Mary A. Barnes

Federal Grants & OTA Expert | Former DOE/ARPA-E

Mary A. Barnes's profile photo
LocationAlexandriaVirginia, United States
Current roleSenior Acquisition Policy AnalystVPD Government Solutions · since Oct 2025
Government service9yrsU.S. Department of Energy(DOE)

About

Former federal agreements, grants, and contracting leader with 20+ years of experience helping organizations navigate and manage federal funding.

I specialize in federal financial assistance (grants & cooperative agreements) and Other Transaction Agreements (OTAs), bringing both policy expertise and hands-on operational experience from within government.

During my federal career, I served as a Deputy Procurement Director, Contracting Officer, Grants Officer, and Agreements Officer with an unlimited warrant, supporting high-impact programs across the Department of Energy and ARPA‑E. I’ve led and executed complex funding efforts ranging from multi-million-dollar awards to multi-billion-dollar national initiatives.

At ARPA‑E, I oversaw more than 4,000 funding actions totaling over $2.7B and helped pioneer the agency’s first OTAs while modernizing financial assistance policies, guidance, and procedures.

I work with companies, nonprofits, and research organizations to:

  • Navigate federal grants and cooperative agreements

  • Design and execute OTA strategies

  • Interpret and apply Uniform Guidance (2 CFR 200)

  • Strengthen proposal readiness and funding competitiveness

  • Develop compliant policies, procedures, and templates

  • Improve internal grants and acquisition operation

What sets me apart:

  • Inside perspective: I’ve been the decision-maker on the government side

  • Policy + execution: I don’t just interpret rules. I’ve implemented them at scale

  • OTA expertise: Rare, practical experience designing and awarding OTAs

  • Proven scale: Experience with programs from $29M to $3.4B

Ideal clients:

  • Startups and companies pursuing federal funding

  • Nonprofits and universities managing grants

  • Organizations exploring or implementing OTAs

  • Teams needing help with compliance, audits, or process improvement

I’m available for advisory, hourly, and project-based consulting, including:

  • Funding strategy sessions

  • Grant program readiness reviews

  • OTA negotiation support

  • Proposal reviews

  • Compliance consultations

  • Policy and SOP development

Roles

Oct 2025–Present
Current role

Senior Acquisition Policy Analyst

VPD Government Solutions

Arlington, Virginia

Planning, Policy, StrategyGovernment Contracts

Advise the Department of Commerce on the development and implementation of department-wide Other Transaction Agreement (OTA) policy, helping enable more flexible, innovation-driven funding approaches.

Key contributions include:

  • Assessing existing OTA policies and procedures to identify gaps, risks, and opportunities for improvement

  • Designing and finalizing a comprehensive, department-wide OTA policy framework

  • Facilitating review cycles and resolving cross-functional feedback

  • Developing an OTA certification training program

  • Establishing oversight and compliance mechanisms to ensure consistent and effective policy implementation

This work reflects my broader advisory practice supporting organizations in designing and implementing effective federal funding and OTA strategies.

Jul 2022–Sep 2025
Former role

Deputy Procurement Director

U.S. Department of Energy, Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy

Washington, District of Columbia

ProcurementContracts / ContractingFederal GovernmentGrant Review Compliance

Served as a senior OTA and financial assistance advisor, providing expert guidance to leadership, program staff, and stakeholders on complex federal funding strategies, compliance, and execution.

Key contributions include:

  • Advised leadership and program teams on grants, cooperative agreements, and OTA strategy, ensuring compliant and effective use of federal funding mechanisms

  • Designed and implemented policies, procedures, and training programs to align operations with evolving federal regulations and agency priorities

  • Provided end-to-end advisory support across the award lifecycle, including negotiation, award, administration, and closeout of federal financial assistance

  • Developed a risk assessment framework for evaluating grant applicants, improving consistency and decision-making in award processes

  • Created budget review and cost analysis guidance and training, strengthening financial oversight and compliance

  • Led development of ARPA‑E’s first OTA agreements process, enabling use of alternative acquisition pathways for innovation-focused programs

  • Served with unlimited warrant authority (CO/GO/AO), ensuring integrity and accountability in high-value funding decisions

This experience informs my consulting work helping organizations design compliant funding strategies, build effective grant processes, and leverage OTAs for innovation.

Jun 2014–Jul 2022
Former role

Contracting Officer/Team Leader

U.S. Department of Energy, Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy

Washington, District of Columbia

ProcurementContracts / ContractingFederal GovernmentContract NegotiatorGrant Review

Led the design and implementation of innovative federal financial assistance processes, improving speed, efficiency, and execution of high-impact funding programs.

Key contributions include:

  • Designed and implemented a streamlined financial assistance negotiation process, reducing time-to-award and enabling faster program execution (first award completed in 32 days)

  • Led and coached a team responsible for negotiating and awarding complex federal funding agreements in a fast-paced, high-uncertainty environment

  • Developed workload management tools and prioritization frameworks to improve visibility, balance competing demands, and enhance team performance

  • Provided end-to-end oversight of financial assistance lifecycle, from funding opportunity development through award execution and post-award administration

  • Served as Contracting/Grants Officer with unlimited warrant, overseeing compliance, reviewing award decisions, and ensuring integrity of funding processes

  • Advised on policy development, peer reviews, and cross-agency initiatives, bringing operational insight into agency-wide improvements

    This experience informs my advisory work helping organizations improve funding execution, streamline grant processes, and navigate complex federal requirements.

Nov 2005–Jul 2014
Former role

Contract Specialist/Contracting Officer

U.S. Department of Energy(DOE), Office of Headquarters Procurement Services

District of Columbia

ProcurementContracts / ContractingFederal GovernmentContract NegotiatorGrant Review

· Led acquisition planning, solicitation, negotiation, and award for multiple DOE offices.

· Served as Contracting Officer for SunShot Incubator, Marshall Islands Program, and Smart Grid Investment Grant (SGIG) Program.

· Awarded $121M Cost Plus Award Fee contract using FAR Part 15 procedures.

· Guided required documents through the review and approval process while adhering to the procurement milestones schedule.

· Led negotiations with contractor and grantee representatives.

· Maintained official award files and prepared a variety of award documents including grants, cooperative agreements, purchase orders, delivery orders, task orders, interagency agreements, cost –type and fixed-price contracts.