Karalyn M Jackow

Karalyn M. Jackow serves as a Contracting Officer Representative for the Telecommunications Division (HC1013) within the Defense Information Systems Agency, supporting the secure and resilient modernization of the Department of Defense’s global communications infrastructure. In this role, she provides critical oversight of contract performance, ensures compliance with technical specifications and security standards, and acts as the primary liaison between program managers and contractors. Her responsibilities center on high-assurance telecommunications systems, including secure virtual private networks, fiber-optic backbone deployments, and mission-critical network modernization initiatives. She plays a pivotal role in translating operational requirements into enforceable contract deliverables, ensuring alignment with DISA’s mission to sustain interoperable, next-generation communications for defense and federal operations. Karalyn maintains consistent working relationships with a core group of experienced telecommunications and systems integration contractors, including AT&T Technical Services Company, Inc., Aerospace & Commercial Technologies, LLC, Liberty Communications, Inc., AOC Connect LLC, and Norfolk Fiber, LLC. These partnerships are characterized by long-term, performance-based engagements focused on complex infrastructure upgrades and secure network deployment. Her approach emphasizes technical rigor, accountability, and adherence to cybersecurity and interoperability standards, fostering collaborative contractor relationships built on compliance and mission readiness rather than transactional procurement. Her contracting activity reflects a strict preference for full and open competition, with 100% of her acquisitions conducted without set-aside designations such as 8(a), HUBZone, or SDVOSB. This reflects the highly specialized, technically demanding nature of the work, where mission-critical performance and proven capability take precedence over socioeconomic preferences, though small business participation may occur organically through subcontracting. Karalyn’s procurement focus is exclusively aligned with NAICS 541712—Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)—encompassing advanced telecommunications engineering, network architecture design, secure data transport systems, and R&D-driven telecom modernization. She procures cutting-edge solutions in optical networking, encrypted data links, and mission-critical infrastructure that underpin DoD’s global connectivity, demonstrating deep expertise in engineering services rather than commercial off-the-shelf procurement.