Margaret Jones

Margaret Jones serves as a Contract Specialist with the Military Sealift Command (N00033), where she plays a critical role in executing strategic sealift and ocean transportation contracts essential to naval force readiness. Her responsibilities encompass the full lifecycle of acquisition activities—from market research and solicitation development to contract award and administration—focused primarily on deep-sea freight transportation services. She ensures compliance with federal acquisition regulations while aligning procurement decisions with MSC’s mission to sustain global maritime logistics through a mix of government-owned and chartered vessels. Her work directly supports expeditionary warfare operations by securing reliable, long-term transportation capabilities for defense cargo and fuel. Margaret collaborates with a broad spectrum of qualified maritime carriers and ocean transportation providers, including both large international shipping firms and specialized niche operators with proven expertise in military sealift requirements. Her contracting approach emphasizes performance-based outcomes, vessel readiness metrics, and operational flexibility to meet dynamic deployment timelines. She maintains a results-driven relationship model grounded in accountability, technical compliance, and consistent contractor performance evaluation, fostering partnerships that prioritize mission-critical reliability over cost alone. Margaret’s procurement portfolio reflects a strong preference for unrestricted competition, with 100% of her acquisitions conducted without set-asides for 8(a), HUBZone, SDVOSB, or other socioeconomic categories. While she does not routinely prioritize small business set-asides, she ensures all vendors—regardless of size—are evaluated on technical merit, past performance, and capacity to deliver complex sealift services under demanding operational conditions. Her primary industry focus is NAICS 483111 (Deep Sea Freight Transportation), where she specializes in procuring heavy-lift ocean carriage, roll-on/roll-off shipping, and dry bulk transport services for defense logistics. She possesses deep technical knowledge of vessel specifications, international maritime regulations, and the unique demands of supporting forward-deployed naval forces, making her a key steward of the nation’s strategic sealift infrastructure.