Derrick Heard

Derrick L. Heard is a member of the Senior Executive Service (SES) and currently serves as the Director for the Office of Acquisition & Grants Management (OAGM) and Head of Contracting Activity (HCA) at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).  As the OAGM Director and HCA, he is responsible for planning, organizing, coordinating, and managing all activities required to support the CMS mission requirements and maintain an agency-wide acquisition program—totaling $10 - 12 billion annually. 

Mr. Heard has 34 years of experience in Federal Government procurement and has worked at CMS for over 22 of those years.  He previously served as the Deputy Director of OAGM, Director of the Information Technology Contracts Group (ITCG) within OAGM, and as a Division Director within OAGM that provided CMS with procurement support for IT services.  Before joining CMS, Mr. Heard served as a Contracting Officer for the Internal Revenue Service and was an intern in procurement and acquisition for the Department of the Army at the Pentagon. 

Mr. Heard holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree from Webster University and an undergraduate degree in Business from the University of Maryland University College.  He also completed the Department of the Army’s Contracting and Acquisition Civilian Career Intern Program, received the designation of Certified Professional Contracts Manager (CPCM) from the National Contract Management Association (NCMA), completed the Grants Management Certification Program (GMCP), and completed the Federal Executive Institute’s Leadership for a Democratic Society Program.