Atch 15 - QASP Package.pdf

QUALITY ASSURANCE SURVEILLANCE PLAN

for

Technical Collection and Communications Field Service Reps at

Various Locations per Statement of Work

2 Jul 2021

Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan

H92400-21-R-0007

NOTE: THIS QASP IS PROVIDED AS AN ATTACHMENT TO THE SOLICITATION FOR INFORMATIONAL

PURPOSES ONLY. IT WILL NOT BECOME PART OF THIS CONTRACT.

Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP)

1. INTRODUCTION: This QASP was prepared to meet the regulations at the Federal

Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 46.4 and Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement

(DFARS) 237.172 and sets forth the procedures and guidelines United States Special Operations

Command (USSOCOM) will use for surveillance of Contractor performance and identifies the performance indicators, standards, inspections methods and procedures to be used in monitoring performance. It details thresholds for acceptable and unsatisfactory performance for specific tasks within the SOW.

2. PURPOSE:

2.1 The purpose of this QASP is to provide a systematic method to evaluate the quality of services the Contractor is required to deliver. The primary interest is in the service the Contractor ultimately provides, not in the details of how the Contractor accomplishes the task. In addition, this QASP identifies the required documentation and the resources to be employed.

2.2 This QASP provides a means for evaluating whether the contractor is meeting the performance standards/quality levels identified in the PWS and the contractor’s quality control plan (QCP), and to ensure that the government pays only for the level of services received. This

QASP does not detail how the contractor accomplishes the work. Rather, this QASP was created with the premise that the contractor is responsible for management and quality control actions to meet the terms of the contract.

2.3 This QASP recognizes that unforeseen and uncontrollable situations may occur. Therefore, this QASP is a living document whereby the Government will review and revise it as needed.

However, the Government shall coordinate any such revisions to this QASP with the contractor.

Any revisions shall ensure the QASP remains a valid, useful, and enforceable document. While this QASP is the government’s document, copies of the original QASP and any revised QASP(s) shall be provided to the contractor.

2.4 This QASP also defines the roles and responsibilities of those individuals who are responsible for the surveillance of the Contractor’s performance, identifies the performance objectives, defines the methodologies used to monitor and evaluate the contractor’s performance, describes quality assurance documentation requirements, and describes the analysis of quality assurance monitoring results.

3. AUTHORITY: Authority for issuance of this QASP is provided under Contract Section E –

Inspection and Acceptance, which provides for inspections and acceptance of the services and documentation called for in task orders.

4. PERFORMANCE SURVEILLANCE STRATEGY

4.1 The contractor is responsible for the quality of all work performed. The contractor measures that quality through its internal quality control plan (QCP). Quality control is work output, not workers, and therefore includes all work performed under this contract regardless of whether the work is performed by the Contractor’s employees or by its subcontractors. The contractor’s QCP will set forth the staffing and procedures for self-inspecting the quality, timeliness, responsiveness, customer satisfaction, and other performance requirements in the

SOW. The contractor develops and implements a performance management system with processes to assess and report its performance to the designated government representative. This

QASP enables the government to take advantage of the contractor’s QCP measures.

5. RESPONSIBILITIES:

5.1 Contracting Officer (KO) : The KO has overall responsibility for taking all necessary actions to ensure effective contracting, ensuring compliance with the contract terms, safeguarding the interests of the United States in the contractual relationship and is ultimately responsible for the final determination of the adequacy of the contractor’s performance. The KO is also responsible for monitoring contract/task order compliance, administration, and cost control. The

KO will assure the contractor receives impartial, fair, and equitable treatment under this contract.

The KO will designate a Primary Contracting Officer’s Representative (PCOR) as the government authority for performance management.

5.2 Primary Contracting Officer Representative (PCOR): The PCOR is designated in writing by the KO and responsible for providing technical, management, and administrative functions necessary to assist the KO with effective oversight of the Group A Basic contract. The PCOR also serves as a senior advisor to the KO regarding contract issues and concerns and contractor performance related matters. The scope and limitations of authority are set forth in a written letter of designation from the KO. The PCOR is not empowered to make any contractual commitments or to authorize any contractual changes on the Government’s behalf. The contractor shall refer any changes they deem may affect contract price, terms, or conditions to the KO for action. The

PCOR is to be objective, fair, and consistent in evaluating contractor performance against the performance standards. Each evaluation made by the PCOR will also be documented and filed for further reference, audit, and proof of inspection. The PCOR shall keep a quality assurance file and at the conclusion of the task order or when requested by the KO shall provide them with any and all documentation related to performance surveillance.

5.3 Contractor: The contractor, not the Government, is responsible for the management and quality control actions necessary to meet the terms of the contract. It is understood that on rare exceptions unforeseen and uncontrollable problems do occur. This has been recognized and incorporated into thresholds for acceptable and unsatisfactory performance. Good management and use of an adequate QCP will allow the contractor to operate within the specified performance requirements. The contractor is responsible for providing all information to the government that is necessary to accurately evaluate performance. Each document provided for analysis by the contractor will be maintained by the contractor for government inspection for the period of the contract.

6. SURVEILLANCE PROCEDURES

6.1 Surveillance Schedule. The Contractor’s performance may be evaluated at any time during contract performance. However, the PCOR will develop a routine monthly, weekly, and daily surveillance schedule based on the performance standards. The monthly schedule shall be completed no later than the last workday of the preceding month. Copies of the schedule shall be sent to the Contracting Officer. The schedule shall be marked “FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY” and shall not be shown to the Contractor. In addition, periodic unscheduled surveillance will also be conducted.

6.2 Performing Surveillance. The PCOR shall meet with the Contractor to assess performance and shall document the assessment using the Performance Report at Enclosure 1 which will serve as the basis for all performance evaluations and constitute the documentation which will be used to substantiate any determination of unsatisfactory performance should such performance occur.

The Performance Report form ensures a documented, uniform appraisal of each service occurrence, and that equal weight is given to each evaluation. Surveillance results must be able to support action taken by the PCOR and KO when nonperformance or unacceptable performance occurs.

6.3 Unsatisfactory Performance. If performance is determined to be unsatisfactory, the PCOR will initiate a Contract Discrepancy Report (CDR) (Enclosure (2)) and obtain the contractor’s representative’s initials on the record of the observation and submit the CDR to the KO, along with the Inspection Checklist recording the unsatisfactory performance. The seriousness of the situation should dictate whether the PCOR should provide the CDR to the KO as soon as unsatisfactory performance is indicated or submit the CDR with the Performance Report.

6.4 Coordination with Contractor Management. The PCOR must always contact the

Contractor’s management to inform them of an instance of unsatisfactory performance and have the manager initial the entry on the Performance Report.

6.5 Surveillance Methods. This QASP may use a combination of surveillance methods which adequately assures the Government of the Contractor’s performance. These methods include, but are not limited to:

6.5.1 Periodic Inspection: Periodic inspection based on a predetermined plan to evaluate part of the contract outputs using subjective judgment and analysis of USSOCOM resources to decide what work to inspect and method of inspection as determined by the

PCOR.

6.5.2 100% inspection: Inspection of 100% of all outputs of the contract requirement. This method requires a total inspection of Contractor’s performance.

6.5.3 Customer Feedback: Validated Formal Customer Complaints, The government may also use results of customer feedback obtained from formal customer satisfaction surveys.

Validated Formal Customer Complaints means:

Any dissatisfaction expressed by a complainant via the PCOR to the Contracting

Officer (KO) either orally or in writing, regarding any aspect of the contractor’s performance, including but not limited to deficiencies related to the quality, reliability, or effectiveness, of the contractor‘s product deliverables or service performance; a violation of policy, law, or regulation; or failure to meet requirements of the Statement of Work. A formal customer complaint must be justified, verified as accurate and documented as valid and which, directly or implicitly, requests that the KO take specific action(s) to obtain relief or redress on behalf of the complainant. A formal customer complaint is resolved when the KO has closed the complaint after the KO has exhausted all appropriate actions to resolve the complaint and has responded to the complainant in writing explaining the final disposition of the complaint.

6.6 Inspection Method Selection. The depth and detail of observations of work shall be based on the relative importance of the items of work under evaluation. Certain tasks may be so important that nonperformance or poor performance may significantly impact the mission and warrant 100% inspection. Joint inspections may be made by the PCOR and the Contractor.

6.7 Surveillance Results. Surveillance results must support any action taken by the PCOR when nonperformance or unsatisfactory performance occurs.

7. DOCUMENTING PERFORMANCE

7.1 Each of the Performance Objects comprising the Performance Standards in Section 10 of this QASP shall be evaluated to determine whether the Contractor has exceeded, met, or does not meet a given Performance Standard and Acceptable Quality Level. The below rating scale shall be used to determine a positive, neutral, or negative rating for each Performance Objective and an overall rating will be assigned.

EXCEPTIONAL:

Performance significantly exceeds contract requirements to the Government’s benefit.

SATISFACTORY: Performance meets contractual requirements.

UNSATISFACTORY: Performance does not meet contractual requirements.

7.2 Documentation: Documentation must be accurate and thorough. Completeness, currency, and accuracy support a given performance rating. The Performance Report format shall be used to document surveillance.

7.3 Unsatisfactory Performance:

7.3.1 Should unsatisfactory performance occur, the PCOR shall inform the Contractor as soon as is practicable. This communication will normally be in writing unless circumstances necessitate verbal communication. When the PCOR determines formal written communication is necessary, the PCOR shall prepare a Contract Discrepancy

Report (CDR) (Enclosure (2)), and present it to the Contractor's management.

7.3.2 The contractor shall acknowledge receipt of the CDR in writing. The CDR will specify if the contractor is required to prepare a Corrective action plan to document how the contractor shall correct the unsatisfactory performance and avoid a recurrence. The

CDR will also state how long after receipt the contractor has to present this corrective action plan to the PCOR. The Government shall review the contractor's corrective action plan to determine acceptability.

8. SURVEILLANCE DOCUMENTATION FILES: In addition to providing reports of contract surveillance to the KO, the PCOR will maintain a complete Quality Assurance file. The file will contain copies of all reports, evaluations, recommendations, and any actions related to the Government’s performance of the quality assurance function, including the originals of the Performance Report. All such records will be maintained for the life of the contract. The PCOR shall forward these records to the KO at termination or completion of the contract.

9. QASP REVISIONS: Revisions to the QASP are the joint responsibility of the PCOR and the KO. The Contractor will be consulted and informed of any revisions.

10. PERFORMANCE STANDARDS—See Attachment 3 - SDS

PERFORMANCE SURVEILLANCE REPORT

1. CONTRACT NUMBER: <insert number>

2. Prepared by: (Name of PCOR) <insert name>

3. Date and time of observation: <insert date>

4. Observation:

<Examples of items to include in a report are:

- Method of surveillance.

- How frequently you conducted surveillance.

- Surveillance results.

- Number of observations.>

Assigned Rating: (check as appropriate)

Exceptional Satisfactory Unsatisfactory

Rating Definitions:

Exceptional:

Performance significantly exceeds contract requirements to the Government’s benefit.

Satisfactory: Performance meets contractual requirements.

Unsatisfactory: Performance does not meet contractual requirements.

Prepared by: <Enter PCOR’s name>

Signature – Contracting Officer’s Representative Date

Enclosure 2

Contract Discrepancy Report (CDR)

1. CONTRACTOR 2. CONTRACT NUMBER 3. Reference

4. INCIDENT 5. DATE Of OCCURENCE 6. CONTROL NUMBER

7.

FINDING is: (Check as appropriate) MINOR MAJOR

FINDING :

FINDING IMPACT:

8. PCOR

TYPED NAME SIGNATURE AND DATE

9. CONTRACTOR PCORRECTIVE ACTIONS AND ACTIONS TAKEN TO PREVENT RECURRENCE

10. Contractor's Representative

TYPED NAME AND POSITION SIGNATURE AND DATE

11. PCOR Evaluation of Contractor Response (Check as appropriate)

ACCEPTED R EJECTED

12. CLOSE DATE

13. PCOR/Government Program Manager

TYPED NAME AND GRADE SIGNATURE AND DATE

Category of Service Objective Performance Standard Acceptable Quality Level Method of Evaluation Remedy Deliverable

Transition 100% of personnel are in place Personnel in place no less than 14 days from task award

95% of personnel in place on

Day 1 of performance

Weekly transistion update by

Contractor to GOVT

1% reduction in gross price of task order for not meeting the acceptable fill level

At a minimum, or as specified in the task order:

Weekly Transition Reports Monthly

Reports

Qualified Personnel 100% of personnel meet required skills and qualifications as stipulated in the SOW

Figure 4.1 of SOW 95% of all personnel meet required skills and qualifications

Weekly transistion update by

Contractor to GOVT

Re-performance;

immediate replacement of any individual that does not meet the required skills and qualifications (within 2 days)

At a minimum, or as specified in the task order:

Weekly Transition Reports Monthly

Reports

Mangement of Issues 100% of all performance issues and customer complaints are successfully met

All performance issues and customer complaints are successfully met

Performance issues are corrected within one week of receipt Customer complaints are resolved within 2 working days of receipt of complaint

Inspections by COR; Formal

Customer Complaints;

Review of Monthly Reports

Retraining or replacement of personnel that received complaint

At a minimum, or as specified in the task order:

Weekly Transition Reports Monthly

Reports

Management of Positions

Shortfalls (Retention/Fill Rates)

100% of all positions are filled with the required skills and qualifications

Vacancies are filled within 14 days of personnel departures when notice is not given

95% of vacancies are filled within 14 days and 100% are filled within 21 days

Inspections by COR; Formal

Customer Complaints;

Review of Monthly Reports

1% reduction in gross price of task order for not meeting the acceptable fill level

At a minimum, or as specified in the task order:

Weekly Transition Reports Monthly

Reports

Management of Positions

Shortfalls (Retention/Fill Rates)

100% of all positions are filled with the required skills and qualifications

Vacancies are filled within 1 day of personnel departures when at least two-week notice is given

95% of vacancies are filled within 1 day and 100% are filled within 5 days

Inspections by COR; Formal

Customer Complaints;

Review of Monthly Reports

1% reduction in gross price of task order for not meeting the acceptable fill level

At a minimum, or as specified in the task order:

Weekly Transition Reports Monthly

Reports

Capture and document lessons learned that are specific to device operation and concealment (if applicable)

100% of the FSRs and

Operational Planners provide detailed technical reports to the GOVT

All devices will be operationally checked prior to any training or operational deployment.

90% of the HF-TTL equipment will be maintained to the appropriate level to support an immediate deployment

Quarterly discussions with onsite GOVT personnel

1% reduction in gross price of each task order for each percentage of the FSRs and

Operational Planners failing to document the necessary information

Retraining or

Replacement of underperforming personnel such that the personnel are preforming at acceptable levels within

2 business days of

GOVT notifying the

Task Lead

Monthly technical reports

Test shall be based on the completion of the scenarios conducted during the course.

90% of learners complete all scenarios without the assistance of the trainers

End of class statistics developed by Contractor and approved by the

GOVT from scenario test

Instructors' performance reflects effective classroom management.

Classroom is neat and well organized with no written complaints to

Contractor for each task order

Students are attentive and not disruptive with no written complaints to

Contractor for each task order

Students with disciplinary problems beyond the instructors control have been identified to

Government within 1 working day.

Inspections by GOVT

Formal Customer

Complaints

COR solicits feedback from TRs, leadership/SMEs/intereste d parties on accuracy and quality of deliverables and quality of performance

Instructors use communicative, learner-centered, and task-based teaching strategies.

No more than 2 formal customer complaints per year per task order

Contractor successfully resolves any customer complaint within 2 working days or less

Inspections by GOVT

Formal Customer

Complaints

COR solicits feedback from TRs, leadership/SMEs/intereste d parties on accuracy and quality of deliverables and quality of performance

Instructors meet qualifications standards IAW task or contract unless waived by Government.

100% of instructors met qualification standards.

GOVT observations

GOVT evaluation of

Contractor proposal for task

TECHNICAL CRITERIA

TRAINING CRITERIA

Provide HF-TTL NET Instruction to Components & TSOCs

100% of learners complete all scenarios without the assistance of the trainers

1% reduction in gross price of each task order for each percentage of the graduates failing to achieve the AQL associated with the course objective

Retraining or

Replacement of under performing instructors such that instructors are preforming at acceptable levels within

2 business days of

GOVT notifying the

Task Lead

At a minimum, or as specified in the task order:

Course AAR that provides student roster with associated assessment scores