Attachment J - Questions and Answers.xlsx
XLSX spreadsheet 36 KB Posted
- Attached to
- R408--TED Specialized and Strategic Services Federal contract opportunity
- Solicitation number
- 36C10X20R0047
About this file
This is a draft solicitation for an indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract and corresponding task order for specialized and strategic support services for the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Transition and Economic Development. The base period of performance for the ID/IQ contract is 12 months starting in November 2020 with four 12-month option periods, for a total potential performance period of five years. The solicitation seeks proposals to provide program management office support, strategic planning assistance, event planning, legislative support, curriculum development for the Transition Assistance Program and Military Life Cycle modules, and program evaluation services. The closing date for proposals is August 26, 2020. This procurement is set aside for service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses. All questions regarding this solicitation must be submitted in writing by July 21, 2020.
View the file
Other files for this federal contract opportunity
Show all 42
On GovTribe
Work with this file on GovTribe
- Download the original file
- Contacts named in this file
- Similar government files
- Ask GovTribe AI about this file
Text version
Sheet1
| Question # | Reference | Question | Answer | |
| 1 | Attachment A | Task Order 0001 Key Personnel, pg 40 | Attachment A requires the same Program Manager to support the overall IDIQ and task order 0001. Pursuant to the complexity and stakeholder coordination required to complete each task, as addressed under Section 6 (Task Statement), to include developing Task Order packages, defining schedules, documenting and overseeing all management processes, and conducting weekly and monthly reporting, would the Government please additionally require a Project Manager as KEY Personnel for task order 0001? Consistent with Attachment G and the specialized nature of task order 0001, the Program may benefit from a Project Manager that offers 10 or more years of experience, a BA/BS degree, and is certified in at least two directly relevant specialties (e.g., Project Management Professional, Prosci Certified Change Management Practitioner, etc.). | This will remain unchanged. Vendor may propose additional labor categories, but Sr. PM will be the one Key. |
| 2 | Attachment B | RFP, Pg 51 / E.4 "The Offeror shall use Attachment B…" | The VA has provided Attachment B for use in developing the response to the RFP. Is the VA open to offerors recreating the attachment in Word, to enable inclusion of tables in the development and submission of final content? This accommodation would enhance the readability of proposal materials and facilitate review and scoring. | Attachment B must remain unchanged. The Offeror may submit additional documentation to support their experience. |
| 3 | Attachment B | Will the government confirm corporate experience write up in Attachment B is not limited to the 3 Past Performance references we will use in Attachment E? | Correct, it is not limited to references on Attachment E | |
| 4 | Attachment B | Is Attachment B due the same day and time as the Offer Due Date (8/26/2020, 12 PM), and not before? | Correct due on the proposal due date in Box 8 of the solicitation | |
| 5 | Attachment B | Will experience from individuals employed by our team be evaluated as part of the Phase 1 experience section? | Experience of your firm (and/or teaming firms) will be evaluated, not individuals specifically. | |
| 6 | Attachment B | RFQ P. 51 | Regarding Volume I – Experience, could the Government clarify if the offeror is to use 1 singular experience that best represents work similar to the VA TED Specialized and Strategic Services Performance Work Statement, or are we to detail multiple experiences to show the offeror’s depth and breadth of experience across our team that comprehensively addresses the Performance Work Statement? | Use enough experiences to show your firm's (or teaming firm's) experience. |
| 7 | Attachment B | Can we use Key Personnel Experience to meet the requirements in Attachment B: Experience? | The Key Personnel must to be employed by the proposing firm (or teaming firm) or have a letter of commitment submited with your proposal. | |
| 8 | Attachment B | When completing Attachment B, Experience, If the offeror is a team, which company name goes in the OFFEROR NAME entry box? | The SDVOSB who is the prime firm or the Joint Venture | |
| 9 | Attachment B | Attachment B, Experience, it looks like the offeror can list more than one contract for experience. a. Can these experience contracts span across prime, and sub-contractors? b. If they can span across prime and sub-contractor, is there a number requirement or limit? c. Does the response require PPQs be submitted if the offeror or sub-contractor(s) have electronic CPARS in the federal system? | a. Yes, b. No limit, c. Not relevant to Attachment B. Past Performance and Experience are different volumes and will be assessed separately. | |
| 10 | Attachment C | Will the government release the draft Attachment C before RFP release? Is Attachment C the current or projected Level of Effort (LOE) for the tasks currently performed by BAH? If not, would you share the current and projected LOE for these tasks? | Attachment C will be release with the final solicitation. Requirements of Task Order 0001 are not currently being performed by BAH. Task Order 0001 Base Year shall meet the minimum set forth in FAR 52.216-19 Ordering Limitation. ($2.5M) | |
| 11 | Attachment C | Attachment C is required to be completed as part of the Volume III proposal submission and is listed as an Attachment. It does not seem to be included in the Solicitation Package. Can this be provided? | See Answer 10 | |
| 12 | Attachment F | Will the government release the draft format for Attachment F before RFP release? Is there a requirement to price each IDIQ Labor Category? If so, does the government have a preferred format IDIQ Pricing? | Attachment F will be released with the final solicitation. Offeror will price the labor categories that correlate with their technical proposal. | |
| 13 | Attachment F | Attachment F is required to be completed as part of the Volume III proposal submission and is listed as an Attachment. It does not seem to be included in the Solicitation Package. Can this be provided? | See Answer 12 | |
| 14 | Attachment G | Page 56. Section 2.4 Price Evaluation Approach | 52.222-46 also states “proposed for the professional employees who will work under the contract.” However, the compensation spreadsheet provided by the Government asks for “Minimum Hourly” and “Minimum Hourly Fringe” for “professionals in this labor category in your company.” Would the Government please define ‘minimum’ as it relates to the clause? What is the percentile of wage ranges that is defined as minimum? Additionally, would the Government provide additional clarity as to what is expected related to this requirement for the Employee Compensation Attachment? | Attachment G has been updated. It is no longer an Employee Compensation Plan. The Offeror is to provide IDIQ pricing per the instruction on Attachment G and found in Section E.3 of the solicitation. |
| 15 | Attachment G | The Labor Categories tab includes several labor categories that include Junior and Senior positions; however, these two levels of positions are not included in the Compensation Plan tab. Please reconcile. | These level are now included in Attachment G | |
| 16 | Attachment G | Attachment G Column E asks for the “Minimum Total Hourly Rate” Does this mean the total minimum hourly rate paid as employee compensation including fringe or the Loaded Rate charged to the Government? | See Answer 14. | |
| 17 | Attachment G | Column E is titled “Minimum Total Hourly Rate”. The calculation in this column returns the total annual Salary, not the hourly rate. If an hourly rate is desired, how many hours does the Government utilized for a standard year in order to calculate the rate from total yearly compensation? Please clarify | See Answer 14. | |
| 18 | Attachment G | It appears that Attachment G Column E (Minimum Total Hourly Rate) represents the total of minimum hourly rate for direct labor and fringe, where Attachment F will include these costs, and also include indirect costs and fee/profit. For Attachment G, is our understanding correct that Minimum Total Hourly Rate is not intended to represent a fully burdened rate and should not include indirect costs and fee/profit, which will instead be included within the Attachment F price quote? | See Answer 14. | |
| 19 | Attachment G | In its discussion of the price evaluation approach associated with the Attachment G – Employee Compensation Plan in RFP Section E.5 paragraph 2.4 (a) the Government states it “will use the proposed Total Hourly Rate of those offeror’s with complete and accurate pricing to calculate an average Total Hourly Price.” This statement and evaluation approach associated with it suggests the Government is conflating the direct labor costs plus fringe benefits provided in Attachment G to support of the Government’s evaluation of the offerors Employee Compensation Plan with the fully burdened rates proposed in the offerors pricing of Task 1. The hourly rates provided in Attachment G, consistent with the requirements of FAR Part 52.222-46, include salary and fringe benefits, and not other indirect cost burdens normally associated with a fully burdened rate, such as overhead rates and G&A. Nor is the direct labor component of the Compensation Plan data comparable to the direct labor component of the fully burdened rates from which the task order pricing is developed. Generally, the Professional Compensation Plan data focuses on the baseline salary data for a position, or the “minimum” as it’s described in the header row of the first tab of Attachment G to establish quality and stability of the total work force deployed in support of the contract. However, given that the risk associated with ensuring the availability of appropriately qualified staff under fixed price and labor hour contracts rests with the offeror, the fully burdened rates generally cover a range of compensation above this baseline to ensure that all contract requirements are adequately covered with qualified staff. The utilization of Compensation Plan to establish evaluated pricing for the purposes of establishing best value reaches well beyond the intent of the plan described in FAR Part 52.222-46, and the data it provides isn’t valid for this purpose. | See Answer 14. | |
| 20 | Attachment G | Attachment G – Employee Compensation Plan | The Government refers to its Attachment G as an “Employee Compensation Plan”, and includes in its template labor categories that appear to be hourly labor categories (Administrative Assistant and Conference and Event Planner), but cites FAR Parts 22.1103 and 52.222-46 which address the compensation of professional employees specifically, as the underlying FAR requirement. Will the Government adjust the Attachment G? | See Answer 14. |
| 21 | Attachment G | Attachment G - Employee Compensation Plan | Attachment G requests Compensation and Fringe benefits to be presented on an hourly basis. Professional employees, as defined in 29 CFR 541, are compensated on a “salary or fee basis” – and are specifically not compensated hourly like FLSA non-exempt employees are. In accordance with the methods by which professional employees are compensated, We respectfully recommend that the Attachment G – Employee Compensation Plan be adjusted such that offerors provide the minimum annual salary and minimum annual fringe benefits anticipated to be paid for each IDIQ labor category. | See Answer 14. |
| 22 | Attachment G | Volume V – Price and Attachment G – Employee Compensation Plan. | The FAR clause governing the Professional Employee Compensation Plan, FAR 52.222-46, states “professional employees, as defined in 29 CFR 541…” FAR 22.1102 Definition, states, ““Professional employee,” as used in this subpart, means any person meeting the definition of “employee employed in a bona fide . . . professional capacity” given in 29 CFR 541. The term embraces members of those professions having a recognized status based upon acquiring professional knowledge through prolonged study. Examples of these professions include accountancy, actuarial computation, architecture, dentistry, engineering, law, medicine, nursing, pharmacy, the sciences (such as biology, chemistry, and physics, and teaching). To be a professional employee, a person must not only be a professional but must be involved essentially in discharging professional duties.” This goes above and beyond just a FLSA-exempt employee, but specifically identifies professions which typically come with professional licensing (accountancy, actuarial, architecture, dentistry, engineering, law, medicine, nursing, etc.). Digging further into 29 CFR 541 where professional employees are further defined, employees are bucketed into four types: Learned Professionals, Creative professionals, Teachers, and Practice of Law or Medicine. Learned Professionals (29 CFR 541.301) are specifically defined as meeting three tests: (1) The employee must perform work requiring advanced knowledge; (2) The advanced knowledge must be in a field of science or learning; and (3) The advanced knowledge must be customarily acquired by a prolonged course of specialized intellectual instruction. The CFR continues - “The phrase “field of science or learning” includes the traditional professions of law, medicine, theology, accounting, actuarial computation, engineering, architecture, teaching, various types of physical, chemical and biological sciences, pharmacy and other similar occupations that have a recognized professional status as distinguished from the mechanical arts or skilled trades where in some instances the knowledge is of a fairly advanced type, but is not in a field of science or learning.” “The phrase “customarily acquired by a prolonged course of specialized intellectual instruction” restricts the exemption to professions where specialized academic training is a standard prerequisite for entrance into the profession. A number of professions are listed within the CFR, but none appear to align to the labor categories provided in attachment G. The CFR does state that “When an advanced specialized degree has become a standard requirement for a particular occupation, that occupation may have acquired the characteristics of a learned profession.” However, in review of the labor categories in Attachment G, some do not require a college degree at all, and none appear to meet the requirement of a specialized degree. Only one labor category requires an advanced degree, although not specialized. Therefore, we respectfully request that the labor categories be re-examined and compared to the definition of professional per the FAR and CFR, and that the government specifically identify which meet the tests outlined for professional employees as set out in 29 CFR 541 and its sub-parts. | See Answer 14. |
| 23 | Attachment G | From attachments provided, we understand Government only requires compensation data from Prime contractor and does not require the same data from subcontractors. Can government please confirm our understanding? If this assumption is incorrect, will government require sealed compensation rate proposals from subcontractors as well? | The Government requires the pricing to be submitted from the prime contractor. Subcontractor rates are based on prime /sub agreements and not submitted to the Government. They shall meet all requirements of regulation | |
| 24 | Attachment G | Are subcontractors required to submit a ECP and if so, can we have a template or do we use our own format? | Only the prime will submit Attachment G. | |
| 25 | Attachment G | Since Attachment G does not require submission of a fully loaded rate, how is the Total Price and ceiling rate derived for the IDIQ labor categories, particularly for those labor categories not used in the sample TO pricing? | Attachment G revised to include fully burdened rate. | |
| 26 | General | RFP, Pg 54 / E.5 Phase I and Phase II | The Evaluation factors indicate that Volume I is part of Phase I, and all other Volumes are part of Phase II. Are offerors going to submit all Phase I and Phase II artifacts concurrently, or will Phases I and II be staggered, with offerors notified after Phase I that they are proceeding to Phase II? | All phases shall be submitted by the date in Box 8 of the solicitation. Firms may be notified of inclusion or exclusion from Phase I at time of contract award. |
| 27 | General | OCI | Can VA confirm that if an offeror (as a Prime, Subcontractor, or member of a Joint Venture) who submitted an offer on TAP is precluded from submission as part of a bid for TED because of Impaired Objectivity OCI? | Only the awarded vendor, including subcontractors or teaming partners, will be precluded from submission. Reference OCI in PWS. |
| 28 | General | TAP | Does the VA anticipate a significant difference in anticipated LOE for tasks 4-7, from the current contract? | It will be dependent on the needs of each task order. |
| 29 | General | We noted on the form 1449 that an “Incumbent Contractor” is currently performing “Task Areas 4 – 7”. Therefore, does the bidding SDVOSB need to demonstrate the capabilities to manage Task Areas 1 - 7, or can we bid on singular tasks, i.e. Task Areas 1 - 3? | The Offeror must show the ability to perform all tasks areas in the base IDIQ PWS. | |
| 30 | General | Teaming | What is the process and timeline constraints for adding teaming partners after IDIQ award? | Joint venture and mentor/mentee arrangements must be in place prior to award. Teams or subcontractors used for Experience or Past Performance they must committed to the Prime at proposal submission. |
| 31 | General | N/A | Is there an incumbent supporting Task Areas 1-3? If so, could this information be provided to industry as well? | No current incumbent |
| 32 | General | Will delayed submission of the final RFP impact the ultimate deadline | The date in Box 8 has been updated | |
| 33 | General | Attachments | Will sample formats of all attachments needed for the submission be provided in the final RFP? | Yes |
| 34 | General | Key Personnel | Does the government expect more key personnel to be called out in the final RFP, and if so, what positions will those be? | For Task Order 0001, no. |
| 35 | General | TAP | The current TAP delivery contract that was released for competition is expected to run through 2022. Does the government intent to start a new period of performance when TED S&SS is released, so that both are running concurrently, or will there be overlap with the current TAP delivery incumbents? What interaction, if any, will the TED S&SS vendor have with the current and future TAP delivery vendor? | The current TAP contract is not through 2022. The current period of performance ends 11/15/2020. As this contract will be awarded after this date, there will be no overlap in work and no contractor interaction. The TAP recompete has an end date of 9/14/2025. Regarding the new contractor, there may be interaction depending on the scope of future task orders. Please reference the OCI clause in the solicitation. |
| 36 | General | QASP | Does the government expect a Quality Assurance, or Quality Management Plan (QASP, or QMP) to be a part of the response strategy? | No, QASP will be defined on each task order. The QASP for Task Order 0001 is in the PWS |
| 37 | General | RFP, Pg 50 / E.4 | May offerors propose the submission of additional Key Personnel resumes as part of their proposals and would these be subject to the Key Personnel and Letter of Commitment requirements. | The Offeror must only submit one resume per the key personnel required. |
| 38 | Past Performance | p. 52, section E.4 Volume IV – Past Performance | The description of the contents for Volume I Experience states: The use of partners, subcontractors, mentor, and/or joint venture is acceptable for this experience. Is the same true for Volume IV Past Performance? | Yes |
| 39 | Past Performance | Volume IV Past Performance, 3rd paragraph, Page 52 | RFP states: “Offerors may also submit past performance information regarding predecessor companies and subcontractors that will perform major or critical aspects of the requirement when such information is relevant to this acquisition.” Is major subcontractor’s Past Performance in addition to the 3 relevant contracts identified above? | Subcontractors are included in the limit of three (3). |
| 40 | Past Performance | Volume IV Past Performance, 4th paragraph, Page 53 | RFP States: “New corporate entities may submit data on prior contracts involving its officers and employees who are proposed as key personnel.” If we anticipate a new entity owner as key personnel on a future task order, can their experience be submitted as Past Performance? | Must be Key Personnel proposed on the base ID/IQ. |
| 41 | Past Performance | Section 2.3 PAST PERFORMANCE EVALUATION APPROACH, 5th Paragraph, Page 56 | RFP states: “Finally, the Government may not consider references that do not have a corresponding PPQ.” This conflicts with "All contracts listed that have a PPIRS report do not require a Past Performance Questionnaire (PPQ)." Please clarify. | This means past performance references submitted in Volume IV may not be considered if there is no CPARS and no corresponding PPQ. The second statement means that if the past performance reference is in CPARS, firm does not need to request a PPQ, just submit the PP volume. |
| 42 | Past Performance | Will the Government count Subcontractor past performance against the maximum limit of three submissions, or would they be considered in-addition? | See Answer 39. | |
| 43 | Past Performance | Will the Government require three past performance submissions from the Prime offeror, or will it be acceptable to submit Subcontractor past performance under the limit of three | See Answer 39. | |
| 44 | Past Performance | SF 1449, pg 53. New corporate entities may submit data on prior contracts involving its officers and employees who are proposed as key personnel. | Please define "new corporate entities" that would be acceptable to the VA. For example, if a company has been in business for 5 years and doesn’t have the experience at the contract level, but the Sr. PM proposed has the expertise and knowledge to successfully support the program, would this be acceptable as a "new corporate entity"? | See language in RFP regarding KP as new corporate entities. |
| 45 | Pricing | E.4 Volume V – Price | Volume V – Price states, “The Offeror must propose hourly rates for each labor category for each period of performance,” however, Attachment G is a compensation template and provide a table for MINIMUM hourly compensation and fringe rates which does not allow offerors to propose fully burdened hourly rates for each labor category. For the sake of proposal hourly rates, will the Government provide an attachment for an IDIQ ceiling rate card proposal for this IDIQ? | See Answer 14. |
| 46 | Pricing | General Pricing and Labor Categories | Given that TED is a newly formed office and this contract is intended to support the strategic services of this office over the next 5 years, the Government should consider including a clause that allows the Government to add Labor Categories and rates post contract award at the task order level, to ensure that the contract is able to support emerging and future needs of TED. | Any changes to the labor categories will be processed through a contract modification. |
| 47 | Pricing | Page 56. Section 2.4 Price Evaluation Approach | Offerors are required to submit two pricing sheets: Attachment F which presents fully burdened rates for Task Order 1 and presumably, a total price based on the LOE proposed for the Sample Task Order in Attachment C. Attachment G, which provides an Employee compensation plan. Pricing Evaluation Criteria will evaluate the offerors “Total Price.” Since Attachment G does not require submission of a fully loaded rate, how is the Total Price and ceiling rate derived for the IDIQ labor categories, particularly for those labor categories not used in the sample TO pricing? | See Answer 14. |
| 48 | Pricing | Section 2.4 PRICE EVALUATION APPROACH, 1st Paragraph, Page 56 | RFP states: “Price realism will be evaluated utilizing competition using the technique above, market research, or other resources such as Salary.com to evaluate proposed prices on the Employee Compensation Plan.” What is meant by the terms “utilizing competition”? | This wording has been updated in Section 2.3 of the Solicitation. |
| 49 | Pricing | Are offerors to propose pricing for the effort in Task Order 0001 in Volume III or should offerors price the effort of Task Area 1 based on an anticipated future state of the program? If the latter, will the Government consider the release of information regarding future task orders to adequately estimated Task Area 1 pricing? | No pricing is to be submitted in non-pricing Volumes. Price Task Order 0001 based on Attachment A, Volume III approach, but submit with Volume V Price. | |
| 50 | Pricing | Could the government please clarify which element of the offeror’s proposed price will be used in the overall IDIQ source selection, to determine which offeror’s proposal is the most advantageous to the government? For example, will the Total Hourly Price alone be used in the determination of “most advantageous proposal,” or will the Total Hourly Price be combined with the TO 0001 price in some way? | The labor rates proposed for the IDIQ will be evaluated for price realism and price reasonableness. The total pricing for Task Order 0001 will be evaluated for price reasonableness. See Answer 48. | |
| 51 | Pricing | Will the Government accept proposals with both Client and Contractor-site rates to allow for maximum flexibility over the life of the IDIQ? The spreadsheet in Attachment G only allows for a single rate. | There is a single rates as a majority of the work will be completed at the Contractor’s site. | |
| 52 | Proposal | 3.1 Task Area 1 Program Management Office Support, pg. 9 | As this task area is nearly identical to the requirements to be covered in Volume III Task Order, does the Government expect minimal discussion of approach for this task area in Volume II and the main response in Volume III? | Please propose as you deem necessary within the given page limitation for your proposed approach |
| 53 | PWS | 2.7 OCI | Paragraph 2.7 states any prime or subcontractor, on this contract is precluded from supporting the VA TAP Contract in any way. Considering the VA TAP solicitation is in source selection, does the TED SSS solicitation preclude any prime or subcontractor who pursued the VA TAP solicitation from teaming on VA TED SSS solicitation? | The TAP recompete has been awarded. See Answer 27. |
| 54 | PWS | 3.1.1, page 10 | The RFP States: 3.1.1 Contract Management Plan, The Contractor shall prepare a Contract Management Plan to ensure that the Contractor’s staff (including any subcontractor staff) follow project plans established in support of the work performed under each task order. This requirement does not appear in Attachment 1, Task Order 0001 PWS. Inasmuch as Task Order 0001 is designed to satisfy the requirements of IDIQ Task Area 1, is this deliverable required for Task order 0001? | The deliverables for Task Order 0001 are located in Attachment A. The IDIQ PWS is a framework but Attachment A states the specific requirements for the task order. See update to 3.1.1 |
| 55 | Attachment A | 3.1.1, page 10 | In Section 6 Task Statement, there is no reference to 3.1.1 Contract Management Plan or 3.1.2 Monthly Activity and Financial Status Reports. Does the Government not require vendors to describe their approach for those two functions in Volume III Task Order? | See Answer 54. |
| 56 | PWS | 3.1.1, page 10 | The RFP states: 3.1.1 Monthly Activity and Financial Status Reports, The Contractor shall provide separate written Monthly Activity and Financial Status reports that monitor the progress, cost, schedule, quality assurance, and management applicable to the task orders issued under this PWS. Inasmuch as Task Order 0001 is designed to satisfy the requirements of IDIQ Task Area 1, the deliverable requirements for the monthly report stated in the PWS for Task order 0001 as different, and do not include financial information. Please clarify. | See Answer 54. |
| 57 | PWS | 3.2.2, pg 11, The Contractor shall provide support of organizational strategic planning, including the development of strategic goals, objectives, strategies, performance measures, targets, improved performance outcomes, supporting operational plans, and linkages to programming, budgeting, and evaluations. | What is the organization's level of maturity relative to strategic planning? What are some of the major initiatives that would impact the strategic goals of the organization? | The organization is fully-operational and consistently assesses the most impactful initiatives on the organization which are derived from new statutory, policy, and leadership-directed program requirements. This is done as part of a continuous operational and strategic planning process that maintains alignment with both VBA and VA strategic goals and objectives. |
| 58 | PWS | 3.2.4, pg 11, The Contractor shall also support all activities associated with organizational change, including but not limited to, the implementation of major initiatives, risk assessments, and organizational transformation and culture change. Tasks may include, but not limited to, developing plans associated with transition management, implementation of major initiatives, communications associated with major initiatives, risk assessment, and organizational transformation and culture change; completing change management assessments and change management strategy; identifying and managing anticipated resistance; creating actionable deliverables, such as a communication plan, roadmap, coaching plan, training plan, and resistance management planning; supporting and engaging senior leaders; supporting organizational design and definition of roles and responsibilities; integrating change management activities into project plans that support daily operational activities, and evaluating and ensuring user readiness; managing stakeholders; tracking and reporting issues; defining and measuring success metrics and monitoring change progress. | What are the types of initiatives currently being considered or planned that would involve org change management support? For example, org restructuring, changes/expansion in organizational responsibilities, changes in service delivery model, etc.? | As the Office of Transition and Economic Development serves as the Department's authority on all policy and operational programmatic efforts related to the transition of Service members from military service to civilian life, the organization consistently evaluates pending and enacted legislative, policy, and leadership-directed program requirements against the existing organizational structure to consider any changes necessary to maintain an adaptable, efficient, and accountable organization structure. |
| 59 | PWS | 3.3.2, pg 12, The Contractor shall develop and support TED in planning, preparation, execution, and follow-up after actions of conferences, seminars, and events planning by providing event planning services and materials that can be presented and/or provided to participants of these events. | What is the estimated average number of events that TED will host on annual basis? What is the scope and scale of the events? | Unknown at this time. |
| 60 | PWS | 3.4.1, pg 13, Support the drafting and coordination of monthly Congressionally directed actions, legislative referral memos, development of executive-level status reports, documentation, briefings to include preparing timely responses (emails, letters, etc.) to requests for information, communications from other federal agencies regarding TAP. | What is the anticipated volume of actions, memos, reports, etc. on a monthly basis? | Based on historical averages, the Office of Transition and Economic Development experiences cyclical volume based on Congressional and budgetary cycles, with the average per-month volume of actions, memos, reports, and related briefings being in the vicinity of 10 legislative activities (Views, technical assistance, professional staff briefings, and testimony) and approximately 30-50 formal correspondences to internal and external executive stakeholders. |
| 61 | PWS | 3.4.2, pg 14, In support of TED’s strategic integration for formalized, non-TAP governance structures, the Contractor shall perform the following tasks: | What are the current non-TAP governance structures and the related programs? | Existing non-TAP governance structures include the VA-DoD Joint Executive Committee, the PREVENTS Task Force, the Executive Order 13822 Joint Action Plan Task Force, and the National Council for the American Worker. |
| 62 | PWS | 3.5, pg 14, • Provide analysis and recommendations for policy improvement related to the TAP MLC, traditional TAP courses, including VA Benefits and Services, Entrepreneurship, Education, and assist in analysis, evaluation, and the continuing improvement of the TAP Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to ensure alignment with interagency TAP policies and guidelines. • Support the drafting and coordination of monthly congressionally directed actions, legislative referral memo, development of executive-level status reports, documentation, briefings to include preparing timely responses (emails, letters, etc.) to requests for information, communications from other federal agencies regarding TAP. • Review, support the establishment of, maintain, and provide clear, consistent, and detailed schematics, directives, and standard operating procedures in support of interagency TAP governance. The Contractor shall identify redundancies, clarify, streamline and/or expand policies and procedures. | This task appears to be duplicative to the description provided in section 3.4.1. Please clarify the differences between the two. | Sections 3.5 and 3.4.1 revised to delete repetition. |
| 63 | PWS | 3.6.1 TAP Curriculum and Materials Development | a. Will the government be providing any current curriculum materials as part of the solicitation, or are those a provision post award? b. Is the TAP curriculum currently presented online? c. Does the contractor provide the Virtual Classroom as described, "Delivery of the VA Benefits and Services online curriculum can be live, instructor-led (i.e. utilizing a virtual classroom)" d. What are the current DoD approved Talent Management Systems or Training Platforms? e. What is the minimum computer hardware and software requirement specifications for course participants for live, web-based and virtual training? | a. Existing VA TAP curriculum can be found at https://www.benefits.va.gov/transition |
b. Yes.
c. No - the contractor shall provide the virtual classroom curriculum and the TAP Operations contract shall execute should the virtual curriculum be instructor-led.
d. Joint Knowledge Online and any service-specific platform implemented by the individual military services.
e. Currently-approved JKO virtual training can be designed by Articulate 360 or other similar software.
| 64 | PWS | 3.6.1 TAP Curriculum and Materials Development | In order to provide VA with flexibility to consider alternate solutions to best serve transitioning service members, the VA may want to consider removing the reference to "shall last no longer than a full day (not to exceed 8 hours of instructor contact)" from the VA Benefits and Services TAP briefing. This will allow VA the flexibility to explore additional options around developing a sound and effective TAP training program. The Government may want to consider re-framing the reference in length to "which has historically lasted no longer than a full day (not exceeding 8 hours of instructor contact).” | This is a statutory requirement defined by VA policy and consistent with the TAP Operations contract. |
| 65 | PWS | 3.6.1, pg 15, The Contractor shall support developing learning objectives, evaluation criteria, and a general course outline for the curriculum of the VA Benefits and Services TAP briefing with the collaboration of the TED curriculum team. | What is the expectation for coordination and interaction with the TAP Operations contractor to train and gather feedback on TAP curriculum effectiveness? Does this scope of work include training benefits advisors to deliver the TAP curriculum? | The Government will conduct a majority of the interaction and will collect data to share between the Contractors. There may be circumstances where they may be interaction between Contractors. No, there is no training in this contract. |
| 66 | PWS | 3.6.2 and 3.6.4 | Sections 3.6.2 and 3.6.4 of the PWS indicate that both Technical Reviews and Deep Dive Reviews are for finding and fixing defects to ensure that all course content and materials remain current and relevant. Can you please clarify the difference between a Technical Review and a Deep Dive review? | A technical review finds and fixes defects to ensure that all course content and materials remain current and relevant whereas a deep dive review consists of performing an extensive analysis of the curriculum. A deep dive review may or may not result in a complete redesign of the curriculum structure depending on the comprehensive analysis. |
| 67 | PWS | 3.6.2 TAP Curriculum and Materials Revision | a. Request the Govt make these modules available to Offerors as part of the RFP process b. We see that VASS is a part of Strategic Support Services, but not PCPG. Can you explain how related efforts are aligned to this initiative? c. Does the government expect that Post Separation TAP be included into this initiative? d. How is the new coverage period for Veterans post separation effected to impact this initiative? | a. Existing VA TAP curriculum can be found at https://www.benefits.va.gov/transition |
b. PCPG is executed in a separate contract similar to TAP operations. Similarly, wrap-around project support to PCPG (except for execution) is within scope of the Specialized and Strategic Support contract.
c. No. PSTAP is executed in a separate contract. However, analysis and evaluation using PSTAP outcomes may be incorporated as part of this initiative.
d. TED ensures that all non-TAP activities, including those in the post-separation period, is incorporated into the scope of its functions in support of Service members, Veterans, and their families throughout the entire transition experience.
| 68 | PWS | 3.6.2 TAP Curriculum and Materials Revision states, “The alternating year cycle consists of conducting one technical review and one deep dive review of the existing curriculum.” | Can the Government please clarify what consists of a deep dive review? | See Answer 66. |
| 69 | PWS | 3.6.3 Military Life Cycle Module Curriculum Materials Development | a. Is the MLC curriculum currently presented online? b. Does the contractor provide the Virtual Classroom, as described, Delivery of the MLC online curriculum can be live, instructor-led (i.e. utilizing a virtual classroom)" c. What are the current DoD approved Talent Management Systems or Training Platforms? d. What is the minimum computer hardware and software requirement specifications for course participants for live, web-based and virtual training? | See Answer 63. |
| 70 | PWS | 3.6.3, pg 15, The Contractor shall support developing learning objectives, evaluation criteria, and a general course outline for the curriculum of the VA Military Life Cycle Modules with the collaboration of the TED curriculum team. | What is the expectation for coordination and interaction with the TAP Operations contractor to train and gather feedback on MLC curriculum effectiveness? Does this scope of work include training benefits advisors to deliver the MLC curriculum? | See Answer 65. |
| 71 | PWS | 3.6.4 Military Life Cycle Module Curriculum Materials Revision | Request the Govt make these modules available to Offerors as part of the RFP process. What is the expected percentage of content that will need to be updated each year, as it relates to 3.6.2 and 3.6.4 and what are the expected timelines for development and implementation? | Existing VA TAP curriculum can be found at https://www.benefits.va.gov/transition. Based on historical averages, technical reviews and revisions occur on a recurring basis across all curriculum and deep dive changes occur upon major legislative changes or every two years in accordance with the TAP curriculum materials revision cycle. Technical edits can have an expected timeline of days (for minor or emergency edits) to an average timeline of approximately 3 months. |
| 72 | PWS | 3.7.1, pg 16, The Contractor shall support measuring program effectiveness to include reviewing objectives, recommend evaluation criteria, collecting data, synthesizing data, drafting reports and support in the implementation of results. | What is the expectation for coordination and interaction with the TAP Operations contractor to gather data and develop reports about TAP performance? | See Answer 65. |
| 73 | PWS | What is the difference between the 3.6.1 VA TAP curriculum and the 3.6.3 MLC Curriculum Modules? | 3.6.1 VA TAP curriculum is the full-day VA Benefits and Services TAP briefing that is part of the related TAP activities, curriculum, resources, and services provided to enable eligible Service members to attain the career readiness standards established by the respective military services (as described in Section 1.3 of the PWS). VA Military Life Cycle Modules are 60-minute modular, interactive, activity based and facilitated events that are topic based. Both the VA Benefits and Services TAP briefing and the VA Military Life Cycle modules can be found at https://www.benefits.va.gov/transition | |
| 74 | PWS | Will ODCs include any costs for contractor provided virtual learning platforms? | No. | |
| 75 | PWS | If emerging requirements occur, how often do they occur, as they relate to the cycle of continual reviews that will allow for responsiveness to immediate issues and risks. | See Answer 71. | |
| 76 | PWS | 2.6, pg 8, Work performed under this contract shall adhere to the operating status of the place of performance and shall not occur when the government office is closed (i.e. inclement weather). | Does this statement preclude work under the contract when the place of performance is physically closed but government staff are teleworking? This would include instances of inclement weather - e.g., snow days, as well as the current coronavirus restrictions. | Section 2.6 revised. |
File details come from the government source that posted it. Updated .