Doing Business with OAO

Phyllis BowerExecutive Director

Office of Acquisition Operations

Overview• Who Am I?• VA Organizational Chart• Some VA Basics• VA’s Acquisition Organization• OAO Organizational Chart• OAO Organizational Background• OAO Unique Services Provided• FY 14 In Review• OAO Mission and Vision• OAO Strategic Goals• Veterans First Contracting Program (P.L. 109-461)

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Overview (cont.)• Small Business Representative• Navigating the Government Proposal Process• Do’s and Don’ts During the Solicitation Process• Market Research• RFIs, RFQs, & RFPs• Proposal Preparation & Submission• Discussions• Debriefings• Protests• Important Web Sites

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Who am I?• Phyllis Bower• Executive Director, Office of Acquisition Operations• Head of Contracting Activity for VA Central Office• Office of Acquisition, Logistics, and Construction• Responsible for approximately $3.5B in annual spend via:

– Technology Acquisition Center (TAC)– Strategic Acquisition Center (SAC)– Acquisition Business Service (ABS)

VA Organizational Chart

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Some VA Basics• FY 2014 Annual Obligations - $18.6B (per FPDS)

– VA achieved Small Business Goals = 34.8% of total spend• SDVOSB = 19.2%• VOSB = 21.5%

• Multiple acquisition organizations:– VHA

• 2500 1102 contracting professionals• Approximately 80% of all dollars obligated are in VHA• However – approximately 90% of all VHA acquisitions are below the

Simplified Acquisition Threshold ($150K)– VBA & NCA

• Limited number of 1102 contracting professionals– NAC

• Delegated authority for Federal Supply Schedules• Nationwide contracts

– CFM• Construction and Facilities Management

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VA’s Acquisition Organization

• Chief Acquisition Officer – Glenn Haggstrom• Senior Procurement Executive – Jan Frye• VA has 6 Head of Contracting Activities:

– VHA Norbert Doyle– VBA Ed Safdie– NCA Tom Muir– CFM Stella Fiotes– NAC Craig Robinson– OAO Phyllis Bower

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OAO Organization Chart

Glenn D. Haggstrom, SESPrincipal Executive Director,

Office of Acquisition, Logistics and Construction (OALC)

Chief Acquisition Officer (CAO)

Glenn D. Haggstrom, SESPrincipal Executive Director,

Office of Acquisition, Logistics and Construction (OALC)

Chief Acquisition Officer (CAO)

Phyllis Bower, SESExecutive Director,

Office of Acquisition Operations (OAO)Head of Contracting Activity (HCA)

Phyllis Bower, SESExecutive Director,

Office of Acquisition Operations (OAO)Head of Contracting Activity (HCA)

Elegear (EG) Primus

Deputy Associate Executive Director,

Strategic AcquisitionCenter (SAC)

Elegear (EG) Primus

Deputy Associate Executive Director,

Strategic AcquisitionCenter (SAC)

Michele R. Foster, SES

Associate Executive Director,

Technology Acquisition Center (TAC)

Michele R. Foster, SES

Associate Executive Director,

Technology Acquisition Center (TAC)

Sara Barboza

Director, Acquisition Business Service (ABS)

Sara Barboza

Director, Acquisition Business Service (ABS)

Iris Hall

Acting Director,Customer Advocacy

Service (CAS)

Iris Hall

Acting Director,Customer Advocacy

Service (CAS)

OAO Organization Background

• Head of Contracting Activity (HCA) for VACO• Total Staff - 528• Annual Obligations >$3.5B• Customers

– Administrations (VBA, VHA, NCA)– Staff Offices (Including Office of the SECVA, Office of Policy & Planning,

Office of Information & Technology, Office of Human Resources and Administration, etc.)

• Life Cycle Acquisition Support– Simplified acquisitions– Complex service acquisitions– IT and non-IT Strategically sourced and enterprise contracts

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OAO Organization Background (cont.)

• Technology Acquisition Center (TAC), Eatontown, NJ & Austin, TX– Supports OIT acquisitions >$100K– Strategically sourced IT contracts– IT-centric Interagency Agreements (IAAs)

• Strategic Acquisition Center (SAC), Fredericksburg, VA & Frederick, MD– Strategically sourced/enterprise-wide non-IT contracts– Supports major VBA, HR&A acquisitions– Non-IT Interagency Agreements– Major customers include VACO organizations such as OPP, OSDBU, etc.

• Acquisition Business Service (ABS), Washington DC– Supports/administers VA legacy contracts– Manages contract closeout– Simplified Acquisitions– HCA policy support

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OAO Unique Services Provided

• Customer Advocacy Service– OAO specific customer training– Resolves impediments in the acquisition process– Supports industry meetings and vendor interfaces

• Acquisition Rapid Response Service (ARRS)– Assists customers with requirements definition and gathering of requirements

documents– Provide OAO specific customer training– Assists with Integrated Process Teams (IPTs)

• Program Advisory Service (PAS)– Post-award support to Program Offices– Monitors cost/schedule/performance metrics on major programs

• Virtual Office of Acquisition (VOA)– Customer portal & templates to assist customers with requirements definition &

management– Interactive SharePoint environment allowing customers & acquisition professionals

to work through the development of an actionable package– Industry forum for OAO specific acquisitions

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FY14 in Review• OAO executed 5,095 contract actions valued at $3.5 Billion• Exceeded our small business goal of 46% by 5%!

– OAO Small Business Awards - 51%o SDVOSB - 34.6%o VOSB - 39.4%

• Enterprise-Wide Contracts – 21 Strategically Sourced Contracts– 11 Awarded in FY 2014– 4 Awarded to Small Business ($99M)– 2 Awarded to SDVOSB ($51M)

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OAO Mission and Vision

MissionEnabling our customers to provide best value solutions

to Veterans and their Families.

Vision• A world class Acquisition organization that is customer-focused, emulated

by others, and an employer of choice.

• An efficient and effective organization offering our customers customized, responsive service, and the best value. We will maintain nimble operations, utilizing documented and repeatable processes, as well as integrated tools and technology.

• Our employees are forward-thinking, smart, and innovative acquisition professionals, with strong technical and leadership competencies.

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OAO Strategic Goals

• Exceptional Customer Service– Customer Bill of Rights– Delivering best value services to Veterans and their Families– Be a business Partner

• Outcome Focused vs Transaction Focused• Never compromise integrity – focus on the mission• High performance standards

– Under promise – Over deliver• Public Service = Customer Service• One face to the customer

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Establishes a Contracting Order of Priority throughout VA:

Veterans First Contracting Program (P.L. 109-461)

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Veterans First Contracting Program (P.L. 109-461) (cont.)

Small Business Representative

Robert Overbey, Jr.Robert.Overbey@va.gov

(202) 461-6809

• Serves as OAO’s interface with VA Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU) and the Small Business Administration (SBA)

• Responds to queries from small businesses on conducting business with the OAO

• Promotes compliance with Public Law 109-461, Veterans Benefits, Health Care, and Information Technology Act of 2006, (i.e., Veterans First Contracting Program)– Provides priority for SDVOSB/VOSB awards

Navigating the Government Proposal Process

• Understanding the Do’s and Don’ts during the Solicitation Process• Discussions

– The Government’s Obligation during Discussions– Difference between “Clarification” and “Discussion”

• Final Proposal Revisions (FPRs)• Pre-award & Post-award Debriefings• Protests• Engaging the Contracting Officer

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Do’s and Don’ts During the Solicitation Process

• The Government encourages early exchanges with industry• It is acceptable to request one-on-one meetings• Attend vendor meetings, respond to RFIs and stay engaged• Once the solicitation has been issued:

– Cease all “informal” discussions with the Government personnel involved

– Can conduct formal interactions through the Contracting Officer– Submit any questions in writing to the Contracting Officer– Do not pressure the Contracting Officer/Technical staff to exceed

boundaries• Become familiar with Procurement Integrity Rules

– Do not attempt to obtain any procurement sensitive information (illegal)– If you are given any procurement sensitive information, immediately

contact your legal department/attorney

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Market Research

• The Government must conduct Market Research• The Extent of Market Research conducted depends on factors

such as:– Urgency– Estimated dollar value– Complexity– Past experience

• Can Include:– RFIs– Industry/vendor conference– One-on-one meetings – Draft RFPs– Pre-solicitation or pre-proposal conferences– FAR encourages early exchanges with Industry

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RFIs, RFQs, & RFPs

• Request for Information (RFI)– RFIs may be used when the Government does not presently intend to

award a contract– Government is generally looking to obtain market information, or

capabilities for planning purposes/market research– Responses to these notices are NOT offers– There is generally no required format for RFIs & responses– May also be referred to as “Sources Sought” notice

• So, Why Should You Respond:– You may offer unique insights that will improve the requirement/shape

the future acquisition– Express your interest in the upcoming acquisition– Marketing to the Government decision makers –

• Demonstrates your firm’s “quality” of thought• Reaches directly to the contracting and technical evaluation staff you may

never otherwise reach– Does not require a large investment

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RFIs, RFQs, & RFPs (cont.)

• Request for Quotation (RFQ)– Cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract– The vendor’s response to the RFQ is considered a “quote” not an “offer”– The Government will use a purchase order to actually form a contract in

response to the receipt of the quote– Generally only used for non-complex, smaller purchases

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RFIs, RFQs, & RFPs (cont.)

• Request for Proposal (RFP)– Used in negotiated acquisitions to ensure that the Government obtains

the best solution and price for a requirement– Generally used for more complex acquisitions, when multiple factors are

being considered in the award decision– Government will try to award without discussions– Generally technical/management approach is significantly more

important than other factors such as Price or Past Performance

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RFIs, RFQs, & RFPs (cont.)

• What does the Government mean by “responsible”?– The vendor must have adequate financial resources– Be able to comply with the delivery/performance schedule– Have a satisfactory past performance record– Have a satisfactory record of integrity/business ethics– Have the requisite organization, equipment/facilities, experience/skills

and controls in place to perform• Price Related Factors

– Any factor that impacts price such as• Cost of inspection• Supplies• Transportation• Federal, state & local taxes

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Proposal Preparation & Submission

• Read the ENTIRE solicitation• Contract clauses are IMPORTANT• Understand the Evaluation Criteria• Submit questions to the Contracting Officer in WRITING• Verbal responses to questions are NOT BINDING on the

Government• Understand, when, where and how to submit the proposal• Pay attention to Amendments• Page Limitations• Organize your submission to be responsive to the requirement• Pay attention to “Other” Instructions

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Discussions

• The Government encourages early exchanges with industry• It is acceptable to request one-on-one meetings• Attend vendor meetings, respond to RFIs and stay engaged• Once the solicitation has been issued:

– Cease all “informal” discussions with the Government personnel involved

– Can conduct formal interactions through the Contracting Officer– Submit any questions in writing to the Contracting Officer– Do not pressure the Contracting Officer/Technical staff to exceed

boundaries• Become familiar with Procurement Integrity Rules

– Do not attempt to obtain any procurement sensitive information (illegal)– If you are given any procurement sensitive information, immediately

contact your legal department/attorney

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Discussions (cont.)

• Prior to establishing a competitive range– May be limited to those offerors whose inclusion in uncertain– Shall be held with those offerors whose past performance may prevent

their inclusion• After establishing a competitive range

– Must be conducted with all offerors in the competitive range– Contracting Officers must discuss deficiencies, significant weaknesses

and adverse past performance but is NOT required to address every area where the proposal could be improved

– Contracting Officers can NOT reveal any information from a competitor’s proposal

• Final Proposal Revision (FPR)– Be sure to address all areas raised during discussions – this is your last

chance

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Debriefings

• Pre-Award & Post-Award– Request a debriefing within three days of receiving notification (either of

elimination from the competitive range or the “sorry” letter)• What to Expect

– The CO can tell you evaluation results of your proposal– Summary of the rationale for eliminating your proposal from the further

consideration– The CO can NOT tell you the number of offerors competing, their

identifies and the content of their proposals

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Protests

• Either to the Agency (Contracting Officer) or the Government Accountability Office (GAO)

• The number of cases filed in FY 2014 were up by 5% from FY 2013, including:– 2,445 bid protests– 50 cost claims– 66 requests for reconsideration

• Of the 556 cases that were decided on their merits, only 72 (or 13%) were sustained.

• The most prevalent reasons for sustaining protests were:(1) Failure to follow evaluation criteria(2) Flawed selection decision(3) Unreasonable technical evaluation, and(4) Unequal treatment

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Important Web Sites

• Advanced Planning Briefing to Industry (APBI) – https://www.voa.va.gov (under APBI library)

• Federal Business Opportunities (Fed Biz Ops or FBO)– http://www.fbo.gov

• Forecast of Contracting Opportunities (FCO) – https://www.vendorportal.ecms.va.gov/eVP/fco/FCO.aspx

• VA Center for Innovation – http://www.innovation.va.gov/index.html

• Virtual Office of Acquisition (VOA) – https://www.voa.va.gov

• National Veterans Small Business Engagement– http://www.nvsbe.com

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