CPOC 2.0 RFI.docx

Request for Information Case Processing Operations Center (CPOC)

DCSA

THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) ONLY. In accordance with FAR 15.201(e), responses to this notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes; it does not constitute a Request for Proposal (RFP) or a promise to issue a RFP. Furthermore, those who respond to this RFI should not anticipate feedback with regards to its submission; other than acknowledgement of receipt – IF a request for an acknowledgement is requested by the submitter. This RFI does not commit the Government to contract for any supply or service. The Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA) is not currently seeking proposals. Responders are advised that the Government will not pay any cost incurred in response to this RFI. All costs associated with responding to this RFI will be solely at the responding party’s expense. Not responding to this RFI does not preclude participation in any future RFP. All responses to this RFI become the property of the Federal Government and will not be returned. Of a solicitation is released, it will be via the Governmentwide Point of Entry at https://sam.gov or on General Services Administration (GSA) website. It is the responsibility of the potential Offerors to monitor the website for any information that may pertain to this RFI. All submissions become the property of the Federal Government and will not be returned.

This is a follow-on requirement for the Government. It is anticipated to be acquired utilizing Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 15 procedures. The Government expects the resultant contract to be firm fixed price (FFP). The Government anticipates award in FY26 Q4.

PURPOSE OF THIS RFI

This is an RFI used to identify potential business sources that are interested in, and capable of, providing case processing operation center services related to Federal Background Investigations, as managed by DCSA’s Personnel Security Office. The types of Contractor-provided investigative services include the following:

· Telephone and Switchboard Services.

· Case Processing, to include: Application Ingestion, Case Maintenance, Item Level Processing, and Post Closing.

· Expedited Work: Due to sometimes unforeseen urgency, the Contractor is responsible for fulfilling expedited item/case requests as required.

· Continuous Vetting

· Program Management

· Support for the transition to future system implementation, to include, but not limited to: Training Support, User Acceptance Testing Support, and Program Management Support.

· Implement a flexible, cost-efficient business model with the capacity to adapt to iterative policy and process changes—such as those anticipated for Trusted Workforce 2.0 and the future IT system—with agility and urgency as dictated by Executive Agents;

· Accommodate limitations in the Government’s ability to predict future background investigation requests (e.g., case volume, type, timing, and complexity);

· Transition from the current background investigation case processing system to the future IT system (s), with the understanding that DCSA will likely use multiple systems at some point during the life of these contracts (there may be situations where multiple systems are used simultaneously);

· Obtain consistent, quality investigative products at both the enterprise case level and the item level in accordance with strict timeliness mandates, Federal Investigative Standards (FIS), Department of Defense (DoD) cybersecurity policies, and DCSA protocols and procedures;

· Balance current case types with future emerging background investigative requirements—such as a growing population covered by continuous vetting, which may require on-demand targeted investigations;

· Support the quality of investigations by ensuring the quality, integrity, and accuracy of the personnel completing background investigations; and

· Support the quality of investigations by ensuring the quality, integrity, compliance, and accuracy of the processes used to complete background investigations.

Please review the draft Performance Work Statement (PWS) included in the RFI notice for more information.

SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS

Responses to the RFI should be in the form of an unlocked .pdf file with type font no smaller than 12 point. The e-mail subject line must contain “RFI Response for DCSA CPOC HS002126RE015” RFI submissions shall be submitted in writing by e-mail to Terrie Rodriguez, terrie.m.rodriguez.civ@mail.mil and Chad Roney, chad.m.roney.civ@mail.mil. All responses should be unclassified and reviewed to ensure consideration of operational sensitivities. Proprietary information will be accepted and handled appropriately. Responders should indicate which portions of their response are proprietary and should mark them accordingly.

Interested and capable firms are requested to provide a response addressing the following items.

1. Company Information:

· Company Name & Address

· CAGE Code & Unique Entity ID (SAM.gov)

· Point of Contact (Name, Title, Email, Phone)

2. Interest: A statement of your firm's interest in priming this project or as applicable, what your firm’s teaming and subcontracting strategy would be for a project such as this.

3. Business Size & Status: Please identify all applicable socio-economic categories for your firm under the specified NAICS code (561611):

· Small Business (Yes/No)

· 8(a) Certified (Yes/No), with graduation date.

· HUBZone Certified (Yes/No)

· SDVOSB (Yes/No)

· WOSB (Yes/No)

· Large Business (Yes/No)

4. Capability Statement: Please address each section below in your capability statement.

a. Corporate Experience and Capacity: This section aims to verify your company's experience in managing contracts of a similar scale and complexity.

i. Past Performance: Describe your company’s experience over the last five years managing government contracts of similar size (annual processing volumes of cases, items, and continuous vetting alerts, all volumes in the millions), scope (background investigations, case processing, item processing, continuous vetting), and complexity (estimated 900+ FTEs potentially across multiple locations). Please provide specific contract examples, including the agency, contract value, and period of performance.

ii. Volume and Scalability: Based on the last question, describe your firm's capacity and scalable infrastructure to manage these volumes, including your strategy for handling surges, without degrading timeliness or performance.

b. Technical Approach and Capabilities: This section assesses your understanding of and approach to the specific tasks required.

i. Initial Vetting (IV): Describe your technical approach to the primary case processing functions outlined in PWS Section 5.3, including:

· Application Ingestion (e.g., screening, scheduling, handling of unacceptable cases)

· Item Level Processing (e.g., experience with specific search types like SII, FBI, DCII, Credit)

· Post Closing activities (e.g., corrections, rework)

ii. Continuous Vetting (CV): The PWS emphasizes the growing role of CV. Describe your experience and proposed methodology for handling the CV lifecycle as described in PWS Section 5.4, including alert validation, risk identification, and report generation.

iii. Innovation and Manual Proficiency: The PWS encourages innovation (e.g., Artificial Intelligence, RPA, automation) but requires proficiency in manual processing as a backup. Describe your approach to balancing the implementation of new technologies with the need to maintain and verify manual processing capabilities. Based on the PWS, provide experience incorporating automation that could aid the Government in achieving the TW 2.0 requirements.

iv. Quality and Timeliness: The PWS (section 6) defines strict performance standards for timeliness and quality with financial incentives and disincentives. Describe your proposed Quality Control Plan (QCP) and the methodologies you would use to consistently meet or exceed the "Exceptional" rating (99.00% or greater) for both metrics.

c. Program Management and Staffing: This section evaluates your ability to manage a large, complex workforce and fluctuating workloads.

i. Management and Staffing: Describe your proposed management structure for this contract. Detail your strategy for recruiting, training, cross-training and retaining a workforce of approximately 900+ FTEs, including the key personnel (Program Manager, IT Manager, Quality Control Manager) who meet the minimum qualifications outlined in the PWS.

ii. Workload Fluctuation: The PWS states that workload will fluctuate, sometimes at considerable volumes, across functions, with little warning. Describe your proposed Workload Capacity Plan and staffing strategy to proactively and responsively adjust to significant changes in case volume while meeting all performance standards. Include in the staffing strategy, the ability to adjust to technology enhancements and automation.

iii. Phase-In Plan: The PWS requires a 90-day phase-in period. Outline your preliminary strategy and timeline for a successful transition, addressing key milestones such as staffing, security clearance processing, training, and obtaining system access to ensure operational readiness from day one.

d. Innovation and Transformation: This section explores your ability to adapt to major policy and system changes.

i. Trusted Workforce (TW) 2.0: The contract requires transformation to meet TW 2.0 requirements within the first two years of the contract. Describe your understanding of the TW 2.0 initiative and how you would apply your corporate experience in adapting operations, staffing, workload management, risk management and working in multiple systems to support significant government-wide policy changes.

ii. IT System Transition: The PWS anticipates a transition to a new IT system, with the potential for simultaneous use of legacy and future systems. Describe your experience with large-scale IT system transitions and how you would manage this process to ensure continuity of operations, meeting timeliness and quality requirements of the contract, and workforce retraining.

Note: Those who respond to the RFI should not anticipate feedback with regards to their submission other than acknowledgement of receipt – IF a request for an acknowledgement is requested by the submitter. DCSA reserves the right to review late submissions but makes no guarantee that they will be reviewed.