Solicitation Number 260740 Non Competitive Sole Source for Handshake Subscription.pdf

This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial products or commercial services prepared in accordance with part 12. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation.

Offers are being requested and a separate written solicitation will not be issued.

Solicitation number 260740 is issued as a Request for Quotation (RFQ).

1. NOTICE / REQUEST FOR QUOTATION

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office of Acquisitions (OA) Assistant Secretary for Financial Resources (ASFR) Office of Mission Acquisition Solutions (OMAS) is issuing this Request for Quotation (RFQ) for the acquisition of Handshake Talent Engagement Suite. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), Office of Human Capital (OHC), Division of Strategic and Customer Relations (DSCR) is responsible for executing targeted recruitment and outreach efforts to attract qualified candidates to CMS. To support this mission, CMS has utilized the Handshake platform to engage students and early career talent at colleges and universities across the United States.

This requirement is to procure continued access to the Handshake Talent Engagement Suite to support CMS/OHC's targeted recruitment and outreach mission, including the ability to post positions, engage candidates, and fill hard-to-fill roles across the agency.

This acquisition is being conducted using the streamlined procedures for commercial products and commercial services under Revolutionary FAR Overhaul (RFO) FAR Part 12, including the simplified procedures at RFO FAR 12.201-1.

The Government anticipates issuing a firm-fixed-price purchase order as a result of this RFQ.

This acquisition is not being conducted as a competitive acquisition. The Government intends to solicit and negotiate with Stryder Corp as the only source reasonably available to satisfy the Government's requirement.

The Government has documented its decision that only one source is available and the basis for that decision in accordance with RFO FAR 12.102(a).

All responsible sources may submit a quotation or other appropriate response by the date and time stated in this notice. Any timely response will be considered by the Government.

2. BASIS FOR NONCOMPETITIVE ACQUISITION

2.1 Intended Source

HHS intends to acquire the requirement from:

Vendor: Stryder Corp Address: 225 Bush ST FL 12 San Francisco, California 94104

UEI: KQSNMULKVC73

CAGE Code, if applicable: 83KM1

2.2 Reason Competition Is Lacking

Based on market research conducted by HHS, Stryder Corp is the only source reasonably available to meet the Government's requirements.

The basis for this determination is as follows:

The Office of Mission Acquisition Solutions (OMAS), Office of Acquisition (OA), on behalf of Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), intends to negotiate and award a purchase order without providing for full and open competition (including brand-name) to Stryder Corp 225 Bush ST FL 12 San Francisco, California 94104 for Handshake Talent Engagement Suite. This requirement is for continued access to the Handshake Talent Engagement Suite to support CMS/OHC's targeted recruitment and outreach mission, including the ability to post positions, engage candidates, and fill hard-to-fill roles across the agency.

This contract provides CMS/OHC with access to the Handshake Talent Engagement Suite to include one (1) Account Owner seat, three (3) Recruiter Sourcer licenses, Federal Expert Assist support, the Insights Dashboard, an annual Promotions Budget credit, and a Dedicated Customer Success Manager. The Recruiter Sourcer licenses enable authorized CMS staff to post job announcements, conduct targeted sourcing across Handshake's network of 25 million students and alumni at over 1,500 colleges and universities, manage candidates, send unlimited outreach messages, and host or attend recruitment events. Federal Expert Assist provides ongoing 1:1 training and tactical office hours to support platform usage and federal recruiting strategy. The Insights Dashboard provides real-time recruiting performance data, peer benchmarking, and actionable optimization recommendations. The annual Promotions Budget credit is used to elevate priority job postings to best-fit candidates for hard-to-fill positions.

See the attached Statement of Work – Attachment 1.

2.3 Why another commercial product/service would not satisfy the Government need:

The Government evaluated whether other commercially available Engagement Suites or similar products could satisfy the requirement. Handshake is the only platform that provides federal government agencies with access to its proprietary network of over 25 million students and alumni across more than 1,500 partner colleges and universities, including state, land-grant, religious, historically Black colleges and universities, and community colleges. This network constitutes Handshake's exclusive, proprietary system of record and cannot be replicated or accessed through any other platform or vendor.

Based on the market research conducted, commercially available alternatives do not provide the same combination of Handshake's platform which is specifically designed for early career talent recruitment and is the recognized leader in this space, used by 97% of the Fortune 500 and relied upon by 92% of the top 500 colleges as their official academic system of record. No other vendor offers an equivalent combination of network reach, federal-specific features (including Federal Expert Assist and Federal Program Manager support), sole source eligibility for government agencies, and the proprietary data infrastructure required to support CMS's targeted recruitment and outreach mission.

CMS/OHC requires access specifically to Handshake's platform and network to fulfill the Administration's Federal Merit Hiring Plan, 2025, which calls for integrating modern digital platforms to improve candidate engagement, building strong early career talent pipelines, and targeting recruitment at state, land-grant, religious, and community colleges. Substituting a different platform would not provide equivalent access to the same student population institutional relationships, or federal-specific recruitment tools, and would result in a significant degradation of CMS's early career recruiting capability.

2.4 Market Research Performed and Results:

Market research was conducted to identify commercially available products and services that could satisfy the Government’s requirement. The research included a review of whether alternative platforms could meet CMS/OHC's early career recruitment requirements. Research included a review of available commercial platforms, consultation with recruitment subject matter experts within CMS/OHC, and review of industry publications regarding early career talent recruitment tools.

The research confirmed that Handshake is the dominant platform in the early career talent recruitment space and the only platform offering the combination of network reach (25 million students and alumni at 1,500+ institutions), federal-specific tools and support, and sole source eligibility recognized within the federal government. Other platforms reviewed, including LinkedIn and USAJobs, serve different talent segments and do not provide equivalent access to the early career student and recent graduate population or the institutional partnerships necessary to meet CMS's requirements.

The market research supports the determination that Handshake is the only reasonably available source to meet the Government's requirements.

2.5 Substitutes, Resellers, and Alternative Solutions:

The Government also considered whether substitutes, resellers, distributors, or alternative sources could satisfy the requirement. Although other platforms, including LinkedIn and USAJobs, but both serve different talent segments and do not provide equivalent access to the early career student and recent graduate population or the institutional partnerships necessary to meet CMS's requirements.

A reseller or distributor would not provide a substantive alternative source because the requirement is for access to the specific Handshake Talent Engagement Suite. CMS/OHC requires access specifically to Handshake's platform and network to fulfill the Administration's Federal Merit Hiring Plan, 2025, which calls for integrating modern digital platforms to improve candidate engagement, building strong early career talent pipelines, and targeting recruitment at state, land-grant, religious, and community colleges. Accordingly, obtaining the same products through an intermediary would not satisfy the Government’s need for an alternative source.

Based on the market research conducted, the Government determined that other commercial publications, substitutes, resellers, or alternative solutions would not satisfy the Government’s minimum requirements. The Handshake Talent Engagement Suite products/publications are uniquely suited to meet the Government’s requirement for these specific requirements.

The Government's contract file contains the documentation supporting the decision to restrict competition in accordance with RFO FAR 12.102(a).

3. SMALL BUSINESS CONSIDERATINS

This acquisition is NOT a set-aside for small business concerns. This solicitation incorporates provisions and clauses by reference. The full text of provisions and clauses may be accessed electronically at www.acquisition.gov.

http://www.acquisition.gov/

4. SCHEDULE / CLINs

CLIN Description Quantity Unit Unit Price Extended Price 0001 Base Year 1 EA $_____ $_____ 0002 Option Year 1 1 EA $_____ $_____ 0003 Option Year 2 1 EA $_____ $_____ 0004 Option Year 3 1 EA $_____ $_____ 0005 Option Year 4 1 EA $_____ $_____

Total Evaluated Price: $____________

Options, if included, will be evaluated in accordance with the applicable solicitation terms.

DESCRIPTION OF REQUIREMENT

HHS requires the following commercial services for Handshake Talent Engagement Suite as detailed in the Statement of Work.

The contractor shall provide all labor, materials, equipment, licenses, subscriptions, supplies, transportation, management, and other resources necessary to provide:

The contractor shall provide CMS/OHC with access to the Handshake Talent Engagement Suite, which includes the following:

• Account Owner

• Recruiter Sourcers

• Federal Expert Assist

• Insights Dashboard

• Promotions Budget Credit

• Dedicated Customer Success Manager

See Attachment 1 – Statement of Work for specific requirements.

5. PERIOD AND PLACE OF PERFORMANCE / DELIVERY

Period of Performance:

Base Year September 25, 2026 September 24, 2027 Option Year 1 September 25, 2027 September 24, 2028

Option Year 2 September 25, 2028 September 24, 2029 Option Year 3 September 25, 2029 September 24, 2030 Option Year 4 September 25, 2030 September 24, 2031

Place of Performance / Delivery:

Services will be performed virtually. CMS/OHC is located at: 7500 Security Boulevard Baltimore, MD 21244

Contracting Officer Representative (COR):

The following Contracting Officer Representative (COR) will represent the Government for the purpose of this contract:

Heather Campbell 7500 Security Blvd.

Baltimore, MD 21244-1850

Phone: 410-786-8952 Email Address: Heather.Campbell1@cms.hhs.gov

6. RESPONSES FROM SOURCES OTHER THAN THE INTENDED SOURCE

Although the Government intends to solicit Stryder Corp as the only source reasonably available, responsible sources may submit a quotation or other appropriate response by the response deadline.

A response from another source should clearly demonstrate that the source can satisfy all material requirements of this RFQ within the required schedule.

At a minimum, the response should include:

1. Legal business name and UEI;

2. Business size and socioeconomic status;

3. Technical documentation demonstrating ability to satisfy the requirement;

4. Identification of the commercial product/service proposed;

5. Evidence of authorization to provide the product/service, when applicable;

6. Delivery/performance schedule;

7. Relevant experience or past performance, if applicable; and

8. Pricing information.

mailto:Heather.Campbell1@cms.hhs.gov

The Government will consider timely responses received.

Submission of capability information does not guarantee that the Government will conduct a competitive acquisition.

Factor 1 — Technical Approach

The Government will evaluate whether the quoted commercial product or commercial service satisfies the Government's requirements.

Technical capability will be evaluated on an Acceptable/Unacceptable basis. Since this is a sole-source, pass/fail (Acceptable/Unacceptable) is standard.

Acceptable: The quotation demonstrates that the proposed product/service satisfies the Government's material requirements.

Unacceptable: The quotation does not demonstrate that the proposed product/service satisfies the Government's material requirements.

Factor 2 — Personnel Qualifications

The Government will evaluate the offeror’s proposed personnel qualification, relevant experience, and project management approach to determine their ability to successfully perform the required services.

Factor 3 — Project Management Approach

The Government will evaluate the offeror’s approach to managing and coordinating the required publications, including quality control, timelines, communication, coordination with stakeholders, and the ability to successfully deliver required products in accordance with the Statement of Work.

Factor 4 — Past Performance / Commercial Market Experience

The Government may consider relevant past performance and commercial market experience from available sources, including Government and commercial sources.

Basis for Award

The Government will evaluate each quotation to determine whether the proposed product/service meets the requirements of the solicitation. Quotations that do not meet the requirements will not be considered for award. Because the Government has documented that only one source is reasonably available, the Government anticipates award to Stryder Corp provided that the vendor's quotation is technically acceptable, otherwise complies with the solicitation, and the Contracting Officer determines the price fair and reasonable.

The Government reserves the right not to issue a purchase order if these conditions are not satisfied.

7. LEGAL EFFECT OF QUOTATION AND PURCHASE ORDER

A quotation submitted in response to this RFQ is not an offer and does not create a binding contract.

A purchase order issued by the Government in response to a quotation constitutes the Government's offer to purchase the specified products or services upon the terms and conditions contained in the purchase order.

A binding contract is formed when the supplier accepts the Government's offer through written acceptance of the purchase order or substantial performance in accordance with the purchase order.

The Government may request written acceptance of the purchase order.

8. SOLICITATION PROVISIONS

The following RFO FAR solicitation provision applies:

52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors—Commercial Products and Commercial Services (SEP 2023) Incorporated by reference

Addendum to FAR 52.212-1

Offerors shall submit a complete quotation that addresses all requirements identified in the Request for Quotations (RFQ) and Statement of Work (SOW). Quotations shall include the offeror’s technical approach, personnel qualifications and experience, project management approach, relevant past performance, and firm-fixed-price quotation.

Quotations shall be submitted electronically in PDF format and shall not exceed 8 pages, excluding the price quotation and required representations and certifications. The quotation shall be clearly organized according to the evaluation factors identified in the RFQ.

Quotations shall be received by Tuesday, September 22, 2026, at 11:00 AM EST and emailed to Marneice Bivins; Marneice.Bivins@hhs.gov and Sieaun Marks; Sieaun.Marks@hhs.gov. Late quotations may be considered in accordance with applicable FAR provisions.

FAR 52.212-2, Evaluation—Commercial Products and Commercial Services (NOV 2021) — Incorporated by Reference

FAR 52.212-2(a) is tailored as follows:

The Government will evaluate quotations based on a sole-source, pass/fail (Acceptable/Unacceptable).

1. Technical Approach and Understanding of the Requirement

2. Personnel Qualifications and Experience

3. Project Management Approach

4. Past Performance

5. Price

Technical factors, when combined, are significantly more important than price.

RFO 52.240-90 Security Prohibitions and Exclusions Representations and Certifications (Deviation Date)

HHSAR 352.239-78 — Information and Communication Technology Accessibility Notice

INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY ACCESSIBILITY NOTICE (FEB 2024)

(DEVIATION)

(a) Any offeror responding to this solicitation must comply with established HHS Information and Communication Technology (ICT) accessibility standards. Information about Section 508 is available at https://www.hhs.gov/web/section-508/index.html.

mailto:Marneice.Bivins@hhs.gov mailto:Sieaun.Marks@hhs.gov https://www.hhs.gov/web/section-508/index.html

(b) The Section 508 accessibility standards applicable to this solicitation are stated in the clause at 352.239-79 Information and Communication Technology Accessibility. In order to facilitate the Government’s determination whether proposed ICT supplies, products, platforms, information, and documentation meet applicable Section 508 accessibility standards, offerors must submit an appropriate HHS Section 508 Accessibility Conformance Checklist (see https://www.hhs.gov/web/section-508/accessibility-checklists/index.html) or an Accessibility Conformance Report (ACR) (based on the Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT) see https://www.itic.org/policy/accessibility/vpat), in accordance with the completion instructions.

The purpose of the checklists and conformance reports are to assist HHS acquisition and program officials in determining whether proposed ICT supplies, products, platforms, information, and documentation conform to applicable Section 508 accessibility standards.

Checklists and ACRs evaluate—in detail—whether the ICT conforms to specific Section 508 accessibility standards and identifies remediation efforts needed to address conformance issues.

(c) If an offeror claims its supplies or services meet applicable Section 508 accessibility standards, and it is later determined by the Government, i.e., after award of a contract or order, that supplies, products, platforms, information, documentation, or services support delivered do not conform to the described accessibility standards, remediation of the supplies, products, platforms, information, documentation, or services support to the level of conformance specified in the contract will be the responsibility of the Contractor at its expense.

(d) In order to facilitate the Government's determination whether proposed ICT supplies meet applicable Section 508 accessibility standards, offerors must submit an Accessibility Conformance Report, in accordance with its completion instructions and tailored to the requirements in the solicitation. The purpose of the Report is to assist HHS acquisition and program officials in determining whether proposed ICT supplies conform to applicable Section 508 accessibility standards. The template allows offerors or developers to self-evaluate their supplies and document, in detail, whether they conform to a specific Section 508 accessibility standard, and any underway remediation efforts addressing conformance issues. Instructions for preparing the HHS Section 508 Evaluation Template are available at https://Section508.gov/.

(e) In order to facilitate the Government's determination whether proposed ICT services meet applicable Section 508 accessibility standards, offerors must provide enough information to assist the Government in determining that the ICT services conform to Section 508 accessibility standards, including any underway remediation efforts addressing conformance issues.

(f) Respondents to this solicitation must identify any inability to conform to Section 508 requirements. If an offeror claims its supplies or services meet applicable Section 508 accessibility standards, and it is later determined by the Government, i.e., after award of a https://www.hhs.gov/web/section-508/accessibility-checklists/index.html https://www.itic.org/policy/accessibility/vpat contract or order, that supplies or services delivered do not conform to the described accessibility standards, remediation of the supplies or services to the level of conformance specified in the contract will be the responsibility of the Contractor at its expense.

(g) Items delivered as electronic content must be accessible to HHS acceptance criteria.

Checklist for various formats are available at http://508.hhs.gov/. Materials, other than items incidental to contract management, that are final items for delivery should be accompanied by the appropriate checklist, except upon approval of the Contracting Officer or Contracting Officer’s Representative.

(End of provision)

9. CONTRACT CLAUSES

(vi) The clauses at FAR 52.252-2, Clauses Incorporated by Reference (Feb 1998), applies to this acquisition. This contract incorporates one or more clauses by reference, with the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will make their full text available. Also, the full text of a clause may be accessed electronically at this address:

https://www.acquisition.gov/far-overhaul https://www.hhs.gov/contract-policies-regulations/hhsar-overhaul

(End of clause)

a) The following FAR clauses are required by FAR 12.205(b)(1) for all solicitations and incorporated by reference:

FAR 52.212-4, Terms and Conditions—Commercial Products and

Commercial Services.

b) The following FAR clauses are required as applicable to this requirement and incorporated by reference:

See Attachment 2- Table# 12-3

HHSAR Applicable Clauses 352.232-71 Electronic Submission of Payment Requests APR 2026 (RFO Deviation) https://www.acquisition.gov/far-overhaul https://www.hhs.gov/contract-policies-regulations/hhsar-overhaul

352.239-79 Information and Communication Technology Accessibility FEB 2024 (Deviation)(a) Pursuant to Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794d), as amended by the Workforce Investment Act of 1998, all information and communication technology (ICT) supplies, products, platforms, information, documentation, and services support developed, acquired, maintained or delivered under this contract or order must comply with the Revised 508 Standards, which are located at 36 C.F.R. 1194.1 and Appendices A, B, and C, and are available at https://www.access-board.gov/ict/. Information about Section 508 is available at https://www.hhs.gov/web/section-508/index.html.

(b) Additional Section 508 accessibility standards applicable to this contract or order may be identified in the specification, statement of work, or performance work statement. If it is determined by the Government that ICT supplies, products, platforms, information, documentation, and services support provided by the Contractor do not conform to the described accessibility standards in the contract, remediation of the supplies, products, platforms, information, documentation, or services support to the level of conformance specified in the contract will be the responsibility of the Contractor at its own expense.

(c) In the event of a modification(s) to this contract or order, which adds new ICT supplies or services or revises the type of, or specifications for, supplies, products, platforms, information, documentation, or services support, the Contracting Officer shall require that the Contractor submit a completed HHS Section 508 Accessibility Conformance Checklist (see https://www.hhs.gov/web/section-508/accessibility-checklists/index.html) or an Accessibility Conformance Report (ACR) (based on the Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT) see https://www.itic.org/policy/accessibility/vpat), and any other additional information necessary to assist the Government in determining that the ICT supplies or services conform to Section 508 accessibility standards. If it is determined by the Government that ICT supplies, products, platforms, information, documentation, and services support provided by the Contractor do not conform to the described accessibility standards in the contract, remediation of the supplies, products, platforms, information, documentation, or services support to the level of conformance specified in the contract will be the responsibility of the Contractor at its own expense.

(d) If this is an Indefinite-Delivery type contract, a Blanket Purchase Agreement or a Basic Ordering Agreement, the task/delivery order requests that include ICT supplies, products, platforms, information, documentation, or services support will define the specifications and accessibility standards for the order. In those cases, the Contractor shall be required to provide a completed HHS Section 508 Accessibility Conformance Checklist (see https://www.hhs.gov/web/section-508/accessibility-checklists/index.html) or an ACR (based on the VPAT see https://www.itic.org/policy/accessibility/vpat), and any other additional information necessary to assist the Government in determining that the ICT supplies, products, platforms, information, documentation, or services support conform to Section 508 accessibility https://www.access-board.gov/ict/ https://www.hhs.gov/web/section-508/index.html https://www.hhs.gov/web/section-508/accessibility-checklists/index.html https://www.itic.org/policy/accessibility/vpat https://www.hhs.gov/web/section-508/accessibility-checklists/index.html https://www.itic.org/policy/accessibility/vpat standards. If it is determined by the Government that ICT supplies and services provided by the Contractor do not conform to the described accessibility standards in the provided documentation, remediation of the supplies, products, platforms, information, documentation, or services support to the level of conformance specified in the contract will be the responsibility of the Contractor at its own expense.

(e) The contractor shall identify to the Contracting Officer any perceived exception or exemption to Section 508 requirements.

(End of clause)

14. ATTACHMENTS

Attachment 1: Statement of Work Attachment 2: Table 12-3 | Clauses to Include as Prescribed Attachment 3: Invoice and Payment Instructions

14. ATTACHMENTS