HHS Awards Operations Blanket Purchase Agreement to ActioNet, CSRA, Leidos, NuAxis, Peraton (Harris IT), and SAIC

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) has awarded the second Next Generation Information Technology Services (NGITS) blanket purchase agreement (BPA) to ActioNet, CSRA, Leidos, NuAxis, Peraton (Harris IT), and SAIC. The BPA, with an estimated value of $207 million, provides end-to-end lifecycle support for all current and future HHS production systems regardless of manufacturer or operating system. It covers major HHS information technology operational needs such as network and security operations; data center operations; and deployment, testing, and maintenance of software and systems. SAIC won the first task order on the BPA and will provide call center, service desk, and data center support for HHS staff divisions and operating divisions.

The new operations task order promises to improve customer experience by separating call center and service desk functions, thereby directing customer service requests to those with the required expertise, providing additional technical support options to customers, and shortening response times for users. According to Steve Verber, director of operations for the Office of Information Technology Infrastructure and Operations (ITIO), “Implementing a dedicated call center will help us provide real benefit to our customers by creating a single interface for requesting any type of IT assistance. We will provide new options for customer interaction to include chat via the web and increase the availability of self-help options.” In addition, Verber states, “Functionally aligned support queues will ensure that incidents are assigned to the most experienced support staff in any subject area.”

HHS OCIO launched the NGITS program last year to provide improved support in IT service delivery, accountability, integration of new and emerging technologies, customer service, and performance measurement of information technology for the Office of the Secretary, its 22 staffing divisions, and more than 12,000 employees. In September 2017, the NGITS program awarded the first BPA in the area of application hosting. NGITS will award two more BPAs this year in engineering and program management integration.

The NGITS program offers an improved platform to leverage technology; manage standards, consistency, and activities across divisions; and allow for better services and transparency to HHS customers. “This award represents another great step forward in our efforts to provide shared services and cost-effective information technology support as a part of the HHS mission to improve the well-being of all Americans,” states George Chambers, ITIO executive director.

The Office of the Chief Information Officer advises the Office of the Secretary and the Assistant Secretary for Resources and Technology on matters pertaining to the use of information and related technologies to accomplish Departmental goals and program objectives.