72052022R00007_USPSC_ResidentHire_Program_Information Coordinator.pdf

U.S. Agency for International Development USAID Building, Tel: 502- 2422-4000 Carretera El Salvador Guatemala City, Guatemala Website: www.usaid.gov

SOLICITATION NUMBER:72052022R00007

ISSUANCE DATE: May 20, 2022

CLOSING DATE AND TIME: June 17, 2022 at 3:00 p.m.

(Guatemala Time)

SUBJECT: Solicitation for U.S. Personal Service Contractor (USPSC) Resident Hire Program Information Coordinator (GS-8).

Dear Prospective Offerors:

The United States Government, represented by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), is seeking offers from qualified persons to provide personal services under contract as described in this solicitation.

Offers must be in accordance with Attachment 1 of this solicitation. Incomplete or unsigned offers will not be considered. Offerors should retain copies of all offer materials for their records.

This solicitation in no way obligates USAID to award a PSC contract, nor does it commit USAID to pay any cost incurred in the preparation and submission of the offer.

Any questions must be directed in writing to the Point of Contact specified in Attachment 1.

Sincerely, Guadalupe Ramirez Contracting Officer

ATTACHMENT 1 72052022R00007

I. GENERAL INFORMATION

1. SOLICITATION NO.: 72052022R00007

2. ISSUANCE DATE: May 20, 2022

3. CLOSING DATE AND TIME FOR RECEIPT OF OFFERS: June 17, 2022 at 3:00 p.m.

(Guatemala Time)

4. POINT OF CONTACT: Lilian Monterroso, e-mail at lmonterroso@usaid.gov

5. POSITION TITLE: Program Information Coordinator (GS-8).

6. MARKET VALUE: $42,641 - $55,430 equivalent to GS-8 Final compensation will be negotiated within the listed market value.

7. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE: Five years, estimated to start on September 1, 2022.

Base Period: 9/1/2022 – 8/31/2024 Option Period 1: 9/1/2024 – 8/31/2025 Option Period 2: 9/1/2025 – 8/31/2026 Option Period 3: 9/1/2026 – 8/31/2027

8. PLACE OF PERFORMANCE: Guatemala City, Guatemala with possible travel as stated in the Statement of Duties. Situational or routine telework may be permitted, subject to Post telework policy. After award, continued performance will depend on a dedicated seat becoming available in the New Embassy Compound or the position being deemed remote telework-capable.

9. ELIGIBLE OFFERORS: U.S. Citizens or U.S. Permanent Residents residing in

Guatemala who are eligible to work in Guatemala. This includes Eligible Family Members (EFMs) within the United States Embassy Community.

● Be a U.S. citizen or U.S. Permanent Resident (“green card holder”);

● U.S. resident alien means a non-U.S. citizen lawfully admitted for permanent residence in the United States;

● Submit a complete application as outlined in the solicitation section titled APPLYING;

● Be able to obtain facility access authorization;

● Be able to obtain a Department of State medical clearance;

● Be willing to travel to work sites and other offices as/when requested;

● Employment is subject to funds availability and all the required approvals obtained.

mailto:lmonterroso@usaid.gov

10. SECURITY LEVEL REQUIRED: Facility Access. The final selected candidates must obtain both the appropriate security and medical clearances within a reasonable period. If such clearances are not obtained within a reasonable time or negative suitability issues are involved, any offer made may be rescinded.

11. STATEMENT OF DUTIES

The Program Information Coordinator will be a member of the Planning & Program Support Office (PPSO). She/he works under the direct supervision of the PPSO Program Director or designee and will work closely with the Development Outreach & Communications team (DOC) within PPSO. PPSO coordinates all USAID/Guatemala strategy development, project design, budget cycle management, partnership advocacy/coordination, public outreach and communications; manages the overall data collection, monitoring and evaluation, and learning functions of the Mission; and serves as a hub for information requests, internal and external inquiries, selected reporting and general coordination efforts with USAID/Washington and the U.S. Interagency at Embassy Guatemala.

The Program Information Coordinator plays a critical role in providing support to Program Office, with a focus on coordination of reporting requirements and public outreach, including interagency coordination and clearances at Post; information requests and inquiries from the State Department, USAID/Washington, the U.S. Congress, and other stakeholders; and activity data management, tracking and support for regular and ad hoc reporting. This function has gained new importance with the rollout and implementation of the U.S. Strategy to Address Root Causes of Migration in Central America, for which USAID has a significant implementation role.

The incumbent will also play a special coordination role with the DOC team, USAID senior leadership, technical offices, and the Embassy-Guatemala Interagency to advance public outreach and diplomacy efforts by supporting public events, official meetings, and VIP visits to run smoothly and efficiently. This position may support the DOC team in handling logistics, and interagency coordination associated with USAID public events, trips, and visits.

The Program Information Coordinator is detail-oriented and customer service focused, ensuring that team members are aware of upcoming events, tasks and deadlines and their corresponding responsibilities. The incumbent is also a natural convener and negotiator capable of bringing diverse stakeholders together in order to drive consensus and ensure consistency in USAID’s data collection, taskings, and public facing information dissemination. The incumbent possesses strong administrative and planning skills, is expert in understanding and managing the various needs of complex, high-profile requests from Washington and the Embassy, as well as high-level events and visits, and is able to quickly adapt to changing circumstances. She/he will have excellent writing and verbal communication skills, and excellent organizational skills, diplomacy and tact.

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/07/29/fact-sheet-strategy-to-address-the-root-causes-of-migration-in-central-america/

Duties and Responsibilities:

Information Management and Maintenance - 40% The Planning & Program Support Office (PPSO) is the hub for centralized data collection and information management for the USAID mission, including but not limited to activity databases, performance results reporting, responses to external information requests, annual reports to Washington decision makers and stakeholders, external communications and public relations, among others. The Program Information Coordinator will be responsible to track a range of incoming information requests and “taskers” -- whether annual, scheduled, regular or ad hoc -- and ensure that accurate, timely responses are submitted to the requestor(s). This may include drafting original responses, in consultation with and overseen by appropriate USAID staff, or working with USAID personnel to obtain information that the Program Information Coordinator then complies and edits. The incumbent will maintain and update several program reporting data sources, such as activity trackers, databases, information dashboards, fact sheets, etc. and support information coordination among various teams. The Program Information Coordinator will also coordinate, as needed, with PPSO teams including Strategy, Budget & Backstops (SBB) and Monitoring, Evaluation, Learning, Collaboration & Adaptation (MECLA) to assist with data calls from Washington, contribute to assembling regular reports or ad hoc inquiries, and other information management support.

Interagency Coordination - 20% USAID is one of many U.S. government agencies within the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala. The Program Information Coordinator will work with other USG agencies to manage all document flow related to clearances and briefing materials related to events, meetings and visits. The incumbent will also assist with the clearance, reviewing and routing of other documents incoming to USAID and outgoing to the interagency. In particular, when relevant technical offices submit briefing documents or an event approval request, the incumbent will route these documents to the appropriate Embassy staff, secure their concurrence, and ensure that documents continue to move through the clearance process, so that they reach the principal Program Information Coordinator in a timely manner. When Washington or Embassy staff seek input from USAID/Guatemala, the Program Information Coordinator will also route documents to appropriate USAID staff for their input, concurrence and/or clearance, as appropriate. The incumbent is expected to know where documents are at all times and be able to advise USAID/Guatemala staff of their status.

Event/Visit Logistics - 20% For certain events and visits, particularly those involving high-level visitors or large delegations from Washington, or travel outside of the city, the incumbent may provide support for trip/event logistics. This frequently involves supporting the designated Control Officer to craft or assist with trip agendas and developing briefing materials for the principals involved. The incumbent will also coordinate with the relevant USAID offices to ensure that Embassy support offices (including the Regional Security Office, Motorpool, Public Affairs, Protocol, and others) are aware of travel plans and able to support event implementation as needed. Coordination responsibilities may include organizing interagency meetings to discuss trip agendas, logistics including hotel and transportation, communications, and other considerations. Duties may also include working with hotel and travel arrangements for visitors and staff, advance work to assess and prepare field logistics prior to an event, developing seating charts, coordinating room layout, directing partners and vendors on-site, and coordinating with the Ambassador’s Residence staff, among other duties as assigned.

Internal Liaison & Administrative Support - 20% The Program Information Coordinator will play a critical role as a liaison between the Communications team, other PPSO teams, Mission Leadership, and technical offices to ensure smooth sharing of information mission wide. The Program Information Coordinator will help develop and disseminate internal communications products. The incumbent will also be responsible for limited administrative support to the PPS Management Team (Office Director and Deputy) , and will back-up administrative staff for the broader Program Office when the administrative assistant is out of the office. These duties include translation support, time and attendance tracking, internal travel approvals, and support to the Front Office (executive leadership office).

USAID Consultation or Orientation (if applicable): Not required

Supervision Relationship: (Received): The jobholder reports directly to the PPSO Director, or designee, and may receive day-to-day direction and work assignments from the Communications Director, MECLA Director, other Program Office Management, and/or Mission Leadership.

Supervisory Exercised: Continuing supervision of other Mission staff is not contemplated, but the incumbent must be able to take initiative and be skilled at influencing others without formal authority.

12. PHYSICAL DEMANDS:

The work requested does not involve undue physical demands.

II. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED FOR THIS POSITION

Applications will be initially screened by the Human Resources Office to determine whether applicants have met the advertised minimum qualifications. A list of qualified applicants will be referred to the hiring office for further consideration and screening.

A. Education: Bachelor’s Degree is required.

B. Prior Work experience: Three years of progressively responsible experience in administration, business operations, communications, event management, or related field.

C. Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: Excellent writing and editing skills (English). Ability to manage several administrative tasks and effectively prioritize work to effectively support Mission teams. Ability to provide excellent customer service to internal and external clients and maintain good working relationships with US and Guatemalan employees. Strong problem-solving skills and ability to quickly adapt to changing circumstances in order ensure that tasks and events are well executed, even when challenges arise. Ability to use the Microsoft Office suite (Outlook, Word, Excel) and email (Google Suite).

D. Language Proficiency: Functionally Native (Level IV - Foreign Service Institute) English reading, writing, and speaking is required. Good level (Level II - Foreign Service Institute) in Spanish (speaking, reading, and writing) is required. The job holder shall be able to prepare correspondence and standardized reports without errors. USAID reserves the right to test language proficiency.

The ability to obtain the security level and medical clearances required for the position.

III. EVALUATION AND SELECTION FACTORS

The Government may award a contract without discussions with offerors in accordance with FAR 52.215-1. The CO reserves the right at any point in the evaluation process to establish a competitive range of offerors with whom negotiations will be conducted pursuant to FAR 15.306(c). In accordance with FAR 52.215-1, if the CO determines that the number of offers that would otherwise be in the competitive range exceeds the number at which an efficient competition can be conducted, the CO may limit the number of offerors in the competitive range to the greatest number that will permit an efficient competition among the most highly rated offers. The FAR provisions referenced above are available at https://www.acquisition.gov/browse/index/far.

Reference checks will be conducted by Human Resources before finalization of scoring by the technical evaluation committee (TEC).

A. Education and Technical Knowledge and Abilities (Weighted 20% based on review of written application materials)

● Relevant academic qualifications

B. Professional Experience (Weighted 30% based on review of written application materials and interview with case study)

● Professional writing experience (reports, technical correspondence, summary documents, public fact sheets, etc.)

● Data management experience (databases, spreadsheets, contact lists, etc.)

● Event management experience

● Customer service experience

C. Interpersonal, Leadership and Communication Skills (Weighted 50% based on review of written application materials and interview)

● Functionally native proficiency in speaking and reading English with excellent written English skills

● Written and verbal communication skills in Spanish

● Interpersonal and teamwork skills

● Ability to work effectively in a team environment

● Computer skills and the ability to provide administrative support

IV. SUBMITTING AN OFFER

1. Eligible offerors are required to complete and submit the offer form AID 309-2, “Offeror Information for Personal Services Contracts with Individuals,” available at http://www.usaid.gov/forms.

2. Offers must be received by the closing date and time specified in Section I, item 3, and submitted to the Point of Contact in Section I.

3. Offeror submissions must clearly reference the Solicitation number on all offeror submitted documents.

a. Please submit a Letter of Application and current resume.

b. Three (3) references, who are not family members or relatives, with working telephone and email contacts. The references must be able to provide substantive information about your past performance and abilities. USAID reserves the right to contact your previous employers for relevant information concerning your performance and may consider such information in its http://www.acquisition.gov/browse/index/far http://www.acquisition.gov/browse/index/far http://www.usaid.gov/forms evaluation of the applications.

c. Application must be submitted ONLY via email to lmonterroso@usaid.gov and the email subject must say –“SOL#72052022R00007 – Program Information Coordinator”. Be sure to include your name and the solicitation number at the top of each page.

4. Ensuring Adequate COVID-19 Safety Protocols for Federal Contractors - The Offeror will be required to show proof that the Offeror is fully vaccinated against COVID-19 on or before the first date of onboarding, or submit an approved reasonable accommodation to the CO. If the contractor does not meet this requirement the contract may be terminated.*

* See Notice Regarding Any Court Order Affecting the Implementation of E.O. 14042 in

Section VIII below.

V. LIST OF REQUIRED FORMS PRIOR TO AWARD

The CO will provide instructions about how to complete and submit the following forms after an offeror is selected for the contract award:

1. Medical History and Examination Form (Department of State Forms)

2. Questionnaire for Sensitive Positions for National Security (SF-86),or

3. Questionnaire for Non-Sensitive Positions (SF-85)

4. Finger Print Card (FD-258)

VI. BENEFITS AND ALLOWANCES

As a matter of policy, and as appropriate, a USPSC is normally authorized the following benefits and allowances:

1. BENEFITS:

(a) Employer's FICA Contribution

(b) Contribution toward Health & Life Insurance

(c) Pay Comparability Adjustment

(d) Annual Increase (pending a satisfactory performance evaluation)

(e) Eligibility for Worker's Compensation

(f) Annual and Sick Leave

(g) Paid Parental Leave

VII. TAXES

USPSCs are required to pay Federal income taxes, FICA, Medicare and applicable State Income taxes.

VIII. USAID REGULATIONS, POLICIES AND CONTRACT

CLAUSES PERTAINING TO PSCs

USAID regulations and policies governing USPSC awards are available at these sources:

1. USAID Acquisition Regulation (AIDAR), Appendix D, “Direct USAID Contracts with a U.S. Citizen or a U.S. Resident Alien for Personal Services Abroad,” including contract clause “General Provisions,” available at https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/documents/1868/aidar_0.pdf.

PART 52—SOLICITATION PROVISIONS AND CONTRACT CLAUSES Subpart 52.2—Text of Provisions and Clauses

52.223-99 Ensuring Adequate COVID-19 Safety Protocols for Federal Contractors, Alternate 70.

ENSURING ADEQUATE COVID-19 SAFETY PROTOCOLS FOR FEDERAL

CONTRACTORS (OCT 2021)-Alternate 70 (OCT 2021) (M/OAA-DEV-FAR- 22-01c)

(a) Definition. As used in this clause -

United States or its outlying areas means—

(1) The fifty States;

(2) The District of Columbia;

(3) The commonwealths of Puerto Rico and the Northern Mariana Islands;

(4) The territories of American Samoa, Guam, and the United States Virgin Islands; and

(5) The minor outlying islands of Baker Island, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Midway Islands, Navassa Island, Palmyra Atoll, and Wake Atoll.

(b) Authority. This clause implements Executive Order 14042, Ensuring Adequate COVID Safety Protocols for Federal Contractors, dated September 9, 2021 (published in the Federal Register on September 14, 2021, 86 FR 50985).

(c) Personal Services Contracts with individuals. As a matter of policy, the contractor must comply with the USAID’s guidance applicable to direct-hire federal employees.

(End of clause) http://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/documents/1868/aidar_0.pdf http://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/documents/1868/aidar_0.pdf

Notice Regarding Any Court Order Affecting the Implementation of E.O. 14042

USAID will take no action to enforce the clause (FAR 52.223-99) implementing the requirements of Executive Order 14042, absent further written notice from USAID, where the place of performance identified in the contract is in a U.S. state or outlying area subject to a court order prohibiting the application of requirements pursuant to the Executive Order (hereinafter, “Excluded State or Outlying Area”). In all other circumstances, USAID will enforce the clause, except for contractor employees who perform substantial work on or in connection with a covered contract in an Excluded State or Outlying Area, or in a covered contractor workplace located in an Excluded State or Outlying Area. A current list of such Excluded States and Outlying Areas is maintained at https://www.saferfederalworkforce.gov/contractors/.

2. Contract Cover Page form AID 309-1 available at https://www.usaid.gov/forms.

Pricing by line item is to be determined upon contract award as described below:

LINE ITEMS

ITEM

NO

(A)

SUPPLIES/SERVICES

(DESCRIPTION)

(B)

QUANTIT

Y

(C)

UNIT

(D)

UNIT

PRIC

E (E)

AMOUNT

(F)

0001 Base Period - Compensation, Fringe Benefits and Other Direct Costs (ODCs)

1 LOT $ _TBD $_TBD at Award after

- Award Type: Cost

- Product Service Code: [e.g. R497]

- Accounting Info: [insert one or more citation(s) from Phoenix/GLAAS] negotiations with

Contractor_

1001 Option Period 1 – Compensation, Fringe Benefits and Other Direct Costs (ODCs)

- Award Type: Cost

1 LOT $ _TBD $_TBD at Award after negotiation s

- Product Service Code: [e.g. R497]

- Accounting Info: [insert from

Phoenix/GLAAS] with Contractor_ http://www.saferfederalworkforce.gov/contractors/ http://www.saferfederalworkforce.gov/contractors/

2001 Option Period 2 – Compensation, Fringe Benefits and Other Direct Costs (ODCs)

1 LOT $ _TBD $_TBD at Awa rd after

- Award Type: Cost

- Product Service Code: [e.g. R497]

- Accounting Info: [insert from

Phoenix/GLAAS] negotia tions with

Contractor_

3. Acquisition and Assistance Policy Directives/Contract Information Bulletins

(AAPDs/CIBs) for Personal Services Contracts with Individuals available at http://www.usaid.gov/work-usaid/aapds-cibs.

4. Ethical Conduct. By the acceptance of a USAID personal services contract as an individual, the contractor will be acknowledging receipt of the “Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch,” available from the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, in accordance with General Provision 2 and 5

CFR 2635.

See https://www.oge.gov/web/oge.nsf/OGE%20Regulations.

5. PSC Ombudsman

The PSC Ombudsman serves as a resource for any Personal Services Contractor who has entered into a contract with the United States Agency for International Development and is available to provide clarity on their specific contract with the agency. Please visit our page for additional information:

https://www.usaid.gov/work- usaid/personal-service-contracts-ombudsman. The PSC Ombudsman may be contacted via: PSCOmbudsman@usaid.gov.

END OF SOLICITATION

http://www.usaid.gov/work-usaid/aapds-cibs http://www.usaid.gov/work-usaid/aapds-cibs http://www.oge.gov/web/oge.nsf/OGE%20Regulations http://www.oge.gov/web/oge.nsf/OGE%20Regulations http://www.usaid.gov/work-mailto:PSCOmbudsman@usaid.gov mailto:PSCOmbudsman@usaid.gov