Attachment J1 - Initial Order SOW - 08.10.2026 - 5 pages.pdf

Researcher Engagement Research

Initial Order

Statement of Work

C.1. OVERVIEW / BACKGROUND

The Library of Congress (“Library”) is the world’s largest library. As a public institution, its mission is to engage, inspire, and inform Congress and the American people with a universal and enduring source of knowledge and creativity. With over 930,000 on-site visitors in FY2025, the Library’s Thomas Jefferson Building has become a landmark destination, renowned for its architectural beauty and celebration of knowledge and creativity. The Library’s Collection and Services Group (LCSG) acquires, stewards, describes and shares the Library collections. In FY2025, LCSG staff answered more than 150,000 total reference questions -- 65% online -- and circulated nearly 300,000 physical items. LCSG is the organizational home of the Library’s 16 reading rooms and research centers, including the Law Library and multiple divisions within the Researcher and Collections Services (RCS) service unit. These organizations link more closely the Library’s researcher, reference, and public service work, as well as collection development, processing, and selected preservation activities. LCSG requires a contractor to continue a program of assessment and engagement in order to meet the Librarian of Congress’s vision that the Library connect with every American. More information about the Library can be found on the website www.loc.gov.

C.2. SCOPE

In line with the Library’s strategic plan and LCSG directional plan, the Contractor shall conduct research related to the Library’s assessment of researcher services across its 16 reading rooms and support the implementation of a holistic, institutional approach, harmonizing diverse practices to foster consistent, intentional, and sustainable practices for assessing the researcher experience both onsite and online.

The contractor shall complete a Discovery Phase (delivering a report with recommendations) and an Implementation Preparation Phase (delivering an implementation plan and supporting documentation).

C.3. REQUIREMENTS

C.3.1. The Contractor shall complete this work occurring in two phases: a Discovery Phase, ending in recommendations for implementation, followed by an Implementation Preparation Phase.

In the Discovery Phase, the Contractor will conduct an internal review of the Library's assessment and measurement landscape and identify assessment gaps, data silos, data stewards, and current tools and technology being used to capture and store researcher assessment data, and make recommendations for implementation of a more consistent and unified approach to researcher experience assessment.

Understanding the present landscape will allow the Library to 1) Develop an assessment and measurement vision and strategy for the researcher experience; 2) Integrate meaningful metrics into its strategic planning process; 3) Document and share its progress with improving the researcher experience.

In the Implementation Preparation Phase, the Contractor will use approved recommendations from the Discovery Phase and present ways to standardize data collection, analysis, and reporting, adopt shared http://www.loc.gov/ data tools and practices across programs, streamline data collection, and remove barriers to sharing data between stakeholders. Deliverables shall include an implementation plan, and launch templates and documentation to support a unified, holistic assessment program and measurement process. Upon approval of the deliverables, the Contractor shall conduct operational prep sessions or training with relevant divisions. These deliverables will enable the Library to receive feedback and analyze interactions to gain a deeper understanding of user needs and how to be more responsive to those needs, with the goal of both improving the Library’s researcher services and increasing users of those services.

Together, these phases will help Library leadership take an institutional, intentional, and sustainable approach to improving the researcher experience both onsite and online.

C.3.2. Reporting

Preliminary Findings

The Contractor shall report preliminary findings to the Library within a period agreed upon after the Period of Performance start date. This written report shall include findings collected and analyzed during the task order with a focus on findings from the gap analysis. The Contractor shall provide the report to the COR in an electronic format.

Final Report and Recommendations

The Contractor shall provide the Library with a comprehensive written summary report, analyzing the research and information collected and making recommendations for improving the Library’s researcher experience data landscape. The report shall be fully formatted and contain, at a minimum, an introduction, an executive summary, a description of the methodology used to conduct the evaluations, the findings of the evaluation, recommendations, and conclusions. The Contractor shall provide the report to the COR in an electronic format.

Prior to finalizing the report, the Contractor shall provide a draft in electronic format to the COR and shall discuss the draft with Library staff in writing and/or conference calls and make requested agreed-upon revisions. The Library will review the draft within ten business days and provide comments to the Contractor. The Contractor shall modify the draft, as directed, within ten business days.

Implementation Plan

A formal, written, and clearly formatted implementation plan, including suggested activities, templates, documentation, and timelines, developed by the Contractor in consultation with the Library, following discussion of the Final Report and Recommendations. The Implementation Plan will allow the Library to begin FY2028 with a unified, holistic assessment and measurement process for standardized data collection, analysis, and reporting across all reading rooms.

C.3.3. Meetings

Kick-off Meeting

The Contractor shall meet with the Library of Congress team to develop specific objectives for the work contemplated, including strategies for approaching each reading room, under this task order. This meeting will take place virtually, within one week of the Period of Performance start date.

Preliminary Report Presentation

Based on the preliminary findings report, the Contractor shall develop and deliver a presentation to the Library team, including leadership of LCSG and the COR. This meeting will take place in person on-site at the Library of Congress facilities on Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C. or virtually. The Contractor shall submit the presentation materials to the COR in hardcopy and electronic formats.

Final Presentation and Recommendations

Based on the final report, the Contractor shall develop and deliver a presentation to the Library team, including leadership of LCSG and the COR. The presentation will take place in person on-site at the Library of Congress facilities on Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C. or virtually. The Contractor shall submit the presentation materials to the COR in hard copy and electronic formats.

Implementation Plan Presentation

Based on the Implementation Plan, the Contractor shall develop and deliver a presentation to the Library team, including leadership of LCSG and the COR. The presentation will take place in person on-site at the Library of Congress facilities on Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C. or virtually. The Contractor shall submit the presentation materials to the COR in hard copy and electronic formats.

Operational Prep Sessions

The Contractor will work with the Library team to develop a schedule for communicating findings, recommendations, and rolling out the Implementation Plan throughout LCSG. The Contractor will engage directly with chiefs, reading room heads and/or their staff for training to ensure broad awareness of the project’s outcomes and the Implementation Plan tasks and components through one or more meetings, in person on-site at the Library of Congress facilities on Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C.

or virtually.

Additional Meetings

Additional project meetings may be held as deemed necessary by the Contractor or Library. Meetings may be held at the Library or online video meeting platform, as directed by the COR.

Meeting Format and Scheduling

Contractor shall develop a plan for meetings to occur virtually and/or in-person in consultation with the Library team based upon the specific requirements of the project tasks.

C.3.4. Travel

Contractors shall propose the travel they feel will fulfill the requirement. Travel shall be established as an FFP CLIN to be invoice upon conclusion of any travel. All travel must be in accordance with the Federal Travel Regulations. All travel must be approved by the COR before it commences.

C.4. CONTRACT PERFORMANCE

Deliverable Formats

All written deliverable products shall be submitted electronically in either Microsoft Office or Adobe formats for the COR’s review and comment.

Quality Standards

All deliverables must be suitable for forwarding to executive management, which includes professional analyses free from grammatical and typographical errors and in accordance with following general quality measures:

a) Accuracy – Deliverables shall be accurate in presentation, technical content, and adherence to accepted elements of style.

b) Clarity – Work products shall clear and concise. Any/All diagrams shall be easy to understand and be relevant to the supporting narrative.

c) Consistency to Requirements – All work products must satisfy the requirements of the contract.

d) File Editing – All text and diagrammatic files shall be editable by the Library.

e) Format – Deliverables shall be submitted in media mutually agreed upon prior to submission.

f) Timeliness – Deliverables shall be submitted on or before the due date specified in this contract or as described in assigned tasks or submitted in accordance with a latter scheduled date determined by or approved by the Library.

C.4.1 SCHEDULE OF EVENTS/DELIVERABLES

Paragraph reference Description of Event/Deliverable Due date

3.3 Kick-off Meeting with Library Team Within two weeks of

performance start date

3.1 Final Project Plan and Calendar with all

key dates due to COR

Within three weeks performance start date

3.1 Submission of methodologies to COR for

approval

Within six weeks of the performance start date

3.2 Preliminary Findings Report submission Three (3) months from the period of performance start date

3.2 Preliminary Findings presentation Within one (1) week after the Preliminary Findings Report submission

3.2 Draft of Final Report submission Within five (5) weeks after the Preliminary Findings presentation

3.2 Final Report submission Within four (4) weeks after

the Draft of Final Report submission

3.3 Final Report presentation and

recommendations

Within four (4) weeks after the Final Report submission

3.2 Draft of Implementation Plan submission Within six (6) weeks of the Final Report presentation and recommendations

3.2 Final Implementation Plan submission Within four (4) weeks of the Draft of Implementation Plan submission

3.3 Implementation Plan Presentation Within four (4) weeks of the Draft of Implementation plan submission

3.3 Begin Operational Prep Sessions Within one (1) week of the Implementation Plan Presentation

3.2 Launch Implementation Plan Within two (2) weeks of

the begin Operational Plan sessions

3.2 Complete launch of Implementation Plan Within eight (8) weeks of the Launch Implementation Plan

C.5. OTHER

C.5.1. Key Personnel

Contractor shall provide a project director who shall be responsible for the performance of the work, as well as an alternate. The project director and alternate must have at least three years of demonstrated experience in developing and leading survey activity in support of research libraries and cultural institutions, which includes participating in overseeing evaluation, design, data collection, statistical analysis and reporting.

(End of Performance Work Statement / Statement of Work)