Shawna L. Bowshot

Shawna L. Bowshot serves as a Contracting Officer within the Missile Defense Agency (MDA), supporting the Department of Defense’s critical mission to develop and integrate advanced missile defense systems. She manages the acquisition lifecycle for complex research and development contracts focused on sensor modernization, space-based tracking architectures, and layered defense technologies. Her work directly enables MDA’s strategic objectives by ensuring timely, compliant, and technically sound procurement of cutting-edge capabilities essential to national missile defense. She routinely oversees sole-source and competitive acquisitions under full and open competition, with a strong emphasis on technical rigor and programmatic alignment. Bowshot collaborates with a diverse array of defense prime contractors, systems integrators, and specialized R&D firms engaged in missile defense innovation. While no single contractor dominates her portfolio, she consistently engages with industry leaders possessing deep expertise in radar systems, command and control architectures, and hypersonic threat mitigation technologies. Her contracting approach emphasizes performance-based outcomes, risk-sharing mechanisms, and technical collaboration, fostering long-term partnerships with vendors capable of delivering high-stakes, mission-critical solutions under evolving threat conditions. Her procurement patterns reflect a strict preference for full and open competition, with 100% of her acquisitions conducted without set-asides for 8(a), HUBZone, SDVOSB, or other socioeconomic programs. This reflects the highly specialized, classified, and technologically advanced nature of MDA’s requirements, where proprietary capabilities and national security constraints often limit the pool of qualified offerors. While small business participation is not formally prioritized in her portfolio, she ensures compliance with all applicable regulations and encourages subcontracting opportunities where technically feasible. Bowshot’s primary focus lies within NAICS 541712—Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology). She procures advanced engineering services, systems integration, prototype development, and test and evaluation support for missile defense architectures. Her technical domain expertise spans space-based sensors, kinetic interceptors, battle management systems, and next-generation discrimination technologies, making her a key enabler of MDA’s innovation pipeline.