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Ascension is seeking an experienced Program Manager / Senior Federal Acquisition Lead to support a federal mission partner in developing acquisition-ready requirements packages for complex information technology (IT) modernization initiatives. The ideal candidate is a seasoned federal acquisition professional who understands how to translate mission needs, business challenges, and technology objectives into clear, compliant, and executable procurement documentation.

This role is designed for a professional who can bridge the gap between mission stakeholders, acquisition professionals, and technical teams by leading requirements discovery, facilitating stakeholder engagement, developing acquisition documentation, and ensuring federal procurement packages are complete, traceable, and aligned with applicable regulations.

The successful candidate will have demonstrated experience supporting federal IT acquisitions, including developing Statements of Work (SOWs), Performance Work Statements (PWSs), Independent Government Cost Estimates (IGCEs), acquisition strategies, evaluation criteria, market research documentation, requirements traceability matrices, and risk assessments.

The position requires a proactive, detail-oriented professional capable of managing multiple workstreams, coordinating with senior government stakeholders, and delivering high-quality acquisition artifacts within aggressive timelines.

Summary of Contractor Role

The Program Manager / Senior Federal Acquisition Lead will provide program management and acquisition lifecycle support for federal IT modernization efforts. The contractor will lead structured discovery activities, conduct stakeholder interviews, analyze business processes, document operational requirements, and develop RFQ-ready acquisition packages.

The role supports the customer by transforming complex organizational needs into well-defined procurement documentation that enables successful acquisition of commercial solutions. The contractor will support requirements development for mission-critical systems, ensuring requirements are complete, measurable, traceable, and aligned with federal acquisition regulations, cybersecurity requirements, accessibility standards, and agency policies.

The ideal candidate will:

• Possess deep knowledge of the federal acquisition lifecycle.
• Understand how to develop acquisition documentation for complex IT solutions.
• Demonstrate strong facilitation and stakeholder management skills.
• Be comfortable working independently with minimal supervision.
• Have the ability to manage competing priorities while maintaining quality standards.
• Apply structured methodologies for requirements engineering, documentation, review, and quality assurance.

This position directly supports Ascension’s core capabilities in strategic advisory services, acquisition lifecycle management, program management, requirements analysis, business process improvement, data-driven decision support, and technology modernization.

Position Responsibilities / Day-to-Day Activities

The contractor will:

• Lead acquisition planning activities supporting federal IT modernization initiatives.
• Manage project schedules, milestones, risks, dependencies, and stakeholder coordination activities.
• Facilitate discovery sessions, interviews, workshops, and requirements gathering meetings with government stakeholders.
• Analyze current-state business processes, workflows, systems, and operational challenges.
• Develop comprehensive requirements documentation supporting competitive federal procurements.
• Create functional and non-functional requirements matrices, requirements traceability matrices (RTMs), and business process documentation.
• Draft acquisition documentation including:
  • Statements of Work (SOWs)
  • Performance Work Statements (PWSs)
  • Performance Requirement Summaries
  • Evaluation criteria recommendations
  • Independent Government Cost Estimates (IGCEs)
  • Acquisition strategy documentation
  • CLIN structure recommendations
  • Acquisition risk assessments
• Conduct market research and analyze commercial solution alternatives.
• Evaluate solution options including COTS, SaaS, hybrid, and cloud-based approaches.
• Assess technical, operational, security, integration, and vendor risks.
• Coordinate reviews with government stakeholders and incorporate feedback into final deliverables.
• Ensure acquisition documentation aligns with:
  • FAR requirements
  • Federal IT acquisition practices
  • Section 508 accessibility requirements
  • FISMA and NIST cybersecurity considerations
  • Federal records management requirements
• Track project performance, issues, risks, and action items.
• Prepare executive briefings, status reports, decision papers, and acquisition updates.
• Support quality assurance reviews to ensure deliverables are complete, accurate, and procurement-ready.