AT&T consolidates public sector with Kapoor in charge
By
Nick Wakeman
On the heels of a massive win to build a nationwide first responder network, AT&T has brought together its global government and education businesses into a single organization led by Kay Kapoor.
On the heels of a massive win to build a nationwide first responder network, AT&T has brought together its global government and education businesses into a single organization led by Kay Kapoor.
Her new title is president of global public sector. The group had 2016 sales of nearly $15 billion, which represented about 9 percent of total corporate revenue.
Rumors of the move have swirled in the market for several weeks. The company apparently was waiting until the FirstNet award was announced.
As leader of the federal business for four years, Kapoor led the effort to capture FirstNet, a 25-year contract to build and sell a broadband network to state and local police, firefighters, emergency medical personnel and other first responders. The first five years of the contract are worth $6.5 billion combined. The value goes up to $100 billion over the life of the 25-year pact.
FirstNet shows how closely tied together the state and local markets and the federal market will be for AT&T.
“This is an important focus area for AT&T,” Kapoor said in a statement. “Our public sector and education customers are a top priority. By bringing all public sector teams together, we can improve the value and partnership we offer to these customers.”
2017 could be a watershed year for Kapoor’s group.
They’ve won FirstNet, which establishes the potential for a long-term vehicle for reaching new customers and generating new revenue.
They are in the running for the Enterprise Instructure Solutions vehicle from GSA, which is the $50 billion follow-on to Networx, the federal government’s telecommunications contract. AT&T is one of the Networx incumbents. An award is expected this spring. It would be a shocker if AT&T didn’t secure a spot on EIS, which will have a 15-year run with options. EIS will have multiple winners.
Another large, multiple award contract – Alliant 2 – also is in source selection and AT&T is an incumbent on Alliant 1. Alliant 2 has a $50 billion ceiling. There may be as many as 50 or 60 winners. There are over 50 on Alliant 1. Awards are expected in the June timeframe.
And rumor has it that AT&T is in the hunt for the large National Security Agency outsourcing contract known as Greenway. CSRA is the incumbent. As a classified program, few details have emerged and it is unclear how NSA is proceeding -- a single award or multiple awards. Or multiple contracts going to single winners who will be responsible for different aspects of NSA’s IT infrastructure.
Kapoor has now won the first in a series of large opportunities. AT&T will likely be a winner on EIS and Alliant 2. Who knows how Greenway will play out.
It is one thing to win these vehicles but it is another make them work. With the new organization, Kapoor will have more resources to draw on and a broader set of customers.
All-in-all, 2017 is off to a great start for Kapoor and A&T.