Validated Executive Assessment

The Department of the Interior's Interior Business Center seeks a validated executive assessment program for up to two cohorts of approximately 24 participants each to support the Senior Executive Service Candidate Development Program, with quotes due July 20, 2026, and questions due July 10. The procurement is set-aside for small business concerns under NAICS 611430 (Professional and Management Development Training) with a size standard of $15 million.

Place of performance is within a two-hour driving radius of Washington, DC, likely at the National Conservation Training Center in Shepherdstown, West Virginia, with potential session dates in April and May 2027. The contract spans one full calendar year beginning early 2027, with Cohort 1 performance from September 30, 2026, to September 29, 2027, and Cohort 2 as an option line item with anticipated exercise date January 1, 2027.

The contractor must provide validated assessment instruments demonstrating formal validation studies in federal or comparable senior executive environments; failure to establish instrument validation results in non-responsive status and elimination. Assessment must incorporate SES-level simulations (email management, strategic decision-making, high-stakes meetings, cross-agency stakeholder sessions) aligned to five Executive Core Qualifications (Commitment to the Rule of Law & Principles of the American Founding, Driving Efficiency, Merit & Competence, Leading People, and Achieving Results). Each participant will be assessed by a minimum of three qualified assessors with federal leadership assessment experience. Individual assessment reports must summarize strengths and developmental needs by ECQ, with debriefs due two weeks after conclusion. All materials must comply with Section 508 and the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Evaluation proceeds across three equally-weighted technical factors (Instrument Validation, Simulation Design, Individual Assessment Reporting) and one price factor. Technical factors combined are significantly more important than price. Experience evaluation covers up to three recent or ongoing projects within five years; SES-level federal government assessment program experience is strongly preferred. Award will be made to the responsible offeror whose quote represents the most advantageous offer, considering technical capability and price together. Service Contract Act prevailing wages apply to Virginia, DC, and Maryland locations.