best practices such as proprietary one-on- one meetings, stipends for unsuccessful offerors, upfront budget disclosure, and investing heavily in workforce development to create a "white glove service" culture within his team. The initiative successfully transformed the FBI into an "owner of choice," attracted higher-caliber firms, accelerated timelines, generated significant cost savings for taxpayers, and established his team as a center of excellence now consulted by other federal agencies, demonstrating that federal acquisition can serve as an agile, strategic enabler of national security objectives.

Acquisition Excellence Individual Award
Amy Petersen
Director of Business Operations, 18th Contracting Squadron, Kadena Air Base
U.S. Air Force

The 18th Wing at Kadena Air Base confronted multiple critical acquisition challenges: a limited vendor pool, reduced competition, inflated costs and failing service programs across its more than $1 billion contract portfolio.

Ms. Petersen led a comprehensive transformation strategy that included understanding/implementing Japanese regulatory practices, hosting innovative symposiums that educated and invigorated over 30 businesses, implementing collaborative internal workshops to restructure requirements, and utilizing unique evaluation criteria to allow for innovative contractor approaches. These initiatives delivered exceptional results: $13 million in savings within 90 days, 200% vendor pool expansion, a historic 67% increase in local obligations reaching $122 million in one year, transformation of failing programs from "red" to "green" status, a 30% reduction in acquisition lead times, and execution of the Wing's largest contract at $995 million—all while strengthening the local Okinawan economy and establishing Kadena as a model for innovative acquisition practices across Pacific Air Forces.

Acquisition Excellence Team Award
Ashley Chaves and Team: Gary Johnson, Audrey Montgomery, Shamim Rahman,
Rebekah Anchonco, Adam Baker, Michael Boggs, Noah Shamburger, Gregory Bond, Warnecke Miller
Johnson Space Center Office of Procurement
National Aeronautics and Space Administration

NASA's United States Deorbit Vehicle procurement team developed a groundbreaking acquisition strategy to secure a spacecraft capable of safely deorbiting the International Space Station under an accelerated timeline. Facing the challenge of limited qualified contractors split between traditional aerospace and "new space" companies with vastly different business models, the team created a flexible "Choose Your Own Adventure" solicitation model that allowed offerors to select their preferred contract type, delivery schedule, and small business subcontracting goals—breaking down traditional federal procurement barriers. This innovative approach, which included extensive market research, performance-based payments, and transparent industry engagement, successfully broadened competition between legacy and emerging space providers, resulting in approximately $400 million in cost savings while maintaining uncompromising safety standards. The procurement now serves as a benchmark for future high-risk, high-complexity acquisitions, demonstrating how flexibility, collaboration, and commercial integration can accelerate timelines, enhance competition, and deliver maximum value to taxpayers while ensuring mission success.

Lisa Wilusz Program Management Excellence Award
NEXRAD Radar Operations Center Daniel Hoffman, Terrance Clark and Team: M. Williams, E. Berkowitz, C. Stephenson, C. Hunt, D. Thompson, C. Espinoza, V. Mansur, L. Gallagher, T. Buie, L. Alberts, E. Ice, D. Stoepker, J. Walker, M. Wakeam, P. Grant, M. Miller, B. Ballard, J. Roper, F. Hewins, T. Dodgion, C. Smith, F. Woolard, B. Harp, F. Moreno, M. Lynch, A. Ramirez, R. Pattison, M. Flint R. Heelan, M. Keel, J. Warren, D. Frashier, M. Albertelly, D. Matney, A. Daniel, C. Fay, C. Huffer, S. Grell , J. Sandifer, R. Reed, C. Horvat, C. Gilbert, G. Secrest, R. Cook, G. Jim, L. Allmon, M. McKissick, M. Istok, S. Enders, L. Richardson, A. Losey-Bailor, J. Schultz, J. McLaughlin, N. Flambures, S. Saul, NWS National Reconditioning Center (NRC) - C. Maples, C. Debolt, Tri-Agency Partners DoD - (R. Keil, G. Stewart, M. Prather, R. George, C. Hall, F. Ceniceros, M. Burroughs, ) and FAA AJW - (J. Atkinson, S. Kim, R. Mattox, D. Erickson) 
National Weather Service, NOAA, Department of Commerce

The NEXRAD Service Life Extension Program successfully addressed the critical challenge of aging infrastructure in the nation's 159 weather surveillance radar systems, which were designed in the 1980s for a 20-year design life but faced rapid degradation between 2015-2030 if service life was not extended beyond 2030, particularly after the radar signal processor suite lost commercial vendor support in December 2015. Through a coordinated tri-agency effort involving the Departments of Commerce, Transportation, and Defense, the program managed five parallel major projects (RSP, transmitter, shelters, pedestal, and generator) using innovative approaches including in- house staff deployment and scalable refurbishment strategies. The results far exceeded expectations: all projects were completed on or ahead of schedule by August 2024, the program achieved over $30 million in cost avoidance from the original $150 million estimate (allowing $13.5 million to be reprogrammed to other NWS programs), extended the NEXRAD network's operational life and additional 20 years providing operational availability beyond 2035, and maintained operational availability above 98% throughout implementation—all while preserving the $3.1 billion capital investment and ensuring continuity of the nation's most impactful weather observation system that supports severe weather warnings, aviation safety, and defense operations.