Responses_Mar_8_QUESTIONS_FOR_RFQ_NN16579931Q.pdf

QUESTIONS SUBBMITED FOR RFQ NN16579931Q

1. We are unfamiliar with the speaking certification you require. Will an alternate certification

(or proof of extensive speaking engagements) suffice?

The CSP certification is the only certification that will suffice for this work. The Certified

Speaking Professional is much more than extensive speaking engagements and experience. While one requirement of the CSP designation is to provide evidence of 250 speaking engagements, the CSP requirement includes a favorable evaluation from 250 speaking engagements, verified by a National Speakers Association employee. The speaking is verified by the National Speakers Association to certify not only that the speech occurred at the stated time and place, but additionally that the clients would recommend and hire the consultant again. These are much more rigorous requirements than mere evidence of extensive speaking experience. There are additional exhaustive comprehensive requirements. One of these requirements includes the ability to earn a living as a professional coach, trainer, consultant and/or speaker. While many practiced professionals are able to speak eloquently, the ability to earn a living in the field ensures that the applicant can successfully navigate the government, private and nonprofit sectors and be rehired for future engagements. This requires working through business processes, government requirements and regulations, and understanding the unique needs of nonprofit organizations.

2. What is more valuable to NASA - OD/OCM Consultants and SMEs with experience (and certifications) in supporting global Fortune 100, Federal and Military customers (on an international basis) or NSA Membership/CSP Certification?

The certified speaking professional is more than a certification. It is a challenging vetting process that includes a peer review process. It requires a minimum of 20 evaluations from previous clients stating that the work of the applicant is exemplary. The average evaluation of 28 out of 36 is required. Because of these strict standards, some applicants are denied the CSP designation each year.

While the questions vary each year, representative components of the evaluation include the following:

a. The speaker accurately represented qualifications and experience and had the expertise required for the engagement.

b. The applicant worked to understand the organization’s goals and approaches in advance of the engagement.

c. If similar services were required in the future, the applicant would be considered for the engagement.

d. The vetting process also includes a review of a four-member CSP panel. The panel judges the applicant based on the highest standards of client satisfaction, business practices, ethics, and performance. No other organization in the field has such a stringent vetting process.

3. What is the purpose of requiring CSP Certification? Why was it added?

CSP membership ensures that all speakers and presenters are vetted and proven professionals who have dedicated their careers to professional speaking. For these individuals, professional speaking is the core of their profession and they abide by principles and guidelines set forth by their organizations. The hyperlink will take the reader to a web page that elaborates information on the depth of knowledge and expertise that comes along with the CSP certification. It is not simply a moniker taken lightly. It is the result of study, preparation, dedication, and accountability. Follow the link below to learn more about this certification. This should help the reader understand the full importance and significance of this certification. In addition, this membership affords members access to resources, mentoring and professional connections needed to become more efficient and effective in all aspects of the consulting business.

a. http://www.nsaspeaker.org/certifications/

4. What is the value of requiring CSP Certification to the overall delivery of the listed

HRMD strategic objectives?

A stringent vetting process is the primary need for the CSP (Certified Professional certification designation. This contract requires a very seasoned professional with proven success. While education and experience are paramount, proven and measurable success in creating organizational change and synergy is key, as previous success is the greatest predictor of future success.

When a less skilled consultant works with a team on a change management or visioning effort, and the consultant is less than fully successful, the team loses trust in the process and in each other. Yes, it can actually be detrimental to the organization to undergo these efforts without a fully successful making a serious effort to ensure success.

CSP is the only designation that certifies and provides the strong endorsement of clients.

It also ensures an exhaustive peer review. These requirements and others are part of the process that ensures that business competency and ethics component are met and/or exceeded.

The most widely-known and reputable associations in these related fields are the

ODNetwork, the National Speakerss Association, Association of Talent Development, and the International Coaching Federation. The CSP designation--earned through the

National Speakers Association employs the most rigorous certification process, and thereby the most trusted outcomes.

http://www.odnetwork.org/ https://www.td.org/JoinATD?

https://www.coachfederation.org/ http://www.nsaspeaker.org/certifications/

5. Is there a consultant in which NASA worked with that added the CSP Certification requirement to the RFQ?

There is not another consultant that HRMD has worked with that has the CSP certification.

http://www.nsaspeaker.org/certifications/ http://www.odnetwork.org/ https://www.td.org/JoinATD https://www.coachfederation.org/ http://www.nsaspeaker.org/certifications/

6. Is there an incumbent to this requirement?

There is not an incumbent to this requirement. The work described in the SOW is new for HRMD.

7. If CSP Certification remains a requirement, would NASA be opened to an oral presentation to determine the speaking and professional presence of our team members?

NASA remains firm to the requirement of CSP certification for this work.

8. How many people does the HRMD team serve and how does that compare to the overall

Mission Support Directorate?

The HRMD leadership team consists of six leadership positions that manage a staff of 35 civil servant employees.

9. How do HRMD and OHCM interact and communicate while reporting separately to Mission

Directorate?

HRMD and OHCM interact on most aspects of human capital, the distinction is that

OHCM has responsibility for Agency Human Capital and HRMD is responsible for HQ

Human Capital.

10. Are there/have there been specific events within NASA driving the strategic shift from HR to

Human Capital?

The overall HR community has been undergoing a shift from the traditional task oriented

HR approach to a more “consultative” approach wherein HR professionals must approach their work more from a customer service to a client focused organization that works with the client to identify value added strategies to solve challenges.

11. How does HRMD currently initiate, measure, and analyze, employee engagement?

HRMD is currently in a state of transformation and is in the process of adjusting a human resource development specialist to include employee engagement alignment.

12. What are primary and alternative means of communication for HRMD with its partners and within the team?

Regular staff “All Hands Meetings,” email, individual meetings or “tag ups” and other regular business communication.

13. How does HRMD determine competencies needed for career tracks and succession planning?

This procurement is not about leadership development programs. HRMD does not have responsibility or oversight over NASA Agency leadership development programs that responsibility falls to OHCM.

14. How are high potential candidates identified for Leadership Development Programs (LDP)?

This procurement is not about leadership development programs, but to answer the question from a broader NASA perspective, Agency OHCM has various Agency-wide leadership development programs that have nomination, application, and approval/selection processes.

15. What resources and opportunities are provided to candidates in LDP?

This procurement is not about leadership development programs; but to answer the question, each organization at HQ receives a training allocation from which they can provide opportunities to their employees.

16. How are LDP candidates matched to career tracks for succession planning or vacant positions?

This procurement is not about leadership development programs. HRMD does not have responsibility or oversight over NASA Agency leadership development programs that responsibility falls to OHCM.

17. How does HRMD currently enable and support a culture of collaboration in HQ Operations and throughout Mission Support Directorate?

HRMD is working to build a culture of collaboration and this procurement is aimed to assisting HRMD with that goal.

18. Background, p. 2, Was contractor support used by HRMD to collect data from the leadership team and HRMD employees? If so, what contractors supported this work?

The data collection support that was utilized thus far has been a blend of internal NASA civil servant as well as support from an outside contractor (Booz Allen).

19. Requirements, p. 2, “In addition to providing design and facilitation support to events”. Can the government clarify if it has expectations on the quantity/regularity or size of the events mentioned in this excerpt?

The quantity/regularity or size of events will be determined by the successful contractor as part of strategy discussions and agreement with HRMD leadership.

20. Requirements, p. 2 Does the government expect the contractor to include ODCs for renting commercial facilities for strategy sessions or can we assume that NASA facilities and equipment will be used?

There is no expectation for a contractor to rent commercial facilities for strategy sessions.

21. Requirements, p. 2 “The Contractor shall challenge members of the leadership team appropriately to maintain effective accountability.” To aid in shaping an effective plan to maintain effective accountability, can the Government provide offerors with an estimate of how much time (as a percentage of total) the HRMD leadership team currently devotes to activities described in the SOW? Has the government identified a target for the amount of engagement the

HRMD leadership team would like to spend on these activities once the contract has been awarded?

The successful contractor (in agreement with the government) will determine the amount of time that will be needed to spend on engagement activities.

22. Amendment. Of the 708 certified speaking professionals (CSP) worldwide, there are currently only two in the US that claim to meet NASA's requirements. In order to promote broader competition, will the government consider alternative experience as equivalent to the professional public speaker certification?

NASA remains firm to the requirement of CSP certification for this work.

23. How many sites and people will the contractor be required to work with to develop the strategic plan?

The successful contractor will work with the HRMD leadership team and designates to develop the strategic plan. Potential sites will be determined but will include NASA HQ in Washington DC and possibly the NASA Wallops Island Flight Facility in Wallops

Island Virginia.

24. Do you desire the contractor to provide guidance and recommendations, as well as, implement the recommendations?

Yes

25. If yes to the question above, is the Contractor expected to support the implementation of the strategic plan with only the seven members listed in the statement of work? Or will the contractor be required to implement the plan in additional locations and with additional team members? If additional team members and locations, how many?

The plan will be implemented for the HRMD leadership team and the HRMD employees which totals approximately 40 individuals. The work is to be done primarily at NASA

HQ but could include the Wallops Island Flight Facility.

26. What 360° assessment tool did you employ?

The successful contractor will work with HRMD leadership to identify an appropriate

360 assessment.

27. What Employee Viewpoint Survey did you use?

The EVS is used by the Partnership for Public Service for the government wide EVS survey.

28. How many employees participated in providing input during the data collection process?

Were they scattered throughout several locations or HQ only?

All HRMD employees that were current employees at the time of the data collection participated. This would have been approximately 34 employees.

29. NASA identifies “coaching to the HRMD Director and other members of the HRMD and leadership team” but does not specify it as one of the seven goals or as a deliverable. Does

NASA consider the coaching as part of the team building goal or, if not, will NASA specify how it sees coaching fitting with the specified goals and deliverables?

Coaching is part of the overall goal of building a strong HRMD Leadership Team.

30. Which open space technologies are currently in use at NASA and available to leverage by the selected contractor for this effort?

N/A

31. In addition to the NASA Headquarters on 300 E Street, SW, Washington, DC, are there additional locations to which the contractor will need to travel in order to facilitate activities and processes (e.g., strategic planning sessions, interviews, focus groups) or will all NASA stakeholders be required to participate at NASA Headquarters or join via teleconference or videoconference?

The work to be completed will be done at NASA HQ in Washington DC and possibly at the Wallops Island Flight Facility at Wallops Island Virginia.

32. Which, if any, existing models or frameworks (e.g., teambuilding, leadership competency, strategic planning) is NASA currently using and expects the contractor to leverage for the stated goals and deliverables?

There are no existing models or frameworks currently in use with HRMD.

33. In addition to the seven members of the HRMD leadership team, and the Agency OHCM organization culture oversight lead, how many other stakeholders – individuals and/or groups – has NASA identified as essential/preferred for inclusion for this effort?

There are no other essential/preferred individuals/groups identified for this work.

34. Paragraph 7 of solicitation states offers must include proposed schedule. There is nothing in the SOW that states the availability of the HMRD leadership team or other participants to participate in the seven tasks. Can the government indicate how available the participants will be? One day a week? Four hours a week? Two days a month?

The participants will be available as required to complete the work.

35. On page 1 of the SOW it states the contractor shall provide a comprehensive plan over

“several months,” but the period of performance is March 16 to September 17, which is eighteen months. So, should the contractors plan cover an eighteen month period?

The successful contractor should plan to cover the period of time they need to complete the goals of the SOW.

36. In Task 2, page 2 of SOW, it states “we want a plan for the next five years.” Yet there is no task for plan development. Is the contractor expected to produce a plan as a deliverable, or facilitate strategic planning that produces a plan to transition from HR to HC?

Facilitate strategic planning to produce a plan to transition.

37. Are there any page limitations for technical approach, past performance or other volumes of the proposal?

There are no page limitations.

38. In what format and what information is required for the pricing volume?

There is not a prescribed format.

39. Are the seven members of the HRMD leadership team co-located in one location or dispersed across multiple locations?

The HRMD leadership team are located in one location at NASA HQ in Washington DC.

40. What is the tenure of the members of the leadership team?

Not sure what is meant by tenure. Out of the seven members of the HRMD leadership team, three are new to HRMD.

41. How many employees (outside of the leadership team) are in HRMD?

42. Regarding the data collected “from the members of the leadership team and all HRMD employees”, when was this data collected?

The existing data was collected in the fall of 2015.

43. The SOW states, “Summary level data may be shared with the Contractor...” What volume

(number of pages) of summary data is available that might be shared?

The number of pages is less than 100.

44. The Requirements section of the SOW (goal #1) refers to a transformation effort. Can you provide more detail about this effort? Specifically, what precipitated the transformation effort?

Refer to question number 10.

45. “Accountability” is mentioned in goals 4 and 6, and later in the SOW. Is this a concern regarding team functioning or specific team principles or team practices?

There is no concern. Accountability should be a solid goal of any transformation effort.

46. In goal 5 (Team Building), the SOW mentions the desire to “develop new relationships and strengthening existing ones”. How would you describe the climate of HRMD and of the HRMD leadership team?

HRMD is going through many changes and the climate has been exhibited by a lack of trust by the employees and the former members of the leadership team.

47. With regard to goal 6 (Managing Performance) what are the major concerns related to

HRMD performance?

There is no concern. Managing performance should be a solid goal of any transformation effort.

48. Have customers been asked about their satisfaction with HRMD? If so, when?

Yes, during the data collection in the fall of 2015.

49. Regarding Amendment 01 (the requirement for a CSP certification), what weight does this requirement hold in relation to the technical approach?

The CSP certification is critical for this procurement.

50. What level of detail are you looking for in relation to the proposed program being requested?

The level of detail is up to the successful contractor to determine.

51. Are you requesting a detailed agenda with specific outcomes and methodology?

Yes.

52. How many participant contact hours should be included within the proposal?

That is to be determined by the successful contractor with agreement from the government.

53. Are the meeting times on consecutive days or spread over a larger period of time?

That is to be determined by the successful contractor with agreement from the government.

54. What level of involvement does the HRMD leadership team envision as a part of the leadership development, strategic planning, and team building activities? For example, what kinds of interactions should the consultant recommend, and also what level of access will the consultant have to the members of the leadership team – e.g. Daily, Weekly, Monthly, etc.?

The successful contractor will recommend the level of involvement. The consultant will have the access to the leadership team that is required to complete the work.

55. The RFQ notes that the summary level data compiled from the HRMD leadership team and employees may be shared with the Contractor upon award. When will a final decision be reached and shared on the release of the data? Additionally, if the data is not shared, is the Contractor expected to provide “best practice-based” solutions to support leadership development, strategic planning, and team building activities?

The data collected thus far will be shared with the successful contractor after award of the contract.

56. Should the comprehensive plan developed by the Contractor include diverse meeting settings

– e.g. Face-to-face, Virtual (video/phone conference options), etc., OR will all activities take place at or near NASA HQ in Washington DC and/or at the Goddard Space Flight Center in

Greenbelt, Maryland or the Wallops Flight Facility in Wallops Island, VA.?

The comprehensive plan should include the possibility for diverse meeting settings, but it is anticipated that the majority of the work will be face to face at NASA HQ or in virtual meetings.

57. The RFQ notes that the Contractor shall provide coaching to the HRMD Director and other members of the HRMD and leadership team as needed. How will coaching needs be determined, and additionally, how will individuals selected for coaching be advised of the need and guided on the importance of proactively addressing the coaching need?

Coaching needs will be determined through discussions with the successful vendor and the individual HRMD leaders. The members of the HRMD leadership team are fully prepared to receiving coaching where recommended.

58. What are the parameters of the submission process – e.g. Content Format, Page Count

Maximum, Budget Format, etc.?

There are no parameters for the submission process in terms of content, page counts, or budget format.

59. The span of services related to leadership development, strategic planning, and team building activities is wide and varying. Given this point, is there an anticipated budget for the range of services required to support the activities? Has HMRD contracted for these services in the past?

At this time, there is not an anticipated budget amount and HRMD has not contracted for these services in the recent past.

60. With regard to the above mentioned RFQ I am wondering why the following requirement was added in as an amendment:

“The offeror must have or provide documentation that they will have by July 2016, a Certified

Speaking Professional (CSP) Certification. Speaking and professional presence are critical to the outcomes of the organizational transformation that this procurement is seeking to improve.”

Refer to responses to questions 1 through 5

61. What assessment tools have been used to gather data to augment the strategy?

No assessment tools have been used.

62. What would you say are the greatest challenges or gaps that are prompting the need for the organizational shift and refocus?

Refer to the SOW.

63. What are the leadership competencies or performance areas for which the strategy goals should be linked?

The NASA leadership competencies.

64. What is the available budget to support this work?

That will be determined as needed to accomplish the goals as outlined in the SOW.

65. What does success look like for the project?

Implementation and completion of the goals as outlined in the SOW.

66. What is the expected behavior change as a result of this initiative, if any?

67. How often do you expect changes to occur within the project?

No changes are expected.

68. What are the current and future job descriptions for the intended population?

The HRMD leadership team consists of seven members including the Director, the

Deputy Director, one Human Capital Strategist, three Branch Chiefs, and one team lead.

69. Why is the CSP designation essential to this RFQ? Would one's experience in a corporate environment be sufficient given the type of work and credentials otherwise available?

Refer to questions 1 through 4 above.

70. What are your challenges with regard to strategy?

71. Please complete this sentence…At the end of this project, our organization will be able to…

Refer to the goals as outlined in the SOW.

72. What is the business need?

73. What factors might limit the choice of solutions?

No limiting factors have been identified.

74. What is the total number impacted?

What is meant by total number?

75. What does the proposed solution need to achieve?

76. What is the problem that you are trying to solve?

77. What are the long-term consequences of not changing the current state by which the organization functions?

Not achieving the goals as outlined in the SOW.

79. Is there a clearly defined value proposition and value chain activities for the organization?

No

80. How are resources allocated/reallocated when initiatives underperform should that occur?

The HRMD leadership team makes decisions on resources and allocation within the organization.

81. Do the strategies of the various functional areas (HR, IT, etc.) align to one overarching strategy?

This work is internal to HRMD.

82. Are each of the functional areas aware of the strategy for corresponding groups?

This work does not involve other groups.

83. Is there a universal definition and consistent understanding of strategy throughout the organization?

Yes, among the HRMD leadership team.

84. Are all levels within the organization clear on the difference between goals, tactics, objectives and strategies?

This work does not involve other groups.

85. How often is the strategy reviewed?

Yet to be determined.

86. What are the core competencies and capabilities that create a sustained competitive advantage for the organization?

The successful contractor will work with the HRMD leadership team to identify these.

87. Will the SOW be limited to working with the seven-member Leadership Team or will it also involve substantial work with larger numbers of people?

The work is with the HRMD leadership team.

88. What is the amount of time NASA is expecting to invest in this work? Number of days / number of encounters / number of hours of follow-up coaching?

That will be determined by the successful contractor in agreement with the government.

89. Are you seeking a Firm Fixed Price proposal? If so for what number of days/hours of what type of service? E.g. facilitation? Team coaching? Management consulting? Executive coaching?