Vanessa Wallace

Vanessa Wallace serves as a Senior Contract Specialist within the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Office of Acquisition, where she plays a pivotal role in executing complex procurement actions that advance the agency’s mission to reduce traffic-related deaths and injuries through evidence-based safety initiatives. She manages a diverse portfolio of acquisitions centered on research, technical consulting, and program support services, ensuring compliance with federal acquisition regulations and alignment with NHTSA’s strategic priorities in vehicle safety technologies, behavioral research, and regulatory development. Her work directly supports the agency’s data-driven policy formulation and engineering analysis initiatives through timely and compliant contract award and administration. Vanessa maintains consistent working relationships with key contractors including AMD International Technologies LLC, Aerospace & Commercial Technologies, LLC, and the National Association of ESEA State Program Administrators. These partnerships reflect her focus on securing specialized technical expertise in safety research, policy analysis, and public engagement programs. Her contracting patterns emphasize long-term, performance-based engagements with vendors capable of delivering high-integrity analytical services and program implementation support, often requiring deep domain knowledge in transportation safety systems and regulatory compliance frameworks. Her procurement approach prioritizes open competition, with 71.4% of awards issued under no set-aside provisions, reflecting a preference for broad market engagement. However, she actively supports socioeconomic objectives, consistently awarding contracts to Total Small Business Set-Asides and Women-Owned Small Businesses, each representing 14.3% of her portfolio. This balanced strategy ensures competitive rigor while fostering opportunities for underrepresented small businesses in the public safety sector. Vanessa’s primary procurement focus lies in NAICS 541611 (Administrative Management and General Management Consulting Services) and 541720 (Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities), with additional emphasis on 541712 (Physical and Engineering Sciences R&D) and 611430 (Professional and Management Development Training). She regularly procures services related to behavioral studies, safety campaign design, regulatory impact analysis, and workforce training programs—domain areas critical to NHTSA’s mission of advancing national roadway safety through innovation and data-informed decision-making.