Wayne K. Strickland

Wayne K. Strickland serves as a Contract Specialist within the Missile Defense Agency, where he plays a pivotal role in executing complex procurements critical to national defense. He manages the full lifecycle of acquisition activities for research and development contracts aimed at advancing ballistic and hypersonic missile defense systems, including sensors, interceptors, and command-and-control architectures. His work directly supports the agency’s mission to field integrated, multi-layered defense capabilities through rapid innovation and systems integration. Strickland specializes in negotiating and administering performance-based, cost-reimbursement, and time-and-materials contracts with technical rigor, ensuring compliance with DoD acquisition regulations and mission-critical timelines. Strickland collaborates with a diverse array of prime contractors and research institutions, primarily defense aerospace firms and advanced technology developers with deep expertise in missile defense systems. He fosters long-term partnerships with organizations possessing proven capabilities in radar signal processing, hypersonic trajectory modeling, and battle management software. His procurement approach emphasizes technical merit, innovation, and proven performance, often engaging vendors with prior experience in DoD test and evaluation programs. Strickland’s contracting patterns reflect a strong preference for open competition, with 100% of his acquisitions issued under non-set-aside authorities. While he does not routinely utilize socioeconomic set-asides such as 8(a), HUBZone, or SDVOSB programs, his portfolio remains accessible to all qualified vendors, prioritizing technical capability and mission readiness over socioeconomic categorization. His primary focus lies in NAICS 541712—Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences—where he procures advanced engineering services, computational modeling, sensor development, and systems integration for next-generation missile defense technologies. Strickland’s expertise centers on high-risk, high-reward R&D initiatives requiring multidisciplinary teams and cutting-edge technical solutions to counter evolving global threats.