2030 CQA RFI_ FINAL.pdf

2030 Census Questionnaire Assistance (CQA) Request for Information (RFI)

1 Purpose

The purpose of this Request for Information (RFI) is to solicit input from the industry regarding their capabilities in providing omni-channel contact center services for engagements similar in size, scope, and complexity to the 2020 Census Questionnaire Assistance (CQA) program to refine its approach and requirements for the 2030 CQA procurement. The scope of work for the 2030 CQA contract is expected to include both the 2028 Census Dress Rehearsal and the 2030 Census. Award of the 2030 CQA contract is currently anticipated to occur in the summer of 2026.

In accordance with FAR 15.201(e), responses to this RFI are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. The Government does not intend to award a contract based on this RFI or reimburse any costs associated with the preparation of responses to this RFI. This is a RFI only and will be used purely to gather further information about the topics covered. This is not a Request for Proposal (RFP) or Request for Quotation (RFQ). Any proposals, offers, or anything other than the specific or general information requested will not be considered. This notice does not constitute a commitment of any kind by any entity of the United States (US) Government.

2 Background

The Decennial Census is our country’s oldest, most comprehensive source of information about our population. Article I, Section 2 of the US Constitution mandates that an apportionment of representatives among the states must be carried out every 10 years. The primary goal of the Decennial Census is to count everyone once, only once, and in the right place.

The US Government uses the data generated by the census to apportion congressional seats, monitor compliance with civil rights and other legislation, and forecast the number of people eligible for Government benefits. Tribal, state, and local Governments use census figures to distribute funds for education and other social programs, determine congressional, state legislative, and voting district boundaries, and predict disaster relief needs. Island Area Governments use Census data to access federal funding opportunities, to better understand the characteristics of a changing population, such as age and household composition, and to understand and address emerging needs, such as access to employment, health insurance, and internet access. In addition, decennial census data for the Island Areas of the Pacific and the U.S. Virgin Islands are the sole data source for federal agencies. Business relies on the data for product development, marketing, demand forecasting, and determination of optimum location sites.

The Decennial Census is also the largest civilian mobilization in the nation and requires cooperation from the entire population. Success requires counting an increasingly diverse population, living in complex living situations, with growing concerns about privacy and Government credibility. The Decennial Census faces other challenges including, but not limited to, funding shortfalls, leadership changes, disruptions caused by natural disasters and pandemics, and a need to employ hundreds of thousands of federal temporary workers for a short period of time as enumerators. The Decennial Census utilizes technology to hire, manage, and schedule the field operations of this workforce.

2030 Census Lifecycle

Planning for the 2030 Census began in 2019. The 2030 Census Program is being conducted in four phases, beginning with Early Planning (FY19-FY21), followed by Design Selection (FY22-FY24), Development and Integration (FY25-FY29), and Peak Production and Close-Out (FY29-FY33).

Operational design development begins in the Design Selection Phase and is critical to the successful execution of a high-quality census of population and housing. In turn, successful execution is dependent on an evidence-based, integrated operational design that addresses the changing environment and inherent logistical challenges of such a large and complex undertaking. The following graphic shows the four phases of the 2030 Census lifecycle and the type of work and key milestones associated with each phase. Future Census cycles will have their own lifecycles and may or may not include solutions used for the 2030 Census.

Figure 1: 2030 Census Lifecycle Timeline

As a part of the 2030 Census, the 2030 CQA operation will provide omni-channel support in the form of answering frequently asked questions, helping callers fill out the 2030 Census questionnaire by answering their inquiries, and completing questionnaires over the phone via an interview between the caller and a customer service representative (CSR) if the caller obliges.

2020 CQA Program Details

During the 2020 Census, CQA operated from March 9 to October 15, 2020, and assisted callers from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. CQA supported callers in 13 languages, including English, Spanish, and 11 non-English, non-Spanish (NENS) languages: Arabic, Chinese (Mandarin and Cantonese), French, Haitian Creole, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Tagalog, and Vietnamese. CQA also supported teletypewriter (TTY) technology to assist callers who had hearing impairments, as well as group quarters (GQ). Each language had a dedicated toll-free number for CQA that was printed on census materials sent to households. Calls to CQA were routed to one of 10 physical call centers across the U.S.

2020 CQA Call Volume Metrics

The 2020 CQA operation received nearly 13.5 million inbound calls throughout the operational period with more than 50 percent of these calls occurring in the first four weeks of operations. (See Figure 2 for 2020 CQA Inbound Daily Call Volume.)

Figure 2: 2020 CQA Inbound Daily Call Volume

Callers to the English and Spanish language lines were initially routed to an interactive voice response (IVR) system application. The IVR system included broadcast messages which provided callers with time sensitive information aligned to 2020 Census program milestones and as well as a self-service portion where callers could navigate menus and submenus of popular FAQs. If callers had additional questions not addressed within the IVR, they had the ability to request to speak to a CSR. (Note: Calls to NENS language lines were routed directly to a CSR.)

During 2020 CQA, more than 61 percent of the calls on the English and Spanish language lines were contained within the IVR system, and therefore deflected from the CSR service queue. Ultimately, more than 5.2 million inbound calls were offered to CSRs, with over 4.6 million of these calls being English, 430,000 calls being Spanish, and 82,000 calls on one of the NENS lines. (See Table 1 for 2020 CQA Inbound Calls Offered to CSRs by Language Line.)

Table 1: 2020 CQA Inbound Calls Offered to CSRs by Language Line

Language Group Language Calls Offered to CSRs IVR Calls Offered to

CSRs Direct to CSR Call

Volume

Total 5,210,940 4,817,537 393,403

English

English 4,641,934 4,439,446 202,488

English Puerto Rico 3,805 3,672 133

Total 4,645,739 4,443,118 202,621

Spanish

Spanish 379,410 325,707 53,703

Spanish Puerto Rico 52,545 48,712 3,833

Total 431,955 374,419 57,536

NENS

(Non-English, Non-Spanish)

Chinese Mandarin 13,877 - 13,877

Chinese Cantonese 11,493 - 11,493

Vietnamese 14,461 - 14,461

Korean 14,898 - 14,898

Russian 7,872 - 7,872

Arabic 4,633 - 4,633

Tagalog 2,926 - 2,926

Polish 2,722 - 2,722

French 1,345 - 1,345

Haitian Creole 3,256 - 3,256

Portuguese 2,258 - 2,258

Japanese 2,527 - 2,527

Total 82,268 - 82,268

Other

TTY 45,706 - 45,706

GQ 5,272 - 5,272

Total 50,978 - 50,978

2020 CQA Staffing

In total, 7,303 people were hired, trained, and worked as CSRs during the 2020 CQA operation:

5,799 CSRs were skilled in English only 1,151 CSRs were skilled in Spanish and English 353 CSRs were skilled in one of the NENS languages

The peak number of English and Spanish-skilled CSRs occurred at the beginning of CQA, with the week ending March 14, 2020. For the first day of operations on March 9, 2020, CQA had 5,680 English-skilled CSRs and 1,142 Spanish-skilled CSRs. Both hiring and staffing levels were scaled to accommodate peak operations, along with planned reductions in force, over the 2020 operational period. (See Figure 3 for 2020 CQA Weekly CSR Staffing Levels – English and Spanish Only.)

Figure 3: 2020 CQA Weekly CSR Staffing Levels – English and Spanish Only

Additional details about the 2020 CQA operation can be found in the 2020 CQA Operational Assessment Report: https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/decade/2020/planning-management/evaluate/eae/2020-operational-assessment-report-cqa.html.

3 Scope of Services

The scope of the agency’s 2030 CQA required and optional tasks are as follows:

Stand-up and operate an omni-channel contact center to handle contact volume associated with the 2030 Census including:

o Physical infrastructure, if applicable.

o Computing/communication systems required to support and integrate selected contact channels (voice and chat).

o Contact center agents.

Specialized systems and professional services, including:

o Project management, information technology (IT) and contact center technical services to stand up and fine-tune operational systems as well as integrating them with Government systems.

o Agent desktop application development and integration.

o Contact center agent recruitment and training.

o Contact center operations including command center systems and staff.

o Quality monitoring, analysis, and staff.

o Reporting and analytics.

o Post operational analysis.

The Census Bureau requires that all work associated with the 2030 CQA be performed from locations within the United States. All personnel assigned to tasks associated with 2030 CQA must be US citizens and must successfully pass the Census security screening prior to start of work.

4 Market Research Questions

The following questions and requested information are intended to inform the Census Bureau by expanding our knowledge about the contact center industry, best practices, new innovations, and solutions available within the industry regarding projects of this magnitude. When answering these questions about the 2030 CQA program, use the 2020 CQA program (historical details included in Section 2 above) as a frame of reference regarding call volume, call patterns, language support, and scaling up/down of staff.

The Census Bureau encourages companies to submit responses based on their knowledge and experience in the contact center field. Include detail on contact-center related software applications and suites used to help the Census Bureau understand current trends in the industry. Additionally, identify areas where small business participation would be beneficial to help achieve small business goals. Based on the information provided, and as part of ongoing market research, the Census Bureau may contact individual respondents for additional information or clarification if needed. All information provided will be kept confidential and will be utilized for market research purposes directly related to the 2030 CQA program.

1. What type of overall architectural structure and operational approach is recommended for a program the size, scope, and complexity of 2030 CQA? Address the following items when responding to this question:

a. Traditionally, the Census Bureau deals with expected call volume spikes at the start of Decennial Census operations when mailing materials are delivered to housing units.

What cost-effective strategies can be used to address expected spikes when call volume typically decreases significantly after the first several weeks?

b. What cost-effective strategies/procedures can be implemented to handle unexpected call surges?

2. What types of physical space would be recommended for a program the size, scope, and complexity of 2030 CQA? Consider the following:

a. With contact centers now utilizing a greater number of remote staff to handle operations, should brick-and-mortar contact centers be utilized for the 2030 CQA design? Why or why not? Address if a specific number of brick-and-mortar contact centers are recommended, if a specific percentage of remote staff are recommended, and whether there are any regional/time zone considerations with this approach. Note that recruiting, hiring, onboarding, and asset management of several thousand contact center staff would likely need to occur within a very short time frame.

b. Discuss the need for physical space (such as a vendor program management office) within proximity (~10 miles) of the Census Bureau Headquarters located in Suitland, Maryland, for collaboration, demonstrations, and meetings with the Government. If this type of space is needed, is there existing vendor space already available?

c. Any other potential physical space needs.

3. What recent advancements in the contact center industry are recommended to support cost savings while simultaneously maintaining or enhancing the overall customer experience for a program the size, scope, and complexity of 2030 CQA? Consider technology, especially the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning, as well as any innovative strategies.

4. If web chat is introduced as a mode of assistance handled by CQA during the 2030 Census, how should the Census Bureau estimate potential web chat usage? CQA has historically assisted callers only over the telephone during the Decennial Census, so recommendations are needed to better understand and assess the impacts that this decision could have on contact volumes and operational design.

5. What is the recommended approach for quality monitoring and quality assurance to ensure data security and data accuracy during operations? Discuss how artificial intelligence and machine learning could be utilized in these areas, especially when considering the use of remote contact center staff.

6. What innovative technologies and services are currently recommended to serve the hearing-impaired population for 2030 CQA? Discuss the cost-effectiveness of this approach.

7. What are the potential benefits and drawbacks of integrating a vendor contact center solution (voice and chat) with Government-supplied data collection systems? At minimum, the Data Ingest and Collection for the Enterprise1(DICE) is currently expected to provide the instrument used by contact center staff to collect questionnaire data from respondents during 2030 CQA and that some integration of Government and contractor systems will be necessary to pass data. Discuss any operational efficiencies as well as challenges with this type of working arrangement, and feel free to include details about prior experiences.

8. Based on prior experience with similar large-scale contact center operations (especially Government contact centers), what areas should be considered for potential improvements that could result in cost savings? Consider the following:

a. Discuss any specific processes, technologies, and operational practices that could optimize efficiency and reduce cost.

b. Discuss any contractual structure suggestions that could optimize efficiency and reduce cost. What are the advantages and risks of this suggested contractual approach? Could some scope areas be firm fixed price? Share any thoughts on the best contract structure, vehicles, and preferred North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes.

9. Please provide any additional technical, execution, or contracting thoughts (including identifying specific ways that small business may be leveraged) that the Census Bureau may find beneficial as it relates to the 2030 CQA program.

1 The DICE system is the Census Bureau's mechanism to provide a single solution for seven survey data collection and data ingest activities that are common to all program areas within the Bureau. DICE replaces numerous legacy systems with new or upgraded applications that modernize and streamline how programs conduct surveys and receive external data. The goal of DICE is to produce a "system of systems" that eventually supports all Demographic and Economic surveys over the next decade, and that also provides a proven technology foundation for 2030 Census data collection.

5 Virtual RFI Webinar/Industry Day

The U.S. Census Bureau, Decennial Programs and Decennial Contracts Execution Office (DCEO) will host a virtual Webinar/Industry Day associated with this CQA RFI on February 11, 2025, from 1:00 PM ET to 2:00 PM ET. This event will provide a brief overview of the 2030 Census, review historical information about the 2020 CQA program, and will discuss some high-level information about the 2030 CQA program.

Registering for the RFI Webinar/Industry Day

This will be a virtual event through Webex. Follow guidance on SAM.gov as it becomes available.

Questions for RFI Webinar/Industry Day

Vendors may submit questions to be considered for industry day no later than 12:00 PM ET on February 6, 2025. Questions should be submitted via email to matthew.s.gore@census.gov and christopher.e.harris@census.gov with subject line: “2030 CQA RFI Webinar/Industry Day Questions.”

6 Requested Information

The Census Bureau is requesting that interested parties provide the following information organized in sections listed below:

Section I – Market Research Response Formatting

Response to the market research questions in Section 4 of this RFI. The margins for responses shall be 8.5” x 11” pages, 12-pitch font size in Times New Roman. Companies shall only provide responses to questions where they have direct knowledge and experience to convey to the Government that is pertinent to the specific question.

Section II – Capabilities Statement (Optional)

A summary of the company’s capabilities and experience with omni-channel contact centers, particularly as it relates to new and emerging contact center technologies. This summary shall not exceed seven hundred (700) words using 8.5” x 11” pages, 12-pitch font size in Times New Roman, and single-spaced.

This summary shall include but is not limited to items outlined in Section 3 (Scope of Services).

Section III – Business Information

1. Company name, mailing address, and website address

2. Contact person name, position, email address, and telephone number

3. A brief description of the company to include:

a. Years in business

b. Business size (i.e., large, small, SBA certified small disadvantaged, SBA certified 8(a), SBA certified HUB Zone)

c. Applicable North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes or recommended NAICS codes under which the Census Bureau may acquire the contact center services described in Section 3 (Scope of Services).

4. Unique Entity Identifier (UEI).

5. Federal government contract vehicles you hold, if any, under which the Census Bureau may acquire the contact center services described in Section 3.

This section shall not exceed two hundred and fifty (250) words using 8.5” x 11” pages, 12-pitch font size in Times New Roman, and single-spaced.

7 RFI Response Instructions

Responses to this RFI shall be submitted no later than 3:00 PM ET, February 21, 2025, to matthew.s.gore@census.gov and christopher.e.harris@census.gov. The Census Bureau requests that the response be limited in length to 20 pages and follow the structure outlined in Section 6 (Requested Information) of this RFI. Vendors are encouraged to submit questions in addition to responses to the RFI which do not count against the 20-page limit. As part of the market research process, Census Bureau personnel may contact individual respondents for additional information or clarification on responses.

Responses to this RFI shall be sent as one (1) attachment (Microsoft Word or Adobe Acrobat formats only) to the Government representatives listed above. That is, responses to the three (3) sections shall be in one (1) document and included as an attachment to the e-mail. The subject line shall read, “Response to RFI for 2030 CQA provided by __________ (enter name of your company.)”