computer science

NetCentrics

NetCentrics is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand NetCentrics rather than just read about it. In short: NetCentrics Corporation, based in Herndon, Virginia, is a contractor to the US federal government, the United States Department of Homeland Security and Federal Civilian Agencies. NetCentrics provides enterprise IT, cloud and cybersecurity services to government and private industry.

Key takeaways

NetCentrics belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect NetCentrics to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of NetCentrics from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

NetCentrics Corporation, based in Herndon, Virginia, is a contractor to the US federal government, the United States Department of Homeland Security and Federal Civilian Agencies. NetCentrics provides enterprise IT, cloud and cybersecurity services to government and private industry. The headquarters are located inside the Dulles Technology Corridor of NoVA. The workforce is a combination of on-site and off-site employees. Many employees are remote workers from the greater National Capital Region and Washington, D.C. Most employees have security clearances (Secret, Top Secret, etc.), depending on role.

History NetCentrics was founded in 1995 by Bob Dixon and Bob Dougherty, the company's first CEO. The company name derived from being one of the first "netcentric" government contractors at the time. An early contract with the U.S. Army at the Pentagon resulted in employee presence there on 9/11. No employees were harmed. Later, three NetCentrics employees were recognized for their efforts to restore digital communications immediately after the attack. In August 2014, NetCentrics was acquired by Haystax Technology; terms were not released. Starting in 2016, NetCentrics operated as a stand-alone entity, under company president Cynthia Barreda. In October 2019, NetCentrics lost a $269.9 million Defense Department IT contract, on which it was the incumbent, to NCI Information Systems (now Empower AI) after a lengthy legal battle; the company laid off 95 employees because of this lost contract. In October 2021, NetCentrics was acquired by an affiliate of private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management and appointed Kenny Cushing as CEO; terms were not disclosed.

Leadership Kenneth Cushing became chief executive officer in October 2021. In January 2020, Lawrence O'Connor was named president, replacing the previous CEO. He was named NetCentrics CEO in July, 2021.

Contract vehicles

NetCentrics provides services to the federal government through contract vehicle awards. Contract vehicles are competitively bid and typically last several years. Current contract vehicles include:

DISA Encore III FTC Information Technology Support Service (ITSS) Blank Purchase Agreement (BPA) (FTC ITSS BPA) GSA Schedule 70 GSA Schedule 70 - HAC SIN (cybersecurity) SeaPort Next Generation (SeaPort NxG)

Partnerships, mentorships and joint ventures NetCentrics established a Mentor-Protégé with Broadleaf, a Native Hawaiian Organization (NHO)-owned small business, in 2017. This SBA 8(a) program gives Broadleaf access to NetCentrics' expertise in cybersecurity, network management; expands offerings for federal customers. The company established a similar relationship with Osprey Technology Solutions, Inc., a Woman-Owned Small Business (WOSB) and Minority Business (MBE) certified company. Osprey TSI provides information technology hardware, software, engineering, installation, testing and maintenance services to both government and private clients. It also provides various technological and cybersecurity solutions, as well as intraoperative neurophysiological monitoring services for a wide variety of surgical procedures. The joint venture between NetCentrics and Osprey TSI is called NetSprey and serves the healthcare sector.

Awards NetCentrics was recognized by Comparably in 2017 and again in 2018, receiving a total of 13 awards including Best Companies in DC, Best CEO, Best Company for Diversity, and Best Company Outlook. In 2018, NetCentrics was recognized by DCA Live as one of the fastest growing cybersecurity companies in the Washington metropolitan area. In 2021, NetCentrics scored as a "Best Place to Work in Washington, D.C." by employees, ranking #11 in the region for workplace culture and leadership approval. The company also won a "Best Leadership award", ranking #27 nationally for small and medium-sized companies, also by Comparably. In October the company received a "Best Work-Life Balance" award, ranking #38 nationally in the small business category.

References

External links Official website

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with NetCentrics

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what NetCentrics claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to NetCentrics before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about NetCentrics ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of NetCentrics

In research: NetCentrics appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses NetCentrics in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: NetCentrics is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Companies based in Fairfax County, Virginia, Computer network security, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for NetCentrics outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study NetCentrics in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what NetCentrics means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain NetCentrics out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is NetCentrics in simple terms?

Why does NetCentrics matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study NetCentrics?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on NetCentrics.