RFI QA_9.3.26.pdf

Question Answer Request that the capabilities statement due date be extended by one week, from September 4, 2026, to September 11, 2026.

Capability Statements remain due by September 4, 2026.

Is there a page limit for the response There is no page limit.

Will the FBI consider capability responses from small-business integrators that can address selected workstreams through a documented prime-led teaming model, or should each respondent independently demonstrate mature capability across all four functional areas?

Small-business integrators may recommend this approach for the government's consideration. However, the government is more likely interested in a single award to an unrestricted prime with small business participation.

Is the FBI considering separate functional lots, multiple awards, or an unrestricted prime with structured small-business participation for the communications, digital-platform, branch-support, and recruitment-marketing workstreams?

The FBI is considering all options. Respondents are encouraged to provide their recommendation for the solution to best fulfill this government need while minimizing risks, efficiently spending tax dollars, and delivering an exceptional product/service.

Will a facility clearance be required at future proposal submission, at award, or only before cleared personnel begin performance?

See SOW Section 5.5.

Should the rough order of magnitude assume all recommended initial positions in the draft SOW are filled for a full 1,920-hour year, and should recruitment-marketing labor be estimated separately because quantities are currently shown as TBD?

ROM can be provided for all initial positions in the draft SOW. Recruitment marketing support will be required in addition to the communications and administrative support identified via initial positions and can be provided separately with recommended positions or CLINs suggested by the responder.

For the requested milestone-based FFP CLIN recommendation, is the FBI open to labor-hour CLINs for variable staff augmentation, incident-driven communications, and surge technical support?

Yes.

For unlimited rights, does the FBI intend the request to apply only to contract-funded deliverables developed under the effort, while allowing contractors and teammates to retain rights in pre-existing methods, templates, commercial software, and background intellectual property?

Yes.

Is this RFI the same as 15F067-26-PN-MEA03? A Request for Information (RFI) for Marketing Services was previously issued under RFI No. 15F067-26-PN-MEA03.

After further evaluating our requirements to ensure they fully align with current mission needs, the FBI has determined that a revised RFI is necessary.

As such, a new RFI, 15F067-26-PN-MEA08, has now been issued.

Does the Government anticipate setting this requirement aside for small business, and what NAICS code and size standard does it expect to assign?

The government is gathering information at this time, including qualified vendor's recommendations on these elements.

Does the Government intend to compete this requirement on a Government-wide acquisition vehicle (for example, OASIS+ or GSA MAS), or on the open market?

The government is gathering information at this time, including qualified vendor's recommendations on this element.

Section 4.4.1 and Section 6.2 state the Contractor shall be fully staffed and operational, at 100 percent staffing, within thirty (30) days of award.

Section 4.1 states that personnel other than Key Personnel are required to begin performance no later than sixty (60) days after award. Please confirm which timeline is binding for purposes of pricing and transition planning and clarify whether the thirty-day requirement is measured from award or from the start of the period of performance.

This element will be clarified in any future solicitation. Timeline is 30 days from start of POP.

Section 5.5 requires contractor personnel working in FBI facilities to hold an active TOP SECRET clearance at the time of quote submission, and characterizes uncleared personnel as a rare exception. The Section

2.2.1 LCAT table, however, identifies six positions with no clearance requirement, including two Key Personnel positions. Please reconcile these provisions. Specifically, may uncleared personnel occupy Key Personnel positions, and will personnel holding active reciprocal TOP SECRET clearances from other agencies satisfy the submission-date requirement while FBI-specific suitability, indoctrination, and badging are completed?

Clearance levels will depend on the work to be performed or office to be supported by each LCAT. Only individuals requiring access to FBI space and systems should require a TS clearance.

It is possible for uncleared personnel may occupy a Key Personnel position.

See Sections 5.5 and 6.9 regarding the final security clearance question.

Will the Government provide historical expenditures or anticipated annual budget ranges for paid media, advertising, recruitment events, creative production, printing, shipping, and platform subscriptions?

The government is gathering information at this time and leveraging that to best clarify evolving priorities. As more information becomes available the government will provide.

Will paid media buys be placed under FBI-owned platform and ad accounts, or under contractor-held accounts?

When possible through FBI-owned accounts, with access provided to the Contractor.

Will media spend be treated as a reimbursable pass-through ODC, and is contractor fee or markup permitted on that spend? Please also identify the expected invoicing and reimbursement cycle for media costs.

Media spend will be funded and tracked as an ODC. No fee or markup will be permitted on that spend. Monthly invoicing is anticipated.

Section 3.3.2 requires the Contractor to furnish a digital asset management (DAM) system, an email and SMS marketing platform, and a collaboration platform, and requires the DAM to be fully transferable to the FBI. Should the subscription, licensing, and support costs for these platforms be priced within the labor CLINs, or funded as ODCs? Please also clarify the Government’s expectations for transferability of commercial subscriptions at the end of the period of performance.

The government is gathering information on this at this time to make an informed decision for solicitation. However, pricing as part of ODCs is being considered - please provide rationale with your recommendation.

Transferability of subscriptions at the end of the POP is required.

The SOW identifies Credence Management Solutions, LLC as the incumbent Contractor. Will the Government provide the current incumbent staffing matrix by labor category, FTE, clearance level, and supported office or function? Will the Government provide the incumbent contract number, total awarded value, and historical annual obligations, including ODCs and travel, to support accurate pricing and transition planning?

Requirements in Section. 2.1 will satisfy this request.

Other contract information requested can be found in FPDS-NG.

The RFI states that the Government is seeking unlimited rights to all intellectual property and data. Does this apply only to materials and deliverables first produced under the contract, or does the Government intend to obtain unlimited rights in pre-existing contractor software, methodologies, templates, and tools?

The government intends rights on all contract-funded deliverables developed under the effort, while allowing contractors and teammates to retain rights in pre-existing methods, templates, commercial software, and background intellectual property.

The Government should also be aware that commercial platforms required under Section 3.3.2, such as the DAM and social media management tools, are licensed subscriptions in which the Contractor cannot convey rights it does not itself hold. Please confirm how commercial license terms will be accommodated within the unlimited rights requirement.

The government is seeking unlimited rights to content and deliverables produced under the contract, not commercial platforms.

Section 5.2 describes a one-year base period and four one-year option periods, but each listed period runs from May 1 through May 27 of the following year. Please confirm the intended start and end dates for the base period and each option period. Please also identify the expiration date of the current incumbent contract and whether the Government anticipates a bridge action.

Please note the text in Section 5.2, one-year base period and one-year option year periods. The typo in the chart will be fixed for future documentation.

Section 2.2.1 identifies Recruitment Marketing support as TBD under CLIN 0003, while Section 3.3 describes a substantial recruitment marketing requirement. Does the Government expect respondents to independently develop and price the staffing model for Recruitment Marketing, or will anticipated staffing and FTE quantities be provided in the solicitation?

Does the Government anticipate that CLIN 0003 could be awarded separately, or to a different vendor, from CLINs 0001 and 0002?

The government intends for the contractor to recommend a definition of the anticipated staffing level for the recruitment marketing CLIN.

The government anticipates a single award to a prime with subcontractors.

Section 6.2 requires vacant positions to be filled within fifteen (15) business days and imposes a five (5) percent invoice deduction for each month a position remains unfilled. Section 6.1 provides that Key Personnel replacement timelines are exclusive of security processing time; Section

6.2 contains no comparable provision. Does the fifteen-business-day clock exclude FBI security processing, VAR issuance, indoctrination, and badging? If not, please clarify how a TOP SECRET position can be filled within that period.

Yes, the 15-business-day clock excludes the security processing of VARs/indoc/badging.

The RFI states the Contractor will coordinate with the FBI’s existing web hosting and architect support contractor. Please clarify the division of responsibility between this requirement and the existing contractor for cloud infrastructure, hosting, DevOps, cybersecurity, architecture, deployment, production operations, and ATO maintenance for the FBI.gov Network, including its 160-plus subdomains and 120-plus servers.

The government anticipates this contract will support the development and maintenance of the web tools, features, and optimization of the technologies in Section. 3.2. Web hosting, CDN & DNS services, security, CMS, PASS, SASS, and backend architecture support is handled by the other contract.

Section 2.1 contemplates both Fixed Price and Labor Hour pricing, while the RFI requests a recommendation for an FFP, milestone-based CLIN structure. Section 5.3 further states the Government shall only be invoiced for hours worked. Which portions of the requirement does the Government envision as FFP versus Labor Hour, and does the Government expect respondents to recommend the final contract-type allocation?

As part of this RFI the government is seeking recommendations from contractors on which aspects could be accomplished FFP and related rationale.

Will the Government identify the hardware, software, licenses, cloud services, analytics platforms, creative tools, CMS environments, and security tools that will be furnished to the Contractor? Should any additional contractor-required tools be treated as reimbursable ODCs?

The government has identified applications available as government furnished and will update as applicable. All others shall be recommended and priced by the Contractor.

The SOW footer reads "RFQ # TBD" and Section 4.4 references a "Section 8

– Instructions to Quoters" not included in the posted draft. Does the Government intend to conduct this procurement as a Request for Quote under FAR Subpart 8.4 against the GSA Multiple Award Schedule?

The government is gathering information at this time, including qualified vendor's recommendations on this element. Any future solicitation will ensure this is clarified.

Numerous labor categories throughout SOW Section 3.1 are described as "or similar schedule category." Does the Government confirm that quoters may map proposed personnel to their own GSA MAS labor categories where the qualifications meet or exceed the SOW minimums, rather than to a Government-prescribed LCAT list?

The government is gathering information at this time, including qualified vendor's recommendations on this element. The government has not finalized an acquisition strategy or decided on where to solicit this requirement.

Given that this requirement spans management consulting (NAICS 541611), advertising and marketing (541810/541613), and IT systems development (541512), does the Government intend to permit a single award under a vehicle that carries all applicable SINs, rather than dividing the requirement across multiple vehicles?

The government anticipates a single award to a prime with subcontractors.

Does the Government anticipate this requirement being solicited on an unrestricted basis?

The government is gathering information at this time, including qualified vendor's recommendations on this element.

Will the Government release a draft RFQ, including Section 8 Instructions to Quoters and the evaluation criteria, for industry review and comment prior to issuing the final solicitation?

The government is gathering information at this time and will consider this.

The RFI requests a CLIN structure recommendation based on a Firm Fixed Price, milestone-based approach, while SOW Section 2.1 states the contract will leverage Fixed Price and Labor Hour pricing against defined FTE and annual hour quantities. Does the Government confirm that it is open to a hybrid structure in which outcome-based scope is priced FFP and level-of-effort scope is priced LH?

As part of this RFI the government is seeking recommendations from contractors on which aspects could be accomplished FFP, LH, combination, etc. and related rationale.

Does the Government agree that the Recruitment Marketing scope (SOW Section 3.3, CLIN 0003) and the digital communications platform development scope (Section 3.2) are better suited to milestone- or deliverable-based FFP pricing than to FTE-based level of effort, given that both are measured by campaign and release outcomes rather than hours worked?

As part of this RFI the government is seeking recommendations from contractors on these elements.

SOW Section 2.2.1 lists CLIN 0003 Recruitment Marketing quantities and clearance requirements as "TBD." Will the Government publish the anticipated staffing levels, campaign volume, and annual media budget for CLIN 0003 in the RFQ so that all quoters price the same scope?

The government intends for the contractor to recommend a definition of the anticipated staffing level for the recruitment marketing CLIN.

Government priorities are currently evolving. As more information becomes available the government will provide.

Will paid media, advertising placement, and platform or software subscriptions under the recruitment marketing scope be reimbursed as ODCs at cost, separate from the priced labor CLINs?

Yes.

SOW Section 2.1 invites quoters to "recommend alternative LCATs, mixes, and quantities to yield more efficient or cost effective outcomes." Does the Government confirm that a quoter proposing an alternative staffing mix at a lower total FTE count than the table in Section 2.2.1 will not be evaluated as technically unacceptable for failing to match the Government's quantities?

This cannot be confirmed at this time.

SOW Section 4.4.1 states the expectation that the contractor "shall be fully staffed and operational within 30 days of the effective date of award," while the same section excludes security processing time from key personnel replacement timelines. Does the Government confirm that the 30-day full-staffing expectation likewise excludes time required for FBI personnel security adjudication and badging?

Yes.

Given that the majority of positions in SOW Section 2.2.1 require Top Secret clearance, will the Government accept reciprocity of an existing, in-scope Top Secret clearance held by a proposed candidate as satisfying the clearance requirement at time of onboarding?

See Sections 5.5 and 6.9 regarding the final security clearance question.

Will the Government sponsor clearance processing for otherwise-qualified personnel proposed by the awardee who do not hold a current Top Secret clearance?

See Sections 5.5 and 6.9 regarding the final security clearance question.

Will the Government consider a phased transition schedule in which mission-critical positions are staffed within 30 days and the balance of positions are staffed on an agreed ramp, in order to avoid penalizing quoters who are not the incumbent?

The government is gathering information at this time and will consider this.

SOW Section 6.1 requires key personnel resumes to be submitted with the quote. Does the Government confirm that quoters may propose contingent-hire candidates supported by signed letters of commitment?

Contingent-hire commitments will be acceptable.

SOW Section 6.4 addresses consideration of qualified incumbent workers.

Does the Government confirm that this provision is permissive and that a quoter's transition approach will not be evaluated more favorably solely because it commits to retaining a greater percentage of incumbent personnel?

SOW Section 3.2 identifies the Plone-based CastleCMS as the current platform. Is the Government open to considering alternative content management platforms proposed by industry, or does it intend to remain on CastleCMS for the period of performance? Will experience with comparable enterprise-scale content management platforms satisfy the stated experience preference?

A separate contract provides for the government's CMS, not this vehicle.

Provided that the experience is comparable, then it should be acceptable.

SOW Section 3.2 and the RFI both reference coordination with the FBI's separate web hosting and architect support contractor. Will the Government describe the division of responsibility between that contractor and the awardee of this contract, specifically which party is responsible for cloud and hosting infrastructure, CDN and DNS services, environment provisioning, and change control, and which party funds those subscriptions and licenses?

The government anticipates this contract will support the development and maintenance of the web tools, features, and optimization of the technologies in Section. 3.2. Web hosting, CDN & DNS services, security, CMS, PASS, SASS, and backend architecture support is handled by the other contract.

Does the Government confirm that the ATO support activities described in the RFI are limited to documentation, scanning, and accreditation support, and do not make the awardee the accrediting authority or the system owner of record?

Confirmed.

For an unrestricted award, does the Government confirm that no limitation on subcontracting under FAR 52.219-14 applies, and that a quoter may propose a teaming arrangement in which specialized technical scope is performed by subcontractors?

SOW 5.2 states the government anticipates awarding a one-year (1) base period of performance with four (4) one-year (1) option periods. The anticipated period of performance will be as follows:

Base Period May 1, 2027 – May 27, 2028 Option Period 1 May 1, 2028 – May 27, 2029 Option Period 2 May 1, 2029 – May 27, 2030 Option Period 3 May 1, 2030 – May 27, 2031 Option Period 4 May 1, 2031 – May 27, 2032 Please correct or clarify the period-of-performance dates as each period is more than one-year and overlaps the next period. Are the intended dates May 1 through April 30 for each contract year?

Please note the text in Section 5.2, one-year base period and one-year option year periods. The typo in the chart will be fixed for future documentation.

SOW 2.2.1 table lists the FP Rate for the Sr Public Affairs Specialist / Sr Writer-Editor* and Multimedia Specialist roles and the Recruitment Marketing CLIN. Should the FP Rate include ODCs and travel?

See section 2.2.3. ODCs and travel will be tracked and billed separately from labor.

SOW 2.2.1 table lists the FP Rate for the Sr Public Affairs Specialist / Sr Writer-Editor* and Multimedia Specialist roles and the Recruitment Marketing CLIN 0003 and LH for the other roles and CLIN 0001 and CLIN 0002. Does the column header determine which CLIN is FP or LH?

Column header denoted which LCAT could be FP or LH; however, this likely will need to be broken out into more CLINS. The government is gathering information at this time and will consider clarifying this in any future documentation.

SOW 2.2 The government specified 1,920 hours as the FTE and SOW 2.2.1 table lists the hours for some roles above 1,920. Are the hours above 1,920 for individual positions intentional?

See Section 2.2 for FTE hours definition. FBI historical data has informed alternate hours for certain roles/LCATs.

SOW 2.2 The government specified 1,920 hours as the FTE and SOW 2.2.1 table lists the hours for some roles above 1,920. These one-person/1 FTE positions require 1,960–2,640 hours, which may require more than one employee even though they are presented as one FTE. Should the vendor price for the hours listed or number of people implied by the FTE?

Hours listed.

SOW 2.2 The government specified 1,920 hours as the FTE and SOW 2.2.1 table lists the number of FTEs and hours for some roles that do not equal 1,920 x the number of FTEs; some are more than an FTE while others are less than an FTE. Please clarify the number of FTEs and hours are correct and if the vendor should price the number of FTEs or hours.

Hours listed.

SOW 5.3 states the government shall only be invoiced for hours worked.

How does that apply for FFP CLINs or roles? Please revise the invoice instructions to specify the LH CLINs and roles to be invoiced for hours worked and FFP will be invoiced as equal monthly payments or by deliverable.

The government will review the draft documentation and revise prior to any future release

SOW 2.2.1 table lists roles that require a Top Secret clearance (TS) and those that do not require a TS. SOW 5 indicates that work will be performed at the FBI facilities in Washington, D.C. area, except for events. For those roles not requiring a TS, will those staff work on the contractor site?

Yes, at a contractor site or alternate work location.

Is Top Secret SCI anticipated for any positions? Yes, that is a potential.

For SOW 3.3.5, Are the recommended two content creators, two designers, one cleared Director-support resource, and two data analysts minimum dedicated FTEs or suggested shared resources?

The government is gathering information at this time and will consider options presented as part of this RFI response.

What constitutes one of the approximately 200 paid-media campaigns per year?

It will depend on the contractor's response to other requirements in Section 3.3.

What historic annual paid-media spend and channel mix should respondents use for the ROM?

Historically, the government has leveraged between $5M-$10M on paid media ads. However, future funding increases are probable.

The SOW 3.2.4 permits approximately 2–100 videos per period. Please provide a pricing quantity or tiered production assumptions to inform the scope for the quote.

It will depend on the contractor's response to other requirements in Section 3.3.

What existing subscriptions for CRM, email marketing, social publishing, analytics, digital asset management, and paid-media platforms will the Government provide?

The government has identified applications available as government furnished and will update as applicable. All others shall be recommended and priced by the Contractor.

SOW 4.2.1 states the monthly report should include the labor hours and hourly rate expended by position/labor category during the monthly reporting period and the total cumulative hours expended by position/labor category for the entire period of performance. Please clarify that this level or reporting is required for Labor Hour (LH) CLINs and labor categories only. This level of reporting is not required for FFP CLINs, positions/labor categories or FFP deliverables.

Confirmed.

For the Personnel Analyst or similar labor category, SOW 3.1.25 states "At least two (1) year of experience in human resources management or administrative management work. At least one (1) year of work in customer engagement/service; AND Bachelor's degree in human resources, business, or another related field". Should this state "At least one (1) year of experience in human resources management or administrative management work"? Please clarify if this role requires a total of one (1) year of experience and a Bachelor's degree.

Confirmed.

SOW 2.2.2 Table lists the "Administrative Assistant" LCAT. Please provide the LCAT description in SOW 3. The current SOW only provides the Executive Administrative Assistant LCAT description. For the RFI ROM LCAT surge rate, we included one (1) year of experience.

This is likely a typo. There is only an Executive Administrative Assistant LCAT. Any future documentation will be updated accordingly.

Recruitment marketing was previously procured by the Human Resources Division as a standalone requirement, and SOW 4.4.3 identifies Credence Management Solutions as the incumbent for the Offices of the Director support. Will the existing HRD recruitment marketing contract be consolidated into this award, what is its current end date, is a period of overlapping performance anticipated, and is there a separate incumbent for the recruitment marketing scope?

Any existing or legacy HRD contracts are separate from this requirement.

SOW 3.3 states OPA is working to develop and execute new agency branding, while SOW 3.3.1 requires a revised Employer Brand Guide within 30 days of period of performance start. Will the new branding be complete and furnished as Government furnished information before award, or is the incoming Contractor expected to develop the brand platform?

If possible, this will be provided as GFI.

Are any labor categories under this requirement subject to the Service Contract Act? If so, will the Government provide the applicable wage determination with the solicitation? Several categories, including Administrative Assistant, Executive Administrative Assistant, and Legal Assistant, may be non-exempt.

The government is gathering information at this time and will consider this.

SOW 2.2.2 requests rates for optional surge labor categories but does not provide estimated quantities or a ceiling. Will the Government publish an estimated annual surge ceiling, in dollars or FTE, to support consistent financial forecasting across quoters?

See Section 2.2.3.

The government is gathering information at this time and will consider this.

Will travel and Other Direct Costs be established as separately funded CLINs, and will the Government publish an estimated annual not-to-exceed value for travel and for ODCs so that all quoters carry the same amount?

See Section 2.2.3.

The government is gathering information at this time and will consider this.

Will the Government issue a Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan or service level agreements with the solicitation? SOW 6.2 permits reduction of the contract price for nonconforming services, but the SOW does not establish measurable performance standards, availability targets, or response and resolution times for the systems described in SOW 3.2.

SOW 3.2 requires support for tips.fbi.gov and the Digital Media Tips product, which must be available 24/7/365, while SOW 5.3 establishes an eight-hour workday with core hours between 6:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. and states the Government is not responsible for an overtime rate or premium.

Will the Government describe the expected after-hours and on-call coverage model and confirm how that coverage should be priced?

The government is gathering information at this time and will consider clarifying this in any future documentation. After hours/On call coverage will not be required of all LCATs/positions, only certain designated ones. As part of this RFI the government is seeking recommendations from contractors.

SOW 4.1 states non-key personnel will begin performance no later than 60 days after award, while SOW 4.4.1 and 6.2 state full staffing within 30 days.

Will the Government confirm the controlling requirement? Additionally, SOW 6.2 requires vacancies to be filled within 15 business days or a five percent invoice deduction applies, while SOW 6.1 excludes security processing time from Key Personnel substitution timelines. Will the Government confirm that the 15 business day clock measures submission of a qualified candidate rather than the candidate's start date, and that it excludes VAR, indoctrination, and badging time?

30 days from award.

Yes, the 15-business-day clock excludes the security processing of VARs/indoc/badging.

SOW 3.3.4 states that post-production shall be performed in-house and that use of third-party vendors or subcontractors for post-production is not permitted without prior written Government approval. Does in-house include subcontractors named in the quote and performing as part of the awarded team, or does it mean the prime contractor only?

"In-house" can include subcontractors named in the quote and performing as part of the awarded team.

SOW 3.1.14 requires migration of fbi.gov content into new sites and content management systems. Does the Government anticipate a CMS replatform or major migration during the base or option periods? If so, is that effort within the baseline level of effort or expected to be handled as surge? SOW 3.1.14 also states the Contractor shall conduct routine technical maintenance on approximately systems, with the quantity appearing to be omitted. Please provide the number of systems and applications within the FBI.gov Network requiring routine maintenance.

Government priorities are currently evolving. As more information becomes available the government will provide.

The government could consider using surge support for new efforts or those requiring substantial increases to the original level of effort.

See section 3.2 for available information.

SOW Sections 2.1–2.2.1 establish FP and LH pricing by labor category and FTE, while Section 4 describes deliverables without clearly assigning them to a pricing structure. This may result in inconsistent assumptions regarding which work is included in FFP pricing versus performed on an LH basis. Could the Government clarify which services and deliverables are intended to be performed under the FFP versus LH CLINs, including the applicable performance assumptions and acceptance criteria?

As part of this RFI the government is seeking recommendations from contractors on which aspects could be accomplished FFP.

RFI Section 6 invites “alternative approaches or solutions,” while SOW Sections 2.1–2.2.1 require pricing for both FP and LH structures and allow offerors to recommend alternative labor categories, mixes, and quantities.

Because the SOW does not clearly allocate deliverables, staffing, variable workload, or surge support between FP and LH CLINs, offerors may make inconsistent assumptions, limiting price comparability and obscuring performance and cost risk. Would the Government welcome a structured pre-solicitation discussion of alternative contract and CLIN structures—such as deliverable-based FFP for defined outputs, LH for variable or advisory support, and a defined mechanism for surge requirements—to improve scope clarity and align pricing with risk before finalizing the solicitation?

The government is gathering information at this time, including qualified vendor's recommendations on this element. No discussion is planned at this time. Please provide recommendations as part of this RFI response.

The pricing chart in Section 2.2.1 lists the Recruitment Marketing FTE requirement as “TBD.” Can the Government share additional guidance on anticipated staffing levels for this CLIN, or is industry expected to independently size this function based on the activity described in Section 3.3?

The government intends for the contractor to recommend a definition of the anticipated staffing level for the recruitment marketing CLIN.

Based on the Government’s explanation in Section 5.5 that, in rare circumstances, the OD may leverage personnel without clearances for unique requirements, skills, or duties that do not require unescorted access to FBI space, sensitive FBI systems, or sensitive information, would the Government consider permitting certain discrete functions – such as creative production, social media content development, and recruitment marketing – to be performed by non-cleared personnel where those functions can be structured within these access limitations? If so, could the Government clarify the eligibility criteria, approval process, required safeguards, and any supervision or access controls that would apply?

Clearance levels will depend on the work to be performed or office to be supported by each LCAT. Only individuals requiring access to FBI space and systems should require a TS clearance.

The RFI states that the Government is seeking unlimited rights to all intellectual property and data, and SOW Section 5.6 similarly provides that all work products become FBI property and may not be reproduced or disclosed by the Contractor. Many of the capabilities described in the SOW, including digital asset management, social listening, and campaign analytics, are typically delivered through a combination of commercial platforms and contractor-owned methodologies and templates. Can the Government clarify whether “unlimited rights” is intended to reach pre-existing contractor tools and methodologies used to deliver the work, or only the deliverables and FBI-specific content created under the contract?

The government intends rights on all contract-funded deliverables developed under the effort, while allowing contractors and teammates to retain rights in pre-existing methods, templates, commercial software, and background intellectual property.

SOW Section 5.2 lists the base period of performance as May 1, 2027, through May 27, 2028, a span of thirteen months, while the surrounding text describes a one-year base period. Can the Government confirm the intended length of the base period and each option period?

Please note the text in Section 5.2, one-year base period and one-year option year periods. The typo in the chart will be fixed for future documentation.

How does the anticipated scope differ from the current/predecessor contract? Where changes are anticipated, can the FBI provide context on the operational or mission needs driving those changes?

The scope of the current/predecessor contract has not changed. Program responsibilities for 'in-scope divisions' may have evolved or expanded.

Which OD offices, programs, and sub-domains are expected to be supported at award, and which may be added or activated during performance?

Government priorities are currently evolving. As more information becomes available the government will provide.

Can the FBI provide anticipated annual volumes or ranges for major deliverables, particularly paid media campaigns, video production, web/digital support, and other recurring communications products?

Any known volumes and ranges are provided in the SOW.

Can the FBI clarify the portions of the LCAT table in Section 2.2.1 that are currently redacted/blackened out, including the anticipated LCATs and staffing quantities expected at award versus those intended for surge or optional support?

The box coloring in Section 2.2.1. was provided to communicate which required LCATs would be FFP v. LH. Quantities for required and optional surge positions are provided in Section 2.

The SOW states that quoters will provide pricing for all option years for both FP and LH. Does the FBI anticipate identifying which LCATs/services will be priced or performed under each contract type, and can it provide additional guidance on the intended FP/LH structure?

Pricing structure will depend on the work to be performed or office to be supported by each LCAT.

What Key Personnel will be required at proposal submission and/or award, and what substitution process and timeline does the FBI anticipate?

See section 2.1 and 6.1.

Are all personnel supporting the requirement expected to hold the specified clearance, or does the FBI anticipate portions of the work may be performed remotely by uncleared personnel?

See Sections 2.2 and 5.1.

Can the FBI provide additional guidance or an illustrative example of the anticipated CLIN structure for the combined FP/LH model, including whether FP work will be tied to defined deliverables, recurring services, or milestones?

As part of this RFI the government is seeking recommendations from contractors on which aspects could be accomplished FFP.

How does the FBI anticipate handling reimbursable ODCs and third-party costs such as paid media, printing, production expenses, licenses, travel, or specialized vendors? Will these be separately funded, and will pre-approval thresholds apply?

See Section 2.2.3.

Can the FBI provide additional information regarding the existing Plone environment, hosting architecture, ATO status, MFA/integration requirements, and any technical constraints that contractors should consider when developing their approach?

No additional information will be provided at this time.

Which Government-furnished analytics, social listening, web analytics, or related platforms will be available to the contractor (e.g., Talkwalker, Google Analytics), and to what extent may contractors propose or use supplemental commercial tools?

The government has identified applications available as government

What transition period does the FBI anticipate between the incumbent and incoming contractor, and what Government support will be available for knowledge transfer, system/data access, VAR processing, badging, and other onboarding activities?

See section 4.4.

What is the anticipated balance of onsite, telework, and contractor-site performance? Will GFE be provided for personnel performing authorized remote work?

Work location and GFE will be depend on the work to be performed or office to be supported by each LCAT.

Can the FBI clarify the intended application of the Government's unlimited-rights requirement, particularly as it relates to contractor pre-existing IP, licensed third-party assets, commercial software/tools, stock assets, fonts, templates, and similar materials incorporated into deliverables?

The government intends rights on all contract-funded deliverables developed under the effort, while allowing contractors and teammates to retain rights in pre-existing methods, templates, commercial software, and background intellectual property.

What OCI documentation does the FBI anticipate requiring from offerors, and what review/approval process and timeline should contractors plan for?

The government is gathering information at this time and will take this recommendation into account for future solicitations.

Can the FBI provide the anticipated MSR format or minimum reporting requirements, including the KPIs expected for recruitment marketing, paid media, web/digital performance, and other communications activities?

Government priorities are currently evolving. As more information becomes available the government will provide.

Is there a page limit to the RFI response? No.

Are we correct to assume that the awarded vendor will be required to maintain all components listed in 3.2, or are some or any of these supported by the OCIO’s office?

OCIO does not support or maintain any technology identified in Section 3.2.

Bullet point 5 references “collaboration platform(s)”. What collaboration platforms are currently being used?

The government has identified applications available as government

Recruitment Marketing is listed as “TBD” for FTEs, hours, and clearance.

Can the government please provide the anticipated staffing level, required labor categories, annual labor-hour assumptions, clearance requirements, and funding assumptions for CLIN 0003 to inform the ROM? Or does the government intend for the vendor to define the anticipated staffing level for the recruitment marketing CLIN?

The government intends for the contractor to recommend a definition of the anticipated staffing level for the recruitment marketing CLIN.

Can the Government please amend and clarify the SOW/RFI on which service areas the Government expects to be priced as FFP?

As part of this RFI the government is seeking recommendations from contractors on which aspects could be accomplished FFP.

Can the Government please amend or clarify the SOW/RFI on the workload and volume assumptions offerors should use for the ROM and FFP CLIN structure?

As part of this RFI the government is seeking recommendations from contractors on which aspects could be accomplished FFP and related rationale.

Can the Government please amend or clarify the SOW/RFI on whether CLINs should be organized by supported office, service area, deliverable, or another basis?

The government is open to the contractors recommendation on this element.

Can the Government please amend or clarify the SOW/RFI to reflect the Government’s definition of a payment milestone and the applicable acceptance criteria and how fixed-price payments will interact with required staffing levels, annual labor hours, and actual-hours reporting?

As part of this RFI the government is seeking recommendations from contractors on which aspects could be accomplished FFP and related rationale.

Can the Government please amend or clarify the SOW/RFI on which variable requirements, surge services, travel, media spend, subscriptions, and ODCs should be priced under separate CLINs or alternative contract types?

As part of this RFI the government is seeking recommendations from contractors on CLIN structure.

Does the Government anticipate acquiring all requirements described in Sections A-D under a single contract vehicle/task order, or is the Government considering multiple awards or separate functional workstreams (e.g., Communications/Public Affairs, Digital Platform Support, Recruitment Marketing, Branch Support)?

The government anticipates a single award to a prime with subcontractors.

Will contractor support focus primarily on recruitment marketing and candidate attraction activities, or will it also include recruiting operations, candidate relationship management, and applicant pipeline support?

All aspects.

Are there anticipated recruitment performance objectives or key outcomes (e.g., application volume, candidate quality measures, hard-to-fill position metrics, brand awareness, conversion rates) that industry should consider when proposing approaches?

Government priorities are currently evolving. As more information becomes available the government will provide.

The Government requests recommendations for a Firm Fixed Price milestone-based structure. Is the Government currently evaluating alternative contract structures (e.g., hybrid FFP and Labor Hour/Time-and- Materials components) due to the staffing-intensive nature of many requirements?

Yes

Is the Government currently considering any specific small business participation strategy, socioeconomic set-aside approach, or subcontracting objectives for the anticipated acquisition?

The government anticipates encouraging small business subcontracting.

Can the Government clarify whether the future requirement is expected to be outcome-based, focused on mission and business results, or primarily staff augmentation-based? If outcome-based, are there preliminary performance metrics or service-level expectations the Government is considering?

The government is gathering information at this time and leveraging that to best clarify evolving priorities. As more information becomes available the government will provide.

Can the Government confirm what the approximate contract value and/or ceiling of this contract would be?

Not at this time.

Section 2.2.1 (“OD Recommended Positions”) of the draft SOW includes a table listing varying annual hours per FTE (e.g., 1,960, 2,250, and 2,640 hours). Given that 1 FTE is defined as 1,920 hours per year, can the Government clarify the expected basis of labor hours for these positions?

See Section 2.2 for FTE hours definition. FBI historical data has informed alternate hours for certain roles/LCATs.

Section 3.2 (“Digital Communications Platform”) of the draft SOW states that contractor personnel may provide technical support for ‘some or all’ of the listed applications and may be required to collaborate with Government personnel or other contractor teams. To better inform our staffing approach for ROM pricing, can the Government clarify which applications are expected to be supported in partnership and which will require full end‑to‑end contractor management and maintenance?

Government priorities are currently evolving. As more information becomes available the government will provide.

Can the Government provide historical annual volumes for national, Field Office/local and virtual recruitment events requiring contractor support?

See Section 3.3.5. of the SOW.

What systems and processes are currently used to capture candidate information and leads generated through recruitment events, and what level of integration with those systems is anticipated?

Processes are currently evolving. As more information becomes available the government will provide.

Are there Government-owned recruitment event assets, exhibits, technology or other equipment that the contractor will be expected to manage, maintain, store and/or deploy nationally?

There is a possibility of this.

Can the Government provide the historical and/or anticipated annual budget range for recruitment paid media, production, and additional ODCs, separate from contractor labor?

Historically, the government has leveraged between $5M-$10M on paid media ads. However, future funding increases are probable.

Can the Government provide historical or estimated workload volumes for the principal OPA communications functions, such as media inquiries, press materials, executive communications, public awareness campaigns, social content, web content, multimedia products and internal communications?

The government is gathering information at this time and will take this recommendation into account for future solicitations.

Can the Government provide additional context regarding the current OPA communications organizational structure, including the approximate size and functional composition of the Government communications team, and the anticipated division of responsibility between Government and contractor personnel? In particular, does the Government envision contractor personnel primarily augmenting existing Government teams, providing specialized expertise and strategic counsel, leading defined communications functions/workstreams, or some combination of these roles?

The government is gathering information at this time and will take this recommendation into account for future solicitations.

At this time, the government anticipates staff augmentation for OPA;

however, a combination of these roles could be needed.

The SOW identifies certain Government-available platforms, including Hootsuite and Microsoft 365, while requiring the Contractor to provide or make available other tools such as a DAM and email/SMS marketing services. Can the Government clarify which required research, social listening, DAM, CRM/email/SMS and other marketing technology subscriptions should be included in contractor pricing versus provided as Government-furnished resources?

The government has identified applications available as government

Can the Government provide additional context regarding the principal mission/program areas, subject matter and communications priorities contractor OPA personnel are expected to support, including the anticipated balance among proactive public education and awareness, executive communications, media relations, reactive/issues or crisis communications, internal communications, stakeholder engagement and other mission-related communications?

The government is gathering information at this time and will take this recommendation into account for future solicitations.

For teaming arrangements involving subcontractor personnel assigned to LCATs requiring TS clearances, please clarify the security requirements applicable at quote submission. Specifically, must the subcontractor employing those personnel possess the requisite Facility Clearance (FCL) at quote submission, or may FCL sponsorship/processing occur after quote submission but prior to performance? If an FCL is required, please identify the point in the acquisition or transition process by which it must be in place.

The subcontractor employing those personnel must have the requisite Facility Clearance (FCL) at quote submission.

Section 5.5 states that contractor personnel expected to work at FBI facilities shall have an active TS clearance at the time of quote submission and that use of uncleared personnel is expected to be rare. However, the pricing tables identify certain LCATs/positions as not requiring a clearance.

Please clarify whether the clearance designation associated with each LCAT in the pricing tables governs the clearance requirement for that position, or whether all personnel assigned to the contract should be assumed to require an active TS clearance unless specifically authorized otherwise.

Clearance requirements will not be LCAT-based. All personnel assigned to the contract should be assumed to require an active TS clearance unless specifically authorized otherwise.

RFI and SOW Sections 1.2-1.3: Based on the results of this market research, will the FBI consider conducting this acquisition as an 8(a) competitive set-aside under FAR Subpart 19.8?