Attachment 1 - Instructions to Respondents.pdf

Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation Expert Financial Advisory Services

Attachment 1: Instructions to Respondents

(Addendum to provision 52.212-1)

1. Adherence to Instructions

To maximize efficiency and ensure fairness during the quotation evaluation process, respondents must comply with provision 52.212-1 and this addendum. Quotations that do not comply with these instructions may be considered non-compliant with the solicitation terms and ineligible for award.

2. Quotation Due Dates

Quotations are due in accordance with the following schedule:

Volume 1 – Respondent Cover Letter and Qualifications: See solicitation closing date posted at www.sam.gov under this opportunity announcement.

Volume 2 – Price Quotation: Only qualifying firms will submit a price quotation. Price quotations will be due from qualifying firms by Monday, July 13 at 10:00 a.m. ET.

Slide Deck: Slide decks are due 24 hours before each qualifying respondent’s scheduled oral presentation and interview.

Oral Presentation and Interview: PBGC will provide all qualifying respondents with oral presentation timeslot options. The agency’s intention is to complete all presentations within a one-week period, although it retains discretion to set the final presentation cut-off time as determined to be in the agency’s best interests.

3. Industry Questions

Interested parties may submit questions in response to this solicitation to the points of contact identified in this announcement no later than Thursday, July 2 at 12:00 noon ET by using Attachment 7 – Industry Feedback Form.

4. Quotation Submission Method

Respondents must submit their quotations by email to both designated points of contact for this solicitation no later than the designated due date and time.

http://www.sam.gov/

5. Quotation Organization and Formatting

Respondents shall organize and format their quotations in accordance with Table 1, below.

Table 1 – Quotation Organization and Formatting Requirements Evaluation Phase

(Informational only) Title Required Elements Formatting

Phase 1: Pass/Fail Assessments

Volume 1:

Respondent Cover Letter and Qualifications

a. Cover Letter; and

b. Completed and executed

Attachment 6 forms received by PBGC no later than 48 hours before the solicitation closing date and time (only if not submitted previously in response to the pre-solicitation notice).

Provide written documents (except for Attachment 5 – EFAS Pricing Template) in PDF format using Aptos, Calibri, or another sans-serif font with a minimum 11-point size (does not apply to tables or images).

The presentation may be in PPT or PDF format.

There are no page limits or font specifications for this document; however, respondents must ensure that they can speak to each slide within a 10-minute presentation.

Phase 2: Technical and Price Quotation Assessments

Oral Presentation and Interview

a. Slide deck covering key talking points (provide a copy to PBGC at least 24 hours before scheduled presentation);

b. Connectivity to Microsoft Teams;

c. Reliable audio and visual connection for all presenters (individually or as group);

and

d. Presence and participation of the following proposed roles as presenter(s): Team Lead, Expert Witness (may be the same person).

Volume 2: Price Quotation

a. Cover Letter;

b. Completed Attachment 5 –

EFAS Pricing Template; and

c. (As appropriate)

Organizational Conflict of Interest (OCI) Risk Mitigation Plan

6. Detailed Quotation Instructions

a. Cover Letter. Respondents shall submit a cover letter with Volumes 1 and 2 that includes, at a minimum, the following:

i. The information specified by provision 52.212-1(a)(1), (2), (3), (5) (if applicable), and (6);

ii. A statement that the respondent either “has” or “has not” provided in-court or out-of-court restructuring advisory services to a debtor or creditor in a case in which the debtor had a least $4 billion in funded debt at the time of filing for bankruptcy or at the initiation of an out-of-court restructuring;

iii. If the respondent stated “has” in response to item 6.a.ii. (above), a list of all past debtor or creditor clients meeting these criteria within the past 10 years;

iv. The names and titles of the presenters who will participate in the oral presentation, to include the proposed Team Lead and Expert Witness, and of any substitute presenter who may present in the event of an emergency. (See Section 6.b.vii. for more information on presenters and substitutions.)

v. (Required with Volume 2: Price Quotation only) A statement that the respondent agrees to hold the prices in its quotation firm for 60 days from the date specified for receipt of price quotations;

vi. Either a statement certifying that the respondent knows of no actual or potential OCIs that would result from the respondent receiving an award under this solicitation or a brief explanation of what actual or potential OCIs may result from the respondent receiving an award under this solicitation;

vii. The following statement, completed as indicated: “I, [name of cover letter signatory], certify that [company name] leadership has reviewed the solicitation in full, understands the Government’s requirement, including the standards for acceptable performance, and believes [company name] to be fully capable of satisfactorily performing this requirement. In addition, [company name] leadership has either participated in or reviewed all aspects of this quotation. The information contained herein is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.”; and

viii. The signature of a senior company official with authority to enter the respondent into a contract for this work, as well as the signature date.

b. Oral Presentation and Interview.

i. Oral presentations have two substantive components: a prepared presentation and responses to PBGC questions.

ii. Once PBGC has deemed a respondent to be qualified to perform this work, it will share with the respondent available timeslots in which to hold the presentation. If the parties cannot agree on a timeslot upon working in good faith to do so, PBGC will have ultimate discretion to make scheduling decisions.

iii. The maximum time respondents will have in which to deliver their prepared presentations is 10 minutes. This does not include time for introductions, responses to agency questions, and other non-substantive formalities.

iv. Respondents must prepare and exhibit a slide deck to accompany their prepared presentations. Because PBGC will not be recording presentations, slide decks should address key presentation points to assist PBGC evaluators with recalling relevant details.

v. Respondents must submit copies of their slide decks to PBGC at least 24 hours before their scheduled presentations.

vi. For evaluation purposes, PBGC will only consider the information that the respondents address during prepared presentations or provide in response to agency questions. PBGC will not consider information in slide decks that respondents do not address within their 10-minute prepared presentations; therefore, respondents must ensure that their slide decks do not exceed the length that they can speak to within the allotted time.

vii. Up to three (3) of the respondent firm’s employees may participate in the presentation. Of these, the following individual(s) must be present and have speaking roles:

A. The proposed Team Lead for this work; and

B. The proposed Expert Witness for this work.

These roles may be occupied by the same person, but PBGC will not accept any substitutions for them. If either role is unavailable to present at the scheduled day and time, the respondent firm must notify PBGC as soon as possible so the parties can attempt to reschedule. (Rescheduling is not guaranteed however.)

viii. Presentations will be conducted over Microsoft Teams. Presenters may be co-located or remote; however, each presenter must be visible while presenting. In the event of technical issues that prevent PBGC from seeing or understanding a presenter, the agency will pause the presentation timer and allow reasonable time to re-establish the connection before resuming the timer. PBGC will have ultimate discretion to decide what constitutes “reasonable time” and when the presentation clock resumes. To help mitigate the risk of technical issues, PBGC will schedule connection tests prior to presentations.

ix. Prepared presentations must address, at a minimum, the following topics:

A. The firm’s prior relevant work engagements within the preceding 10 years (including Federal contract numbers, as applicable).

B. The experience of proposed personnel performing work like that required by PBGC (regardless of whether the respondent company employed the personnel at that time). Of particular interest to PBGC is experience testifying in a bankruptcy or restructuring case regarding valuation, plan feasibility, solvency, or an asset sale. Regarding asset sale testimony, PBGC is interested in testimony on matters including, but not limited to, asset marketing, sale prices, and fairness.

C. Contact information for client references who can verify the information and speak to the respondent’s strength of performance.

x. Following each respondent’s prepared presentation, PBGC will have an opportunity to interview respondents. During this period, PBGC may request clarifying or substantive information. There is no standard time limit for the post-presentation interview. See Section 6.c. for more information on interview questions.

c. Negotiations. PBGC reserves the right to negotiate the terms or technical aspects of a quotation with one or more respondents at the agency’s sole discretion without first establishing a competitive range of respondents. PBGC may negotiate such aspects during the interview or at any subsequent time prior to contract execution. These questions may provide respondents with opportunities to materially change or enhance their presentations or prices.

d. OCI Risk Mitigation Plan. Only respondents unable to certify the absence of actual or potential OCI risks in their cover letters shall submit an OCI risk mitigation plan. The plan only needs to be submitted once, before or with Volume 2: Price Quotation. The risk mitigation plan must list, in specific detail, the issue(s) that constitute the actual or potential OCI, how the issues originated, a draft plan to mitigate the OCI, and any other pertinent facts or assumptions that led the respondent to believe an OCI issue exists with regard to its quotation.

e. Price. As part of the Volume 2 submission, qualifying respondents shall complete and submit Attachment 5 – EFAS Income Pricing Template. See the template for specific instructions.

7. Additional Considerations

The Contractor shall comply with all applicable Federal anti-discrimination laws. The Contractor's compliance is material to the Government’s payment decisions for purposes of section 3729(b)(4) of title 31, United States Code, and certifies that it does not operate any programs promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) that violate any applicable Federal anti-discrimination laws.

PLEASE BE ADVISED: In accordance with President Trump’s Executive Order of January 21, 2025 (Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity), which revokes Executive Order 11246 of September 24, 1965 (Equal Employment Opportunity).