Limited Sources JA (8.405) - Blackboard JA_Redacted.pdf

Limited Sources Justification and Approval (J&A)

Controlled Unclassified Information

March 2018 Controlled Unclassified Information Page 3 of 6

0005 Technology IT Helpdesk, 1 EA $ $ Product Code: STC.SV.TECHHDBD.S

0006 Blackboard Chatbot, Product Code: 1 EA $ $

HLP.TR.CHATBOT.S

Estimated Base Period Total $

6-Month Extension (March 1, 2026 - August 31, 2026)

1001 Gov Learning Perf. SaaS Plus, 1 EA $ $

Band: 2,001 - 5,000 FTE

(w/1024 GB), Product Code:

PKG.MMT.S2LRNPERFORM

1002 SaaS Staging Add-On, 1 EA $ $ Product Code: LSS.MH.STAADDN.S

1003 SaaS Additional Storage 1tb, 2 EA $ $ Product Code: LSS.MH.SAAS1TB.S

1004 Helpdesk Support, Product Code: 1 EA $ $

HLP.SV.HDINC.S

1005 Technology IT Helpdesk, 1 EA $ $ Product Code: STC.SV.TECHHDBD.S

1006 Blackboard Chatbot, Product Code: 1 EA $ $

HLP.TR.CHATBOT.S

Estimated 6 Mon Ext Total $

Total Estimated Cost $

The Period of Performance (PoP) will be for 6 months and include a 6-month extension as permitted by FAR Clause 52.217-8, Option to Extend Services. Projected PoP is: 9/01/2025 to 2/28/2026. If the 6-month extension is utilized, the PoP will end on 8/31/2026. Extension CLINS 1001 - 1006 will only be used for evaluation purposes and will not be included in the final award.

IV. Identification of the justification/rationale for limiting sources and demonstration of the contractor's unique qualifications to provide the required supply/service.

FAR 8.405-6 requires an ordering activity to justify its actions when restricting consideration of schedule contractors to fewer than required in FAR 8.405-1 or 8.405-2.

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This proposed action is justified under the authority of FAR 8.406-6(a)(1)(i)(c), which states, “In the interest of economy and efficiency, the new work is a logical follow-on to an original Federal Supply Schedule order provided that the original order was placed in accordance with the applicable Federal Supply Schedule ordering procedures. The original order or BPA must not have been previously issued under sole-source or limited-sources procedures.”

Supporting Information

1. The original order (GS35F0554M/FA481420F0190) was advertised on GSA eBuy in 2020 and resulted in a competitive award to Blackboard Inc.

2. In the interest of economy and efficiency, Blackboard Inc. is the only vendor able to satisfy this requirement at a cost-effective price. The Joint Special Operations University (JSOU) is currently in a five-year contract with Blackboard Inc. to provide a Learning Management System (LMS) Software as a Service (SaaS) costing approximately $ per year. All of the university's on-line courses are currently stored and accessed by 12,000 students on Blackboard servers.

JSOU is currently transitioning to a self-sustaining (in-house) solution with Microsoft O365 to create an on-line learning platform. When complete, the university will no longer require a separate contract to provide an on-line learning platform which will save the government a minimum of $335K per year. A short-term order is required to allow the university ample time to fully transition to the new Microsoft O365 solution. A follow-on 6-month order with the current vendor, Blackboard Inc., will be the most cost-effective method to grant JSOU the transition time needed. Awarding this short-term order to any other vendor would result in substantial set-up costs that would not be recovered through competition.

Set-up costs include university branding, configuring the LMS to the needs of JSOU, creation of a URL, training for faculty and staff, and creating Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) between the new LMS and the university's Student Information System (SIS). Within the industry, set-up requirements range from $ to $ in costs.

Amortized over a 5-year period, the set-up cost would justify using competitive procedures. In contrast, a 6-month order would result in substantial costs that can be avoided by issuing a follow-on order directly to Blackboard, Inc.

As the incumbent, Blackboard Inc. has been compensated for all startup costs over the last 5 years and can offer approximately $ in savings on a short-term follow-on order when compared to industry competitors.

V. Determination by the ordering activity Contracting Officer that the order represents the best value consistent with

FAR 8.404(d).

Consistent with FAR 8.404(d) and IAW Class Deviation 2014-O0011, the proposal analysis techniques at FAR 15.404-1 will be used to determine prices are fair and reasonable.

VI. Description of the market research conducted and the results, or explain why market research was not conducted.

Vendor outreach, discussions with government SME's and ProcurementIQ were utilized to perform market research.

The government issued a Request for Information (RFI)/Sources Sought notice on February 12, 2025 on sam.gov. The RFI sought to gather information on vendor capabilities and to understand the extent of start-up costs required to perform. 18 vendors replied to the notice and all information was forwarded to government SMEs at JSOU for review.

The SMEs contacted several interested parties vendors (i.e., Ace Applications, LLC, Connsci, LLC, Omni

March 2018 Controlled Unclassified Information Page 5 of 6

Federal, and SRR International, Inc.) to discuss the viability of competing this requirement. Contacted parties revealed an inherent advantage for the incumbent vendor. All other vendors identified set-up costs ranging from $ to $ that the incumbent would not have. Based on these finding, the government has a high level of confidence that competing this effort would result in substantial additional costs not expected to be recovered through competition.

Procurement IQ was used to research Learning Management software and to obtain the following SWOT analysis:

Strengths

- The pace of regulatory change has been slow in this market indicating a minimal threat of drastic changes due to new regulations.

- There is a high availability of substitutes in this market, indicating that buyers can leverage other products or services to secure discounts.

Weaknesses

- Market Share Concentration is high in this market, which indicates that vendors that vendors are unlikely to engage in price-based competition to win new business.

- The market offers few opportunities for sourcing from women-, veteran- and minority-owned businesses, meaning buyers are not likely to be able to meet diversity metrics or values for this market.

- The Learning Management Software market has a moderate level of vendor financial risk, indicating that the average vendor in this market faces a moderate threat of bankruptcy which could cause disruptions for buyers.

Opportunities

- Supply Chain Risk is low in this market, which reveals that vendors are unlikely to have difficulties in securing the necessary products and equipment for Learning Management Software.

- Prices for Learning Management Software have displayed low price volatility. As such, buyers can expect a level of predictability that allows them to better anticipate prices and plan accordingly.

- The average profit margin in this market is high, which means that vendors may be more willing to negotiate down their prices.

Threats

- Prices are forecast to increase quickly during the next three years

- Prices have been rising quickly during the past three years, which has forced buyers to act more urgently to avoid rising prices.

- Price drivers have been highly volatile during the past three years, which increases the likelihood of sudden shifts in market demand and/or prices.

VII. Other facts supporting the justification.

N/A

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VIII. Actions the agency may take to remove or overcome any barriers that led to the restricted consideration before any subsequent acquisition for the supplies or services.

It is the policy of the 6th Contracting Squadron to seek full and open competition whenever practicable. In the event the planned transition to the afore mentioned Microsoft O365 solution is unsuccessful, the government will seek a competitive long term award to fulfill this requirement.

IX. Certification by the Contracting Officer.

As evidenced by my signature above, I have determined this document to be both accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

X. Certification by the technical/requirements personnel.

As evidenced by my signature above, I certify that any supporting data contained herein, which is my responsibility, is both accurate and complete.