ETSNext RFI Industry QA Worksheet version 2 01062022.xlsx

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E-Gov Travel Service Next Generation (ETSNext) Request for Information
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47QMCB23N0003
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Sheet1

Government File NameFile Section No. & NamePage #Referenced TextQuestion/CommentGovernment Official Response
Statement of ObjectivesC.2.5 Comply with required security policies for all relevant data and systemsn/an/aDo you anticipate that any other level other than moderate would be required?As of this RFI, GSA expects it to remain at the moderate level. We are continuing to meet with agencies in FY23 to align any underlying needs for agency security needs.
Statement of ObjectivesAttachment 4 - Requirements Traceability Matrixn/an/aHave agencies had a chance to review the whole RTM?The T&E Business Standards portions was a cross-government effort over multiple years. The modernization, architecture, and unique portions of the RTM were all developed based on many conversations with industry and agencies and we are having regular conversations and meetings. We welcome both agency and industry feedback and thoughts on any specific item in the RTM and will continue to socialize. We are continuing to meet with agencies in FY23 to gather up additional underlying needs not addressed in the Governmentwide standards.
n/an/aDo you have current transaction time averages for that user experience so that we can manage to that expectation?Based on 2016 user feedback and subject matter expert input on typical processing time for low and high complexity travel reservation, authorization, and voucher scenarios, current ETS2 transaction time is estimated to be between 84-200 minutes (142 minute average) per transaction. This includes reservation, authorization, voucher creation and approvals at multiple layers. Improvements have been implemented with ETS2 since this information was gathered, and the actual baselines for each agency can vary significantly by current state agency-level configuration and customizations. We are seeking industry input on the best way to measure and track improvements for desired time on task improvements over the life of ETSNext as part of this RFI.
CGI ETSNext FM StrategyAppendix 10n/an/aWhen reviewing the Financial Management Strategy Options document, Appendix 10 includes references to attached documents. The embedded documents do not open from the PDF. Can those be shared or uploaded as separate files on SAM?Yes, the following files are posted for reference.

1) MITRE Solution-Service Strategy

2) Data Management Lesson Learned

3) GSA ETSNext Cost/Beneft Risk Analysis

Please note, the MITRE Solution-Service Strategy was not intended as guidance to industry, but for agencies to use when acquiring solutions and services using the Federal Integrated Business Framework.

Request for Information 2 Information Requested 14 How does your solution manage travel data quality and consistency (ensuring that there are consistent low fare entries, reason code entries, standardization of organizational names) What current data quality practices are in place for GSA and these systems today? There are standard reason code entries as defined by the FTR. Data quality and consistency has been a challenge in ETS2 in other areas such as the ones mentioned (consistent low fare entries, standardization of organizational names) due to two ETS2 vendors and varying configurations/ customizations by each agency as well as multiple TMC's, multiple GDS entries, etc.

Within the T&E Business Standards, efforts were made to define data values and sources of truth (e.g., refering to census data for city names, listings of government department and bureau codes, etc) that the vendor can use to normalize data either within the transaction via API or on an extract to their reporting or the government-wide data lake.

Request for Information2 Information Requested14How does your solution manage travel data quality and consistency (ensuring that there are consistent low fare entries, reason code entries, standardization of organizational names)Does GSA have a governance framework in place and standards, requirements, and specifications defined for data quality controls?The T&E Business Standards are designed to serve as the content framework of which specifications and data quality controls will be governed. Any changes to the standards will need to be approved by Office of Governmentwide Policy (OGP). We are still defining how that governance process will be administered, and asking for feedback on the recommended design.
Request for Information2 Information Requested14How does your solution manage travel data quality and consistency (ensuring that there are consistent low fare entries, reason code entries, standardization of organizational names)How does GSA monitor and report on data quality levels today?Each agency has task orders directly with their ETS2 vendor and in some cases TMCs, and data quality issues are monitored via those contract requirements. When there have been issues that cascade across agencies, the ETS2 GSA PMO team has intervened and worked with the ETS2 providers for improvements. The degree of improvements have a number of impacting constraints related to ETS2 architecture design by each vendor, and degree of agency customizations. With a single enterprise-wide, centralized platform, we believe there is significant opportunity to improve capabilities in this area.
Statement of ObjectivesC.2.4.2 Data Aggregation and Extracts18The contractor shall ensure data is routinely available and accessible for extraction to GSA’s Data Lake and/or Federal agency data warehouses upon request for use by Federal agency Senior
Travel Officials, other agency executives, managers, policy makers and Governmentwide programs.What interval do these data extractions occur (e.g., daily, weekly) as part of the current system?Current ETS2 data extractions vary by data source in the current environment. It is primarily monthly with some being quarterly.

For ETSNext, we believe a daily feed is appropriate goal (pending further input from industry on approach to deliver to this type of requirement and related costs, etc)

Statement of ObjectivesC.2.4.2 Data Aggregation and Extracts18The contractor shall ensure data is routinely available and accessible for extraction to GSA’s Data Lake and/or Federal agency data warehouses upon request for use by Federal agency Senior
Travel Officials, other agency executives, managers, policy makers and Governmentwide programs.Is there a defined exchange standard that all ecosystem partners adhere to?We expect to work with the vendor to define a set of API services over https or PGP encrypted File over SFTP and standards that would give access to: user profile data, authorizations data, reservations (PNRs) voucher data and system UI data to help improve UX. As far as ecosystem partners, there may be standards around Passenger Name Records (PNRs) that we could leverage, and we would be open to leveraging other commercial standards if available.
Request for Information3 Submission Instructions and Formatting Requests16GSA will host a virtual-only Industry Open House to discuss the RFI and additional materials on December 15 at 1pm ET via Zoom.Will GSA consider posting materials that were presented during the virtual Industry Day?GSA held “Office Hours” on 12/15/2022 to provide an overview of the second request for Information (RFI) and draft Statement of Objectives (SOO) for ETSNext. The presentation (pdf posted on Interact) and the link to the video for the session are now available.

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