Alicia Hughes-Hemphill

Alicia Hughes-Hemphill serves as a key procurement lead within the IT Contracting Division – PL83 of the Defense Information Systems Agency, where she manages mission-critical acquisitions for custom computer programming services that sustain and modernize DoD-wide information systems. Her work directly supports the agency’s mandate to deliver secure, resilient, and interoperable computing environments by procuring software solutions that enhance cybersecurity, maintain legacy infrastructure, and enable scalable digital capabilities for defense operations. She routinely oversees full lifecycle contracting for bespoke software development, system integration, and mission-critical application maintenance, ensuring compliance with DoD acquisition regulations and technical standards. Her contractor relationships are centered on firms with deep expertise in defense-grade software engineering, including those capable of delivering secure coding practices, zero-trust architecture integration, and DevSecOps pipelines tailored to classified and unclassified DoD environments. While no specific vendor relationships are currently identifiable, her procurement patterns indicate a preference for vendors with proven experience in military communications systems, enterprise software modernization, and NIST SP 800-53 compliance. She engages with contractors through competitive, performance-based contracts that emphasize technical innovation and operational readiness. Alicia’s contracting activity reflects a strict focus on open competition, with 100% of her acquisitions designated as non-set-aside, indicating a preference for technical merit over socioeconomic categorization. This approach prioritizes mission capability and system interoperability over socioeconomic preferences, aligning with the agency’s urgent need for rapid, high-fidelity software delivery in contested operational environments. Her primary procurement focus is exclusively under NAICS 541511, Custom Computer Programming Services, reflecting deep specialization in tailored software development for defense applications. She procures services including secure application development, legacy system modernization, real-time data processing tools, and embedded software for tactical platforms—all grounded in agile methodologies and continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD) frameworks essential to modern defense IT.