Navajo Nation’s NOVA-Diné secures major contract with U.S. Dept of Commerce for IT services

NOVA-Diné, a technology solutions provider owned by the Navajo Nation, said it secured a major contract with the U.S. Department of Commerce that could amount to $1.5 billion in revenues over the next decade.

The contract calls for NOVA-Diné to deliver IT services that will boost efficiency and increase innovation across a variety of Commerce programs, according to a statement last week from Diné Development Corporation (DDC), the economic development arm of the Navajo nation.

The contract boasts a ceiling value of $1.5 billion over a ten-year period, with a one-year base period and nine option years.

The work encompasses a range of task areas, including chief information officer (CIO) support, digital document and records management, managed service outsourcing and consulting, IT operations and maintenance, IT services management, and cybersecurity.

Performance locations will include Commerce facilities in Washington, D.C., as well as remote support for locations across the continental United States.

The billion-dollar award illustrates the surging momentum among tribal entities in the federal contracting arenas.

In fiscal 2023, federal contract awards increased to a record $23.3 billion, a 16.3% increase over fiscal 2022, per prior Tribal Business News reporting.

The 2023 award levels mark the eighth consecutive year of growth in federal contracting awards to tribal entities that self-identify as a tribal government, tribally-owned firm, Indian tribe, Indian economic enterprise, Native Hawaiian Organization-owned firm (NHO) or Alaska Native Corporation-owned (ANC) firm, according to HigherGov, a market intelligence firm that tracks federal contracting.

“Native-owned businesses have seen some of the strongest and most consistent growth in the federal contracting market over the past 10 years, growing at an average annual rate of 10.3% versus the market average of 6.1%. We anticipate this outperformance will continue in 2024,” HigherGov Founder Justin Siken said.

DDC’s growing portfolio of tech-related firms appears well-positioned to take advantage of continued growth in federal contracting for computer software and hardware, which have been among the most consistent growth sectors in federal spending over the past decade. The trend continued in fiscal 2023, with total spending for software and hardware reaching $80 billion — up from $75 billion in the prior year and more than double the level of spending a decade ago.

In December, DDC acquired Spin Systems, Inc. (SpinSys), a Virginia-based data management and analytics firm. The move aimed to diversify DDC’s client base and enhance its capabilities, particularly in big data aggregation, virtualization, predictive modeling, and AI/ML-driven intelligence visualization.

In November, DDC said it acquired the 714 Monument Street building in Dayton, Ohio, situated within the city’s expanding Tech Town campus. Supported by Dayton Development Coalition’s tax credit and a JobsOhio grant, the acquisition is poised to bring 100 jobs to the city.

In September, the tribal enterprise’s DDC IT subsidiary was awarded the $54 million mainframe line of business contract by the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA). The four-year contract, comprising a one-year base with three one-year option periods, extends DDC IT’s provision of mainframe services to DISA and the Department of Defense (DOD).