8(a) STARS III Primes gearing up to compete on $20M+ DHS USCIS Technical Operations Support Services (TOSS) 2 recompete

Any time a graduated 8(a) small business set-aside task order comes up for recompete, it is certain to draw a crowd. The next iteration of this TOSS requirement at the Technical Operation Center (TOC), located at the USCIS Enterprise Operations Center (EOC), is not expected to be competed until early 2025, but 8(a) small businesses will be working hard to influence the acquisition strategy for this requirement.  

As background, the TOC supports the USCIS Enterprise Infrastructure on a 24/7/365 basis and is the central monitoring, coordinating, remediating, and reporting authority for critical incidents, maintenance, and outages for the USCIS Enterprise Architecture. The TOC provides technical support to the Software-Defined Wide Area Network (SDWAN) and coordinates with DHS partners for network services. The TOC supports this objective by providing support for USCIS critical applications and infrastructure by monitoring, alerting, reporting, and restoring mission essential systems and services. The TOC works collaboratively with the Security Operations Center (SOC), Enterprise Service Desk (ESD), Critical Incident Response Team (CIRT), and across USCIS OIT divisions to include ITPM system owners and stakeholders to proactively manage, monitor, report, and restore IT services. 

The current active 4-year contract was competed as an 8(a) set-aside on the CIO-SP3 GWAC and awarded in 2021 to ValidaTek-CITI, a ValidaTek and CITI SBA-approved joint venture). See contract details and spend to date here HHSN316201200106W-70SBUR21F00000186. This win allowed the ValidaTek team to continue its support of USCIS Office of Information Technology (OIT) Engineering and Infrastructure Division (EID) by providing TOC services and to provide end-to-end observability of the USCIS enterprise. The services covered under this task were expected to include network monitoring and maintenance, application performance monitoring, external services monitoring and reporting, policy guidance, and system analysis. 

The latest word out of DHS is that the RFP for the next iteration of this contract is expected to be released in April of 2025 on the 8(a) STARS III GWAC. ValidaTek does not qualify as a Prime on 8(a) STARS III today.  If CIO-SP4 is awarded in early 2025, could NITAAC keep this in the mix? Could some other vehicle come into play? All we know for sure is that with 7 bidders the last time this was competed, you can expect 8(a) small businesses to be working hard to influence the direction of this requirement.  

More will be shared as it is made available.  

Related  

• 🍊OS AI Premium: 18 Vulnerable DHS 8(a) and SDVOSB competitions that will draw interest in FY 2025 
• RFI: DHS USCIS – Technical Operations Support Services TOSS  

Feel like you are missing out on some of the key action at DHS? It can be hard to keep up. Make sure you are in the know by checking out the DHS Competitive Intelligence Segment page, chock full of insights and intelligence related to the agency.     

Key Points of Contact (Current and Past)  

• Robert Williams, Contracts – Robert.G.Williams@uscis.dhs.gov 
• Aaron Vollbracht, Contracts – aaron.f.vollbracht@uscis.dhs.gov 
• Gregory Schroeder, Contracts – gregory.d.schroeder@uscis.dhs.gov 
• Dennis McDowell, SOC Operations Manager, USCIS 
• Chris Stout Director, DHS accts, ValidaTek 
• Jarrod Culberson, NOC Shift Supervisor, ValidaTek, Inc. 
• Rahul Nemade Chairman and President, ValidaTek 

Need a Partner? DHS USCIS Focused Consulting Firms drawing the most attention:    

• BridgePhase ** 
• TechSur **  
• ITC Federal **   
• CVP ** 
• Dev Technology Group ** 
• MindPetal 
• DecisionPoint 
• Sciolex    
• IntelliBridge **   
• Slalom   
• IBM/ Octo, an IBM Company **   
• Pluribus Digital **   
• Red Cedar Consultancy   
• Excella   
• Sev1Tech   
• Highlight **   
• Akira   
• REI Systems **    
• Brillient **   
• Steampunk **   
• Alpha Omega **   
• ADG Tech Consulting   
• Anika Systems   
• INADEV **   
• Zen Strategics **   
• MetaPhase Consulting **   
• ICF **   
• Softrams **   
• FedWriters **   
• Akkodis
• ICS Advisory
• Amivero **
• Simple Technology Solutions **

** An Elev8 GovCon Honoree, noted for a corporate culture that demonstrates excellence, making the company a beacon for talent, for partners, and for clients.       

We cannot and will not speculate here as to the reasons for the increased interest, but whether it is a company evaluating them as a potential partner; a federal acquisition leader doing their due diligence; or a consultant weighing their next job move, this group of companies has been receiving increased interest.    

Looking to identify some of the top small and large partners supporting DHS USCIS? Click Here You can filter the list by several key indicators, to include socio-economic status, NAICS, Contract vehicle, etc.     

🔊 Listen to Story