Enclosure_6_-_QASP_Writer_Services.pdf

FOR INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY (10/2015)

ENCLOSURE 6, RFP NNH16570139Q

GOVERNMENT QUALITY ASSURANCE SURVEILLANCE PLAN

WRITER SERVICES

NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION (NASA)

HEADQUARTERS (HQ) ORDER NO. TBD

February 2016

Writer Services

GOVERNMENT QUALITY ASSURANCE SURVEILLANCE PLAN

(QASP)

1 INTRODUCTION

This Government Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP) is pursuant to the requirements listed in the Statement of Work (SOW) entitled Writer Services. This plan sets forth the procedures and guidelines the NASA HQ Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate (ARMD) will use in ensuring the required performance standards or services levels are achieved by the

Writer Services Contractor.

This plan is applicable to all services performed or products provided by the Writer Services

Contractor. Throughout this QASP, the term “Contractor” is used. In terms of this plan, it should be known that unless explicitly stated, this term is applicable to both the Writer Services

Contractor and any and all subcontractors.

1.1 Purpose

The purpose of the QASP is to describe the systematic methods used to monitor performance and to identify the methodologies and resources to be employed. The QASP provides a means for evaluating whether the Contractor is meeting the performance standards/quality levels identified in the SOW and the Contractor’s quality control plan (QCP), and to ensure that the Government receives the level of services ordered.

This QASP defines the roles and responsibilities of all members of the surveillance team, defines the process the Government expects to follow to obtain data, evaluate the Contractor, and determine if Contractor’s performance conforms to the order requirements.

The QASP is intended to be a “living” document from which resources and activities will evolve during the life of the order, and can be updated and changed unilaterally by the Government at any time during the order.

1.2 Order Goals and Objectives:

The HQ goal for this Writer Services order is to provide support across all media and markets in the full range of communications activities.

The purpose of this Fixed Price order is to manage the development of products to include the following but, not limited to: government reports, magazines, newsletters, electronic media, social media, presentations, speeches, news releases or other sources on past, current and future

NASA aeronautics activities including programs/projects. The Contractor shall be responsible for establishing and managing occasional events and all products associated with communications and outreach. The contractor shall integrate and streamline content for inputs into NASA reports such as the performance accountability report, President’s annual air and space report, budget narratives, annual reports, brochures, newsletters, strategic plans, website, and other materials in which the ARMD produces or provides into covering the scope of activities.

1.3 Performance Management Approach

The SOW structures the acquisition around “what” service or quality level is required, as opposed to “how” the contractor should perform the work (i.e., results, not compliance). This

QASP will define the performance management approach taken by NASA HQ ARMD to monitor and manage the Contractor’s performance to ensure the expected outcomes or performance objectives communicated in the SOW are achieved. Performance management rests on developing a capability to review and analyze information generated through performance assessment. The ability to make decisions based on the analysis of performance data is the cornerstone of performance management; this analysis yields information that indicates whether expected outcomes for the project are being achieved by the Contractor.

Performance management represents a significant shift from the more traditional quality assurance (QA) concepts in several ways. Performance management focuses on assessing whether outcomes are being achieved and to what extent. This approach migrates away from scrutiny of compliance with the processes and practices used to achieve the outcome. A performance-based approach enables the Contractor to play a large role in how the work is performed, as long as the proposed processes are within the stated constraints. The only exceptions to process reviews are those required by law (federal, state, and local) and compelling business situations, such as safety and health or security. A “results” focus provides the

Contractor flexibility to continuously improve and innovate over the course of the order as long as the critical outcomes expected are being achieved and/or the desired performance levels are being met.

1.4 Performance Management Strategy

The Contractor is responsible for the quality of all work performed. The Contractor measures that quality through the Contractor’s own quality control (QC) program. QC is work output, not workers, and therefore includes all work performed under this order regardless of whether the work is performed by Contractor employees or by subcontractors. The Contractor’s QC program

(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 will develop and implement 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.

The Government representative(s) will monitor performance and review performance reports furnished by the Contractor to determine how the Contractor is performing against communicated performance objectives. The Contractor will be responsible for making required changes in processes and practices to ensure performance is managed effectively.

2 ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

General organization and responsibilities of the Surveillance Team are as follows:

2.1 General

The activities detailed in this plan will be supported and performed by a group of individuals, many with differing levels of responsibilities, but all maintaining a level of consistency in terms of the surveillance strategy, approach, and activities in general. The specific entities and their associated responsibilities/input to the surveillance activities on the Writer Services order are described in the following paragraphs.

2.2 Surveillance Team

2.2.1 Contracting Officer

The NASA HQ Contracting Officer (CO) is responsible for monitoring order compliance, order administration, and for resolving any differences between the observations documented by the

NASA HQ Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) and the Contractor. The CO will designate one full-time COR as the Government authority for performance management.

As required by FAR 42.1502(c), the CO will complete an annual Contractor performance assessment report for this order using the Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System

(CPARS) evaluation, which will also be reviewed by the Contractor, and become a part of the

Past Performance Information Retrieval System (PPIRS).

2.2.2 Contracting Officer’s Representative

The NASA HQ COR is designated in writing by the NASA HQ CO to act as his or her authorized representative to assist in administering the order. The COR’s limitations of authority are contained in the NASA Form 1634, COR Delegation. The COR is responsible for technical administration of the project and ensures proper Government surveillance of the Contractor’s performance. The COR is not empowered to make any contractual commitments, authorize any contractual changes on the Government’s behalf, or in any way direct the Contractor to operate in conflict with the order terms and conditions. Any changes that the Contractor deems may affect order price, terms, or conditions shall be referred to the CO for action. The COR will have the responsibility for monitoring, inspecting, and evaluating the Contractor’s work performance.

Government surveillance may occur under the inspection of services clause for any service relating to the order.

The COR will assist the CO in the completion of the order’s annual performance assessment report using CPARS.

3 METHODOLOGIES TO MONITOR PERFORMANCE

3.1 Surveillance Techniques

In an effort to minimize the performance management burden, simplified surveillance methods will be applied to the insight areas described in Section 4 of this document to evaluate Contractor performance to determine whether the performance standards/service levels ordered have been met. The primary methods of surveillance are described below.

3.1.1 Communications

Communications is a general surveillance activity. Communications is a two-way process and includes both written and oral communication. Examples of written communications activities that may be used in conducting surveillance include:

a. Exchanges from the Contractor to the Government of plans, procedures, quality records, reports, etc., and/or provision of read-only access to repositories which retain these items.

b. Exchanges from the Government to Contractor of letters, reports, review results, etc.

c. Ad hoc information submitted by NASA COR to the CO related to the Contractor’s

Electronic mail.

Examples of oral communications activities that may be used in conducting surveillance include:

a. Informal telephone calls, teleconferences.

b. Informal verbal inquiries, discussions, engineering consultations.

c. Working group meetings, technical/status briefings, progress reviews, technical information meetings, and formal and informal reviews.

d. Informal discussions.

3.1.2 Management Reviews and Reporting

Examples of management review and reporting activities that may be used in conducting surveillance include:

a. Formal, process, and progress reviews

b. Review of contract deliverables and documentation

c. Documentation of problems, issues and concerns

d. Data collection reporting

3.1.3 Customer Feedback

The Contractor is expected to establish and maintain professional communication between its employees and customers. The primary objective of this communication is customer satisfaction.

Customer satisfaction is the most significant external indicator of the success and effectiveness of all services provided and can be measured through customer complaints.

Performance management drives the Contractor to be customer focused through initially and internally addressing customer complaints and investigating the issues and/or problems but the customer always has the option to communicate complaints to the CO or COR, as opposed to the

Contractor.

Customer complaints, to be considered valid, must set forth clearly and in writing the detailed nature of the complaint, must be signed, and must be forwarded to the COR. The COR will accept those customer complaints, perform an investigation, and notify the CO and Contractor, accordingly. Customer feedback may also be obtained either from the results of formal customer satisfaction surveys or from random customer complaints.

4. SURVEILLANCE ACTIVITIES

4.1 General

There exist specific insight areas that the Government and the Contractor shall concentrate on during applicable stages of order performance. Each of these insight areas and the Government’s expectations for these areas are described in Table 1.

Table 1. Surveillance Insight Areas

Area of Risk Identified Impact to Government Surveillance Team Activity Information Technology (IT)

Security

Computer Security: Potential corruption and loss of data;

disruption of schedule

Annual review of IT security plans and contingency test results and controls.

Review compliance with policies, firewalls, protection software, vulnerability scans and external systems.

Technical Documentation and

Control

Loss of knowledge of processes and results

Periodically sample documents (review for accuracy) and ensure they are under proper control.

Process Controls Degradation of work products;

increase in safety risk; potential schedule impact

Periodically monitor the Contractor’s adherence to key processes, their internal audit schedules/results, and QCP.

Continuous Risk Management Technical, schedule, safety, and program success

Periodically ensure that the Contractor is performing a Continuous Risk Management program that identifies, analyzes, tracks, mitigates, controls and reports on related risks.

Quality Management Technical, schedule, safety, and program success

Monitor the Contractor’s internal and external audits for compliance with the

Contractor’s established QCP.

Quality of Work Force a. Inability to fill positions and meet commitments on scheduled deliverables or science results, including NASA Performance

Metrics

a. Monitor time required to fill positions, and evaluate Contractor efforts and approaches used to fill vacancies.

Area of Risk Identified Impact to Government Surveillance Team Activity

b. Additional cost resulting from decreased productivity of other staff reliant on unfilled positions

c. Lack of expertise or inadequate experience in key areas

d. Delayed data delivery and/or poor data quality

b. Assess Contractor efforts to train staff in areas of required expertise.

c. Evaluate Contractor technical performance

d. Monitor progress and timeliness and evaluate the quality of data received.

Schedule Services not provided in a timely manner can impact project schedule

Monitor progress via management reviews and reporting.

4.2 Surveillance Team Activities

The surveillance team members will participate in review meetings, if applicable. They will provide support, as necessary, with the review of technical requirements, flow-down of requirements, and inspection/test activities. They will also maintain insight into the Contractor’s compliance with relevant deliverables submitted under the order and services performed. When the Government has concerns regarding Contractor performance, surveillance team members may conduct independent audits of the Contractor’s activities, processes, documentation and data, in order to provide assurance that the program is being implemented according to all requirements and performance standards. These audits will normally be conducted with advance notification and coordinated with the Contractor. However, the Government reserves the right to conduct unscheduled audits when evidence indicates that Contractor performance is deficient.

The following selected surveillance team activities will be performed by various surveillance team members during applicable stages of order performance:

4.2.1 Work Review and Performance Monitoring

The COR will perform the following functions to evaluate the Contractor's performance:

a. Reviews specific SOW areas to assure that work being performed and deliverables are in accordance with the technical requirements of the SOW and timely.

b. Reviews the Contractor's monthly Progress Report for accuracy and completeness.

c. Meets monthly, or more often if required, with the Contractor's Program Manager to discuss overall order management and performance, and review staffing and schedule issues.

d. Certifies the Contractor’s invoices for payment in accordance with GSFC procedures.

e. In the event of a discrepancy in the Contractor's performance, the COR promptly notifies both the CO and the Contractor's Program Manager and arranges a meeting to rectify the situation.

4.2.2 Performance Monitoring

The COR will ensure that employer–employee relationships do not occur between Government and Contractor personnel. This is achieved if the following is adhered to:

a. Only the Contractor interviews prospective employees.

b. Only the Contractor’s Program Manager assigns work directly to the employees.

c. Only the Contractor approves timecards and absences.

d. Government personnel do not interfere with the Contractor regarding personnel and administrative prerogatives.