Jill Barrows

Jill Barrows serves as a key procurement professional within the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (HDTRA1), supporting the agency’s mission to counter weapons of mass destruction through strategic acquisition of advanced scientific and technical capabilities. She manages complex research and development contracts focused on threat detection, forensic analysis, and operational support systems for chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and high-yield explosive hazards. Her portfolio centers on high-consequence national security programs requiring cutting-edge R&D, systems integration, and rapid prototyping, often involving multidisciplinary teams and classified environments. Barrows ensures acquisitions align with DoD acquisition regulations and prioritize technical innovation, agility, and mission readiness. She maintains consistent partnerships with leading technical contractors including TECHTRANS INTERNATIONAL INC, BATTELLE MEMORIAL INSTITUTE, AERIS LLC, APPLIED RESEARCH ASSOCIATES, INC., and AMAZON WEB SERVICES, INC. These relationships reflect a preference for established, high-capability firms with proven expertise in defense science, computational modeling, sensor development, and cloud-based data analytics. Her contracting approach emphasizes long-term collaboration, performance-based outcomes, and the integration of commercial technologies into mission-critical systems, often leveraging Other Transaction Authorities and prototype agreements to accelerate capability delivery. Barrows’ procurement activity is entirely non-set-aside, with 100% of awards issued under full and open competition. This reflects a mission-driven focus on technical excellence and urgency over socioeconomic preferences, prioritizing the most qualified entities capable of delivering high-risk, high-reward solutions. While small business participation is not structurally mandated in her portfolio, vendors of all sizes compete on technical merit, innovation, and past performance. Her primary NAICS focus is on research and development in the physical, engineering, and life sciences (541715 and 541712), underscoring deep expertise in advanced scientific instrumentation, threat modeling, forensic diagnostics, and systems engineering. She procures services ranging from laboratory analysis and field-deployable detection systems to high-performance computing platforms and AI-driven analytics tools critical to national defense readiness.