Nina Malakouti

Managing complex IT projects and services and the companies that sell them to the federal government is not for the faint of heart. Understanding the pricing, conditions and processes that are the foundation of good federal contracting also requires an agile mind.

Nina Malakouti, a supervisory contract specialist at the General Services Administration, has both a stout heart and a sharp intellect. She nailed down two of the agency's biggest Schedule 70 contracts in 2013 using the mettle and the mentality those kinds of deals demand, according to her managers.

Negotiating both contracts meant working in a high-profile environment that required poise and focus under stress, bouncing back after temporary setbacks, sacrificing spare time and weekends, and responding to status and information requests with short turnaround times. It also meant wrangling with multiple stakeholders who had divergent views and objectives to produce outcomes that benefited government customers and vendors.

Malakouti honed some of those skills through her work in the private sector. Before she came to GSA in 2009, she managed contracts and operations at a pharmaceutical consulting firm and before that worked at an engineering and construction management firm that specialized in federal project management.

On the Schedule 70 contracts, Malakouti "took action in tough negotiations" with both companies, said Cheryl Harris, a division director in GSA's Office of Integrated Technology Services. The negotiations were high profile with the press, GSA managers and the companies involved, and Malakouti "was phenomenal" in the role, Harris added.