The Hidden Mechanics of Federal Acquisition with Mahesh Choksi Sponsored by vTech Solution

Mahesh Choksi joins the Former Fed Friday podcast with Shelley McGuire to share insights from more than two decades of experience driving procurement transformation and technology modernization across federal health agencies, including FDA, CDC, NIH, and CMS. Drawing on his time leading high-stakes initiatives and enterprise acquisition frameworks at HHS agencies, Mahesh discusses what contractors often misunderstand about how federal acquisition decisions are actually made—highlighting the internal processes, program office dynamics, and timing of engagement that shape opportunities long before an RFP is released. The conversation explores emerging acquisition trends across federal health organizations and where the biggest opportunities may lie in the coming years. Mahesh examines shifts toward modular, cloud-native, and interoperable platforms, as well as the growing role of data infrastructure and AI across agencies like VA, CMS, FDA, NIH, and DHA. He also shares his perspective on how procurement strategies, contract vehicles, and small business dynamics are evolving in the current federal environment. To connect with Mahesh visit him on LinkedIn here. If you liked listening to this episode, view our Former Fed Perspectives page here. To view all of our podcast series, visit our podcast page. Thank you to our sponsor vTech Solution.