GSA proposal Steps & Marketing of a GSA Contract Session 5

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Felicity Porter
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1 GSA proposal Steps & Marketing of a GSA Contract Session 5 Steven Spilker GCAP Procurement Counselor 1

2 GSA proposal breakdown... Their are three main components of a Federal FSS proposal effort: Administrative/Technical/Pricing Your proposal must be in response to the appropriate solicitation that matches the GSA Federal Supply Schedule you ve determined most reflects the products or services you want to supply to Federal government agencies. DEFINITIONS/NOTES: The solicitation document is the Request for Proposal (RFP) --Administrative, Technical, and Pricing-- directed to you the potential vendor. Read this document (and attachments) in their entirety! Each solicitation is different. Each schedule has an accompanying solicitation that requests a proposal from you that requires significant effort, information, and compliance affirmations so as to enable GSA to understand thoroughly what you are offering and which permits them to potentially initiate negotiations with your firm. As in all proposals there are specific terms & conditions, product descriptions, technical and pricing sections, etc., that are required for a successful submittal. 2

3 Pre-proposal-steps No Plan, No Effort, No Contract! Plan on from 40 to 80 dedicated man-hours to complete proposal. REQUIRED! Register and participate in a GSA training seminar so as to obtain the Pathway to Success Certificate required for a GSA contract - REQUIRED! Go to GSA s Vendor Toolbox and complete the Readiness Assessment questionnaire. Determine Schedule(s) and SIN(s) that match your products and/or services and download the accompanying solicitation. Read the solicitation and it accompanying attachments carefully taking notes as you go. Each Schedule s solicitation is different so understanding each of the documents that collectively make up the RFP is critical. 3

4 GSA Proposal Flowchart Thoroughly read the solicitation and all the attachments Gather important company documents. (Company financials, brochures, catalogs, commercial price list, org charts, etc.) Seek clarification on the solicitation if needed. Work thru solicitation and accompanying attachments. Completely fill out the web-based E-offer (template proposal) including all applicable attachments Electronically submit to GSA your completed E-offer Obtain required numbers and registrations ( DUNS, SAM, Open Ratings, Etc.) 4

Organizing the proposal effort Important Solicitation Documents to Read and Understand: Read Read Me First Document first duuuhhh! Read the entire Solicitation and attachments TAKE NOTES!

5 Organizing the proposal effort Important Solicitation Documents to Read and Understand: Read Read Me First Document first duuuhhh! Read the entire Solicitation and attachments TAKE NOTES! Review all Terms and Conditions. Utilize the checklist attachment. Begin to identify resources and assign responsibilities within the company to support your efforts. List action items with times of completion. Organize your proposal efforts by the three main Sections 5

6 Solicitation/RFP Sections Section I Administrative / Contract Data Section II Technical Proposal Section III Price Proposal 6

7 Section I Administrative/ Contract Data Copy of Pathway to Success Certificate: Copy of Readiness Assessment Toolbox research results; Agent Authorization Letter; (if applicable, template is in solicitation) Most recent Copy of your SAM Record; Past two years of company s financial statements; Small Business Subcontracting Plan; (if large business) Contact info: Admin., A/R, Authorized negotiators, and Contract Specialist(s); Copy of capabilities statement or maximum 2 page brochure on your firm. Summary of Offer. 7

8 Section II Technical Proposal Technical Proposal is comprised of four sub-sections/factors: Factor One Corporate Experience Factor Two Relevant Project Experience Factor Three Past Performance Factor Four Quality Control 8

9 Factor One Corporate Experience Narrative describing applicable corporate experience Two-page maximum Number of years providing service(s) Need at least 2 years in business (waiver possible) Organization s size, experience, personnel, capabilities, and resources in other words, tell them why you re the best! Brief history of business activities Internal controls (organizational and accounting) Staffing capabilities Proposed federal marketing plan Discuss subcontractors(if applicable) 9

10 Factor Two Relevant Project Experience Two project descriptions for EACH Special Item Number (SIN) proposed o Four-page maximum per project description o Completed within the last two years or base year completed, if on-going o IMPORTANT! Demonstrate clearly that performed work is similar to solicited work as described in the SIN description o Customer reference information for each project o Methodology, tools, and/or processes used o Demonstration of compliance with laws, regs., etc. o Project schedule o Similar in scope and complexity o Specific experience and/or qualifications o Special SIN Requirements (if any) 10

11 Factor Three Past Performance Offerors must order and obtain a Past Performance Evaluation (PPE) from Open Ratings, Inc. (Dun & Bradstreet) Offerors are responsible for payment to Open Ratings ($175.00) Requires at least 4 references (Maximum: 20) Open Ratings will not release a report until it receives at least 4 complete surveys Open Ratings estimates the process to take 20 to 35 days so make this one of your first steps. Address Negative Feedback Submit completed Past Performance Evaluation AND order form with GSA offer Reports are good for 1 year Report is sent directly to Requestor/Offeror Request copy to be sent to GSA 11

12 Factor Four Quality Control One page narrative, regardless of number of SINs offered (2-page maximum) Describe internal review procedures Identifies individuals reviewing projects Identifies if subcontractors are used and how offeror ensures acceptable performance Identifies potential problems and solutions Contains procedures for meeting urgent requirements Assures and describes how multiple task orders from the Government can be handled 12

13 Section III Price Proposal GSA s PRICING GOAL Obtain Most Favored Customer (MFC) pricing The price analysis GSA does to establish the Government s MAS negotiation objective should start with the best discount given to any of the vendor s customers. GAO 13

14 Section III Price Proposal Proposal Pricelist Spreadsheet Preparation; Provide Production Point and Comply with Trade Agreements Act (TAA) (if supplying products) Commercial Sales Practices (CSP or CSP-1); Price support (fair and reasonable)narrative Proposed Escalation (if applicable) Supporting Pricing Documentation (invoices, etc.) Labor Category Descriptions (if supplying services) Professional Compensation Plan (if supplying services) Uncompensated Overtime (if supplying services) Prevailing Wage/Wage Determination/Service Contract Act (SCA) Documentation (if applicable to your proposed labor categories) 14

15 Commercial Price List vs. Market Price Commercial Price List: Price included in a catalog, price list, schedule, or other form that is regularly maintained by the manufacturer or vendor, is either published or otherwise available for inspection by customers, and states prices at which sales are currently, or were last, made to a significant number of buyers constituting the general public Commercial Market Price: Current prices that are established in the course of ordinary trade between buyers and sellers free to bargain and that can be substantiated through competition or from sources independent of the offerors 15

16 Proposal Price List Spreadsheet Preparation SIN(s) proposed Service/Product proposed MFC/Best commercial customer MFC/Best commercial customer price Discount % offered to MFC/Best commercial customer Discount % offered to GSA Prices offered to GSA, excluding Industrial Funding Fee (IFF) Prices offered to GSA, including IFF 16

17 Commercial Sales Practices Format (CSP-1 or CSPF) Previous sales information Estimated sales per SIN Discounting policies Deviations from standard commercial practices (if any) 17

18 Price Narrative Provide information for the Contracting Officer to determine offered prices are fair and reasonable for each offered service or product Deviations from CSP(if any) State whether prices proposed are based on Commercial Price List or Market Prices Proposed economic price adjustment 18

19 What if I need to raise my prices???? or Economic Price Adjustment clauses Based on Commercial Price List: ECONOMIC PRICE ADJUSTMENT FSS MULTIPLE AWARD SCHEDULE CONTRACTS (SEP 1999) (ALTERNATE I SEP 1999) Based on changes in Commercial Price List Based on Market Price: I-FSS-969 ECONOMIC PRICE ADJUSTMENT FSS MULTIPLE AWARD SCHEDULE (JAN 2002) Negotiate fixed escalation rate Based on market indicator 19

20 F.Y.I.--Typical Front Page of an E-offer 20

21 Ready to submit! Your Completed E-Offer should now include all of the Sections and documents we ve discussed so far, including: The E-offer s template questions answered All required Attachments (Various Documents highlighted by a red asterisk in the e-offer template) completed and uploaded, including Proposal Sections I, II, & III. Offeror s Conditional Attachments (Various Documents) completed and uploaded. Conditional Attachments may be REQUIRED depending on the size of your company and/or the SINs offered by your company. When ALL boxes on the cover page of your E-Offer show green indicating completion you are ready to submit. FINALLY!!!!!! 21

Timeframe for response is established Negotiations Final Proposal Revision (FPR) Letter Contract Award!

22 When GSA Receives Your Proposal Offer assigned to Contract Specialist Offers with deficiencies will be rejected GSA will begin its due diligence process Contract Specialist will contact offeror to request clarifications or correction of minor deficiencies Timeframe for response is established Negotiations Final Proposal Revision (FPR) Letter Contract Award! Upload the contract to GSA Advantage website Assign someone in your firm responsible for ALL Contract administration Begin to market your new GSA FSS Contract 22

23 Contract Administration Ongoing Process 5-Year Contract with THREE 5-Year Option Periods IFF Sales Reporting Modification Requests Small Business Reporting (esrs) Contractor Assist Visits Minimum Sales Criteria $25,000 /1 st 2 years(not cumulative) $25,000 / year per year ongoing 23

24 and now on to How to Market your new GSA contract! 24

U.S. General Services Administration GSA IT SCHEDULE 70 HEALTH IT SIN Contract Modification and New Offer Instruction Package

U.S. General Services Administration GSA IT SCHEDULE 70 HEALTH IT SIN 132-56 Contract Modification and New Offer Instruction Package TABLE OF CONTENTS BACKGROUND... 3 PROVISION CHANGES... 4 CONTRACT MODIFICATION