36C10D22Q0020.docx

Sources Sought Notice

GENERAL INFORMATION

SET-ASIDE

Veterans Benefits Administration Acquisition Division 1800 G Street NW Washington DC 20006

POINT OF CONTACT*

Contracting Officer Vernon Mario Quilici vernon.quilici@va.gov 240-291-1624

PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

Veterans Benefits Administration

Acquisition Division

1800 G Street NW

Washington DC

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

AGENCY’S URL

URL DESCRIPTION

AGENCY CONTACT’S EMAIL ADDRESS

DESCRIPTION

Sources Sought Notice

1.0 INTRODUCTION

THIS IS NOT A SOLICITATION. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA), is issuing this Request for Information (RFI) – Sources Sought for identifying and proposing tools, solutions, regarding VBA’s need for Business Architecture, Requirements, and Strategy (BARS) Support Services. This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes only. There is no obligation for the Government to acquire any products or services described in this RFI. In accordance with the Federal Acquisition Regulations, responses to this notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. No funds have been authorized, appropriated, or received for this effort. The information provided may be used by VBA in developing its acquisition strategy and informing, refining and finalizing the Performance Work Statement (PWS). Interested parties are responsible for adequately marking proprietary, restricted or competition sensitive information contained in their response. Only electronic responses to this RFI will be accepted. The Government will not pay for any time expended or information submitted in response to this RFI. Eligibility in participating in a future acquisition does not depend upon a response to this RFI.

2.0 BACKGROUND

VBA administers and delivers an array of federally authorized benefits and services to eligible Veterans and their dependents and survivors in a responsive, timely and compassionate manner in recognition of their service to the nation. VBA faces challenges in ensuring OIT systems are efficient, non-redundant, and support common integrated services to ensure data flows through the claims process efficiently. Business lines have historically approached systems development in a siloed manner leading to duplication of functionality, challenging modernizing, and reducing efficiencies. The VBA has several legacy systems which are prone to instability, limit enhancements, and are challenging to secure. The VBA systems currently do not support analytics to accommodate data mining, automation, and artificial intelligence. Future state systems planning should incorporate low operating costs, stability, and technological advances. To accomplish these objectives, VBA requires strategic, programmatic, and tactical business support for the lifecycle of its information technology (IT) investments. VBA requires support for the full planning and business execution of IT priorities throughout the IT lifecycle from investment business cases through requirements management to maximize returns on investment. By supporting development of key performance indicators, key results, benefit and impact statements to meet business goals. VBA also requires business architecture to support the functional model, business processes, and data flows. This effort shall include development of the business and enterprise architecture models to include the data flows and the mapping to systems/components that are used in the current and future business processes. The VBA requires the development of business requirements, determination of shared services that can be leveraged across multiple VBA business lines, including the data definitions and strategies to support all reporting and business objectives and outcomes.

3.0 INFORMATION SOUGHT

The Government is seeking the following information to be provided by the Vendors when responding to the RFI:

· Company Information

· Capability Statement

3.1 Company Information

RFI respondents shall provide the following information:

· Company Name

· Company Address

· Company Point of Contact (name, address, telephone number, email address)

· SAM UEI Number

· NAICS Codes and business size for NAICS code 541611 - Identify if your company has any of the following business concern statuses (include all that apply): Small Business (SB); Certified Small Business Administration (SBA) 8(a) firm; Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB); Service-Disabled, Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB); Veteran-Owned Small Business (VOSB); Economically Disadvantaged Women-Owned Small Business (EDWOSB); Woman-Owned Small Business (WOSB); Historically Underutilized Business Zone (HUBZone) Small Business;

· Existing Multiple Award Contract (MAC) vehicles currently held by your company (examples may include General Service Administrations (GSA) schedules, Government-Wide Acquisition Contracts (GWACs), Indefinite Delivery Contracts (IDCs), Blanket Purchase Agreements (BPAs)) available for the Government’s use for this requirement. For each MAC vehicle provide:

· vehicle name

· vehicle number

· date of award

· expiration date

3.2 Capability Statement

RFI respondents shall provide a capability statement with an overview and approach of the entity’s ability to accomplish all tasks and deliverables within attached draft PWS, within this RFI, as well as the following:

1. What experience do you have with enterprise and business architecture withing the VBA?

0. Do you have experience with the federated architecture approach?

0. If yes, please provide details of how this approach was utilized?

0. If no, do you see any hinderance in being able to provide architectural services using the federated approach

1. What experience do you have with the systems that VBA uses?

1. What success have you had utilizing a strategic plan for the purposes of IT Planning?

2. Please provide examples of how this role was utilized to aid in analyzing new business needs, defining business scope and functionality and aligning with IT capabilities and solutions to minimize redundancy and increase in sustainment costs.

1. What experience do you have with multi-year planning investments development and execution?

3. Please provide examples of how this role was utilized

1. What experience do you have with scoping requirements and backlog grooming with regards to requirements gathering and delivery?

1. Have you developed any proprietary tools for the following areas? If so, how do you keep them integrated?

5. Multi-year planning

5. Scope

5. Requirements

5. User Acceptance Testing

5. Architecture

5. Analytics

1. Provide experience/examples in the ability to verify, document, and communicate data analytics results in a clear and easy-to-understand way and develop an analytical report and user-friendly data visualizations.

4.0 RESPONSE INSTRUCTIONS

Please submit responses, via email, to the Contracting Officer, Vernon Mario Quilici at vernon.quilici@va.gov . Submissions are due no later than July 18, 2022, at 12:00 p.m. (EDT). The email subject line must contain the following: “Response to RFI 36C10D22Q0020, Business Architecture, Requirements, and Strategy (BARS) Support Services.” VBA reserves the right to not reply to any emails, responses, questions, and materials submitted in response to the RFI. Mark your response as “Proprietary Information” if the information included is business sensitive and /or includes trade secrets. RFI responses shall not exceed 10 pages total, to include the capability statement. Responses shall be prepared on standard 8.5 x 11-inch paper (charts may be landscaped but must be on 8.5 x 11-inch paper) and shall be in Times New Roman, font size (12), with 1” margins. All pages of the response shall be appropriately numbered and identified with the RFI number.

Page 1 of image1.emf

Draft PWS for RFI.docx DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS, OFFICE OF BUSINESS INTEGRATION (OBI), PERFORMANCE WORK STATEMENT (PWS) DRAFT

1 Title

Business Architecture, Requirements and Strategy (BARS) Recompete

2 Background

The mission of Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA), in partnership with the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) and the National Cemetery Administration (NCA), is to administer and deliver an array of federally authorized benefits and services to eligible Veterans and their dependents and survivors in a responsive, timely and compassionate manner in recognition of their service to the nation.

Benefits and services administered by VBA encompass the following lines of business or services: 1) Disability Compensation (CS), 2) Pension and Fiduciary (P&F), 3) Education (EDU), 4) Insurance (INS), 5) Home Loan Guaranty (LGY), 6) Veteran Readiness & Employment (VR&E), 7) Outreach, Transition, and Economic Development (OTED). These program areas are supported by several other staff offices supporting aspects of benefits delivery. These include: 1) Medical Disability Examination Office (MDEO), 2) Office of Administrative Review (OAR) (Appeals), 3) Performance Analysis and Integrity (PA&I), 4) Office of Financial Management (OFM), 5) Office of Mission Support (OMS).

The Office of Business Integration (OBI) centralizes, consolidates, and integrates business architecture, investment needs and requirements in support of the VBA Lines of Business (LOBs) and Staff Offices (SOs). OBI coordinates with our Office of Information Technology (OIT) partners to manage systems and applications administering more than $123B in benefit payments, across the above-referenced seven (7) program areas.

VBA faces challenges in ensuring OIT systems are efficient, non-redundant, and support common integrated services to ensure data flows through the claims process efficiently. Business lines have historically approached systems development in a siloed manner leading to duplication of functionality, challenging modernizing, and reducing efficiencies. The VBA has several legacy systems which are prone to instability, limit enhancements, and are challenging to secure. The VBA systems currently do not support analytics to accommodate data mining, automation, and artificial intelligence. Future state systems planning should incorporate low operating costs, stability, and technological advances.

VBA’s responsibility of over $123B in payments is complex and will require risk mitigation recommendations for all transitions for each project, system, and application.

3 Vision

To accomplish these objectives, VBA requires strategic, programmatic, and tactical business support for the lifecycle of its information technology (IT) investments. VBA requires support for the full planning and business execution of IT priorities throughout the IT lifecycle from investment business cases through requirements management to maximize returns on investment. By supporting development of key performance indicators, key results, benefit and impact statements to meet business goals. VBA also requires business architecture to support the functional model, business processes, and data flows. This effort shall include development of the business and enterprise architecture models to include the data flows and the mapping to systems/components that are used in the current and future business processes. The VBA requires the development of business requirements, determination of shared services that can be leveraged across multiple VBA business lines, including the data definitions and strategies to support all reporting and business objectives and outcomes.

The scope of this contract is to support achievement of these objectives. The Contractor will be responsible to develop the required deliverables (investment planning, architecture, requirements, and other related products) to meet these objectives. The Contractor shall be a dedicated partner that will span the full delivery lifecycle from strategy through execution with the tools, resources, and experience.

The Contractor shall include, but not limited to:

· Provide services to define and map efficient and stable business architecture

· Provide recommendations and support to plan and define requirements in support of VBA’s long-range plan and IT multi-year plan

· Provide solution design, analytics, and strategy management identifying solutions and to gaps within the Legacy systems

· Provide support for IT Investment Management activities, including business epics, customer engagement, intake of new business needs, management of non-architectural tools that captures data related to annual planning and prioritization, and other current fiscal year execution activities.

· Coordinate with National Cemetery Administration (NCA) and Veterans Health Administration (VHA) to identify integration with and to leverage system capabilities and to promote interoperability across the organizations.

· Shall provide deliverables according to the DODAF and FEAF

· Provide support for the 6 architecture domains as defined by the VAEA reference model

· Provide recommendations, management, and planning of each major OIT deployment

· Ensure that no deliverables (Requirements, Business Epics, etc.) contain personally identifiable information (PII)Provide off site conferencing location within 50 miles of 1800 G. Street, Washington D.C, to provide meeting space as required in the PWS

4.0 Scope of Work

4.1 Task One: Program Management

The Contractor shall plan, monitor, and control the tasks outlined through the performance period in accordance with the contract. This includes program/project planning, management, quality management, staff assignment, work breakdown schedule (WBS) and strategic work plans for each deliverable.

The project schedule shall outline each task as well as necessary reviews to include internal quality reviews and final OBI PMO review. The Contractor’s approach shall be collaborative with OBI and include at least one primary point of contact located onsite at Government site for each task. The Program Manager is required to be onsite. The Contractor shall work collaboratively with other contracted personnel currently supporting the PMO to include information sharing and attending joint meetings.

The Contractor shall identify a PM who shall be the single Point of Contact (POC) with the overall responsibility for the performance of the work. This individual shall be fully informed on the project plans and status and shall have the authority to commit the Contractor.

The PM shall:

· Day 1, All personnel cleared for VBA system access and immediately available to onboard staff.

· Provide, monitor, and track clearance/access list for each employee (available, cleared, system/email access). Initial list shall be provided 5 days prior to onboarding and updated within one workday of any changes to include off boarding personnel.

· The PM is responsible to ensure the IMS SharePoint is updated daily to reflect ongoing projects and deliverables.

· Ensure all deliverables shall be uploaded into a Contract Management Deliverable SharePoint site

· Communicate regularly and effectively with the COR and the Contracting Officer (CO), and stakeholders

· Effectively balance and schedule involvement of appropriate technical resources throughout the project lifecycle and ensure resources work as integrated cross-functional teams.

· Develop and utilize project metrics to track, manage, and analyze task progress and communicate findings to the COR within a weekly progress report to ensure appropriate focus on critical attention areas.

· Manage and monitor the components and project execution including developing and planning resource assignments, risk scenarios, and allocations, developing program status reports and project reviews, and managing tracking project deliverables.

· Manage and monitor travel expenses and invoicing; and

· Manage and monitor mandatory training requirements.

The PM shall devise, monitor, and update a Project Management Plan (PMP) when necessary, as changes occur. The detailed PMP is due within 35 calendar days of contract award and monthly when updated.

The PM shall provide a high-level schedule to identify resource assignments, detailed tasks, and sub tasks including task duration, milestone dates, task dependencies, resources requirements, and planned dates for initial and final deliverables. The schedule is due within 35 calendar days of contract award and updated once a month.

4.1.1 Program Management Deliverables

ID:

Deliverable:

Description:

Cadence:

4.1.1.1

Project Management Plan (PMP)

Shall include an analysis of the integration activities and how they affect the interrelated systems. The Contractor shall keep the Project Management Plan (PMP) up to date throughout the contract period of performance (PoP) and aligned with the OBI program Integrated Master Schedule (IMS) (a time-based schedule containing the networked, detailed tasks necessary to ensure successful program/contract execution). All deliverables shall be submitted in accordance with the approved PMP.

4.1.1.2

Schedule

4.1.1.3

Weekly Status Report

The PM shall provide a weekly report that shall include at a minimum the following items:

1. Weekly Personnel Roster and Status (Active, Pending Onboarding, Removed from Project);

2. Anticipated travel requirements and anticipated travel invoicing

3. Project metrics, task progress, lessons learned, risks, issues, resource assignment, unresolved issues, pending Government response and/or action, project reviews, PII Violations, Anticipated timeline extension requests, justification to modify schedule

4. The Contractor is required to develop this weekly report with approval from the COR. The weekly report shall be easily modified to address any changes due to lessons learned.

5. All recommended changes shall be incorporated prior to delivery of the next report.

6. List of Personnel with tracked date of mandatory TMS training expiration date;

Weekly

4.1.1.4

Monthly Status Report

The PM shall provide a Monthly Status Report (MSR) that contains the progress for the prior period against the tasks identified in this PWS. The MSR shall also identify work to be performed in the following period and where deviations to the plan exist, shall explain why these occurred and provide recovery actions. The Contractor shall submit MSR electronically and submitted to the COR on the last day of each month. The MSR shall also include the following information:

1. Contract Number/Contract Name;

2. Project Manager Name;

3. Identified risks, issues and create mitigation plans for the specified risks;

4. Task completion status and a reference to actual deliverables;

5. Planned work for the next month;

6. Travel completed during the reporting period;

7. Travel planned for the next reporting period;

8. Staffing Plan to include any expected changes;

9. List of Personnel with tracked date of mandatory TMS training expiration date;

10. Employee listing pending access/cleared with or without access to gov’t email;

11. Travel costs that have been completed and invoiced with projected travel and remaining balance.

12. The Contractor shall provide an analysis of their provided recommendations on feasibility, success, and rationale on decision to move forward or not, for each task section, in accordance with the PWS.

Monthly

4.2 Task Two: VBA Strategy and Business Architecture

The Contractor shall provide a team which includes persons with expertise listed in the Key Personnel Section of this PWS. The Contractor shall develop, enhance, and maintain a VBA Business Architecture blueprint to map the current legacy systems to support analytics to accommodate data mining, automation, and artificial intelligence. The Contractor shall ensure future system planning incorporates low operating costs, stability, and technological advances. In addition, the Contractor shall provide system decommissioning plan recommendations which includes planning, and execution from strategy through realization.

VBA Business Architecture team will focus on collecting and documenting the business models and process flows for the recommended architecture and aligning the business process to established goals and metrics that are identified in the strategic phase of VBA discussions. The Contractor shall identify common services and make recommendations on governance and implementation priorities based on deeper levels of knowledge with rationale for additional requirements.

The Architecture team must be flexible and support change as requirements are refined and as new capabilities and processes are exercised. VBA system technologies are service oriented. VBA Business Architecture team shall take advantage of previous work done in business architecture within VBA but shall not be limited in scope by previous work effects. The Business Architect and supporting team shall have overall responsibility for aligning the business architecture to the business strategy while maintaining an integrated and cohesive view between business architecture to the business processes and the business requirements. The business architecture team is responsible for ensuring all assets and interrelationships, including systems, data, people, resources, processes, services can be viewed from high level to granular detail.

In-depth knowledge of VBA’s systems and VBA Claims Processing is critical for the key members of the team. To develop an integrated view of the OBI Programs, the Contractor shall be responsible for developing a set of key deliverables (listed below) captured in the business architecture.

Organizational Model

OBI’s current model is “Centralized”, but this model has resulted is several inefficiencies. Based on this knowledge, OBI must now change to provide greater service to the Lines of Business (LoB) and Staff Offices (SO). Therefore, OBI is now adopting a federated organizational model which has shown to add greater value to a broader range of architecture stakeholders.

OBI’s federated organizational model will consist of a small, central team which drives architecture strategy, standards, and governance. Federated architects embedded in delivery teams drive architecture alignment and business functions and will have autonomy for their specific architecture decisions. The distributed teams will build current and future state architecture via support to VBA LOBs and SOs (planning) and projects (execution).

Roles & Responsibilities

Business Architects within OBI’s Central Team would work closely with the EA team for strategic requirements and Solution Architects that make up the Distributed Teams would work closely with developers, requirements analysts, and customer success managers on solution-oriented efforts.

Each distributed team will cover a single line of business and 3-5 associated priority projects per LOB. The basic team structure is shown below:

Central Team

Chief Business Architect (2)

Government (OBI)

Business Architect (3)

Contractor

Distributed Teams

Team 1

Solution Architect

Architect for COMP

Team 2

Solution Architect

Architect for P&F

Team 3

Solution Architect

Architect for EDU

Team 4

Solution Architect

Architect for VRE

Team 5

Solution Architect

Architect for INS

Team 6

Solution Architect

Architect for LGY

Team 7

Solution Architect

Architect for LOB or SOs

Team 8

Solution Architect

Architecture for SOs

Architecture Personnel

The following positions are identified as Architecture Personnel:

Business Architect

The Business Architect is responsible for, but not limited to the following:

· Develop a business architecture strategy based on various business scenarios.

· Apply a structured business architecture approach and methodology for capturing the key views of the enterprise.

· Capture the tactical and strategic enterprise goals that provide traceability through the organization and are mapped to metrics that provide ongoing governance.

· Describe the primary business functions of the enterprise.

· Define the set of strategic, core and support processes that transcend functional and organizational boundaries; identify and describe external entities such as customers, suppliers, and external systems that interact with the business; and describe which people, resources and controls are involved in the processes.

· Define the data shared across the enterprise and the relationships between those data.

· Capture the relationships among roles, capabilities and business units, the decomposition of those business units into subunits, and the internal or external management of those units.

Solution Architect

The Solution Architect is responsible for solution-level decisions and evaluation of their impact on VBA’s objectives and their outcomes. Below is an example of the responsibilities:

· Ensure software solutions align with resources, risk identification, and planning.

· Creates and leads the process of integrating IT systems for them to meet VBA’s requirements.

· Conducts a system architecture evaluation and collaborates with project management and IT development teams to improve the architecture.

· Evaluates project constraints to find alternatives, alleviate risks, and perform process re-engineering if required.

· Updates stakeholders on the status of product development processes and budgets.

· Notifies stakeholders about any issues connected to the architecture.

· Fixes technical issues as they arise.

· Analyzes the business impact that certain technical choices may have on a client’s business processes.

· Supervises and guides development teams.

· Continuously researches emerging technologies and proposes changes to the existing architecture.

· They take the business requirements and turn them into new software solutions that use a company’s emerging technology.

RACI Matrix

RACI Matrix for OBI Federated Architecture Teams

Organization & Staffing

Framework & Standards

Methods & Procedures

Products & Blueprints

Knowledge & Distribution

Governance & Metrics

Tools, Training, & Tqns.

Central Team

Chief Bus. Architect

A, I

A, I

A, I

A, I

A, I

A, R

A, I

Business Architect

C

R

R

R

R

R

I

Distributed Teams

Solution Architect

C, I

I

R

R

C, I

R

I

4.2.1 Operational Model

The contractor will provide the following services as part of an overall operational model.

4.2.1.1 Organization & Staffing

The Architecture Organization & Staffing Service includes the structuring, staffing, and allocating of architectural resources, expertise, and support as required. It involves the development and communication of architecture staffing charts and workplans as they pertain to the architecture operation and organization at large. The Architecture Staffing Chart, Architecture Workplan, and Architecture RACI Matrix should be updated in real-time as changes occur, but formally delivered as baseline documentation at the start of each quarter.

4.2.1.1.1 Organization & Staffing Deliverables

ID:

Deliverable:

Description:

Cadence:

4.2.1.1.1.1

Architecture Staffing Chart

Depicts the current architecture organization in a hierarchical format and includes updated roles and allocation of staff/resources.

Quarterly

4.2.1.1.1.2

Architecture Workplan

Depicts a schedule of architecture activities, tasks, and/or deliverables that are to be carried out by the architecture staff/resources.

Quarterly

4.2.1.1.1.3

Architecture RACI Matrix

Aligns the staff/resources depicted in the Architecture Staffing Chart to the activities, tasks, and/or deliverables depicted in the Architecture Workplan.

Quarterly

4.2.1.2 Framework & Standards

The Architecture Framework & Standards Service includes continual compliance to architectural rules and principles necessary for an architecture team to function. This service produces documentation that depicts the applicable architecture domains, elements, and element relationships in the form of an Architecture Metamodel. The Architecture Metamodel will guide standardization across the architectural views produced by the Architecture Products & Blueprints Service. An Architecture Model Inventory will provide a standardized listing or “menu” of architecture work products that can be produced. The architecture artifacts that are produced by the Architecture Products & Blueprints Service will likely vary each quarter based on business needs. Architecture Model Templates will also be produced to standardize the way architecture products are built.

4.2.1.2.1 Framework & Standards Deliverables

ID:

Deliverable:

Description:

Cadence:

4.2.1.2.1.1

Architecture Metamodel

Depicts the architecture’s 6 core domains, elements, and element relationship in the form of a graphical model.

Annually

4.2.1.2.1.2

Architecture Model Inventory

Outlines a list of architecture model options that are compliant with a prescribed architecture framework or standard (e.g., DoDAF, FEAF, VAAF, etc.)

Annually

4.2.1.2.1.3

Architecture Model Templates

A series of templates for each of the optional views within each of the viewpoints outlined in the deliverables section of the Architecture Products & Blueprints Service.

Annually

4.2.1.3 Methods & Procedures

The Architecture Methods & Procedures Service includes the use of methods/approaches (e.g., the Architecture First Approach) in direct support of other key business activities such as investment management and requirements development. This service can be used across a variety of ancillary business functions or throughout the phases of an IT development lifecycle. The intent is to provide a means to an end for a certain objective. For example, if a Federal Agency is looking to decommission legacy mainframes from the 1970s, the Architecture Methods & Procedures Service might employ a team of architects to carry out an “Architecture First Approach” where architecture artifacts are produced in advance of requirements being written. This helps the effort to better manage change over time and effectively reduce complexity of an otherwise multifaceted system. This same construct can be applied to other business functions of the organization, such as Strategic Planning, Investment Management, Project Management, Systems Implementation or Enhancement, Data Migration, or Infrastructure and Security Management.

4.2.1.3.1 Methods & Procedures Deliverable

ID:

Deliverable:

Description:

Cadence:

4.2.1.3.1.1

Investment Management & Planning Support via the Architecture First Approach

Produces architecture artifacts that aid in the strategic planning and investment management functions of the organization. This includes production of models such as the CV-1, CV-3, CV-4, PV-1, PV-2, PV-3, SV-8, and SV-9.

Annually, Ad Hoc

4.2.1.3.1.2

Requirements Management Support via the Architecture First Approach

Produces architecture artifacts that aid in the definition and management of business and technology requirements. This includes production of models such as current and future state OVs, SVs, and DIVs.

Ad Hoc

4.2.1.4 Products & Blueprints

When designed and used, architecture products inform managers and IT developers in their efforts to make key decisions throughout the lifecycle of a project (i.e., initial planning all the way through deployment, production, and eventually decommissioning). Architecture Views typically include models or matrices stemming from a selection of DoDAF viewpoints. Some fit-for-purpose viewpoints—such as the Infrastructure and Security Viewpoints—originate from FEAF and are customized to suit the needs of the VA. As such, multiple architecture views fall within each viewpoint and, depending on the needs of the business each quarter, are assessed for production determinations.

4.2.1.4.1 Products & Blueprints Deliverable

ID:

Deliverable:

Description:

Cadence:

4.2.1.4.1.1

All Viewpoint (AV)

The AV provides information pertaining to a specific architectural scope or boundary and consolidates relevant architecture elements into a single integrated dictionary.

Quarterly

4.2.1.4.1.2

Capability Viewpoint (CV)

The CV describes the capabilities that are in scope for a particular architecture and depict how they intend to evolve over a period or series of phases.

Quarterly

4.2.1.4.1.3

Data & Info. Viewpoint (DIV)

The DIV describes the exchanges of information across the business and the flow of data across its information systems and databases.

Quarterly

4.2.1.4.1.4

Operational Viewpoint (OV)

The OV describes the people within an organization and the rules they follow to carry out the business’ core operations and day-to-day processes.

Quarterly

4.2.1.4.1.5

Project Viewpoint (PV)

The PV describes the projects, priorities, and schedules that a portfolio maintains to full fill its mission objectives and comply with policy.

Quarterly

4.2.1.4.1.6

Systems Viewpoint (SV)

The SV describes the applications connected via interfaces and the protocols they use to automate specific functions and procedures.

Quarterly

4.2.1.4.1.7

Infrastructure Viewpoint (IV)*

The IV describes the facilities, platforms, and networks needed to provide a supporting foundation for all other viewpoints.

Quarterly

4.2.1.4.1.8

Security Viewpoint (SecV)*

The SecV describes the enterprise security components, risks and risk management function, and physical and virtual security considerations that support both the business and IT layers.

Quarterly

4.2.1.5 Knowledge & Distribution

How an architecture team distributes and markets its architecture is a critical success factor for an architecture program. Many government enterprise architecture programs keep an authoritative database of architecture data. The data within the databases must be maintained and validated on a regular cadence to ensure accuracy and usability. It is thus imperative that each of the segments that make up a given government enterprise do their part with the maintenance and validation of the architecture data that they represent. A quarterly Architecture Assertion package can provide the baseline architectures necessary to update those authoritative databases. This package typically consists of all the latest and/or baselined architectural models, matrices, and information produced for a specific quarter.

4.2.1.5.1 Knowledge & Distribution Deliverable

ID:

Deliverable:

Description:

Cadence:

4.2.1.5.1.1

Architecture Assertion Package

A consolidation of architecture artifacts that were built in the preceding quarter, delivered as a package to the broader Segment or Enterprise Architecture team(s).

Quarterly

4.2.1.5.1.2

Architecture Baseline Schedule

A schedule for the quarterly baseline architecture deliverables. This includes a schedule for assertion packages, updates to webpages, and authoritative sources.

Annually

4.2.1.6 Governance & Metrics

Architecture governance is the practice and structure by which enterprise, segment, and solution level architectures are managed and controlled; it is about ensuring that business is conducted properly. While there is no single correct approach to governance, it can often be a source of failure for many governments EA programs. Before applying a “one size fits all” governance construct, an architecture team must assess and understand the structure and culture of the organization. Creating a customized governance approach often yields greater retention of standards and adoption of new processes. This segment architecture can be produced by the Architecture Products & Blueprints Service to formulate the baseline for analytics and business intelligence. The architecture team usually works with analytics teams to build and provide baselined architecture data and derived insights that shall be captured in an Architecture Insights and Metrics report. This report can be used to inform the various decision-making functions of a government agency, such as prioritization of projects, solutioning/ideation decisions, and analysis of alternatives.

4.2.1.6.1 Governance & Metrics Deliverable

ID:

Deliverable:

Description:

Cadence:

4.2.1.6.1.1

Architecture Insights & Metrics Report

A document that consolidates analytical insights and metrics for an architecture or set of architectures with the aim to support specific decision-making functions and analytics teams.

Quarterly,

4.2.1.7 Tools, Training, & Techniques

The Architecture Tools, Training, & Techniques Service shall produce three training series that provide architectural guidance at varying levels of expertise. Each training series will consist of multiple training courses and will be delivered on an annual basis or upon request. The EA-100 Series shall provide architecture trainings at a conceptual level. They may include training courses that describe the history and background of EA along with key concepts and critical success factors. The EA-200 Series shall provide guidance on specific hands-on modeling (e.g., training for BPMN modeling) that complies with agreed-upon architecture frameworks or standards. The EA-300 Series will provide EA case studies and methods that are specific and relevant to VBA/OBI and its business functions. Examples of EA-300 training courses include an overview on the “The Architecture First Approach” and details around how to implement “EA Analytics and Business Intelligence.”

4.2.1.7.1 Tools, Training, & Techniques Deliverable

ID:

Deliverable:

Description:

Cadence:

4.2.1.7.1.1

EA-100: EA Concepts & Theory

A series of training courses that describe the concepts and theory behind Enterprise Architecture as a professional discipline.

Annually, 4.2.1.7.1.2

EA-200: EA Modelling & Design

A series of training courses that provide guidance and hands-on experience in the modelling and design of specific enterprise architecture models, matrices, and other artifacts.

Annually, 4.2.1.7.1.3

EA-300: EA Methods & Application

A series of training courses that provide case studies for specific EA methods and applications used to support a variety of key business functions, such as investment and requirements management.

Annually, 4.2.1.7.1.4

Tools & Techniques Training

Includes architecture tool demonstrations (e.g., MS Visio, UNICOM System Architect, Camunda) and hands-on training for certain architectural techniques such as use of BPMN, systems architecture modeling, and other architecture standards.

Ad Hoc

4.3 Task Three: Process Analysis & Optimization - Modeling, Simulation, Optimization, and Cost Estimation

The contractor shall support VBA managerial and technical decisions, using Strategic Portfolio Management (SPM) Tools (dashboard), data driven models, prototypes and simulators using data sourced from VBA administrative data repositories (PA&I) and other authoritative sources. These tasks will enable VBA to support real-world processes, system enhancements, and environment decisions.

· Provide statistical evaluation and visualizations through development of tools/dashboards that illustrate various data points such as priority status, available funding, OIT capacity level, decommission status and other value add points for reporting and tracking products through delivery.

· Provide Multi-year Planning tool (interactive) that depicts long range planning for VBA IT Investments five years out. The future state initiatives should be viewed from two lenses – enterprise level view and Lines of Business view. The tool will have the ability to drill down into specific initiatives to see relative key performance indicators and associated return on investment.

· Provide prototyping analysis and hypothesis that include models and “what if” scenarios with respect to risks mitigation and improvement opportunities. Facilitate exploratory synthesis and to provide potential predictive modeling capabilities with the potential for process improvement based on VBA’s value stream.

· Provide PI Planning tracker (interactive architecture tool) that displays PI planning with logical representation of how LOBs/SOs are delivered to Veterans and their families. This will help stakeholders understand the fiscal year scope, accomplishments and supporting functions and features that need to be modified.

· Compensation Process Overview Tool (CPOT) (interactive architecture tool) that displays the value of various VBA contracts have had on the overall claims process. This will help stakeholders understand the use of managed services contracts and the value they provide to VBA.

· Provide Priority Impact Reports (PIR) for fiscal year priorities including a summary of each project’s background, development, progress towards metrics and benefits to VBA, Veterans and their families.

· Develop analyses to establish and monitor the impact of current and future legislative and policy changes on Veteran eligibility, volume of claims in backlog, processing time and other key metrics.

· Provide business analyses and/or Analysis of Alternatives (AoA) that provides written descriptions of methods, assumptions, and rough order of magnitude (ROM) and cost benefit analysis to support budgeting and scheduling for approved priorities.

· Develop fiscal year knowledge hubs (interactive tools) that provides a holistic view of the submitted IT Priority Candidate with the context of objective prioritization and sequencing. The tool should have reporting capabilities based on SAFe agile methodology and ranking priorities based on veteran impact, cost savings and efficiencies, risk mitigation, performance measures and integration dependencies.

· Develop and build virtual customer profile and standardized intake form within broad based IT platform (Salesforce, JIRA, etc). The virtual customer profile and intake form will be a customer facing tool in which customers have real-time access to current and historical investment management information, submit and update IT business needs and directly communicate with OBI. Collect requirements for enhancement and modification of front-end capabilities as well as additional division requirements for next phase of development. Build communications and training for LOBs/SOs to support usage and adoption of the tool. Track and monitor Key performance indicators to include utilization and user satisfaction.

4.3.1 Task Three Deliverables: Process Analysis & Optimization: Modeling, Simulation, Optimization, and Cost Estimation

4.3.1.1 Data-Driven Analyses Deliverables

ID:

Deliverable:

Description:

Cadence:

4.3.1.1.1

User Configurable Fiscal Year Prioritization and Analysis (with agreed upon criteria)

Analysis and executive summary report on the status of current fiscal year priorities to include, completed functionality, completion rate of requirements, planned work by quarter, committed work by quarter, risks, pending and prioritization/scoring of unfunded requirements

Monthly

4.3.1.1.2

Analytical Priority Assessments (KPIs/Themes)

Analysis of the new business needs to determine return on investment, key measures of success, risks, and alignment to multiyear planning objectives

Ad hoc

4.3.1.1.3

Priority Backlog Analysis Report

Report that provides a list of all priorities that have not been implemented due to lack of IT funding and analysis of alternative options to solution using SAAS and vendor managed services

Monthly

4.3.1.1.4

Priority Impact Reports

Analysis that provides measures of completion rates to VBA performance data and multi-year plans (5 years). This includes assessment of Key Performance Indicators, objectives, and key results of the delivery of IT functionality/capabilities and what equitable benefits were realized based on the investment (funding and resources)

Quarterly

4.3.1.1.5

5-year Multi-Year IT Investment Roadmap

Collection, analysis and integration of VBA Investment Management inputs to the 5-year Multi-Year Plan and includes the connections to enterprise IT investments, FY portfolio investment reviews and business IT needs (organized by Business line).

Bi-Annually

4.3.1.1.6

Multi-Year Prioritization and Sequencing

Data driven analysis and lean portfolio management tools to support the prioritization, sequencing and interdependency of priorities captured in the 5- year multi-year plan for transparency and investment decision making.

Quarterly

4.3.1.1.7

Optional Tasks - Cost Estimates and Benefit and Impact Analyses

Assessment report is required to assess cost estimates and/or benefit impact analysis, needed to inform investment decisions across VBA collective business landscape.

2-4 per year

4.3.1.2 Decision-Making Tools Deliverables

ID:

Deliverable:

Description:

Cadence:

4.3.1.2.1

Fiscal Year Knowledge Hub

An analytical tool used to communicate the business case of proposed priorities (1-2 years out) leveraging qualitative and quantitative data captured during the Priority intake phase. This tool is used to inform investment funding decisions.

Ad hoc

4.3.1.2.2

Investment Planning Intake Tool and Virtual Customer Profile (VCP)

A tool that ingests qualitative and quantitative data regarding proposed priorities for prioritization and funding and alignment to VBA strategic objectives. The customer profiles integrate and provides a snapshot and most up to date status of each stakeholder’s investment portfolio – to include newly submitted priorities, priorities in progress and planned priorities (5 years out). This tool will also integrate all other tools as appropriate to provide a one stop shop on investment management and seamless experience for VBA stakeholders and customers.

Weekly

4.3.1.2.3

Multi-Year Planning Overview Tool

This tool communicates the roadmap of VBA’s IT multi- year plan to include objectives and expected key results OKRs) utilizing the methods of Lean Portfolio Management and Lean Budget Guardrails. This tool provides two views - enterprise level view and Lines of Business view.

Quarterly

4.3.1.2.4

OBI MYP/PI Tracker (OMYPIT)

Tool that displays PI planning with logical representation of how LOBs/SOs system functionality are delivered to Veterans and their families. This tool will help stakeholders understand the fiscal year scope, accomplishments and supporting functions and features that need to be modified.

Weekly

4.3.1.2.5

Compensation Process Overview Tool (CPOT)

Tool that displays the value of various VBA contracts have had on the overall claims process. This will help stakeholders understand the use of managed services contracts and the value they provide to VBA.

Weekly

4.4 Task Four: Process Planning and Management: Scope, Design, Integration, Automation, and Strategic Metrics

The Contractor shall support scope definition through facilitating meetings (20-30 sessions per month), assisting the government with scope refinement, Key Performance Indicator (KPI) development, prioritization, and documenting expected outcomes for each Priority. The contractor shall support the ongoing transition to a Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) through continuous improvement of deliverables, providing support to Investment Planning and Management with required knowledge of current/industry Agile practices and principles, and ensure scope plans aligned with VBA strategic goals and objectives.

The Contractor shall support this effort in the following ways:

· The Contractor shall facilitate scope discussions with VBA leadership and other key stakeholders including representatives from other initiatives, field operations, and OIT. The scope discussions shall be completed during the planning phase -- approximately three to nine months before Priority execution. These discussions shall result in detailed scope documentation that provides, at a minimum, the following information:

· Epic Name, Summary and Value Statement

· KPI, Future state process, proposed solution

· In scope/Out of scope

· Non-Functional Requirements and integration considerations

· The Contractor shall facilitate scope discussions with VBA leadership and other key stakeholders including representatives from other initiatives, field operations, and OIT. The scope discussions shall be completed during the planning phase -- approximately three to nine months before Priority execution.

· Develop and track Business Epic development and status reports (including risks, recommendations, etc) for leadership decision. Provide informational sessions on sAFE methodology to aid VBA stakeholders in the completion and refinements of Business scope.

· Provide program management support and overall tracking of VBA Investments through the lifecycle from intake to implementation.

· Provide strategic planning, goal setting and tactical roadmaps in support of BIM Functional lanes in support and maturation of VBA Investment Planning and Management.

· Provide problem solving techniques (rapid process improvement event) to lines of Business/Staff offices in framing improvement opportunities as part of the Priority Intake process. Leverage Lean Six sigma capabilities to better understand pain points and determine improvement areas for high return on investment.

· Develop and sustain value stream maps with a visual representation of process steps and activities that VBA, OBI and OIT execute to implement IT solutions as part of fiscal and multi-year planning. These outputs should include the length of time it takes to execute, process owners and handoffs.

· Facilitate pre-intake sessions with Lines of Business to capture process and performance improvement opportunities.

· Facilitate SAFe training sessions (3-4 per year) with an ICAgile certified SAFe coach to support VBA teams through SAFe implementation. Provide additional (2-3) refresher training sessions for all VBA stakeholder on an annual basis.

4.4.1 Task Four Deliverables: Process Execution and Management: Scope, Design, Integration, Automation, & Strategic Metrics and Monitoring Management.

4.4.1.1 VBA Priority Intake

ID:

Deliverable:

Description:

Cadence:

4.4.1.1.1

Monthly Scope/Epic Management Report – For leadership

This report provides a summary of findings, risks and pending decisions needed from leadership from the development, refinement of Priority scope, KPIs and solutioning considerations.

Monthly

4.4.1.1.2

Weekly Scope/Epic Update Report – for Team syncs

This report provides a team driven…