Redacted Rios Partners LLC FAR Par 6 SDVOSB Sole Source FINAL_Redacted.pdf

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS

Office of Procurement, Acquisition and Logistics (OPAL)

Strategic Acquisition Center (SAC) 5202 Presidents Ct, Suite 103

Frederick, MD 21703

JUSTIFICATION AND APPROVAL FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN

COMPETITION

1. Identification of the agency and the contracting activity.

This Justification and Approval (J&A) for Other Than Full and Open Competition is executed by the Strategic Acquisition Center (SAC), on behalf of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Office of Research and Development (ORD).

2. Nature and/or description of the action being approved.

This activity proposes to negotiate a non-competitive, firm fixed price, sole source award to Rios Partners, LLC., a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), to provide support services for the Research Enterprise Transformation initiative which will increase integration between VACO and Research Field Offices.

3. A description of the supplies or services required to meet the agency’s needs (including the estimated value).

The Office of Research and Development requires services to provide program management and integration for the Research Enterprise Transformation initiative and related priorities to include: Organizational Realignment; establishment of Research Actively Managed Portfolios and associated operational structure; establishment of Research Broad Portfolios; Strategy, Governance and Change Management services;

Information and Data Governance Program development; and improvement of Finance Processes. The contractor shall be required to provide tiger team support to launch new initiatives and to aid ORD in managing risk for the implementation of those initiatives (e.g., Congressional, Presidential, SECVA).

The contractor shall utilize traditional project management methodologies from the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK®), human-centered design thinking, and the industry proven RPIE (research, plan, implement, evaluate) model to deliver strong communication brands, narratives, and artifacts that make people pay attention and build trust in the program. These efforts aim to better integrate ORD into research field offices to improve study/clinical trial start times and maximize use of the research appropriation. The total estimated value of this firm-fixed price/labor hour contract is $4,800,000.00 and the period of performance (PoP) is one (1) 12-month base period with no option periods.

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS

Office of Procurement, Acquisition and Logistics (OPAL)

Strategic Acquisition Center (SAC) 5202 Presidents Ct, Suite 103

Frederick, MD 21703

Rios Partners, LLC has experience supporting complex project management for healthcare and technology to include operations, communications, private sector collaboration and engagement, acquisition, and customer relationship management. At the completion of this project, should this concept solution be proven effective, market research will be conducted to determine if there are other capable vendors who can provide the required services.

6. A description of efforts made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as is practicable, including whether a notice was or will be publicized as required by Subpart 5.2 and, if not, which exception under 5.202 applies.

IAW VAAR 819.7007 Sole source awards to service-disabled veteran-owned small business concerns (b), “The contracting officer’s determination whether to make a sole source award is a business decision wholly within the discretion of the contracting officer. In addition, 819.7007(c) further authorizes the Contracting Officer to make the award without first determining that only one SDVOSB source can meet the requirement.

A notice of the proposed action will be synopsized via the Government Point of Entry in accordance with FAR Section 5. and the agency will make publicly available the justification required by 6.305(a) within 14 days after contract award.

7. A determination by the Contracting Officer that the anticipated cost to the Government will be fair and reasonable.

No award shall be made until the Contracting Officer determines the cost to the Government to be fair and reasonable. This determination will be based on a comparison of current contract pricing, past proposal submissions (if available), other information made available, and an Independent Government Cost Estimate (IGCE).

8. A description of the market research conducted (see Part 10) and the results or a statement of the reason market research was not conducted.

Market research was conducted and Rios Partners, LLC has successfully supported the VA in similar efforts and has been determined to be a responsible source with respect to performance. Their Veteran Small Business Certification is found on the SBA site. as a SDVOSB with the NAICS code 541611, Administrative Management and General Management Consulting Services, for this requirement which in accordance with Public Law 109-461 Section 502(c) meets the requirements of this statute to sole source to a SDVOSB. In addition, a review of their Representations and Certifications was