Attachment 7.pdf

DRAFT

HSCG23-08-R-MMZ339 Attachment no. 7 1

CONTRACTOR TECHNICAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT SERVICES

FOR THE U.S. COAST GUARD NATIONAL MARITIME CENTER

MARINER INFORMATION CALL CENTER

TASK ORDER

PERFORMANCE WORK STATEMENT

1.0 GENERAL.

1.1 SCOPE.

The purpose of this task order under HSCG23-08-D-MMZ339 is to obtain Contractor technical and administrative support services for the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) National Maritime Center (NMC) Mariner Information Call Center (MICC). Contractor tasks shall include answering call center queries in a timely, accurate, professional manner regarding status, procedures, and requirements for obtaining credentials;

and classifying and tracking requests for feedback.

1.2 BACKGROUND.

The MICC is a vital support element for the Maritime Licensing and Documentation (MLD) Program and provides mariners with a “one-stop-shop” for information about credential evaluation or issuance, status of individual applications, answers to questions about problems or delays with regard to individual applications, and measurement data that can help determine NMC effectiveness and responsiveness.

Requests for feedback may be received by phone, email or via the Internet.

The MICC plays a key role in identifying and prioritizing opportunities for continuous improvement through feedback, which is collected, in part, by tracking data on calls from mariners across the country. This feedback is also used to validate consistent performance and satisfy customer feedback requirements of the MMS. Calls primarily focus on application process and status, and are relatively easy to answer. More complex questions are re-directed or answered in a procedure mutually agreed upon by NMC and MICC managers. The MICC’s current hours of operation are 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM local time. However the hours of operation will expand to 8:00 PM as the centralization of MLD processes to NMC continues. Statistically, the highest volume of incoming calls is received between 11:00 AM and 2:00 PM local time.

The MICC currently receives approximately 5,000 requests for assistance or information per month, with approximately 4,750 received via phone and 250 by email or the Internet. Historically, approximately half of all requests are for the status of a mariner’s application for a license or document. As future Internet “self-help” is developed and deployed, mariners will be able to retrieve status or information via web forms.

Therefore, greater percentages of the questions received by the MICC may be more complex in nature and require a greater level of knowledge and experience of the call center staff. Additionally, it is anticipated that the inquiries will increase to approximately 15,000 per month, with approximately 14,000 being received via phone and 1,000 by email or the Internet.

The current Contractor uses a series of increasingly experienced employees. Base level employees are used to answer basic status questions and to handle the redirection of general business calls. More experienced employees handle more complex calls such as questions regarding individual qualification requirements. Currently, the Contractor cross-trains employees with the Professional Qualification Evaluation (PQE) branch in order to provide accurate answers or instruction to applicants and existing Mariners.

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1.3 CONTRACTOR PERSONNEL.

1.3.1 Project Manager. See Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract Performance Work Statement (PWS).

1.3.2 Qualified Personnel. See IDIQ contract PWS.

1.3.3 Employee Identification. See IDIQ contract PWS.

1.3.4 Employee Conduct. See IDIQ contract PWS.

1.3.5 Removing Employees for Misconduct or Security Reasons. See IDIQ contract PWS.

1.3.6 Conflict of Interest. See IDIQ contract PWS.

1.4 KEY PERSONNEL.

See IDIQ contract PWS.

1.5 SECURITY.

Contractor access to classified information is not currently required under this task order.

1.6 PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE.

The period of performance for this task order is one year from the date of award.

1.7 PLACE OF PERFORMANCE.

The primary place of performance will be the NMC facility at 100 Forbes Drive Martinsburg, WV, 25404.

1.8 HOURS OF OPERATION.

Contractor employees shall generally perform all work between the hours of 8:00 AM and 8:00 PM local time, Monday through Friday (except Federal holidays). However, there may be occasions when Contractor employees shall be required to work other than normal business hours, including weekends and holidays, to fulfill requirements under this task order.

1.9 TRAVEL.

Contractor travel is not required to support this task order.

1.10 KICK-OFF MEETING.

See IDIQ contract PWS

1.11 PROJECT PLAN.

See IDIQ contract PWS

1.12 PROGRESS REPORTS.

See IDIQ contract PWS. In addition to IDIQ contract PWS 1.12, see PWS 5.2 in this task order.

1.13 PROGRESS MEETINGS.

See IDIQ contract PWS.

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1.14 GENERAL REPORT REQUIREMENTS.

The Contractor shall provide all written reports in electronic format with read/write capability using applications that are compatible with Coast Guard Standard Workstation (Windows Server 2003 and Microsoft Office Applications).

1.15 PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS SUMMARY.

This task order includes a Performance Requirements Summary (PRS). In general, the PRS sets forth the expected outcomes (objectives) of the task order, the service(s) required of the Contractor to achieve the objectives, a performance standard per outcome, and a plan for a reduction in payment in the event the Contractor does not meet the performance standard. The PRS is not an exclusive remedy and inclusion of the PRS does not preclude the Government from using any other remedy available by law or contract terms, including deducting/withholding in payment in accordance with any clause for inspection of services.

1.16 INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY.

See IDIQ contract PWS.

1.17 PROTECTION OF INFORMATION.

See IDIQ contract PWS.

1.18 SECTION 508 COMPLIANCE.

See IDIQ contract PWS.

2.0 GOVERNMENT TERMS & DEFINITIONS.

2.1 CFR – Code of Federal Regulations

2.2 COTR – Contracting Officer Technical Representative

2.3 DHS – Department Of Homeland Security

2.4 MICC – Mariner Information Call Center

2.5 MLD – Mariner Licensing and Documentation

2.6 MMLD – Merchant Mariner Licensing and Documentation

2.7 MMS – Mission Management System

2.8 NMC - National Maritime Center

2.9 NMC5 - National Maritime Center’s Mariner Evaluations Division

2.10 PRS – Performance Requirement Summary

2.11 PWS – Performance Work Statement

2.12 USC – United States Code

2.13 USCG – U.S. Coast Guard

3.0 GOVERNMENT FURNISHED RESOURCES.

The Government will provide the following property and information to the Contractor for work required under this task order:

3.1 The Coast Guard will provide all necessary facilities (work space, workstation, phones, fax, Internet access, etc.), information, documentation, and standards necessary to perform the task. This includes access to the Merchant Mariner Licensing and Documentation (MMLD) system and the help desk tracking system.

3.2 The Government will provide access to Coast Guard subject matter experts that can answer questions for which answers are not available in published FAQs and other documents (see References).

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3.3 The Contractor shall use Government furnished property only for the performance of work under this task order, and all government furnished property/information (GFP/GFI) shall be returned to the Government at the completion of this task order.

4.0 CONTRACTOR FURNISHED PROPERTY.

The Contractor shall furnish all facilities, materials, equipment and services necessary to fulfill the requirements of this task order, except for the Government Furnished Resources specified in the IDIQ or PWS 3.0 and 5.0 of this work statement.

5.0 REQUIREMENTS.

The Contractor shall provide accurate responses to MICC queries in a timely, professional and courteous manner regarding status, procedures, and requirements for obtaining credentials.

5.1 Customer Service Support.

5.1.1 The Contractor shall provide customer support by answering queries in a timely, professional, and courteous manner regarding status, procedures, and requirements for obtaining credentials. Calls may be received via the 1-888-IASKNMC (1-888-427-5662) phone number or via NMC’s routine business number.

5.1.1.1 The Contractor shall answer 80% of calls received within 20 seconds; the remainder within 45 seconds. The Contractor shall respond to 100% of voice mails and emails received the within one business day.

5.1.1.2 The Contractor shall provide Spanish language capability between the hours of 8:00 AM and 5:00 PM local time, Monday through Friday (except Federal holidays).

5.1.2 The Contractor shall initially be capable of receiving and answering approximately 5,000 requests for assistance or information per month. Approximately 4,750 will be received via phone and 250 by email or the Internet, as a minimum.

5.1.2.1 As the transition described in the IDIQ contract PWS 1.2 continues, the inquiries are expected to increase to approximately 15,000 per month, with approximately 14,000 being received via phone and 1,000 by email or the Internet. The Contractor shall respond to the increased capacity as needed to respond to all inquiries appropriately.

5.1.3 The Contractor shall redirect calls in accordance with the Mission Management System (MMS) or when the query is beyond the knowledge level of the Contractor. This will most often involve the Contractor determining who is evaluating the particular mariner’s file and routing the call to the subject matter expert.

5.1.4 The Contractor shall act as operators for the NMC with regard to the redirect of routine business calls as requested by the caller (approximately ten (10) per day).

5.1.4 The Contractor shall facilitate callers’ use of an automated survey system to measure customer satisfaction if implemented by USCG.

5.2 Maintain Call Center

5.2.1 The Contractor shall use MMLD and NMC's integrated phone system database to classify, track, record and report on all phone inquiries.

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5.2.2 The Contractor shall utilize existing Coast Guard systems to track and maintain a comprehensive data base of call tracking information that shall be presented to the Government on demand and as part of the monthly progress report. This data will be used to drive process improvement and shall include items such as:

• Incoming Call volume

• Abandoned Calls

• Length of calls

• Hold time

• Wait time

• Call topic

• Customer feedback comments.

The Contractor shall provide the report in a format approved by the Government at the Kick-Off meeting.

5.2.3 The Contractor shall track contacts that are received by other means (e.g. email) in MMLD and track response performance using the government provided computer network and software (i.e. a database in Microsoft™ Office Access 2003).

5.2.4 The Contractor shall provide recommendations for adapting the call center for growth and for general process improvement. These items shall be documented in the Contractor’s monthly report (PWS 1.12).

The Government may require the Contractor to provide input verbally or in writing and also may require participation in planning/execution strategy sessions.

5.3 Mission Management System.

5.3.1. The Contractor shall adapt to changes driven by the MMS.

5.3.2. The Contractor shall provide recommendations for continuous MMLD Program improvement opportunities

5.3.3 The Contractor shall recommend process improvements to ensure accuracy and timeliness of mariner evaluations. The Contractor shall comply with process changes as directed by the NMC in a continual effort to reduce processing time while maintaining accuracy.

6.0 REFERENCES.

See IDIQ contract PWS.

Note: PWS 7.0 begins on the next page.

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7.0 DELIVERABLES.

The Contractor shall consider items in BOLD as having mandatory due dates.

ITEM PWS DELIVERABLE / EVENT DUE BY

1 1.10 Kick-Off Meeting Not later than five (5) business days after award.

2 1.10;

1.11 Draft Contractor Project Plan Not later than Kick-Off Meeting

3 1.10;

1.11 Final Contractor Project Plan Not later than three (3) business days after

Kick-Off Meeting

4 1.12 Progress Reports Monthly. Not later than 5 business days following the end of the reporting month.

5 5.1 Customer Service/Phone Support Answer 80% of all calls within 20 seconds;

remainder within 45 seconds.

6 5.1 Customer Service/Voicemail or Email Support

Respond to requests within one (1) business day

7 5.2 Call Center Maintenance On demand and in monthly report

Note: PWS 8.0 begins on the next page.

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8.0 PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS SUMMARY (PRS).

The PRS table below reflects the deliverables considered by the Coast Guard to be most important for the successful performance of this task order. This includes the expected standards of performance and positive or negative incentives.

CONTRACTOR TECHNICAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT SERVICES

FOR THE U.S. COAST GUARD, NATIONAL MARITIME CENTER,

MARINER INFORMATION CALL CENTER

Objectives Required Service Performance Standard Incentives (positive or negative)

1. Timely receipt of all documents

Provide final draft of all documents on time.

(PWS 7.0)

100% on time delivery. If the contractor fails to meet the performance standard, the results may be reflected in the Contractor’s performance evaluation for the Task Order.

2. High Quality written reports that facilitate good decision making by the Coast Guard.

All documents, reports, and analyses produced by Contractor shall be well designed, clearly written and expertly edited

• Meets the requirements set forth in the PWS

• Written in a clear and simple language

• Organized in a logical manner

• Are free from grammatical errors

If the contractor fails to meet the performance standard, the results may be reflected in the Contractor’s performance evaluation for the Task Order.

3. MICC Efficiency and Effectiveness

Timely response to inquiries. 80% of calls answered within 20 seconds, the remainder of calls within 45 seconds, and 100% of voicemails and emails responded to within one business day.

If the contractor fails to meet the performance standard, subsequent task orders may not be awarded for the MICC.

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CONTRACTOR TECHNICAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT SERVICES

FOR THE U.S. COAST GUARD, NATIONAL MARITIME CENTER,

MARINER INFORMATION CALL CENTER

Objectives Required Service Performance Standard Incentives (positive or negative)

4. MICC Customer Satisfaction

Professional and Courteous response to mariner inquiries

100% professional and courteous response to inquiries.

If the contractor fails to meet the performance standard, the results may be reflected in the Contractor’s performance evaluation for the Task Order.

5. No unauthorized disclosure of Privacy Act or sensitive information.

The Contractor shall safeguard all Privacy Act and other sensitive information and materials in accordance with federal law and U.S. Coast Guard policy and regulations (PWS 1.16)

Zero incidents) A progressive series of reductions will apply for each documented incident that results in the unauthorized disclosure of privacy information to unauthorized personnel. For the first incident, a $5,000 reduction will apply. For any and each subsequent incident, the Government reserves the right to impose a $10,000 reduction or terminate the Task Order.