Connie Z Lum

Connie A. Lum serves as a Contract Specialist at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), part of the Department of Commerce, where she manages the acquisition of critical technology and information services to support the nation’s intellectual property infrastructure. Her role encompasses the full lifecycle of contracting activities—from market research and solicitation development to award and contract administration—ensuring compliance with FAR regulations while advancing USPTO’s mission to modernize digital examination systems and secure public access to patent and trademark databases. She routinely handles complex IT services acquisitions, software development, and technology infrastructure contracts essential to maintaining the efficiency and integrity of the USPTO’s digital ecosystem. Lum maintains consistent working relationships with key contractors including IP.COM I, LLC and Innovative Transducer Implementation, LLC, both of which provide specialized intellectual property analytics and hardware integration services. Her procurement approach emphasizes long-term vendor partnerships grounded in technical expertise, performance reliability, and alignment with USPTO’s innovation goals. She engages primarily with firms possessing deep domain knowledge in patent data systems, digital transformation, and enterprise software solutions, fostering collaborative relationships that prioritize mission-critical outcomes over transactional procurement. Her contracting patterns reflect a strong preference for open competition, with 73.7% of awards issued without set-asides, yet she maintains a meaningful commitment to small business participation, allocating 26.3% of acquisitions to Total Small Business Set-Asides under FAR 19.5. While she does not routinely utilize specialized socioeconomic programs such as 8(a) or HUBZone, her consistent use of small business set-asides demonstrates a deliberate effort to broaden vendor diversity and promote equitable access to federal contracting opportunities. Lum’s procurement focus centers on NAICS 511210 (Software Publishers), 423430 (Computer and Peripheral Equipment Wholesalers), and 541519 (Other Computer Related Services), reflecting her specialization in enterprise software, data management tools, and integrated technology solutions. She frequently procures custom programming services, cloud-enabled platforms, and hardware systems that underpin the USPTO’s digital transformation initiatives, demonstrating deep technical fluency in intellectual property technology domains.