Attachment A - Performance Work Statement.docx

VA Contact Center Training Delivery (Industry Recognized)

Performance Work Statement VA Contact Center Training Delivery (Industry Recognized)

1. Introduction

The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Office of Integrated Veteran Care (IVC) is seeking Industry Recognized Commercial Off-the-Shelf (COTS) Contact Center (Call Center) training with flexible course delivery methods (e.g., live virtual classroom training, online training-self paced on-demand) for two business lines: The Customer Service (CS) Contact Center and Veteran and Family Member Programs (VFMP). The training audience will be non-clinical staff in various roles (e.g., executives, managers, supervisors, and VA front-line staff).

This training shall improve IVC’s ability to provide effective, high quality customer service to Veterans, beneficiaries, and providers. Training content shall encompass contact center inbound and outbound customer engagement best practices used in both the public and private sectors.

VHA is committed to supporting its’ employees with effective training opportunities to increase competency, work effectiveness and leadership.

From the point of view of the individual employee, there are five main training goals:

· Improve the employee’s awareness, skill, and ability to facilitate an effective customer experience,

· Increase the employee’s motivation to perform their job well,

· Increase overall productivity and performance,

· Increase the employee’s soft skills expertise, and

· Increase the employee’s engagement.

About the Training Audience & IVC Mission

The Customer Service (CS) Contact Center is the national and international contact center for VHA IVC located in Denver, Colorado with staff working in various locations across the country. CS manages inbound calls, outbound calls and all other modes of customer interactions including taskings, email, faxes, and mail. CS provides Adverse Credit Reporting (ACR) case management in support of Veterans; pre-authorization of clinical care for Family Members and community providers; and service recovery to ensure a smooth and seamless experience when using VA Community Care. CS also delivers contact center metrics and analytics, workforce optimization, Veterans Signals (VSignals), and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) reporting, knowledge-based scripting, training, and quality assurance for all CS business lines.

VFMP administers five Congressionally mandated programs that provide services to Veterans, beneficiaries, and providers world-wide. VFMP is responsible for eligibility and enrollment, claims reimbursement for medical expenses, and appeals determinations for eligible Veterans and beneficiaries. VFMP employees engage customers at various phases and for various reasons in the program administration process. Examples include outreach coordinators who deliver informational presentations; contact representatives who facilitate eligibility and enrollment; escalations specialists who resolve provider and beneficiary claims issues and complaints; administrative (non-clinical) care coordinators who guide customers through benefits; legal administrative specialists who provide Appeals and Equitable Relief services; and legal administrative specialists who call providers to obtain information and facilitate duty to assist. In total, VFMP has approximately 262 employees who encounter customers and is seeking training that aligns VFMP customer service with IVC CS Contact Centers, thereby resulting in continuity of customer experience in IVC.

Course frameworks, regardless of contact type (phone call, email, letter), shall be based on common best practices and principles to result in a shared framework for IVC CS and VFMP employees performing customer service functions.

2. Scope

The Contractor shall provide project management to include training planning, scheduling, and implementation support as well as monthly meeting coordination and participation. The Contractor shall provide fully qualified instructors to conduct the following live virtual training classrooms as described in this PWS for the 12-month base period and two, 12-month option periods:

Table 1: Planned Virtual Live Training Classrooms

Large Size 20 Not to Exceed (NTE) Number of Virtual Instructor Led Classes:

Small Size 10 or Fewer Not to Exceed (NTE)

Agent and Agent Soft Skills offerings shall cover such items as but not limited to:

· Hostile callers

· Burnout

· The Power of One

· Employee engagement

· Customer engagement

Strategic Planning and Leadership

1 - (if optional task 3.4 is exercised) 2- (if optional task 3.4 is exercised)

If Optional Task 3.3 Online Self-Paced Training on Demand eLearning is exercised, the Contractor shall provide online, self-paced training on demand eLearning access to the following number of VA employees as described in this PWS for the base 12-month period and the two option periods:

Table 2: Planned Online, Self-Paced Training On Demand eLearning Licenses

Quality Assurance (QA)

50 - (if optional task 3.5 is exercised)

Agent and Agent Soft Skills offerings shall cover such items as but not limited to:

· Basic metrics

· How call centers operate (for the agent)

· How call center schedules work

· Hostile callers

· Burnout

· The importance of an agent to the success of the business

· Employee engagement

· Customer engagement

Due to demand and VA staff availability, the Contractor shall allow for some flexibility in exchanging one type of live virtual training classroom for another if the costs are identical and if agreed upon by both the Contractor and VA.

The Contractor shall provide course frameworks with the following knowledge, skills, and abilities, at a minimum, to address the various commercial elements of customer service contact centers:

· Professional communication skills.

· Ability to recognize customers’ needs and develop strategies to meet those needs.

· Provide a positive and effective experience for the customer.

· How to properly handle difficult calls.

· Build customer relationships.

· Properly move calls forward to resolution.

· Maximize productivity and effectiveness for the team.

· Properly document and execute follow-up with customers when necessary.

· Proper strategies to overcome distractions and interference.

· Build workforce management and quality assurance knowledge and skills.

· Build data analytics and metrics knowledge and skills.

· Build contact center strategy and leadership knowledge and skills.

The primary focus of the training content shall be improving agent skills, quality assurance, contact center management, workforce management, contact center metrics and data analytics in contact centers, leadership, strategic planning, staff engagement and optimizing operations.

The Contractor shall use their technology platform(s) for delivery of all training. There is no integration with VA systems or platforms. The Contractor’s technology platform(s) shall be accessible to users behind the VA Firewall.

Support for trainees’ post-completion is not required.

All training material is expected to be developed and ready at time of contract award.

3. Task Statement

3.1 Project Management

A virtual Post-award kickoff meeting shall be held within ten (10) business days after award. The Contractor shall coordinate the date, and time with the Contracting Officer (CO), Contract Specialist (CS), VA Contracting Officer Representative (COR), and the VA IVC Project Manager (PM) or their assigned designee(s). The Contractor shall provide a draft agenda to the CO and VA COR at least five (5) business days prior to the meeting. Upon VA approval of a final agenda, the Contractor shall distribute to all meeting attendees. During the kickoff meeting, the Contractor shall present, for review and approval by the VA, the details of the intended approach, work plan and project schedule via a Microsoft Office PowerPoint Presentation. At the conclusion of the meeting, the Contractor shall update the presentation with a final slide entitled “Summary Report” which shall include notes on any major issues, agreements or disagreements discussed during the kickoff meeting to be distributed with the meeting minutes. The Contractor shall prepare and distribute meeting minutes of the kickoff meeting to the CO, VA COR, and all attendees within three (3) business days after the meeting. The Contractor shall obtain concurrence from the CS/CO/COR on the content of the meeting minutes prior to distribution of the document.

The Contractor shall notify the VA in writing thirty (30) days in advance of any new materials, changes, and/or updates to the course curriculum and/or course materials throughout each period of performance.

The Contractor shall meet and participate in monthly status meetings with designated VA personnel to discuss the tasks and milestone status as well as address any questions and/or operational issues that may surface. If any newly identified issue(s) and/or concern(s) should arise and cannot be resolved via email communications, the Contractor shall make themselves available to meet for an ad hoc meeting(s) to discuss for resolution. The Contractor shall provide Monthly Status Meeting Minutes.

The Contractor shall notify the IVC PM and/or their designee(s) and VA COR, in writing, immediately if problems arise adversely impacting the performance of the PWS.

The Contractor shall work with the VA on coordinating all training logistics. This shall include the designated Points of Contact (POC) from each of the two business lines, CS and VFMP.

The Contractor shall provide the VA copies of all course materials (e.g., guides, handouts, exercises, books, job aides, etc.) including a syllabus and permission to share and distribute course materials for internal VA use if needed. There shall be no time limit on the ability to share the course materials internally within the VA.

Contractor instructors shall possess the ability to fluently read, speak, write, and comprehend the English language. Each instructor shall have a minimum of two (2) years of instructional experience within the last three (3) years and a minimum of five (5) instructional instances taught within the last three (3) years in the specified course content. The instructor shall be skilled in techniques of virtual live classroom presentations for the adult Iearner. Experience in healthcare/clinical contact center training and/or prior experience working with government entities preferred. Instructors must be authorized to train and consult on contact center industry best practice standards.

The Contractor shall provide deliverables in a format mutually agreed upon by the VA and the Contractor.

Deliverables:

A. Post-Award Kickoff Meeting B. Post-Award Kickoff Meeting Agenda C. Post-Award Kickoff Meeting PowerPoint Presentation D. Post-Award Kickoff Meeting Minutes E. Staff Roster, including updates F. Monthly Status Meetings G. Monthly Status Meeting Minutes H. Training Course Materials

3.2 Live Virtual Training Classroom Delivery

Commercially available selected courses will be determined by the Government on a twelve (12) month basis depending on demand and resources. The Contractor shall work collaboratively with the VA IVC PM or their designee and COR to develop, deliver, and maintain a training classroom schedule throughout the period of performance. The Contractor shall ensure delivery of the live virtual training classroom as agreed upon within the Training Classroom Schedule by the VA and Contractor.

The Contractor shall allow for two different virtual classroom sizes: small (2-10 min/max) and large (11-20 min/max) per scheduled training classroom.

The Contractor shall allow for minimal customization of training content materials for the live virtual training classroom at no cost to the VA. The Contractor shall provide the VA with each course’s agenda at least 20 business days in advance of the scheduled training event for review and collaborate with the VA to incorporate real case scenarios in the training session to meet the business needs of CS and VFMP. The VA shall be responsible for providing the real case scenario information. Real case scenario information will not include Personal Identifiable Information (PII) or Personal Health Information (PHI) nor any Veteran information. The Contractor shall provide copies of all final training content materials to the VA.

VA will provide the Contractor with a list of attendees/registrations for each training classroom seven (7) business days prior to the start date of each training to include each attendee’s first and last name, VA Email address, and VA Business Line (e.g., CS CC, VFMP).

VA will provide the Contractor with an updated list of attendees/registrations for any additions and/or removals of attendees for each training classroom as needed no later than twenty-four hours prior to the start date of each training event to include each attendee’s first and last name, VA Email address and VA Business Line.

The Contractor shall distribute the training classroom meeting invite to the initial list of attendees within five (5) business days prior to the event being held. For updates, the Contractor shall distribute the training classroom meeting invites within eight (8) hours following receipt of update notification, excluding last minute updates on day of event.

The Contractor shall provide and disseminate all courseware and other materials to each participant within two (2) business days of the scheduled classroom. This includes preparing all participant materials (e.g., guides, handouts, exercises, books, job aides, etc.). The Contractor shall provide a resource page where participants can obtain additional information on the topic (e.g., websites, books, professional associations, blogs, etc.), if available.

For each training classroom, the Contractor shall maintain and deliver to the VA a training classroom attendance and completion report. Each training classroom attendance and completion record shall contain the following for each Attendee:

· Training event name, date(s), and time(s)

· First, Last Name of Employee

· VA Email Address

· Date(s) of Attendance

· Date of Completion

· Date Certificate of Completion provided to Attendees by VA Business Line

The Contractor shall provide Certificates of Completion to attendees that have both successfully met the classroom training completion criteria. and have completed a course evaluation. Establishing the classroom training completion criteria will be a collaborative effort between the VA Project Manager (PM) or their designee, VA COR and the Contractor and will take place post award as there is a dependency on what data elements and/or functionality is available to the VA within the Contractor’s platform.

The Contractor shall provide a means to capture each live virtual training classroom attendee's feedback (e.g., evaluation) and share the findings to the VA per each live training event completion to include a roll-up summary of evaluation results. Post training feedback shall be conducted electronically, within three (3) business days of training classroom completion. Establishing the classroom training feedback (e.g., evaluation criteria) will be a collaborative effort between the VA Project Manager (PM) or their designee, VA COR and the Contractor and will take place post award as there is a dependency on what data elements and/or functionality is available to the VA within the Contractor’s platform.

For each training classroom, the Contractor shall demonstrate flexibility in course times and duration to accommodate multiple time zones and VA staff availability. Event shall be scheduled at the convenience of the VA and Contractor.

Trainings shall be delivered virtually with participants watching a live visual presentation on a computer monitor and listening to the instructor(s) speak live by way of an audio stream or telephone. Participants shall be able to access training via any private or public computer, tablet, or mobile device to which they may have access. Participants shall have the ability to ask questions through open live conversation or via an online question and answer format.

The Contractor shall conduct the live virtual training classrooms as agreed upon with the VA with dates, course durations, and times to be determined as found in Table 1: Planned Virtual Live Training Events under Section 2: Scope

Deliverables:

A. Delivery of Virtual Instructor Led Training Events B. Training Event Schedule, including updates C. Training Event Attendance and Completion Reports D. Training Event Feedback Evaluations, including roll-up summary of evaluation results E. Live Virtual Training Classroom Final Training Content Materials, including updates F. Certificates of Completion for Employees

3.3 Online Self-Paced Training on Demand eLearning

Delivery (Optional Task)

The Contractor shall provide authorized users online access to the following commercially available web-based contact center on demand self-paced training courses during each twelve (12) month period, excluding continuing education units (CEU) as found in Table 2: Planned Self-Paced Course Licenses under Section 2: Scope.

On demand self-paced training courses shall feature traditional and interactive content and be available 24/7 to users during the period of performance.

Online access shall include access to all course modules and downloadable documents (e.g., guides, handouts, exercises, books, job aides, etc.).

Users shall be able to access training via any private or public computer, tablet, or mobile device to which they may have access. Users shall be able to download course materials to any private or public computer, tablet, or mobile device to which they may have access. This includes Government Furnished Equipment (GFE). Users shall be able to access training within the VA Firewall.

Contractor shall have the courses available for six (6) months following the date of each user registration regardless of the period of performance.

The VA IVC PM will notify the Contractor and VA COR via email of any user who has access to a training course, has not yet started the course, and has an overall progress of 0% sixty (60) days past their registration date within the period of performance. If an IVC employee’s registration must be cancelled due to unusual circumstances such as but not limited to no longer being employed by IVC, the Contractor will give the VA a credit for that that cancelled registration.

The Contractor shall provide support to end users that experience trouble with online access and assist with navigation through the web-based course with backup from website technical support as necessary. The Contractor shall be responsible for providing instructions directly to each end user covering how to access the course/training.

Users will be assigned by the VA. The VA will provide the Contractor the following for course registration/usage reporting:

· For CS CC employees, CS CC will provide each user’s full name as it appears in the VA Global Address List (GAL), VA email address, employee’s business line

· For VFMP employees, VFMP will provide each user’s full name as it appears in the VA Global Address List (GAL), VA email address, and specific VFMP sub-directorate.

The Contractor will not allow a user to register multiple times for the same course and if discovered the Contractor will notify the VA PM and VA COR via email within 24 hours.

The Contractor shall track and report monthly by each business line on the status of all users engaged in self-paced training by training course. The Monthly User Statistics Report shall be due the 15th of each month. The Monthly User Statistics Report shall be broken down by each business line (e.g., CS VFMP) and shall be comprised at a minimum of a Cumulative Summary Tab and a User Data Tab which shall contain, at a minimum, the following data:

Cumulative Summary Tab:

For CS CC Business Line Employees per training course:

· Completions to date by month per training course

· Authorizations to date by month per training course

· Registered to date and have started course by month per training course

· Registered to date and have not started course by month per training course

For VFMP Business Line Employees per training course:

· Completions to date by month per training course

· Authorizations to date by VFMP sub-directorate by month per training course

· Registered to date by VFMP sub-directorate and have started course by month per training course

· Registered to date by VFMP sub-directorate and have not started course by month per training course

User Data Tab per Training Course:

· Training Course

· Date Employee Received Access to Course

· Employee’s Office of Integrated Veteran Care (IVC) directorate (Customer Service or Veteran and Family Member Programs); Employee’s CS and VFMP sub-directorate (e.g., CS Family Member Contact Center or CS Veteran Contact Center, VFMP CHAMPVA, VFMP Specialty, VFMP Appeals, VFMP Program Management Office).

· First and Last Name of Employee

· Employee’s VA Email Address

· Employee’s VFMP sub-directorate, if applicable

· Employee’s Overall Course Progress (Percentage)

· Employee’s Course Completion Date

The Contractor shall provide a User Tab that can be filtered by training course and date; Office of Integrated Veteran Care (IVC) directorate (Customer Service or Veteran and Family Member Programs); and CS and VFMP sub-directorate (e.g., CS Family Member Contact Center or CS Veteran Contact Center, VFMP CHAMPVA, VFMP Specialty, VFMP Appeals, VFMP Program Management Office).

Following the kick-off meeting, the Contractor shall meet with the VA to discuss and finalize the Monthly User Statistics template for reporting as the Contractor’s platform may have limitations on their reporting capabilities following award.

The Contractor shall provide the ability to a user to download a Certificate of Completion for each course when they have satisfied the required criteria for completion at the time of completion and/or thereafter completion.

Deliverables:

A. Online Access to Self-Paced Training on Demand eLearning Courses B. Monthly User Statistics Report C. Certificates of Completion for Employees

3.4 Additional Live Virtual Training Classrooms (Optional Task) The VA can exercise the option to price additional virtual instructor led training events during period of performance based on demand and a validated need by the business lines. If exercised the Contractor shall perform all services outlined in 3.2.

4. Delivery Schedule.

3.1 Project Management

award

conference

conference

meeting conclusion

NTE 12

Initial- within ten (10) business days after award Updates- within two (2) business days of change

BY-12

OY-12

TBD

BY-12

OY-12

Due three (3) business days following meeting

JOB

Due within ten (10) business days of scheduled training event or sooner

3.2 Virtual Instructor Led

Training Delivery

OY- JOB- The vendor shall invoice the VA based on training event delivered On date agreed upon in the Training Event Schedule by VA and Contractor Note: Contractor shall invoice only for delivered classroom training monthly

OY-12

Due the 15th of each month

Within three (3) business days of training event completion

JOB

Within seven (7) business days of training event completion

E.

Final Training Content Materials, includes updates

On date determined In the Training Event Schedule and approved by IVC PM

3.3 Online, Self-Paced

Training On Demand eLearning Delivery (Optional Task)

The vendor shall invoice the VA based on each registered user accessing the on demand self-paced course.

OY: JOB The vendor shall invoice the VA based on each registered user accessing the on demand self-paced course.

Due fifteen (15) business days after optional task is exercised. Note: Contractor shall invoice only for access granted to self-paced eLearning courses monthly

BY-12

OY-12

Due the 15th of each month throughout the PoP

5. Period of Performance. Base period of twelve (12) -month period with two (2) twelve (12)-month option periods

6. Type of Contract. Firm Fixed Price (FFP)

7. Place of Performance. Contractor’s facility

8. Travel. Not Applicable

9. Material Other Direct Costs. Not Applicable

10. Government-Furnished Information, Equipment, and Facilities. Government will furnish a list of attendees for each of the live virtual training events and a registration list for each of the on-demand self-paced training course users. The VA will furnish real case scenarios for the instructor led training classrooms.

11. Security Requirements. The position sensitivity and the level of background investigation commensurate with the required level of access for the following tasks within the Performance Work Statement (PWS) are:

Position Sensitivity and Background Investigation Requirements

Position Sensitivity and Background Investigation Requirements

1. GENERAL

Contractors, contractor personnel, subcontractors, and subcontractor personnel shall be subject to the same Federal laws, regulations, standards, and VA Directives and Handbooks as VA and VA personnel regarding information and information system security.

2. ACCESS TO VA INFORMATION AND VA INFORMATION SYSTEMS

a. A contractor/subcontractor shall request logical (technical) or physical access to VA information and VA information systems for their employees, subcontractors, and affiliates only to the extent necessary to perform the services specified in the contract, agreement, or task order.

b. All contractors, subcontractors, and third-party servicers and associates working with VA information are subject to the same investigative requirements as those of VA appointees or employees who have access to the same types of information. The level and process of background security investigations for contractors must be in accordance with VA Directive and Handbook 0710, Personnel Suitability and Security Program. The Office for Operations, Security, and Preparedness is responsible for these policies and procedures.

The contractor or subcontractor must notify the Contracting Officer immediately when an employee working on a VA system or with access to VA information is reassigned or leaves the contractor or subcontractor’s employ. The Contracting Officer must also be notified immediately by the contractor or subcontractor prior to an unfriendly termination.

3. VA INFORMATION CUSTODIAL LANGUAGE

a. Information made available to the contractor or subcontractor by VA for the performance or administration of this contract or information developed by the contractor/subcontractor in performance or administration of the contract shall be used only for those purposes and shall not be used in any other way without the prior written agreement of the VA. This clause expressly limits the contractor/subcontractor's rights to use data as described in Rights in Data - General, FAR 52.227-14(d) (1).

b. VA information should not be co-mingled, if possible, with any other data on the contractors/subcontractor’s information systems or media storage systems in order to ensure VA requirements related to data protection and media sanitization can be met. If co-mingling must be allowed to meet the requirements of the business need, the contractor must ensure that VA’s information is returned to the VA or destroyed in accordance with VA’s sanitization requirements. VA reserves the right to conduct onsite inspections of contractor and subcontractor IT resources to ensure data security controls, separation of data and job duties, and destruction/media sanitization procedures are in compliance with VA directive requirements.

c. Prior to termination or completion of this contract, contractor/subcontractor must not destroy information received from VA, or gathered/created by the contractor in the course of performing this contract without prior written approval by the VA. Any data destruction done on behalf of VA by a contractor/subcontractor must be done in accordance with National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) requirements as outlined in VA Directive 6300, Records and Information Management and its Handbook 6300.1 Records Management Procedures, applicable VA Records Control Schedules, and VA Handbook 6500.1, Electronic Media Sanitization. Self-certification by the contractor that the data destruction requirements above have been met must be sent to the VA Contracting Officer within 30 days of termination of the contract.

d. The contractor/subcontractor must receive, gather, store, back up, maintain, use, disclose and dispose of VA information only in compliance with the terms of the contract and applicable Federal and VA information confidentiality and security laws, regulations and policies. If Federal or VA information confidentiality and security laws, regulations and policies become applicable to the VA information or information systems after execution of the contract, or if NIST issues or updates applicable FIPS or Special Publications (SP) after execution of this contract, the parties agree to negotiate in good faith to implement the information confidentiality and security laws, regulations, and policies in this contract.

e. The contractor/subcontractor shall not make copies of VA information except as authorized and necessary to perform the terms of the agreement or to preserve electronic information stored on contractor/subcontractor electronic storage media for restoration in case any electronic equipment or data used by the contractor/subcontractor needs to be restored to an operating state. If copies are made for restoration purposes, after the restoration is complete, the copies must be appropriately destroyed.

f. If VA determines that the contractor has violated any of the information confidentiality, privacy, and security provisions of the contract, it shall be sufficient grounds for VA to withhold payment to the contractor or third party or terminate the contract for default or terminate for cause under Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) part 12.

g. If a VHA contract is terminated for cause, the associated BAA must also be terminated and appropriate actions taken in accordance with VHA Handbook 1600.01, Business Associate Agreements. Absent an agreement to use or disclose protected health information, there is no business associate relationship.

h. The contractor/subcontractor must store, transport, or transmit VA sensitive information in an encrypted form, using VA-approved encryption tools that are, at a minimum, FIPS 140-2 validated.

i. The contractor/subcontractor’s firewall and Web services security controls, if applicable, shall meet or exceed VA’s minimum requirements. VA Configuration Guidelines are available upon request.

j. Except for uses and disclosures of VA information authorized by this contract for performance of the contract, the contractor/subcontractor may use and disclose VA information only in two other situations: (i) in response to a qualifying order of a court of competent jurisdiction, or (ii) with VA’s prior written approval. The contractor/subcontractor must refer all requests for, demands for production of, or inquiries about, VA information and information systems to the VA contracting officer for response.

k. Notwithstanding the provision above, the contractor/subcontractor shall not release VA records protected by Title 38 U.S.C. 5705, confidentiality of medical quality assurance records and/or Title 38 U.S.C. 7332, confidentiality of certain health records pertaining to drug addiction, sickle cell anemia, alcoholism or alcohol abuse, or infection with human immunodeficiency virus. If the contractor/subcontractor is in receipt of a court order or other requests for the above-mentioned information, that contractor/subcontractor shall immediately refer such court orders or other requests to the VA contracting officer for response.

l. For service that involves the storage, generating, transmitting, or exchanging of VA sensitive information but does not require C&A or an MOU-ISA for system interconnection, the contractor/subcontractor must complete a Contractor Security Control Assessment (CSCA) on a yearly basis and provide it to the COTR.

6. SECURITY INCIDENT INVESTIGATION

a. The term “security incident” means an event that has, or could have, resulted in unauthorized access to, loss or damage to VA assets, or sensitive information, or an action that breaches VA security procedures. The contractor/subcontractor shall immediately notify the COTR and simultaneously, the designated ISO and Privacy Officer for the contract of any known or suspected security/privacy incidents, or any unauthorized disclosure of sensitive information, including that contained in system(s) to which the contractor/subcontractor has access.

b. To the extent known by the contractor/subcontractor, the contractor/subcontractor’s notice to VA shall identify the information involved, the circumstances surrounding the incident (including to whom, how, when, and where the VA information or assets were placed at risk or compromised), and any other information that the contractor/subcontractor considers relevant.

c. With respect to unsecured protected health information, the business associate is deemed to have discovered a data breach when the business associate knew or should have known of a breach of such information. Upon discovery, the business associate must notify the covered entity of the breach. Notifications need to be made in accordance with the executed business associate agreement.

d. In instances of theft or break-in or other criminal activity, the contractor/subcontractor must concurrently report the incident to the appropriate law enforcement entity (or entities) of jurisdiction, including the VA OIG and Security and Law Enforcement. The contractor, its employees, and its subcontractors and their employees shall cooperate with VA and any law enforcement authority responsible for the investigation and prosecution of any possible criminal law violation(s) associated with any incident. The contractor/subcontractor shall cooperate with VA in any civil litigation to recover VA information, obtain monetary or other compensation from a third party for damages arising from any incident, or obtain injunctive relief against any third party arising from, or related to, the incident.

7. LIQUIDATED DAMAGES FOR DATA BREACH

a. Consistent with the requirements of 38 U.S.C. §5725, a contract may require access to sensitive personal information. If so, the contractor is liable to VA for liquidated damages in the event of a data breach or privacy incident involving any SPI the contractor/subcontractor processes or maintains under this contract.

b. The contractor/subcontractor shall provide notice to VA of a “security incident” as set forth in the Security Incident Investigation section above. Upon such notification, VA must secure from a non-Department entity or the VA Office of Inspector General an independent risk analysis of the data breach to determine the level of risk associated with the data breach for the potential misuse of any sensitive personal information involved in the data breach. The term 'data breach' means the loss, theft, or other unauthorized access, or any access other than that incidental to the scope of employment, to data containing sensitive personal information, in electronic or printed form, that results in the potential compromise of the confidentiality or integrity of the data. Contractor shall fully cooperate with the entity performing the risk analysis. Failure to cooperate may be deemed a material breach and grounds for contract termination.

c. Each risk analysis shall address all relevant information concerning the data breach, including the following:

(1) Nature of the event (loss, theft, unauthorized access).

(2) Description of the event, including:

(a) date of occurrence.

(b) data elements involved, including any PII, such as full name, social security number, date of birth, home address, account number, disability code.

(3) Number of individuals affected or potentially affected.

(4) Names of individuals or groups affected or potentially affected.

(5) Ease of logical data access to the lost, stolen or improperly accessed data in light of the degree of protection for the data, e.g., unencrypted, plain text.

(6) Amount of time the data has been out of VA control.

(7) The likelihood that the sensitive personal information will or has been compromised (made accessible to and usable by unauthorized persons).

(8) Known misuses of data containing sensitive personal information, if any.

(9) Assessment of the potential harm to the affected individuals.

(10) Data breach analysis as outlined in 6500.2 Handbook, Management of Security and Privacy Incidents, as appropriate; and

(11) Whether credit protection services may assist record subjects in avoiding or mitigating the results of identity theft based on the sensitive personal information that may have been compromised.

d. Based on the determinations of the independent risk analysis, the contractor shall be responsible for paying to the VA liquidated damages in the amount of $37.50 per affected individual to cover the cost of providing credit protection services to affected individuals consisting of the following:

(1) Notification.

(2) One year of credit monitoring services consisting of automatic daily monitoring of at least 3 relevant credit bureau reports.

(3) Data breach analysis.

(4) Fraud resolution services, including writing dispute letters, initiating fraud alerts and credit freezes, to assist affected individuals to bring matters to resolution.

(5) One year of identity theft insurance with $20,000.00 coverage at $0 deductible; and

(6) Necessary legal expenses the subjects may incur to repair falsified or damaged credit records, histories, or financial affairs.

9. TRAINING

a. All contractor employees and subcontractor employees requiring access to VA information and VA information systems shall complete the following before being granted access to VA information and its systems:

(1) Sign and acknowledge (either manually or electronically) understanding of and responsibilities for compliance with the Contractor Rules of Behavior, Appendix E relating to access to VA information and information systems.

(2) Successfully complete the VA Cyber Security Awareness and Rules of Behavior training and annually complete required security training.

(3) Successfully complete the appropriate VA privacy training and annually complete required privacy training; and

(4) Successfully complete any additional cyber security or privacy training, as required for VA personnel with equivalent information system access [to be defined by the VA program official and provided to the contracting officer for inclusion in the solicitation document – e.g., any role-based information security training required in accordance with NIST Special Publication 800-16, Information Technology Security Training Requirements.]

b. The contractor shall provide to the contracting officer and/or the COR a copy of the training certificates and certification of signing the Contractor Rules of Behavior for each applicable employee within 1 week of the initiation of the contract and annually thereafter, as required.

c. Failure to complete the mandatory annual training and sign the Rules of Behavior annually, within the timeframe required, is grounds for suspension or termination of all physical or electronic access privileges and removal from work on the contract until such time as the training and documents are complete.

12. Key Personnel

Contractor staff shall be fully qualified and have the level of experience necessary to accomplish the requirements of this PWS. The Contractor agrees that the personnel identified below, are considered Key Personnel, and as key to supporting this effort, shall not be removed from this effort, replaced, or added to this effort without a compelling reason and without written notification to and approval from the Contracting Officer (CO), VA Contracting Officer Representative (COR) and VA IVC Project Manager (PM) or their Designee.

Key personnel may not be replaced without at least thirty (30) days’ notice (except for unusual circumstances) and approval by the VA. The Contractor shall provide a resume for any such proposed replacement personnel who shall be of at least substantially equal ability and qualifications as the individual(s) currently performing in that category and that the proposed replacement meets or exceeds the qualifications designated for that Key Personnel position to facilitate the VA’s approval. It is expected that substitution or replacement of the personnel will not occur within the first six (6) months after date of contract award.

Contractor personnel shall be acceptable to the VA in terms of personal and professional conduct, and in technical knowledge. Furthermore, Contractor personnel shall be proficient using office automation equipment and software and have sufficient written and verbal communication skills to support VHA. Should any Contractor personnel be determined to be unacceptable in terms of technical competency or found to have demonstrated unacceptable personal conduct while on-site, off-site or while working on contract activities, the Contractor shall immediately remove and replace the unacceptable personnel at no additional cost to the VA. This task order is for non-personal services only. Contractor is responsible to direct the activities of Contractor personnel to meet contract requirements.

Contractor personnel are to serve in a support role; final decisions regarding VA business will always be made by VA personnel. The skilled, experienced professional, and/or technical personnel identified herein are essential for accomplishing the work to be performed.

The Key Personnel for this effort include fully qualified instructors and a Project Manager.

Contractor instructors shall possess the ability to fluently read, speak, write, and comprehend the English language. Each instructor shall have a minimum of two (2) years of instructional experience within the last three (3) years and a minimum of five (5) instructional instances taught within the last three (3) years in the specified course content. The instructor shall be skilled in techniques of virtual live classroom presentations for the adult Iearner. Experience in healthcare/clinical contact center training and/or prior experience working with government entities preferred. Instructors must be authorized to train and consult on contact center industry best practice standards. Instructors with experience in working with Military-centric Veteran/Veteran Beneficiary population that may be suffering from various challenges directly related to military service preferred.

Project Manager shall possess the following:

· At least five (5) years’ experience providing consulting services in a contact center.

· Prior experience working with government entities and/or healthcare entities preferred, at a minimum

· A business ’s level degree relating to a business field or published scholarly works pertaining to best practices in a contact center.

13. Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP)

Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP).

Deliverable or Requirement Performance Standard Surveillance Method Outcome

b. Uses correct English grammar, punctuation, and spelling 98% of the time, communicates information in a succinct and organized manner; produces written information that is appropriate for the intended audience

Contractor’s performance, to complete the

CPARS.

The VA will not pay for services that do not conform or do not meet performance standards or have not been properly rendered.

The Contractor will be given an opportunity to correct non-conforming services at no cost to the VA if the services are non- conforming or the contract requirement is unacceptable.

b. Notifies customer of potential problems 98% of the time; notification occurs within two business days of potential issue when known in advance or within 24 hours of urgent problems, where less than two business days exist

c. Invoices are submitted timely and accurately 98% of the time Verification by COR

Monitor randomly the course to review and confirm the skills of instructor(s) and to assess overall performance and effectiveness by IVC PM and/or their designee(s).

Periodically Assess the training event evaluations completed by the participants by COR and/or IVC PM or their designee(s)

Observation by the IVC PM or their designee(s)

100% Inspection by the COR

Standard Surveillance Method Outcome