Barbara Veres

Barbara Veres serves as a Contract Officer within the Contract Administration Services Division (70RCAS) of the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Procurement Operations. In this role, she is responsible for the full lifecycle management of professional, scientific, and technical service acquisitions critical to national security operations. Her portfolio centers on advancing research and development in physical and engineering sciences, ensuring the acquisition of high-integrity systems engineering, cybersecurity, and technical support services that underpin operational readiness. She exercises full contracting authority to negotiate, award, and administer complex task and delivery order contracts under FAR and DHS-specific acquisition policies, consistently aligning procurements with strategic mission objectives. Barbara Veres collaborates with a broad spectrum of prime contractors specializing in advanced R&D, systems integration, and technical consulting services. While no single contractor dominates her portfolio, she maintains consistent engagement with firms possessing deep expertise in engineering analysis, modeling and simulation, and cybersecurity infrastructure development. Her contracting approach emphasizes performance-based outcomes, rigorous technical evaluation, and contract compliance, fostering long-term partnerships with vendors capable of delivering mission-critical innovation under stringent security and quality standards. Ms. Veres does not utilize socioeconomic set-asides, with 100% of her acquisitions conducted as full and open competition. This reflects a strategic focus on technical merit and capability over socioeconomic classification, prioritizing the selection of the most qualified offerors regardless of business size or certification status. While small business participation is not mandated through set-asides, she ensures equitable access to opportunities through open solicitations and transparent evaluation criteria. Her primary procurement focus is exclusively under NAICS 541712—Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology). She procures advanced scientific services including systems engineering, signal processing, sensor development, and physical science research, supporting DHS’s mission to strengthen technological resilience and operational capability through innovation-driven contracting.