HR_Support_Services_RFP__Question_and_Comment_Form_-_Final_-_7.25.2014.xls.xlsx
XLSX spreadsheet 27 KB Posted
- Attached to
- HR Support Services
- Solicitation number
- ST-1330-14-RP-0096
About this file
Responses to Questions and Comments
View the file
Other files
| File | Type | Posted |
|---|---|---|
| Amendment_0003.pdf | ||
| RFP_-_Letter_to_Offerors_-_7.30.14.docx | DOCX document | |
| RFP_-_Letter_to_Offerors_-_7.28.14.docx | DOCX document | |
| Sample_Task_Order_SOW.docx | DOCX document | |
| HR_Support_Amendment_0002.pdf | ||
| Amendment_0001.pdf | ||
| RFP_-_Letter_to_Offerors_-_7.25.14.docx | DOCX document | |
| Solicitation_ST-1330-14-RP-0096_Amendment_1.docx | DOCX document | |
| HR_Support_Services_RFP.pdf | ||
| HR_Support_Services_RFP__Question_and_Comment_Form.xls | XLS spreadsheet | |
| HR_Support_Services_RFP_-__Pricing_Matrix.xlsx | XLSX spreadsheet | |
| HR_Support_Services_RFP_-__Past_Performance_Questionnaire.doc | DOC document | |
| HR_Support_Services_RFP_-_Non_Disclosure_Agreement.docx | DOCX document | |
| HR_Support_Services_RFP_-__Letter_to_Offerors.docx | DOCX document |
Show all 14
On GovTribe
Work with this file
- Download the original file
- Contacts named in this file
- Similar government files
- Ask GovTribe AI about this file
Text version
Sheet1
| Human Resources Support Services |
| RFP ST-1330-14RP-0096 |
| Interested Parties Question/Comment Form |
| Page No. | Section | Paragraph | Question | Comment | Answers |
| 12 | Attachment B | Tab B | Offerors must demonstrate ability to begin work no later than 8/25/14 with security clearances in place. When is the anticipated award date? | As of now, we plan to have the award in place by August 22, 2014. This is subject to change if there are any delays during Source Selection. Also, just to clarify, the process for obtaining Security Clearances must begin by 8/25/2014. If there is a delay in having them in place by 8/25 from the Government's side, this will not negatively impact the awardee | |
| 12 | Attachment B | Tab B | Define what is required for "security clearances in place" by 8/25/14 - does this include completion and/or approval of the SF85P and approval by OPM? If yes, what is the average turnaround time for approval? | Contractor's are expected to begin the Security in-processing for personnel requested in the first Task Order as of 8/25/2014. This in processing includes, but is not limited to, possibly submitting an EQIP, conducting a general background investigation, submission of Form FD-258 etc. | |
| N/A | Is this a new requirement or is there an existing incumbent? | There is an existing requirement. The incumbent is YRCI. NOAA currently obtains YRCI's services through an IAA with the USDA. The intention of this solicitation is for NOAA to form their own contract for these services. | |||
| N/A | If existing, who is the current incumbent and are all task orders currently filled? | Please see response provided in Row 8. | |||
| 16 | Attachment C | Factor 3 | Does past performance of the subcontractor count equally as past performance of the prime? | No. Past Performance of the Prime Contractor/Offeror will be more closely evaluated. FOR THE PURPOSES OF TAB D, AT LEAST 3 OF THE 5 PAST PERFORMANCE SUMMARIES NEED TO BE THAT OF THE PRIME/OFFEROR. This is also reiterated through Amendment 0001 to the solicitation. | |
| 16 | Attachment C | Factor 3 | May the offeror/subcontractor submit past performance that demonstrates prior experience of key personnel? | Only if the experience of the Key Personnel is directly associated with the Prime or Sub. (i.e. if Key Personnel worked for another company not part of your proposal, this would not count for Past Performance purposes - you would need to discuss this in TAB C and in the Key Personnel resume(s)) | |
| RFP - Page no # 17 | VOLUME I – TECHNICAL APPROACH | Tab B: Technical Approach | What are security clearances requirement? | Furthermore, the Offeror must demonstrate its ability to begin work no later than August 25, 2014 with appropriate level of skill and knowledge and with security clearances in place to alleviate any gaps in support services. | Please see responses provided in Rows 6 & 7. |
| RFP - Page no # 19 | VOLUME I – TECHNICAL APPROACH | Tab D: Past Performance | How Many Past Performance Questionnaire (PPQ)'s to be submittted? | Offerors shall submit summaries of five recent contracts, subcontracts and task or purchase orders with NOAA, other Department of Commerce agencies, other U.S. Government organizations and commercial firms for the same or similar services required by this RFP. | There is no limit to the number of PPQs that may be submitted on behalf of an Offeror. The Government will review up to 5 summaries as part of their Tab D proposal submission. At least 3 of the 5 summaries shall be that of the Prime Contractor. The remaining two may be of the Prime or its Sub(s) |
| 13 | TabC | 2 | Do all resumes need to be submitted with proposal | Only resumes of the Key Personnel are required to be submitted along with the proposal. Resumes of Support Staff to be procured under this IDIQ may be requested at the Task Order level. | |
| 5 | C | A2.4 | Is the proposal considered the task order and are we required to submit the resumes upon submittal of proposal | No, the proposal is not considered the task order. Yes submit the resumes. | |
| 5 | A.2.3 | 1st bullet | Please identify current incumbent | This is necessary to make sure that there is a good coordination for a transition plan. | Please see response provided in Row 8. |
| 5 | A.2.3 | 1st bullet | Is the current incumbent allowed to follow-on and submit on this contract? | Since there is a short time to prepare and have all items ready an association or teaming with current incumbent might be the only way to go here. | Yes, as long as the incumbant meets the eligibility criteria established by the solicitation. |
| 4 | A.2.2 | "Security" | Request for security within 24 hours means that the employer has all individuals reuired by this solicitation. Is it that you are looking for someone to hire the same people who are performing this contract now? | Since there is a short time to prepare and have all items ready an association or teaming with current incumbent might be the only way to go here. | Offeror's may extend employment offers to current personnel supporting WFMO. Offeror's should also discuss their capabilities to recruit, retain, and grow their own staff. |
| 5-7 | A.2.4 | Labor Cats | Please clarify that professional degrees are not necessary for this proposal and to fulfil the Labor categories requirments. | The labor categories descriptions in general described the desired experience for each and stress the qualification based on the specific experience and knowledge of current environment. The way this LCATs are define is more like a job description than a labor category and the individual capabilities. | Professional degrees are not required, so long as the staff personnel recommended/provided meet the experience qualifications established in the Task Order. |
| 7 | A.4 | Level of Effort | Please indicate how many hours is expected for a full time employee and if these position are expected to be manned all days that the government is in operations. i.e if the regular employee designated to work on this contract when taking vacation if it has to be substituted by an equivalent person during the vacation or sick time. | The RFP narrative says "Full time" the spreadsheet for pricing provided shows a hard, non-changeable number of 2000. This may not coincide with the internal definition of a full time employee as it does not consider vacation. A typical full time employee works about 1820 to 1860 hours depending on the vacation/sick leave allowed by the company. | 2000 is a number being used for Price evaluation purposes. The number was derived by multiplying 50 weeks by 40 hours per week. You are correct in that hours may fluctuate, but 2000 hours is a good ceiling amount to consider for the purposes of defining a full-time employee. This contract is not a coverage contract - i.e. the Contractor does not have to provide a substitute if the support personnel has requested time off. If the time off requested is for an extended period of time, a permanent replacement may be necessary but this scenario will be discussed further at the appropriate time |
| 9 | Performance Standards | Change in Performance Standards | Are the performance standards listed the minimum, and if they are subject to change after award would it be to relax the standard or to tighten up? | As an example of the requirement, the two business days requirement will mean that the government is expecting that offeror will have more than one capable staff for each of the requested labor categories on file that will complete the fulfullment. Otherwise, we consider the two busienss turn around days to be possible but with a high cost that could impact the overall cost to the government. So if to relax this after award will have the potential of a significant impact to the overall price that could result on unfair competition. | The requirement's established in this solicitation are the set standard Requirements may be altered, with the consent of the awardee, at the Task Order level if it is in the best interests of the Governemnt. |
The two business day requirement is for the submission of resumes and/or recommendation of support staff. The Government understands that their may be a delay in Security for bringing support personnel on board in the times established. We acknowledge that these circumstances are out of the hands of the Contractor and will not hold it against them.
| 14 | Tab D: | Past Performance | Please indicate how past performance will be evaluated when no experience may exist with other similar agencies. | Most of the performance work statement and labor categories description are tied closely with the performance of the actual job. How a commercial firm experience could be shown as an effective and experience past performance under this circunstances? | Your Company would be rated as Neutral. This rating does not positively or negatively affect your proposal's evaluation. |
| 17 | Factor 4 - Price | Price Reasonableness | Please confirm that interpretation of last paragraph means that prices could be discounted only at the Task Order Level case. | On page 14 of the Volume II Price Proposal refers that "..rates proposed shall represent the ceiling rate for the applicable labor category and time period identified." | Prices may be discounted/negotiated at the Task Order level based on volume of personnel procured, the varying experiences sought for support personnel, location, etc. |
That being said, the Offeror is advised to provide their best rate for the IDIQ level as Price is still being considered during evaluation.
18 Rating - Definition Table Last portion of each sentence on the definition Please explain in detail how the government will interpret the evaluation of each past performance. The Matrix for past performance evaluation says: "Based on the Offeror’s recent/relevant past performance information, the Government has a ___ expectation that the Offeror will successfully perform for required effort." But the Past Performance Questionnaire has the performance elemnet onPart II, which shows how the officer is evaluating this past performance. In addition, the request for past performance on page 14, Tab D, paragraph 3, third sentence refers: "The Government will evaluate information that demonstrates quality of performance relative to the size and complexity of the acquisition under consideration." which the complexity requirements are very specific to NOAA and this effort. Understanding this point will allow te provider to show specficity to help in the PPQ to be submitted. Please refer to Attachment D - Evaluatoin Adjectival Ratings: The Past Performance Evaluation Chart on Page 18
In general, Past Performance of Offerors usually entail evaluating the full description of the past performance - size / dollar value of the effort, scope of the effort, complexity of the effort, its duration, etc.
| 16 | Factor 3 - Past Performance | Last sentence of Tab D third paragraph | Will the government advice the offeror on which context, individuals and specifics the evaluators will use to contact to obtain addiitonal information and how the government plans to avoid confusion when requesting a non-quoted source for reference? | Quote from the proposal: "Also, references other than those identified by the Offeror may be contacted by the Government to obtain additional information that will be used to evaluate the Offeror’s past performance." this is dangerous if no information is provided in advance as the government could be contacting a different person, company or reference that may or may not be relevant to this source. There are many companies with similar or same name operting in different states that could be confused with the offeror. | The Government may use any means to contact Offeror's current/previous business associates. (For example, CPARS) |
| 4 | A.2.2 | Transition | Please identify if current incumbent is allowed to bid on this contract. | This is necessary to make sure that there is a good coordination for a transition plan or perhaps a teaming agreement. | Please see response provided in Row 8. |
| 4 | A.2.2 | Security | Please identify the security classification that selected employees must have to perform this contract. i.e. :Public Trust, Secret, etc. and confirm if the clearance process is based on JPASS. | Because of the short turn around for requested personnel it is important that the selected individuals to have he necessary security clearance for this process. | Unless requested/specified differently under a Task Order, Staff Personnel will be required to have a Public Trust/Suitability clearence level for work performed under this IDIQ. |
| Overall | Please identify the current contract number under which the incumbent is performing the contract what will be continued with this solicitation | We searched the FPDS.Gov and could not find any current or similar contract under NOAA and the exisitng NAICS code. | Please see response provided in Row 8. |
The IAA information may not be made public through the means identified in your comment. The USDA contract number will be provided along with Amendment 0002.
| 12 | Tab B: Technical Approach | Second Paragraph | Please confirm the expected date of award, if to be at least two or three weeks before commencement date to allow time to ramp up and hire personnel. | If contractor must begin on August 25, 2014 then award should be no later than August 15 or 18. The proposal is due on July 28th allowing only two weeks for proposal review and award. Plesae confirm. | We anticipate the IDIQ to be awarded by 8/25/2014. We will then issue the first Task Order shortly after. The personnel sought for this Task Order is provided via Sample Task Order issued with Amendment 0002. | |
| 47 | Contracting Officer Check as appropriate | (3) 52.222-43 | Please indicate if this contract is subject to the Service Contract Act (SCA) and if that is the case, provide the Wage Determination issued under the Service Contract Act by the Department of Labor that shows the labor categories for this contract. | This FAR clause was checked, the FAR makes a reference to Fair Labor Standards Act and Service Contract Labor Standards -- Price Adjustment (Multiple Year and Option Contracts) (May 2014) (29 U.S.C.206 and 41 U.S.C. chapter 67).; however, the FAR shows this clause as Fair Labor Standards Act and Service Contract Labor Standards -- Price Adjustment (Multiple Year and Option Contracts) (May 2014) (29 U.S.C.206 and | ||
| 41 U.S.C. chapter 67). | Administrative Assistant is the only position determined to be applicable to the SCA guildelines. The accurate SCA clause as well as the associated Wage Determination for this position will be published in the near future via Amendment 0002 to the solicitation. | |||||
| 47 | Contracting Officer Check as appropriate | (2) 52.222-42 | Please provide Statement for Information on Employee Class and Monetary Wage - Fringe Benefits as required by 52.222.42 | This FAR clause ws checked, and refers to the Statement of Equivalent Rates for Federal Hires. | This Statement is for Information Only: It Is Not a Wage Determination | |
| 47 | Contracting Officer Check as appropriate | (1) 52.222-41 | Please provide the Seniority List of employees on this contract to make appropriate determination of price per labor catogory, including payroll information and vacation accumulated and not paid that is expected by the end of the current contract. | See FAR 52.222-41 Section (n) Seniority list. This list is necessary to make appropriate price calcualtion | The seniority list will not be provided for the purposes of the solicitation. This information may be requested at the conclusion of the IAA period of performance (10 days prior to per the FAR clause), and only if the terms and conditions of the IAA agreement between DOC and USDA allow for it. |
Pricing is expected to be provided per the competitive commercial marketplace that exists for the requested labor categories and their descriptions. Pricing can be negotiated at the Task Order level, if in the best interests of the Government - hence why we request you provide your best ceiling rate for this IDIQ.
| Letter to Offerors | 3 | "A sample Task Order"" to give Offerors a better idea of the specific tasks or types of tasks that the specialists will be conducting will be released as an amendment (A0001) to this solicitation. Does the Government still intend to release the sample task order? If yes, when can offerors anticipate that Amendment will be posted? | Yes. Please see Amendment 0001 attachments. | |
| SOW, Page 5 and Page 13 | A.2.4 and Tab C | "The technical and management qualifications (in resume) and continuous availability of, and access to the Contractor Program Manager and other proposed Key Personnel." At the Government's request, the Contractor shall have the opportunity to respond to a Task Order SOW by providing a proposal that offers qualified personnel from the labor categories listed below, or those listed in the awarded proposal. The response to a Task Order SOW shall, at a minimum, include resumes of the offered personnel and a price proposal for the period of performance specified in the SOW. Question: In addition to the proposed Contract Manager (Key Personnel), should Offerors submit resumes of other proposed personnel in our response to the IDIQ? | Only if they qualify as Key Personnel. A Key Personnel is anyone who works under this contract at the IDIQ level. |
The only required Key Personnel for this Contract is the IDIQ Program Manager.
Key Personnel are not paid directly by the Government under this contract.
| Non-Disclosure Agreement | Does NOAA require that Offerors include a signed individual NDA with their proposal submissions? | No, NDAs will be required after award. | |||
| Pricing Matrix | "The overall ceiling for this IDIQ contract is $9.9 Million". Please confirm that this is the correct ceiling for this IDIQ. | Yes, that is correct. | |||
| 14 | Tab D | 1 | If SB is teamed, can 2 of the 5 past performances sought come from the prime's subcontractor? | Please see response provided in Rows 10 & 13. | |
| 2 | Att. A | 1 | Any there any incumbents at any of the 3 sites doing any of the tasks covered in the SOW? | Please see response provided in Row 8. | |
| 1 | KO letter | When will A0001 be posted? | Friday, July 25, 2014. Due to the volume of the questions and comments received and the date of release, the Contracting Officer has extended the due date for proposals accordingly. | ||
| 13 & 83 | Tab C Mgt Plan/CAR 1352.237-75 KEY PERSONNEL (APR 2010) | Are there any key personnel designated, and if so for which specific positions? If yes, pls describe the resume requirements? | Please see response provided in Row 34. | ||
| 13 | Management Plan | 3 | The Government states the required resume(s) for the proposed Key Personnel(s) will not count against page limitation… What personnel for this contract will the Government consider Key Personnel? | Please see response provided in Row 34. | |
| 5 | IDIQ Contract Labor Categories and Descriptions | All | Are there existing incumbents on this contract; if so, will the Government | ||
| please share who they are, and how long they have been supporting NOAA under any of the identified Labor Categories? | Please see response provided in Row 8. | ||||
| 3 | Introduction A.1 | 2 | The Government indicates that HRIT Systems Support, Maintenance and Development may be one of the services procured under this IDIQ contract. Please describe the type of HRIT systems NOAA uses. | HRIT systems used by NOAA WFMO include NFC, RADS (recruitment center internal to NOAA), MGS, etc. |
Experience with these systems is not required, although are preferred. NOAA WFMO will provide preliminary training to support personnel on its processes, procedures, and systems.
| Pricing Matrix | Will the government provide historical | |
| data as to the percentage (%) of work performed at each location? | Please use the following estimate: |
Silver Spring: 10 (HR Specialist), 3(Administrative Assistants) Kansas City: 5 (HR assistants), 20 (HR Specialists), 2 (Administrative Assistants) Boulder: 5 (HR assistants), 5 (Civilian Payroll Technicians)
Total: 40 estimated positions needed
| 6 | A.2.4 | 7 | Does the Government currently use any automated staffing programs – if | ||
| so, what program(s) are currently in use? | Please see response provided in Row 43 | ||||
| 6 | A.2.4 | 7 | Does the Government utilize any special hiring authorities outside of GS | ||
| and/or SES, if so, would you please identify them? | Yes, a form of Pay Banding reffered to as CAPS (Commerce Alternative Proformance Systems) | ||||
| 3 | A.2.2 | 2 | The Government states the Contractor shall perform the tasks established in a Task Order during normal working hours, principally from a Government-provided location. Will the Government allow contractor staff to telework? | Not at this time; however, this policy may change in the near future | |
| 5 | A.2.4 | 1 -11 | Can the government provide a matrix of comparable grade levels and steps for each labor category? | The government will not be providing this information. Please provide your best ceiling rate on the Pricing Matrix based on the labor category description and location | |
| 5 | A.2.4 | 1 - 11 | What, if any, additional office automation software skills will the Government expect of personnel in each of the labor categories? | Microsoft Suite at minimum, all other systems will provide some training. Basic HR systems experience is highly desired | |
| 14 | Technical Approach | Tab D | Tab D indicates that past performance must be within the past 3 years to be considered relevant. However, the Past Performance Evaluation Questionnaire states “The offeror shall send questionnaires for relevant projects [that]… have been completed within the past 5 years.” Please clarify. | Past Performance summaries provided per Tab D are requested to be more recent, since we are limiting it to 5. |
There is no numerical limitation to the number of PPQs we will allow, thus we will allow it to go beyond the past 3 years - Plus, we are cognizant that the timely submission of PPQs are not completely in the control of the Offeror and want to assure that they can request this from as many former and current business associates as possible.
1 Attachment C Factor 1 The instructions for the Technical Approach portion of the proposal includes the following: “The Offeror shall demonstrate relevant experience of the firm, their technical capability in meeting the requirements of the SOW. The cited experience must demonstrate substantial knowledge and understanding of NOAA/WMFO practices and procedures.” This appears to indicate that only NOAA/WMFO experience will be considered relevant. However the past performance evaluation makes no reference to this requirement. Please clarify. Please see Amendment 0001 for clarification.
The language should read "…The cited experience (in Tab B Technical Approach) must demonstrate substantial knowledge and understanding of NOAA/WMFO's requirement as established in Attachment A Statement of Work."
| 7 | Statement of Work | A.2 | It appears that the Administrative Assistant position might be under the Service Contract Act. Please clarify whether this position is subject to the SCA. If so, could you please identify the specific Wage Determinations we are to use for this position? | Please see response provided in Row 30. |
| None | General | Is there an incumbent contractor(s)? If so, please identify who they are, including the contract # they are working under, and the rates they are using for each labor category under the contracts. | Please see response provided in Row 8. | |
| 14 | Technical Approach | Tab D | Tab D indicates that past performance must be within the past 3 years to be considered relevant. However, the Past Performance Evaluation Questionnaire states “The offeror shall send questionnaires for relevant projects [that]… have been completed within the past 5 years.” Please clarify. | Please see response provided in Row 50. |
| None | General | Is there an incumbent contractor(s)? If so, please identify who they are, including the contract # they are working under, and the rates they are using for each labor category under the contracts. | Yes, YRCI. They are working under an Inter Agency Agreement | |
| 5 | Att. A | A.2.4 | The HR Assistant performance locations include Silver Spring, Boulder, & Kansas City, but the Pricing Matrix has only 2000 Hours (1FTE) for that Labor Category. Paragraph A.4 has LOE as Fulltime. Which location is the 2000 hrs for? Please clarify because the same situation applies to HR Consultant, HR Specialist, HR, Staffing Specialist Payroll Specialist, NFC Reporting Specialist and Administrative Assistant. | 2000 hours is being used for the purpose of the Price Evaluation |
Be sure, per the Instructions to the Pricing Matrix, to fill out all yellow cells in each of the tabs. Failure to do so will keep the Government from developing a total evaluated price.
Sheet2
Sheet3
File details come from the government source that posted it. Updated .