“Making it easier” – rebranding GSA

The “Making it Easier” initiative was launched by GSA in April of this year but we’ve been wondering how effective it’s been so far. Do all the changes and new tools help contractors or just create more confusion because of all the changes?  Although the program is very new, breaking down what its accomplished so far should give us a clear view.

The IT Schedule 70 Plain Language Roadmap clearly breaks down all the requirements that vendors need to complete to submit for a GSA schedule. Overall though, it’s nothing more than a breakdown of what’s already in the solicitation written out on the GSA website. Breaking down the process into 3 large steps with every requirement listed underneath should make the process clearer for vendors but it’s already broken into three volumes with the solicitation document too. If someone isn’t used to reading large solicitations, the clarity with which IT 70 is broken down is great and for a new contractor who has never dealt with GSA procedures, it’s a great tool.

*GCS rates this tool 3/5.

The IT Schedule 70 Startup Springboard is without doubt one of the best new initiatives. Previously, the requirement for all schedules was at least two years in business for companies looking to get a GSA schedule. This has put the government far behind the IT curve of adopting technology and having the ability to be flexible with innovations. Who can forget all the bad publicity about the Navy still using Windows XP? With Springboard, companies can use other methods to show experience like Professional Experience of their Executives, Documentation showing company’s financial responsibility, and project information. This puts the government on par with commercial entities in innovating IT practices!

*GCS rates this tool 4/5.

The GSA Forecast of Contracting Opportunities will be one of the more important tools for contractors looking for ways to get ahead of the buying curve. While many companies wait for solicitations to be posted and respond the best they can, the most successful contractors forecast and target opportunities a year (or sometimes even more!) in advance! Searching allows you to narrow opportunities by agencies, set-asides, and NAICS and gives you all the data you need to forecast for you company!

*GCS rates this tool 5/5.

Looks like so far, “Making it Easier” is successful with what it has done and stays true to its name, simplifying the process for new potential contractors, innovative technologies, and current contractor holders. We’ll be keeping a close eye on the initiative to see what other tools and rules are being released.

Expiring Contracts give GSA a Chance for Change

Making government purchasing more streamlined and consolidated has been the mission of the GSA for the last couple years, especially since the new GSA Administrator Denise Turner Roth was sworn in. With so many professional services contracts expiring in fiscal year 2016 and even more coming up for expiration in fiscal year 2017, the opportunity is ripe to implement changes and get agencies working together and consolidate purchasing. The consolidation of multiple GSA contracts into the new PSS (Professional Services Schedule) was a starting off point.

Fewer contracting vehicles would mean a simpler way to purchase professional services that agencies need. The goal is to not increase the number of indefinite delivery indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contracts but to better utilize the ones that exist. Whether that means expanding GSA Schedules or OASIS, there are already vehicles out there for the services that the government purchases. There seems to be no need to increase the burden on the government by creating more and more IDIQs when existing contracts can be utilized and any new ones that would be created would exist within current frameworks.

Only 20 percent of government professional services spending is currently running through GSA with the rest going through the open market. Despite the governments wishes, open market competition is continually increasing, 10% between 2011 and 2014 (according to Bloomberg Government) creating the need for more contracting officers and more management, further bloating the government and its buying power.

Theoretically, this move will also increase competition. According to Bloomberg Government, about 80% of federal government spending on general professional services went to just 140 companies. Although there is a chance that those business then subcontracted to others, that is a very small number of companies gather a bulk of the work and money.

Utilizing the current vendor base (all vendors on the GSA have gone through a stringent approval process) and potentially making it easier for start ups to join the GSA can make this particular effort just what the government needs to stop creating new IDIQs and make sure they are utilizing government purchasing power in the best way!

Temporary Freeze on Awards of MOBIS (Schedule 874) Contracts

Due to the transition of all MOBIS Contracts to the new Professional Services Schedule, 00CORP, the General Services Administration is putting a freeze on awarding new contracts. Orders have come down from the GSA Regions 10 office in Seattle, who are the Mangers for the MOBIS Contracts.

The GSA has starting informing contractors that have submitted their information for this contract that effective immediately no awards will be made pending the October 2015 transition. There is a silver lining to the situation however, once awards begin being made to those pending they will receive the new Professional Services Schedule Contract. This opens a huge door for those companies, you’re not limited by the scope of the MOBIS contract.

To take a look at what SINs are included under Professional Services you can take a look at GSA’s eLibrary here: http://www.gsaelibrary.gsa.gov/ElibMain/scheduleSummary.do;jsessionid=4AC8018C72E9A8CDF3E4BBF0B84321EB.prd2pweb

Keep in mind that adding any of these new categories will have to wait until you’re officially awarded your GSA Contract.

As always, if you have any questions feel free to give us a call!

Reorganization and Goals at the GSA

The General Services Administration has spent the last couple years reorganizing both contracts and personnel with a large goal in mind. Create a simple and intuitive way for government agencies to spend the hundreds of billions of dollars they spend each year while making the smartest decisions. Leading the way the consolidated contract known as the Professional Services Schedule (PSS).
The goal of “PSS” is to simplify complex contract requirements. That’s really all it is. There’s no reason for all the professional services to be separated out when so many of them are interconnected and any different ones are needed to complete a single requirement.

On the personnel side, senior procurement executives are receiving more training and are focusing on how agencies are spending and knowing how best to help them. There’s more analytical work going on than ever before. The GSA seems to be catching on to big data and how that can help agencies purchases the best products and services while making sure they stay within budget.

That focus on simplification and efficiency seems to circle around bigger and better digital tools, for everyone involved; buyers, contractors, and contracting officers alike. On the contracting officer side, the GSA is looking to provide tools for information sharing between COs.

Looks like the GSA is moving, rather slowly, but moving into the digital age, although it’s a process with hurdles of its own. Data protection and fear of hacking has lead the CIO Council to issue a BPA for data breach services. They understand the need for instant in help in the case of data hacking.

So there it is. Slowly but sure the GSA is trying to modernize and protect itself while they do it. Only time will tell if works.

Cloud computing and the GSA

Among the constant changes at the General Services Administration, one that has come in slightly under the radar is the release of a new special item number under schedule 70.
The recently released “Cloud” special item number is created to streamline the purchase of all cloud services through a single SIN. This small change with shorten time for procurement and will clear any confusion on whether the GSA is looking for a cloud-based or premise-based solutions.
SIN 132-40 includes commercially available cloud computing services but the most exciting part for contractors is the inclusion of Infrastructure as a Services (IaaS), Platform as a Services (PaaS), and Software as a Service (SaaS). While SaaS has been growing commercial as the best way to deliver the newest and best software, the GSA has been lagging in adapting of this delivery and service option. With the ability to purchase SaaS clearly as that, the GSA will be moving forward with technology updates!

If you’re interested in seeing whether your software falls within the Cloud Computing umbrella, take a look at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) “Definition of Cloud Computing”. http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/nistpubs/800-145/SP800-145.pdf.
There’s also a great checklist that you can use to make sure that your offerings fit. NIST has created this for contractors to avoid confusion.
 http://www.gsa.gov/portal/mediaId/227403/fileName/Response_Template_and_Checklist_for_Cloud_SIN_05202015.action (It’s on Page Two!)

For contractors looking to add this SIN to their GSA offerings, make sure that you include the corresponding NAICS code (518210 data processing, hosting, and related services) on your SAM. Always make sure that you are compliant.

This small change to schedule 70 does mark the GSA moving forward, technology wise. More and more companies are offering their products and services in a cloud computing model which benefits the buyer and seller equal.

Just like submitting any modification, adding SIN 132-40 requires some paperwork. Make sure you read through the solicitation document and follow the instructions closely. And check out the GSA’s page on the Cloud Special Item Number Project- http://www.gsa.gov/portal/content/199547.
 

New Contractor Assessment Report

Do you have a Contractor Assistance Visit (CAV) coming up? The GSA has made some changes to the Contractor Assessment Report, you will want to be aware of what they are looking for.

For those of you have been through a CAV previously you know that there were certain items listed as "critical" which were the items that your Contracting Officer would list as "serious concerns exist" and ensure that corrections are made. The second category was "mandatory, but not critical" which is exactly what it sounds like. And lastly, "the extras" which include essentially everything else.

With the new Contractor Assessment Report the categories described above are non-existent. The new categories are broken into the following:

• Sales Reporting
• Did the contractor meet the sales requirement?
• Are they reporting on time?
• Are they reporting all GSA sales?
• Pricing
• Did the contractor demonstrate compliance with pricing requirements?
• Are you pricing based on your awarded price list?
• Prompt Payment Discounts
• Did the contractor demonstrate compliance with prompt payment discounts?
• If you were awarded them are you actively using them?
• Scope
• Did the contractor demonstrate compliance with scope of contract?
• Are you on selling what is on your contract?
• Trade Agreements Act
• Did the contractor demonstrate compliance with Trade agreements act?
• eCommerce
• Did the contractor demonstrate compliance with eCommerce requirements?
• Did you accept government pay cards?
• Did you fill all GSA Advantage orders?
• Delivery
• Did the contractor demonstrate compliance with delivery requirements?
• If you are awarded FOB Destination are you including shipping in your price?
• If you are FOB Origin are you charging for shipping correctly?

The questions are not all inclusive and are just examples of what will fall under each category. Before your CAV be sure that you are aware of your specific contract information and can answer the above and it will go smoothly. 

00CORP- you don’t have to start over!

Your company has been working diligently, collecting paperwork and filling out documents for months now, all to submit a proposal against one of GSA’s service schedules. Countless hours have been spent and lots of confusion understanding government documents has happened. But you’ve figured it out, worked with the system and are almost ready to submit.

Then you heard the news: the services schedules are no longer accepting solicitations against them! All that work for nothing. Not so fast…

The recent refresh to the solicitation for services contracts had the following blurb: “New offers for GSA Schedules 520 (FABS), 541 (AIMS), 738II (Language), 871 (PES), 874 (MOBIS), 874V (Logistics), and 899 (Environmental) are no longer being solicited or accepted.” If you read on, the solicitation directs all potential applicants to 00CORP.

So all that hard work later you think, “Great.. Now I have to start over with a new solicitation?!”

Not quite.

00CORP does have some of its own extra requirements, but a lot of the work that you’ve done is still valid! The special item numbers you’ve selected still apply and the narratives that you’ve worked so hard to craft still work. But here are some quick tips in case 00CORP has your company stressed out!

Tip 1: make sure you transfer all your info to the templates for the 00CORP Solicitation. The headers are correct on the documents found at this link- https://goo.gl/9kCqkM

Tip 2: The special items that you selected are still correct. Just add a “c” in front of them to signify consolidated

Tip 3: The summary of offer document for 00CORP is very different than the services one was. Make sure you read through it carefully and provide all the necessary information!

Special requirements for GSA Schedules

Last week we discussed the MOBIS requirements and received a lot of emails requesting more information about other requirements for different schedules. I thought it would be beneficial to just go over a few requirements that are applied to all schedules:
Financials: for every offer a company must submit two years of balance sheets and income statements. You will not be awarded a schedule if you do not complete this requirement. If there are any negatives on your financials, you must explain why.
Invoices: If your company is submitting a Commercial Pricelist you will need to submit invoices for pretty much every line item on that CPL. The invoices must be within 3 years of submitting.
Labor Categories: for every labor category submitted, there must be a description, minimum education requirement, and minimum years experience attached.
Pathways Training Certificate
FOR NON-VA OFFERS:

o   Digital Certificate: every offer that is not a VA offer must have proof of a digital certificate. If you do not have a digital certificate than you will not be able to submit your offer

o   Open Ratings Report

Again, please let us know if you have any questions. We’d be happy to help explain the requirements in more depth because really this blog just scratches the surface.

Feel free to email us at info@gvoconsvcs.com if there is anything else you’d like more clarification on!

MOBIS Requirements

Within the last 12 months the GSA has become very strict with all Schedule 874 MOBIS offers. The review process can take some time and rejections are unfortunately pretty common. Why is this? How can rejection be avoided? Well, I’m not certain on how it can be completely avoided because every Contracting Officer is different BUT there are some important requirements that must not be overlooked when submitting your MOBIS offer to the GSA.

The GSA will mainly look at financials and past performance. When applying for a MOBIS contract the company must submit two years’ worth of balance sheets and income statements—NO TAX RETURNS. If a company submits tax returns they will be rejected. If there are any negatives on the financials those must be thoroughly explained. The GSA will break down the financials and if there is anything fishy they will find it and ask about it.

The next chunk of red tape for MOBIS is the past performance. A company must submit two statements of work that were conducted within the last two years and include narratives on said projects. This is where it gets tricky. The company must show that they helped solve a problem and did not just refer their client to another industry such as IT, financial work, etc. There can be no mention of another industry in these SOWs because the GSA will say “why don’t you apply for a different schedule since your company focuses on it so much.” If the company is not “within scope” then goodbye MOBIS. This means ABSOLUTELY NO INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY REFRENECES. This will be an AUTOMATIC rejection and the company will be referred to Schedule 70 (which is usually a faster option anyways).

Obviously, there are a million other reasons that could produce a rejection but it’s important to know if the above requirements are not meant the company should not even waste their time with MOBIS.

If you are unsure whether your company can fall under MOBIS, PLEASE give us a call and we’ll see where your organization can fit. If not MOBIS there are 39 other schedules to look at. 

Manufacturer Part Numbers and UPCs

Most likely you have all seen the emails from the GSA threatening a MAS Mod that will force every vendor on the GSA with products to go into their price list and make sure that the part numbers listed on GSA Advantage are the manufacturer part numbers.

Since that MAS Mod has not come to fruition the GSA recently sent an email out to vendors asking for their help in improving product data on GSA Advantage. This means making sure that your company is using manufacturer part numbers and UPC numbers, if available, for all products that are currently on schedule and moving forward. For some companies who do not offer a wide range of products accomplishing this will be a rather easy task. However, for others this is a large undertaking.

So why is the GSA pushing so hard for this to happen? Let’s take a look at two companies, one that uses the manufacturer numbers and one that does not.

I will use a Rubbermaid 35G garbage can as an example.

When doing a search by name of the product you see that I get a wide range of manufacturers and manufacturer numbers as well.

 

 

If I do a search using the mfg part number the results change a little bit.

As you can see by the two pictures, when using the manufacturer part number the contracting officer is given more accurate results. If your company is wondering why sales of certain products have not been up to par, take a look at whether or not the part numbers you have listed correspond to the manufacturer’s.

So in turn, helping the GSA improve GSA Advantage is helping your company’s products become easier to find.

If you’re unsure where to start or just need help with your large list of products, give us a call 216-662-7044.