Lucrecia M. Applewhaite

Lucrecia M. Applewhaite serves as a Contract Specialist within the Social Security Administration’s Office of Acquisition and Grants, where she plays a pivotal role in executing procurements that support the agency’s mission to secure reliable, secure, and efficient operational infrastructure. She manages a diverse portfolio of acquisitions centered on IT modernization, systems integration, cybersecurity, and critical administrative services essential to benefit delivery. Her work ensures compliance with federal acquisition regulations while aligning procurement strategies with SSA’s strategic priorities, particularly in software development and facility support services. Applewhaite maintains established working relationships with key contractors including CA, Inc., Johnson Controls, Inc., East Coast Welding & Construction Co., Inc., and Colorid, LLC. These partnerships reflect a balanced approach to sourcing both large-scale enterprise solutions and specialized technical services. Her contracting patterns demonstrate consistent engagement with vendors capable of delivering complex, mission-critical systems, from IT infrastructure to facility maintenance, emphasizing performance-based outcomes and contract compliance. A defining feature of her procurement approach is an overwhelming commitment to small business participation, with 94.4% of her awards designated as total small business set-asides under FAR 19.5. This reflects a deliberate strategy to foster economic opportunity and enhance competition by prioritizing small businesses across multiple socioeconomic categories, ensuring broad vendor participation and equitable access to federal contracting opportunities. Her primary NAICS focus areas include 621111 and 621112, representing physician offices, which suggests procurement activity related to health data systems or administrative support for SSA’s medical determinations process. She also routinely procures custom computer programming services under NAICS 541511 and facility-related services under 812930, indicating expertise in both health informatics and physical infrastructure contracting. Her technical domain expertise spans healthcare IT systems, cybersecurity-enabled platforms, and facility management services critical to SSA’s operational resilience.