Q&A_Solicitation_Journey_to_Leadership_(JTL)_01_Feb_2019.xlsx
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- Journey to Leadership (JTL) Program
- Solicitation number
- W52P1J-19-Q-0003
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Updated Q&A 01 Feb 2019
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Sheet1
| Q&A for Journey to Leadership Solicitation | |
| ***Please note that these Q&A's are to the written Technical Experience part of the solicitation. | |
| Question | Answer |
| Is there an incumbent to this contract or is it a new requirement? | The incumbent is C. Parker Consulting. |
| When is the 7 page Technical Experience /resumes & certification copies due? *The SF1449 states Technical Experience is due 7 Feb in the narrative. *The “Instructions to Offerors” Section IV (1) states “within 5 days of the issuance of the solicitation…” which would put the Technical Experience due 29 Jan. | The written Technical Experience is due by 12:00pm CST on 7 Feb 2019. The Instruction to Offerors has been updated in Section IV (1) to reflect the date of 7 Feb 2019. **1/29-Date has changed to 12:00pm CST on 5 Feb 2019. Amendments to the Solicitation and Instruction to Offerors will be posted tomorrow on Wednesday, January 30th, 2019. |
| Under your Evaluation Criteria 1a., it appears the intent is to award this series to a contractor with a recent relevant relationship to DoD/DA. Since you are willing to accept a former civil servant within the last 10 years, would you hold that same timeframe applicable to Contractors with acceptable performance with DoD/DA? | Yes, the same timeframe would be applicable (10 years) to Contractors |
with acceptable performance with DoD/DA.
| With regard to training topics, could you clarify what is meant by Internal/external awareness regarding providing assessment tools? Is it meant to be internal/external to the Command, your division, government, or the individual himself or herself? | *External Awareness (per Office of Personnel Management (OPM's) Senior Executive Service (SES) Executive Corps Qualifications (ECQ'S) - Understands and keeps up-to-date on local, national, and international policies and trends that affect the organization and shape stakeholders' views; is aware of the organization's impact on the external environment. *Internal Awareness - focuses on the individual; the ability to introspect and recognize your authentic self. The individual's values and attributes that shape character. |
| In regard to the above RFQ, please provide clarification to the requirements from the PWS section 11 against the “Instruction to Offerors” – Section IV. 1. When do the following documents get submitted: a. Quality Action Plan b. Program Agenda for each Tier c. Detailed description of assessments to be used throughout the programs d. Resumes of primary and all instructors e. Requested certifications per section 10.4 |
If these 5 documents are requested for the 7 Feb timeframe, do they all count toward the 7 page maximum?
Please follow the directions in Instruction to Offeror's in Section IV. Technical Experience/Key Personnel (Written) for what needs to be submitted by 12:00pm CST 5 February 2019. a. Quality Action Plan - A: No need to submit that for this portion of the Solicitation. b. Program Agenda for each Tier - A: No need to submit that for this portion of the Solicitation. c. Detailed description of assessments to be used throughout the programs - A: No need to submit that for this portion of the Solicitation. d. Resumes of primary and all instructors - A: Submitted for this portion (Technical Experience/Key Personnel) of the Solicitation - due by 12:00pm CST 5 February 2019. e. Requested certifications per section 10.4 - A: Submitted for this portion (Technical Experience/Key Personnel) of the Solicitation - due by 12:00pm CST 5 February 2019. **Please note that an amendment to the Solicitation will be posted tomorrow, Wednesday, January 30th, 2019 to change the date to have the Technical Experience submitted by 12:00pm CST 5 February 2019. Yes, everything in Section IV. Technical Experience of the Instruction to Offerors will be part of the 7 page limit.
Are you looking for facilitators of this kind of leadership training, or are you looking for the curriculum so that one of your team members can facilitate the training for you? The JTL requirement is for the curriculum and the facilitation, please be sure to read all documents in their entirety. We state this in the Instruction to Offerors under Section IV. Technical Experience/Key Personnel, Section V. Leadership Development Approach to all three tiers (Oral Presentation) and Section VI. Staffing Plan (Oral Presentation).
Is it expected for 1 facilitator (Primary Instructor) to possess all of the requirements outlined in para 10 of the PWS or can a pool of multiple SMEs meet the separate requirements?
| As stated in Section 10 of the PWS, the primary instructor must have the quaifications stated. |
| Is each tier-level of training scheduled independently? What is the max |
number of courses at one time?
| Yes, each program tier is scheduled independently. The max number of programs within a one year ordering period would be three. | |
| How many instructors/coaches are expected per course? | Per Section 3 of the PWS, two or more contract employes may be necessary to conduct coaching sessions for all students. Per Section 4.5 of the PWS, one designated lead instructor, for each Tier, to attend all training and coaching sessions for that specific Tier. |
| Do you anticipate the need for a program manager (PM) to manage overall |
JTL Program?
| US Army Sustainment Command has a JTL Program Manager that the contractor will coordinate with. |
| For current contractor experience in Instructional Design, must this be |
with the DoD and/or Army? And for clarification, this is in lieu of government civilian experience of 5 years, correct?
| Yes, experience must be with DOD and/or Army. | |
| Are you looking for a specific level of GS/Active Duty prior experience? | Refer to Section 10 of the PWS for experience. |
| Must letters of availability for future employee support be submitted |
with the Technical due on 5 Feb?
| Letters of availability will not be required for the technical experience requirement. If vendor meets the technical requirement, the letters of availability will be requried as part of the oral presentation package. | |
| Each of these sections contain instructions governing what should be contained in offerors' "Technical Experience" submittal, but upon close review, are not entirely consistent. In the event of inconsistency, which document (i.e. Attachment 0001 - Performance Work Statement, Attachment 0002 - Instructions to Offerors, Attachment 0003 - Basis for Award) governs? | All attachments govern. The PWS correlates to the Performance of Work required to be upheld by the contractor/offeror during the course of the contract. The Instructions to Offeros correlates to what shall be included in the quotation response, per the PWS. The Basis of award is how the contractor is evaluated and how the award will be made. |
| Each of these sections enumerate what type of experience, certifications, and letters of availability are needed to support "Technical Experience." However they use different wording to indicate the entity or entities which should have these qualifications. PWS § 10 uses the phrase "primary instructor". Instructions §VI.1 uses the phrase "key personnel or a combination of key personnel." Basis §II.1 uses the word "offeror". The distinction among these three documents is crucial, since the PWS implies all qualifications must be held by a single individual, the Instructions indicate that the qualifications can be met by a combination of individuals, and the Basis indicates that the qualifications can be met by the offeror, which in our case will be a corporate entity and not an individual (corporations are often prime contractors with experience doing business with DoD/DA, experience designing and delivering learning modules, and experience administering assessments.) Please clarify which entity/entities -- i.e. a single individual, multiple individuals, and/or corporate entity -- can provide the experience and certifications enumerated in PWS §10, Instructions §IV.1, and Basis §II.1. | The Instructions to Offerors "key personnel or combination of key personnel" ties back to the PWS "primary instructor". The primary insturctor is the key personnel for this action. The award is made to the offeror and not to the primary instructor or the key personnel and therefore the term "offeror" is used in the Basis of Award as a reference to whom the award will be made. To further expand on this, the offeror must ensure their quote meets the requirements set forth for the primary instructor/key personnel. |
| Can military service in one of the services (Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines) qualify as relevant experience in addition to civilian DoD or DA service? | No, as this is a civilian leadership program and the requirement is for the instructor to have a civilian government background or contractor that has 10 years acceptable performance working with DOD or DA. |
| Can civilian service in the Department of the Navy or the Department of the Air Force qualify as relevant experience in addition to civilian DoD or DA service? | See PWS Section 10.2 |
| Can civilian service in the Intelligence Community (e.g. CIA, NSA, DIA, etc) qualify as relevant experience in addition to civilian DoD or DA service? | See PWS Section 10.2 |
| Can civilian service in one of the other Executive Branch Cabinet agencies or other Federal independent agencies qualify as relevant experience in addition to civilian DoD or DA service. | See PWS Section 10.2 |
| Does a company/corporation having a contract with DoD or DA currently or within the past 10 years with acceptable performance meet this requirement? | Yes |
| Will a certification in executive coaching meet this requirement in lieu of 5 years coaching experience, and vice versa? | Yes |
| Do the PWS, Instructions, and Basis requirement of 5 years experience "delivering ALL the leadership development modules listed in section 6 of the PWS" also apply to the modules provided by the Brookings Institute in PWS Section 6.3.14? If so, this would seem to be an unduly restrictive requirement that effectively limits competition only to an incumbent who is currently performing the contract. | No |
| Please clarify the phrase "delivering ALL the leadership development modules listed in section 6 of the PWS." Does this literally mean that offerors must demonstrate at least 5 years experience delivering each and every single topic and subtopic specifically enumerated in Section 6 of the PWS? If such an interpretation is employed in the evaluation process, this would appear to be an unduly restrictive requirement that effectively limits competition only to an incumbent that is currently performing the contract with a very specific curriculum and agenda. | An instructor with 5 years of experience should be able to provide documented proof that they possess the skill sets outlined in section 6 of the PWS, and these skills sets would demonstrate the ability to develop and deliver the curriculum without being unduly restrictive. |
| If the government indicates that it will be using a strict interpretation of "delivering ALL the leadership development modules listed in section 6 of the PWS", how will offerors demonstrate compliance with this requirement? Must resumes or offerors description of classes and assessment delivered mirror line-by-line each and every topic and sub-topic listed in PWS Section 6? | Refer to the PWS, Instruction for Offerors, and Basis of Award on information that should be outlined in the quote. Additionally, refer to line 26 of this Q&A. |
| If the government indicates that it will be using a more open and flexible interpretation of delivering "ALL" leadership modules, what level of detail will it require offerors to provide in their Technical Experience submittal to document compliance with this requirement? This is a critical question and specific guidance from the government will be necessary in order to ensure that submissions on this specific requirement are acceptable. | Refer to the PWS, Instruction for Offerors, and Basis of Award on information that should be outlined in the quote. Additionally, refer to line 26 of this Q&A. |
| On the one hand, PWS Section 10.4 requires certification on "Benchmark By Design 360 Degree Assessment." On the other hand, Instructions Section IV.1.d and Basis Section II.1.d require certification in "Benchmark By Design 360 Degree Assessment (or comparable 360 Degree Assessment)." Please clarify whether the requirement is exclusively for "Benchmark By Design 360 Degree Assessment" or whether there is flexibility to satisfy this requirement by having a certification in a comparable 360 Degree Assessment? | The preferred 360 assessment instrument is Benchmark by Design, however certification in a comparable 360 Degree Assessment is acceptable. |
| Please provide illustrative examples of what the government considers a "comparable 360 degree assessment." | The government cannot provide current examples. This is the offerors responsibility to the best of their ability in accordance with the requirement. |
| Why does the government require a certification specifically on "MBTI Step II"? The government's explanation will help offerors understand whether other assessment instruments describing personality and behavior traits can work just as well to achieve the government's rationale for requiring specifically MBTI Step II. | MBTI Step II is the perferred assessment as it provides additional depth and clarification within each of the four original MBTI dichotomies. |
| Is certification on "MBTI Step II" strictly required, or is there sufficient flexibility that certification in a comparable assessment instrument describing personality and behavior traits are also acceptable? | Certification in MBTI Step II is the requirement for this contract. |
| These sections reference experience delivering and explaining ASSESSMENTS on topics such as Team Building, Problem Solving, and Communication. Please provide illustrative examples of the specific names of the assessments that the government had in mind for this requirement. | The government cannot provide current examples. This is the offerors responsibility to the best of their ability in accordance with the requirement. |
| Will offerors experience delivering workshops, seminars, or other types of classes on Team Building, Problem Solving, and Communication satisfy this requrement? | Yes, if the offerer has the required minimum of 5 years experience per PWS Section 10.3 |
| Will the letters of availability count toward the 7-page limit? | Letters of availability will not be required for the technical experience requirement. If vendor meets the technical requirement, the letters of availability will be requried as part of the oral presentation package. |
| Will resumes count toward the 7-page limit? | The 7 page limit for technical experience has been increased to a maximum of 10 pages. The 10 pages is all inclusive of resumes, certifications, past performance summaries, etc. |
| Will copies of certifications count toward the 7-page limit? | The 7 page limit for technical experience has been increased to a maximum of 10 pages. The 10 pages is all inclusive of resumes, certifications, past performance summaries, etc. |
| Will the government consider increase the page limit to 10 pages or more? | The 7 page limit for technical experience has been increased to a maximum of 10 pages. The 10 pages is all inclusive of resumes, certifications, past performance summaries, etc. |
| Can offerors submit past performance summaries of current or prior relevant leadership development training projects, in addition to personnel resumes, as ways to document that it meets the Technical Experience requirements? | Past performance summaries can be provide as part of the technical experience requirement but will be counted in the 10 page limit. |
| Will past performance summaries count toward the page limit? | Yes |
| States "In order for the government to determine an offeror Acceptable, the offeror must demonstrate the necessary experience outlined in subparagraphs a through f below, with methods for effective writing, briefing and presentation skills, conflict management, professional interviewing, project management, and delegation that will be tied into training modules." (emphasis added) The highlighted clause seems to imply that offerors must, in addition to the requirements of subparagraphs a through f, also describe methods in the enumerated topics that are tied to training modules. Does the government require offerors to explain their methods of training in these enumerated areas in their Technical Experience submittal or can offerors wait to describe these methods in their slides and oral presentations that describe their Leadership Development Approach? | These methods would be described during the oral presenations. |
| States "In order for the government to determine an offeror Acceptable, the offeror must demonstrate the necessary experience outlined in subparagraphs a through f below, with methods for effective writing, briefing and presentation skills, conflict management, professional interviewing, project management, and delegation that will be tied into training modules." (emphasis added) The highlighted clause seems to imply that offerors must, in addition to the requirements of subparagraphs a through f, also describe methods in the enumerated topics that are tied to training modules. Does the government require offerors to explain their methods of training in these enumerated areas in their Technical Experience submittal? | No, these methods would be described during the oral presentations. |
| The January 29 Q&A referenced an amendment to be posted on January 30 that would revise the submittal deadline for Technical Experience to December 5, 2019. As of 12:00 pm (EST), January 31, 2019, FBO does not show such an amendment for this solicitation. Does the government still intend to change the deadline from December 7 to December 5 and, if so, when does it intend to post this change? | An amendment was not issued changing the Technical Experience due date. |
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