Perspecta [PRSP] has received a $75 million deal to provide data and artificial intelligence services for the Pentagon’s ongoing modernization effort to better secure the background investigation and security clearance process.
The Defense Security Service (DSS) and Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) announced the Other Transaction Authority (OTA) award to Perspecta on Tuesday, which is the second such deal in the last year as the Pentagon looks to fully implement its new authority over the National Background Investigation Service (NBIS) by the end of FY ’20.
“The objective, with this OTA, is to integrate new bold and transformational approaches from the NBIS architecture and take the next step with technology to integrate and align other security missions,” Terry Carpenter, program executive officer for NBIS, said in a statement.
In January, authority for NBIS program management was transferred over to DSS and in April the president signed an executive order to transition all authorities for background investigations from the Office of Personnel Management to the Department of Defense.
Last June, DISA awarded an initial $45 million OTA to Enterprise Services to provide a prototype investigation management tool as the first phase in the effort to overhaul a clearance process that has faced significant backlogs and security concerns.
DSS and DISA officials told reporters Wednesday the two prototype tools will work in sync to provide improvements for the NBIS technology architecture.
“All together, it’s a different innovative prototype solution,” said Chandler Grice, chief of program and acquisitions for NBIS.
Stephen Heath, an official with DSS’ office of acquisitions, told reporter the use of OTAs cut down the timeline for technology evaluation to contract award from around 2 years down to six months.
The new tool from Perspecta is expected to enable “data re-use and analytic capabilities across multiple missions while strengthening system security and providing enhanced user and customer experience” through AI-powered tools, according to officials.