2.5.1 70B06C24R00000019 A00001 Attachment 3- Q&A.xlsx

XLSX spreadsheet 51 KB Posted May 21, 2024

Attached to: U. S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Office of Trade (OT) Professional Workforce Support Services (PWSS)
Solicitation number: 70B06C24R00000019
Issued by: Department of Homeland Security Customs and Border Protection

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Written by GovTribe AI · May 21, 2024

This is a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Office of Trade (OT) Professional Workforce Support Services (PWSS) contract. The RFP outlines a two-phase evaluation process, with Phase I focused on the offeror's prior experience and Phase II evaluating the offeror's technical and management approach, as well as pricing. The government is seeking an offeror with experience in workforce and succession planning, data-driven strategy formulation and analytical support, and business transformation. Pricing will be evaluated based on fully burdened labor hour rates, with an extrapolation for the Option to Extend Services. The government anticipates awarding a single IDIQ contract worth between $14-16 million per year. Proposals for Phase I are due on May 29, 2023 at 10am ET.

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File	Type	Posted
2.5.1 70B06C24R00000019 A00003.pdf	PDF	Jul 3, 2024
2.5.1 70B06C24R00000019 A00003 Attachment 4- Phase II Q&A.xlsx	XLSX spreadsheet	Jul 3, 2024
2.5.1 70B06C24R00000019 A00002.pdf	PDF	May 23, 2024
2.5.1 70B06C24R00000019 A00001.pdf	PDF	May 21, 2024
2.1.1 70B06C24R00000019 Attachment 2- Statement of Work- PWSS.pdf	PDF	May 8, 2024
2.1.1 70B06C24R00000019.pdf	PDF	May 8, 2024
2.1.1 70B06C24R00000019 Attachment 1- Schedule of Services.xlsx	XLSX spreadsheet	May 8, 2024

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Q&A

	Request for Propsal (RFP) 70B06C24R00000019
	Professional Workforce Support Services
	Amendment A00001- Attachment 3 Question & Answer
	#	Document	Pg. #	Section	Reference/Section	Question	Government Response	Changes to RFP Documents
	1	N/A	N/A	N/A	General	Is this a re-compete or a new project? If re-compete, who is the incumbent.	Office of Trade (OT) is receiving some of the services through Office of Finance (OF) Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA) 70B03C20A00000017 with Guidehouse, however, due to the inclusion of additional scope in the planned SOW for this contract that is not included in the OF contract, this is being treated as a new effort with no incumbent.	None.
	2	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Would it be acceptable to submit one PDF file that contains Cover Letter (2 pages), Completed SF1449 and SF30 (if applicable) forms, Provisions and Prior Experience (max 6 pages)? Or are offerors expected to submit individual PDF files for each requested item?	The Government did not specify and will not mandate that files be submitted as one or separate, but prefers that these are submitted as separate files.	None.
	3	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Also, we will not make Assumptions or take Exceptions, and Dependencies. In this case, are we expected to include a statement about this? And if so, is it acceptable to include this in the PDF file(s) or the pricing (Excel) file?	If no assumptions, exceptions, or dependencies are taken, then no statement is required. If offerors do not clearly state any assumptions, exceptions, or dependencies in their submissions, CBP will assume none are taken.	None.
	4	N/A	N/A	N/A	With reference to the Solicitation# 70B06C24R00000019, for past experience the requirement in the RFP is that: "The work shall be ongoing or shall have been completed in the last three (3) years from the release date of this solicitation".	We request that this timeframe be modified to allow offerors to include past experience within the past 4 or 5 yrs.	The Government will not be changing this requirement.	None.
	5	SOW	SOW	8.1	Section 8.1 Background Investigations (4th Paragraph) states that "All key personnel listed in the IDIQ or Task Order shall have a current CBP BI (full or limited) prior to initiating performance of services. The date of any current or previous CBP BI shall be listed on the resumes of the key personnel"	Does the CBP BI need to be active currently or just before the start of work date, meaning if the key personnel does not currently hold the CBP BI but can obtain one before the start of the contract would that be acceptable?	Yes.	None.
	6	RFP	Pg. 43 & 47	Section III Solicitation	Proposal Preparation (page 43)
Phase II- Evaluation Factors and Instructions: Factor 4 - Initial Task Order Technical Approach (page 47)	On page 43, within the “PHASE II” table within “Proposal Preparation,” the Government indicates that Factor 2, Management Approach, is to be submitted via the “Oral Presentation w/supplemental biographical submission (resume) not to exceed two (2) pages.” It also indicates that Factor 4, Initial Task Order Technical Approach, is to be submitted with “No page limit on proposed level of effort and labor mix. Biographical submission (resumé) for Key Personnel not to exceed two (2) pages.”

On page 46, within “Factor 4- Initial Task Order Technical Approach,” the Government indicates “Offerors participating in Phase II will …prepare a technical approach …to present as part of their Phase II oral presentation.” Further, this section indicates, “Phase II oral presentation, to include a technical demonstration of a workforce planning dashboard.” The Government also indicates that “The oral presentation shall address the two (2) factors below” (i.e., Factor 3 Management, and Factor 4, Technical).

The table on page 43 only references “Oral Presentation” for Factor 3. Can the Government confirm that the Oral presentation, in addition the written submission identified as required for Task 4, will be used to evaluate Factor 4 as well?	Yes.	None.
	7	RFP	45-46	SECTION III Solicitation Provisions; III.1 Instructions to Offerors for Proposal Submission	Phase 1- Evaluation Factors and Instructions, Factor 1- Prior Experience	The Government states, “Experience demonstrated by the offeror in performing or managing efforts of similar type of work, size and complexity will be an important consideration in assessing the Government’s confidence in an offeror’s likelihood of successful performance.

Given the type of work, size, and complexity are important factors in assessing the Government’s level of confidence in the offeror, and the fact that Task Orders often involve multiple scope areas, will the Government consider rating Prior Experience examples that meet all three task areas with a higher level of confidence than examples that only align to one?	No.	None.
	8	RFP	45-46	SECTION III Solicitation Provisions; III.1 Instructions to Offerors for Proposal Submission	Phase 1- Evaluation Factors and Instructions, Factor 1- Prior Experience	Will the Government confirm that its confidence rating of the “type of work, size, and complexity” of each Prior Experience example will be related to the type of work, size, and complexity of the overall contract and not just the work example detailed within Prior Experience writeup?	The confidence rating will be assigned based on the information within the prior experience writeup.	None.
	9	RFP	46	SECTION III Solicitation Provisions; III.1 Instructions to Offerors for Proposal Submission	Phase 1- Evaluation Factors and Instructions, Factor 1- Prior Experience	The Government states, “ If the Offeror proposes a teaming arrangement, prior experience shall include prior teaming arrangements, if any, especially with the proposed teaming partners.”

We understand that the Government is interested in its offerors’ demonstrated, successful, prior teaming relationship(s) with its subcontractor(s). Given that some Prior Experience examples that demonstrate the offerors’ successful, prior teaming relationships with its subcontractor(s) may not align to the three task areas in the solicitation or may not be one of its highest aligning examples pertaining to type of work, size, and/or complexity of the Office of Trade Workforce planning effort, would the Government accept a fourth prior experience example to exemplify a proven teaming relationship in addition to the three Prior Experience examples aligning to the RFP task areas?	No. The Government is only willing to accept three prior experience samples.	None.
	10	RFP	46	Provisions; III.1 Instructions to Offerors for Proposal Submission	Phase 1- Evaluation Factors and Instructions, Factor 1- Prior Experience	For the second Prior Experience example, “Data Driven Strategy Formulation and Analytical Support,” the Government indicates “CBP is seeking an offeror who has experience with the development of predictive workload staffing models. Provide a recent example from a previous customer where the offeror developed and delivered a predictive workload staffing model with visualizations that enable leadership to make informed decisions.”

We understand the Government is seeking an example where the offeror developed and delivered a of predictive workload staffing model. If the offeror has additional examples where they developed and delivered other predictive modeling solutions, especially related to workforce planning within the same contract, demonstrating multiple proven successes of analytical, predictive modeling, will the Government evaluate the offeror with higher confidence in comparison to a prior experience with only one example of development of a workload staffing model? Or is the Government only seeking a single example of a predictive workload staffing model with visualizations to determine its confidence, and providing additional examples of predictive modeling solutions will not further influence the Government’s confidence in an offeror’s prior experience?	The Government does not prevent offerors from referencing a single example multiple times so long as the work is related to the task areas identified. However, CBP will not consider that more favorable as part of its evaluation.	None.
	11	RFP	46	Provisions; III.1 Instructions to Offerors for Proposal Submission	Phase 1- Evaluation Factors and Instructions, Factor 1- Prior Experience	For the third Prior Experience example, “Business Transformation” the Government instructs “Provide background information on a previous customer to validate the issues faced were similar to the above, and then detail the customer’s challenges, and the specific manner in which the offeror transformed business processes through the use of people, processes, and technologies to address those challenges, and the results of that effort.”

We understand the Government is seeking at least one example from each offeror’s delivery to a previous customer. If an offeror provides more than one example of relevant experience, within the same contract, demonstrating multiple proven successes, will the Government evaluate the offeror with higher confidence in comparison to a prior experience with only one example? Or is the Government only seeking a single example to determine its confidence, and providing additional examples will not further influence the Government’s confidence in an offeror’s prior experience?	The Government does not prevent offerors from referencing a single example multiple times so long as the work is related to the task areas identified. However, CBP will not consider that more favorable as part of its evaluation.	None.
	12	RFP	46 & 52	SECTION III Solicitation Provisions; III.1 Instructions to Offerors for Proposal Submission	Phase 1- Evaluation Factors and Instructions, Factor 1- Prior Experience & Evaluation Ratings	We understand the Government seeks prior and current teaming relationships where the prime offeror and the subcontractor have teamed together to produce positive results for a federal customer. As such, evidence of a successful partnership should be evaluated with more confidence as compared to a prior experience example that does not demonstrate a prior successful teaming relationship with the offeror’s proposed subcontractor(s). In assessing level of confidence that the offeror will successfully perform the requirements, will the Government consider viewing any Prior Experience with a successful teaming arrangement demonstrative of successful performance as more favorable, not simply the prior experience where the offeror was the prime contractor?	No.	None.
	13	RFP	47	SECTION III Solicitation Provisions; III.1 Instructions to Offerors for Proposal Submission	Phase II- Evaluation Factors and Instructions	We understand that Key Personnel submitted in Phase I will also be Key Personnel in Phase II. Will there be additional Key Personnel required for the Initial Task Order that are not the original Key Personnel submitted as part of Phase I?	Yes, there will be one and that information will be provided as part of the Initial Task Order Statement of Work released as part of Phase II.	None.
	14	RFP	47	SECTION III Solicitation Provisions; III.1 Instructions to Offerors for Proposal Submission	Phase II- Evaluation Factors and Instructions	If there will be additional Key Personnel required for the Initial Task Order (Factor 4), will the Government share any new Key Personnel positions in advance of the Task Order requirements to allow offerors more time to make their Key Personnel readily available?	No, this information will be provided as part of the Initial Task Order Statement of Work released as part of Phase II.	None.
	15	RFP	52	SECTION III Solicitation Provisions; III.1 Instructions to Offerors for Proposal Submission	Phase 1- Evaluation Factors and Instructions, Factor 1- Prior Experience & Evaluation Ratings	Given the complex nature of this IDIQ contract and the fact that the successful offeror will need to manage multiple, concurrent task orders simultaneously while maintaining quality, will the Government consider requiring offerors provide at least one, if not all Prior Experience examples, be instances where they or their subcontractor(s) were the prime on an indefinite delivery vehicle (e.g., BPA, IDIQ)? Further, will the Government consider evaluating successful indefinite delivery vehicle examples more favorably and therefore assign a higher level of confidence?	No, the Government will not consider this.	None.
	16	RFP	52	SECTION III Solicitation Provisions; III.1 Instructions to Offerors for Proposal Submission	Phase 1- Evaluation Factors and Instructions, Factor 5- Adequacy of the Contractor’s Accounting System	The Government states, “The adequacy of a contractor’s accounting system will be evaluated on a pass/fail basis. An offeror must have an adequate accounting system that provides timely development of data necessary to meet the requirements of the payment clause.” Additionally, “Upon passing Factor 5 in Phase II, an award decision will be made based on…”

Regarding the “Advisory Down Select”, the Government states the “intent of this advisory notification is to minimize proposal development costs for those offerors with little chance of receiving an award.” Given Factor 5 is “Pass/Fail”, we recommend that the Factor 5 get moved to Phase I as to minimize proposal development efforts and cost for both those offerors and the Government.	No, the Government will not consider this change. Factor 5 will remain in Phase II. Offerors who do not possess such information as to document the adequacy of their accounting system should be cautioned not to submit for Phase I if they cannot reasonably meet Phase II requirements.	None.
	17	RFP	49-50	SECTION III Solicitation Provisions; III.1 Instructions to Offerors for Proposal Submission	Phase 1- Evaluation Factors and Instructions, Factor 5- Adequacy of the Contractor’s Accounting System	The Government states, “If the contractor does not have an opinion from the CFAO, a review by a public accounting firm can be submitted.”

Previous RFPs for similar requirements that require appropriate cost segregations and validation that an offeror’s accounting system is deemed adequate have required that the determination must be made by a Government agency or official, as opinions by public accounting firms can vary drastically from firm to firm. Would the Government consider removing the option for a review by a public accounting firm to meet the adequate accounting system requirement? An example of language from a recent RFP is, “Acceptable documentation may include current and valid determination letters from the Contractor’s cognizant DCMA or CFA CO, DCAA audit reports, or Pre-Award Surveys of Prospective Contractor Accounting System (SF1408) completed by Government Officials.”	No, the Government will not consider this change as this language has been excerpted from the DHS Contracting Officer's Guide to Determining the Adequacy of a Contractor's Accounting System and is recommended language to be used by DHS Contracting Officers for purposes of uniformity.	None.
	18	RFP	44	SECTION III Solicitation Provisions; III.1 Instructions to Offerors for Proposal Submission	Proposal Preparation and Phase II – Evaluation Factors and Instructions	As the Government indicated this acquisition will be based on “a best value award decision” would it consider moving the Price component (Factor 2) from Phase I to Phase II with the Initial Task Order Technical Approach? Placement of Price (Factor 2) in Phase I and the indication that “Offerors whose price proposals are outside of one (1) standard deviation from the mean (average) of the total evaluated price will be told] that they [should] not proceed to Phase II” seems to infer the government is employing a price-driven acquisition strategy, not a best value approach. Including the Price evaluation (Factor 2) with the Sample Task Order would enable the government to determine if paying a price premium, or more than 1 standard deviation from the mean, is in fact in the government’s best interest based on the technical solution offered. Without this change, offerors who may have the best value technical solution could in fact not be advised to move forward to Phase II when they would have the opportunity to present their solution.	No, the Government will not consider this change. Price will remain in Phase I.	None.
	19	N/A	10-11	Section 7.5	Staffing and Labor Categories	As is often permitted on GSA vehicles, such as OASIS, will the government allow offerors to deviate from the provided labor category definitions so long as the deviations are clearly identified in their proposal? For example, presently the Senior category requires 10 years of experience and a MA/MS degree; however, a MA/MS is not required to “work on high-visibility or mission critical aspects of a given program and performs all functional duties independently… and oversee efforts of less senior staff.” 10 or more years of experience would enable someone to meet these duties regardless of possessing of an advanced degree and allowing offerors to deviate from the provided labor category description would open up a wider pool of prospective talent to OT.	No substitutions will be accepted.	None.
	20	SOW	10-11	Section 7.5	Staffing and Labor Categories	Will the government allow for degrees to be substituted for years of experience (e.g., 2 years substituted for a Master’s Degree, 4 years substituted for a Ph.D.)?	No substitutions will be accepted.	None.
	21	SOW	10-11	Section 7.5	Staffing and Labor Categories	Will the government allow extensive years of experience (e.g., above 15) to be permitted as a substitute for labor categories requiring a Master’s Degree?	No substitutions will be accepted.	None.
	22	RFP	46	III.1 Instructions to Offerors for Proposal Submission	Advisory Down Select	It's commonly understood that a sample size of 30 is a rule of thumb for standard deviation. Per the solicitation requirements, "the Government may also recommend to those offerors whose price proposals are outside of one (1) standard deviation from the mean (average) of the total evaluated price that they not proceed to Phase II (see Section III.2 for definition of total evaluated price)." If the Government receives less than thirty bidders, will the Government still plan to use the standard deviation methodology, or will a more appropriate methodology be applied?	CBP intends to use standard deviation methodology regardless of the number of price proposals received.	None.
	23	RFP	51	III.2 EVALUATION OF PROPOSALS	III.2 EVALUATION OF PROPOSALS
Factor II: Price	The Government states, “To evaluate price, CBP will take the Offeror-provided fully burdened, labor hour rates and apply an estimated number of hours per labor category, per experience level to calculate a total estimated value of each ordering period. The estimated quantities of hours are based on historical usage data and anticipated future requirements that will allow an “apples-to apples” comparison amongst Offerors. The total evaluated price will be the sum of total estimated value of each ordering period, plus an extrapolation to account for the price of the Option to Extend Services under FAR 52.217-8. This extrapolation will be half the total price of the final ordering period. The total evaluated price will be used to determine which Offeror has the most competitive pricing.”

Since the Government has a defined price evaluation strategy and an estimated number of hours for each labor category, would the Government provide the estimated number of hours to offerors?	No. It is part of CBP's pricing strategy to not provide those as part of the solicitation documents.	None.
	24	RFP	p. 43	III.1	Advisory Down Select	Are Offerors required to include resumes for key personnel as part of our Phase II written proposal submission? If yes, please confirm whether resumes will be excluded from the overall page count limitation for the proposal? Please confirm whether there is a page limit.	Yes, biographical submissions (resumes) shall be submitted as part of Phase II written submissions. These are limited to two (2) pages each.	None.
	25	RFP	p. 16	II.18(b)	3052.215-70 Key Personnel or Facilities	Please confirm that offerors are not required to complete CFAR 3052.215-70, Key Personnel or Facilities, and are not required to include it in the Phase I Factor 1 proposal response.	Correct. This will be completed by CBP as part of any resultant contract.	None.
	26	RFP	p. 43	III.1	Advisory Down Select	Please specify which portions of the Phase II submission will be submitted as a written submission, separate and apart from deliverables due at the time of the Oral Presentation.	Phase II written submissions include the following: slide deck, cover Letter, biographical (resume) submissions, adequacy of accounting system submission, proposed level of effort and labor mix.	None.
	27	RFP	p. 43	III.1	Advisory Down Select	Please specify which portions of the Oral Presentation will be provided to the Government as written documents/files vs. orally.	The Phase II oral presentation shall address the information requested in Factors 3 & 4. Supplemental written submissions supporting Factors 3 & 4 consists of biographical (resume) submissions and proposed level of effort and labor mix for Factor 4.

Information supporting Factor 5 shall be submitted in writing.	None.
	28	RFP	43	N/A	Proposal Preparation	Will the Government alllow a cover page outside of the page count for each submitted document?	No. Ideally, documents will be submitted as a PDF Portfolio in which all documents are submitted as a single file, but includes multiple documents within, excluding those that are not Adobe files (e.g., Attachment 1- Price Schedule).	None.
	29	RFP	45/46	N/A	Factor 1 - Prior Experience	To better assess Offerors' experience managing the complexity and integration of multiple task orders, will the Government confirm whether Prior Experience submissions may include BPAs and IDIQs?
	Offerors must demonstration specific examples, to include one (1) from each of the following three (3) task areas. This is at the discretion of the offeror, however, CBP will be evaluating offerors based on their experience of working on projects most similar to those challenges identified under Factor 1 scenarios. Higher confidence will be given to those offerors who demonstrate experience most closely related to CBP’s stated issues.	None.
	30	RFP	45/46	N/A	Factor 1 - Prior Experience	To better assess Offerors' ability to support complex requirements across multiple Task Areas at once, will the Government consider assigning a higher confidence rating if a prior experience example addresses all three Task Areas in one reference (i.e., 1. Workforce and Succession Planning, 2. Data Driven Strategy Formulation and Analytical Support, and 3. Business Transformation)?	No. CBP will keep the planned evaluation strategy for Phase I as-is, not assigning a higher level of confidence for prior experience across all three task areas in one (1) reference.	None.
	31	RFP	45/46	N/A	Factor 1 - Prior Experience	To better evaluate who is truly best-suited - as one team - to execute PWSS' scope of work and incentivize Offerors to demonstrate the full breadth and capability of their Teams, will the Government consider revising its approach to evaluating Factor 1 such that Teaming Partners' prior experiences, in which they were the Prime Contractor, will be considered as demonstrative as the Offeror's own prior experiences?	No. If the Offeror proposes a teaming arrangement, prior experience shall include prior teaming arrangements, if any, especially with the proposed teaming partners. Prior experience of the teaming partner when not teamed with the Offeror may be considered but shall not exceed more than two (2) examples. Additionally, the Offeror may include prior experience of a proposed subcontractor, however, such inclusions shall not exceed more than two (2) examples.	None.
	32	RFP	46	N/A	Factor 2 - Price	To increase the likelihood that Offerors' rate cards enable effective support of the Government's requirements, will the Government consider shifting Factor 2 (Pricing) to Phase II of the evaluation so that the provision of an overall rate card is paired with the development of a price quote for the Initial Task Order?	No, the Government will not consider this recommended change.	None.
	33	RFP	46	N/A	Factor 2 - Price	To increase transparency and promote more realistic pricing by all Offerors, will the Government consider revising the Schedule of Services spreadsheet associated with Factor 2 (Pricing) to provide standard weights and/or quantity of hours the Government expects will be associated with each Labor Category?	No. CBP will be utilizing an approach that does not provide these estimates as part of the RFP, but will be applying estimated number of hours per labor category uniformally across offerors to evaluate price.	None
	35	RFP	46	N/A	Factor 2 - Price	To increase transparency and promote more realistic pricing by all Offerors, will the Government consider 1) providing a price range for the Initial Task Order in Factor 4 (e.g., "The Government estimates that the Total Evaluated Price for the Initial Task Order requirement is between $x and $y. This range is for z months of performance.") and 2) requiring Offerors with prices outside the range to explain why their low or high price enables performance congruent with their technical and management approach and is fair and reasonable?	The Government will consider adding this information to the Phase II advisory notice letter.	None.
	35	RFP	NA	N/A	Overall	To better prepare for Phase II, could the government specify when the industry will receive the advisory notification following the Phase I submission? We understand that we have two weeks to submit Phase II after receiving the advisory notification.	Phase II due date will be approximately two (2) weeks from the date of the advisory notification. Phase II submissions will be due prior to oral presentations. Advisory notifications are anticipated to be released no later than two (2) weeks from Phase I due date.	None.
	36	RFP	52	N/A	Selection for Award	Currently selection for award is stated as follows: "Upon passing Factor 5 in Phase II, an award decision will be made based on the following: Factor 1 is more important than the factors in Phase II, and all non-price factors combined are significantly more important than the Price factor (i.e., price is the lowest weighted factor). Within the Phase II Factor 3 is more important than Factor 4." Price is stated to be the lowest factor, however, by including Price in Phase I the USG is unintentionally making price the most important factor. Additionally, the Phase I down-select decisions will be made without the USG having the benefit of evaluating the higher-valued Phase II factors. It is our suggestion to have price be part of Phase 2 submission to be consistent with the weighting of the award selection criteria.	No, the Government will not make the requested change.	None.
	37	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Could you please clarify what must be included in the prior experience? Is it sufficient to include the term (start- end), agency/organization name, description of the experience, and how it relates to the RFP and obligated dollar value?	It is incumbent upon the offeror to demonstrate the efforts presented are of similar type of work, size and complexity. The information in the offerors question to describe the effort is sufficient.	None.
	38	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Are there incumbent(s) currently providing the same or similar services? If yes, could you disclose which contractors and Under Freedom of Information Act, could you please provide their contracts?	See answer to Question #1.	None.
	39	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	What is the anticipated size, and annual spend of the contract?	Between $14M and $16M/year based on projections.	None.
	40	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	I would like to confirm that offerors do not need to provide references, is this correct?	Past performance is not being evaluated. Therefore, no references are required.	None.
	41	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	PROMPT PAYMENT TERMS: Our payment terms are determined by the client’s needs, and we are flexible. Would it be acceptable to state that our payment terms will be determined based on the contract terms if awarded?	That is acceptable.	None.
	42	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Would experience with state, county, and federal contractors be accepted? Is there a preference for federal government prior experience?	Yes. Higher confidence will be given to those offerors who demonstrate experience most closely related to CBP’s stated issues. Example (1) Workforce and Succession Planning, CBP prefers experience within the federal sphere given the unique challenges.	None.
	43	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	What is the timeline for Phase 2?	Phase II due date will be approximately two (2) weeks from the date of the advisory notification. Phase II submissions will be due prior to oral presentations. Advisory notifications are anticipated to be released no later than two (2) weeks from Phase I due date.	None.
	44	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	If an offeror does not have assumptions, exceptions, or dependencies, would a section need to be added to the response? If yes, in which document does it need to be included?	See answer to Question #3.	None.
	45	General	General	N/A	N/A	Can the Government clarify whether it intends to award this contract to a single offeror?	As stated in the introduction paragraph of Section III.1, CBP plans to enter into a single-award IDIQ contract for the required services.	None.
	46	General	General	N/A	N/A	Can the Government clarify whether it might consider awarding this contract as a Sole Source?	No, we will not award as a sole source.	None.
	47	General	General	N/A	N/A	What is the expected level of effort or estimated number of hours required for each potential task order category?	That is to be determined at the task order level.	None.
	48	General	General	N/A	N/A	Are there any existing documents (e.g., strategic plans, program documents, or past evaluation reports, etc.) that the vendor should review to understand the current state and future direction of the Customs and Border Patrol and Office of Trade?	No.	None.
	49	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	On page 45, the Government states that offerors may not be eligible for award if they are unable to meet all requirements in the Statement of Work. Can the Government clarify whether an offeror must respond to every aspect of the Statement of Work?	Offerors shall respond to the Phase I factors as identified in III.1.	None.
	50	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	On page 45, under “Workforce and succession planning” and “Business Transformation,” the Government asks the offeror to provide background information on a previous customer. Can the Government clarify or provide further details regarding the type of background information (scope and depth, and topical areas) it would like the offeror to provide concerning the issues it faced?	The intent of the background information is to establish similarties between work performed for prior customers and current CBP challenges so that CBP may evaluate whether the"experience demonstrated by the Offeror in performing or managing efforts [is] of similar type of work, size and complexity" in order to asses "the Government’s confidence in an Offeror’s likelihood of successful performance" (see bottom of page 45 and top of page 46)	None.
	51	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	On page 45, under “Business Transformation,” the Government states that it “must mature its business processes within the program office and across other CBP offices.” Can the Government clarify whether the offeror will be expected to provide business transformation services across CBP to multiple offices?	It is possible, though initially task orders will be for the Office of Trade.	None.
	52	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	On page 46, under “Advisory Down Select,” the Government states that only the most highly rated offerors for Factor 1 will be advised to proceed to Phase II. Please confirm that the rating for each offeror is according to the “evaluation ratings” described on page 50.	The rating for Factor 1 will be based upon the evaluation ratings established at the bottom of Pg. 50/top Pg. 51.	None.
	53	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	On page 46, under “Advisory Down Select,” the Government states that offerors advised against proceeding to Phase II will receive a general basis for that opinion. Can the Government clarify the level of detail associated for the “general basis”?	No.	None.
	54	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	From page 51, under “Factor 2: Price,” can the Government clarify how it would like offerors to calculate a “fully burdened, labor hour rate”?	The total hourly cost to employ a worker — taking into account not only their basic wage or salary, but also any additional costs associated with employing that worker, which has mandatory and voluntary inclusions.	None.
	55	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	To what degree does the Government value innovative approaches / solutions in its evaluations and ratings of offerors?	See Section III.2 for how CBP has weighted its factors.	None.
	56	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Can the Government clarify whether it is open to a contractor with greater private sector experience than federal?	No, we will not clarify.	None.
	57	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Can the Government clarify whether it is values private experience over federal experience, particularly for Task Areas 2 and 3?	No stated preference.	None.
	58	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Can the Government clarify if this contract opportunity has an incumbent?	See Question #1.	None.
	59	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Can the Government clarify if it intends to issue task orders for specific Task Areas mentioned in the Statement of Work using particular contract types (e.g., Business Transformation services as FFP task orders)?	Task orders may take on a variety of contract types, though CBP strives to utilize FFP task orders as much as possible.	None.
	60	RFP	51	N/A	III.2 Evaluation of Proposals, Factor 2: Price	Section III.2 states that "The Total evaluated price will be evaluated for reasonableness."

Section III.1, Advisory Down Select states, "Furthermore, based on pricing, the Government may also recommend to those Offerors whose price proposals are outside of one (1) standard deviation from the mean (average) of the total evaluated price that they not proceed to Phase II."

Does that mean that if the total evaluated price is within one standard deviation of the mean it is considered reasonable by the government? If that is not the case, how will the government evaluate the "reasonableness" of the total evaluated price?	See FAR 15.305(a)(1).	None.
	61	RFP	43	N/A	III.1 Instructions to Offerors for Proposal Submission; Proposal Preparation, Phase II, Factor 4	The Initial Task Order Technical Approach, Limitations cell, states, "…Biographical submission (resume) for Key Personnel not to exceed two (2) pages."

Can the government confirm the limit is two (2) pages per Key personnel for a total of four pages, rather than two pages total (i.e., 2 pages for the Program Manager and 2 pages for the additional TBD Key Personnel to be specified in the Task 1 SOW on pg. 47 in the Factor 4 section)?	Correct, two pages per biographical statement (resume).	None.
	62	RFP	51	N/A	III.2 Evaluation of Proposals, Factor 3: Management Approach	The fourth bullet in the government's approach to assessing its level of confidence for this factor states: Understanding and familiarity with the CBP background investigation process, to include the number of proposed personnel available to start performance on the effective date of award"

Would the government consider removing the second portion of this bullet ("to include the number of personnel available to start performance on the effective date of award") since it unnecessarily biases the competition to those that are currently delivering at CBP, creating an uneven playing field?	No.	None.
	63	Attachment 2	14	N/A	8.1 Background Investigations	This section states that "All key personnel listed in the IDIQ or Task order shall have a current CBP BI (full or limited) prior to initiating performance of services."

Would the government consider a waiver by the CBP Office of Professional Responsibility for the Program Manager key personnel position if they have DHS suitability at another DHS agency to allow capable Offerors that are not currently supporting CBP to put the best qualified staff forward for this long-term contract?	The Government would consider it, but for the purposes of this acquisition, offerors should assume that no waivers will be granted as CBP typically does not grant reciprocity or waivers, even with other DHS components.	None.
	64	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Will the experience and past performance of parent or subsidiary companies be evaluated if the proposal shows that a sister company lending its experience and past performance has made a firm commitment to have a meaningful involvement in contract performance?	No. This will not be considered.	None.
	65	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Are there any additional requirements that an offeror must address in its proposal in order to utilize parent or subsidiary company experience and past performance if the proposal shows that a sister company lending its experience and past performance has made a firm commitment to have a meaningful involvement in contract performance?	N/A- See Question #64.	None.
	66	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Are there specific or special evaluation criteria for rating the experience and past performance of an offeror who utilizes parent or subsidiary company experience and past performance if the proposal shows that a sister company lending its experience and past performance has made a firm commitment to have a meaningful involvement in contract performance?	N/A- See Question #64.	None.
	67	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Can the Government confirm if their secure email gateway and/or inbound email rules will ensure that emailed proposal submissions will be delivered to the named Contracting Officer and/or Contracting Specialist and not be blocked, dropped, or held due to file size constraints for submissions that are under the maximum total file size?	The Contracting Officer will confirm receipt of the submission as soon as reasonably possible, though that may not be the date of submission. It is incumbent upon the offeror to ensure their submission is successfully delivered. The Contracting Officer recommends submitting early to ensure successful delivery.	None.
	68	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Will the Government confirm receipt of the proposal documents via email to Offerors who submit in advance of the offer due date?	The Contracting Officer will confirm receipt of the submission as soon as reasonably possible, though that may not be the date of submission. It is incumbent upon the offeror to ensure their submission is successfully delivered. The Contracting Officer recommends submitting early to ensure successful delivery.	None.
	69	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	In lieu of electronic submissions via email, can the government provide an electronic drop box service which provides an official receipt as to successful submission?	No.	None.
	70	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Can the government provide the anticipated date when questions will be answered? To have sufficient time to provide the best value proposal and incorporate the government’s responses, we respectfully request an extension of a minimum of 14 calendar days after the questions are answered.	An extension is granted for Phase I proposals to May 29th, 10am ET.	See RFP 70B06C24R00000019 A00001 SF30.
	71	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	How large and what is the composition of the workforce (FTEs, contractors, etc.) that will be included for this effort?	The contract at the IDIQ level encompassas all of CBP. It is anticipated that the Office of Trade will be a primary requirements generator under the contract, as suggested by the Factor 1 - Prior Experience factors that relate specifically to the Office of Trade issue areas. The Office of Trade's composition of the workforce is between 1,000 - 1,500 full time equivalents, nearly all as government employees.	None.
	72	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	What specific locations will require travel?	That is to be determined at the task order level.	None.
	73	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	What succession planning activities have been performed to date (HiPO or HiPER identification, competency maps, dashboards or trackers)?	OT is at the early foundational stages of succession planning.	None.
	74	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Is there an existing workforce management/planning/HR platform? If not, what are the requirements for this platform (security or integration requirements)?	CBP HRM utilizes legacy HRBE and CPRO reports but is migrating to Salesforce in the fall with a data lake to support reporting.	None.
	75	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	What workforce data will be provided to contractor to establish workforce and succession planning PWS requirements?	CBP HRM and OT have many sources of personnel data we may pull from to support workforce planning. We will also look to the vendor to recommend areas for improvement on data collection.	None.
	76	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Is there an existing data warehouse or BI system being used for data modeling, financial management, etc.? If not, what tools or systems are currently in use that contractor will be able to extract/transform data from to develop data visualization tools and dashboards?	Data lake/warehouse from HRM is available and many systems make APIs available to integrate with PowerBI.	None.
	77	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Can the government confirm title pages are excluded from page limitations.	No.	None.
	78	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Can the government confirm if a “project” in prior experience is inclusive of all awarded task orders on an IDIQ?	Offerors must demonstration specific examples, to include one (1) from each of the following three (3) task areas. This is at the discretion of the offeror, however, CBP will be evaluating offerors based on their experience of working on projects most similar to those challenges identified under Factor 1 scenarios. Higher confidence will be given to those offerors who demonstrate experience most closely related to CBP’s stated issues.
	79	RFP, Section II.42 Telework (Feb 2015)	Page 39, Para. 1-2	N/A	Telework and Telework ready contractor employee	Will telework requirements be defined at the TO level?	Yes.	None.
	80	RFP, Section III. 1 Proposal Preparation	Page 43, Para. 2	N/A	Factor 1 Prior Experience 6 pages (Phase I Table)	In addition to the 6 page total requirement for each Prior Experience, may we include a 1 page high level introduction?	No. Please note that all three prior experience submissions must be contained within the six (6) page limit. Offerors do not get six (6) pages per prior experience example.	None.
	81	RFP Section III. 1. Proposal Preparation	Page 43, Para. 3	N/A	It is stated that Page limitations include text, graphs, pictures.... Tables of contents, dividers, and etc.	Would the Government please consider removing Cover Page/Title Page (not cover letter), and Table of Contents from the page count?	No.	None.
	82	RFP Section III. Factor 3 - Management Approach	Page 47, Para. 6	N/A	It is stated that the Offeror shall provide a two (2) page biographical statement of the individual's former responsibilities.	Could the Government please confirm if the Biographical statement and resume are considered the same?	Yes.	None.
	83	RFP Section III. Factor 4 - Initial TO Technical Approach	Page 47, Para. 1	N/A	It is stated that the Technical TO approach will be presented as part of the Phase II Oral presentation, to include a Technical Demonstration of a workforce planning dashboard.	In order to help with pre-planning, may the Government please confirm if the Demo of the workforce planning dashboard should be tailored to TO requirements, or if it could be an existing dashboard that has been proven and used on other programs?	Phase II Advisory Notices will include a Statement of Work for an initial task order to be issued against the resulting IDIQ. Offerors participating in Phase II will have approximately two (2) weeks to prepare a technical approach to this factor to present as part of their Phase II oral presentation, to include a technical demonstration of a workforce planning dashboard.CBP is intentionally withholding specific requirements of this task as part of the Phase I release so as to see Offeror’s capabilities of providing services in an agile environment with limited time and resources. Whether to tailor an existing dashboard is the perogitive of the offeror based on the infomration recieved as part of the Phase II advisory notice.	None.
	84	RFP Section III. Offeror Participants	Page 48, Para. 2	N/A	It is stated that Participant Information (Names, titles, employers, etc.) is to be provided within 2 business days of receiving the notice	Would the Government like Offerors to provide alternate participants (backups) in the case of any unforeseen scheduling events?	No, though changes may be made to the point of presentation should unforeseen scheduling events occur. However, the limit of Phase II oral presentation participants will be limited to three (3) people.	None.
	85	RFP Section III. Rules of Engagement for Oral Presentation	Page 48-49	N/A	Questions to Contractors	Could the Government please clarify if the questions proposed to the Vendors will only focus on Phase II Material for the Oral Presentation (Tech and Management Approach) or if questions may also be asked about Phase I and other Phase II written content?	The oral presentation will only focus on Phase II factors.	None.
	86	SOW 3.1 Workforce and Succession Planning	Page 4-5,	N/A	N/A	Could the Government please include a list of current tools that are in use for Workforce and Succession Planning? For example, what is used for surveys, for data analysis, to track milestones, for tracking and compiling workforce profiles, and communication, and training?	CBP has several survey tools such as Medallia approved for use. CBP has Office 365 with CBP Forms, SharePoint, Salesforce, ServiceNow, PowerBI, and other tools available. Please contact CBP Chief Technology Officer for a full list of approved software.	None.
	87	SOW 3.2 Data-driven Strategy Formulation and Analytical Support	Page 5-6	N/A	N/A	Could the Government please provide any other tools or technology used for activities in this task outside of Tableau and Microsoft BI? For example, HR systems, Financial tools, Asset and Facilities Management?	SharePoint, Excel, Access, etc.	None.
	88	SOW 3.3 Business Transformation	Page 6-7	N/A	N/A	Could the Government please provide a list of current tools used for this task area? for example tools for Communication, Onboarding, training, performance management, knowledge management, and risk management.	See above.	None.
	89	SOW 3.1, 3.2 and 3.3	Page 4-7	N/A	N/A	Could the Government please provide a list of tools used for training in addition to MS PowerPoint?	The use of videos and multimedia is common for training in CBP.	None.
	90	SOW 9.1 Transition Planning	Page 14-15	N/A	It is stated that the Transition plan is due 10 business days after kickoff	Could the Government please provide the anticipated IDIQ Transition In period as well as the TO1 Transition Period?	IDIQ and Task Order 1 transition periods will be concurrent.	None.
	91	SOW 7.4	Page 10	N/A	It is stated that "Unless at the request of the Government, no replacement shall be made within 90 days after TO award"	Could the Government please consider removing or revising "Unless at the request of the Government, no replacements shall be made within the first 90-days after Task Order award" to include a provision for any unforeseen events that may impact an employee's availability.	No.	None.
	92	SOW 7.5	Page 11 Para. 2	N/A	N/A	Section 7.5 requires a Senior-level position with over 10 years of experience and an MA/MS degree. Will the Government allow a tradeoff of experience and education where a Senior may have over 12 years of experience and a BA/BS degree instead of 10 years and an MA/MS degree?	No substitutions will be accepted.	None.
	93	N/A	N/A	N/A	Page 51 Evaluation Factor 2: Price	Per the evaluation factors in the RFP, "To evaluate price, CBP will take the Offeror-provided fully burdened, labor hour rates and apply an estimated number of hours per labor category." Will the government please provide the estimated hours by category/year?	No. CBP will be utilizing an approach that does not provide these estimates as part of the RFP, but will be applying estimated number of hours per labor category uniformally across offerors to evaluate price.	None.
	94	N/A	N/A	N/A	I.2 SCHEDULE OF SUPPLIES/SERVICES	How soon after contract award does the government anticipate requesting additional Task Order proposals?	The Government anticipates additional orders prior to the end of the fiscal year, though that number is still to be determined.	None.
	95	N/A	N/A	N/A	8.1 - "The date of any current or previous CBP BI shall be listed on the resume of the key personnel"	To clarify, is this the date that the active CBP BI (full or limited) was issued?	Correct.	None.
	96	N/A	N/A	N/A	III.1 pg 43 Proposal Preparation	Will the government allow the Cover Letter/Executive Summary, Completed and signed SF1449 & SF30 (if issued), Completed Solicitation Provisions (as applicable), and Assumptions, Exceptions, and Dependencies to be merged into one PDF for submission?	Yes, that is acceptable.	None.

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