DOCUMENT
U -- Training and Performance Support Services - Attachment
- Notice Date
- 2/24/2012
- Notice Type
- Attachment
- NAICS
- 611430
— Professional and Management Development Training
- Contracting Office
- Acquisition Service- Frederick;Department of Veterans Affairs;8490 Progress Drive, Suite 100;Frederick MD 21701
- ZIP Code
- 21701
- Solicitation Number
- VA79812I0088
- Archive Date
- 3/25/2012
- Point of Contact
- Lindi Sylvester
- E-Mail Address
-
W.
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- The following vendor questions and Government responses are provided for the Sources Sought Notice, VA798-12-I-0088. 1.Who is/are the incumbent(s)? RESPONSE: All requests for information regarding an incumbent contractor can be submitted via a FOIA request. 2.Does the Government envision a multiple award IDIQ type contract? RESPONSE: This information is not available at this time. 3.Will the primary place of performance be at the contractor's site? RESPONSE: The primary place of performance will be at the contractor's facility. However, travel may be required to any of the 57 VBA Regional Offices located across the country and to VA Central Office in Washington, DC. The program office is the VBA Technical Training and Evaluation Office, located in Orlando, FL. a.If so what is the location of that site? RESPONSE: VBA Regional Offices are located across the country. The VBA Technical Training and Evaluation Office is in Orlando, FL, and the VA Central Office is in Washington, DC. b.What other location(s) might VBA expect the contract to perform work? RESPONSE: VBA Regional Offices are located across the country. The VBA Technical Training and Evaluation Office is in Orlando, FL, and the VA Central Office is in Washington, DC. 4.VBA refers to integration testing and integration of EPSS or courses or modules or lessons into the VBA Training Performance Support System (TPSS) Courseware Delivery System (CDS) and VA Talent Management System (TMS). a.How many courses, modules or lessons is VBA testing and integrating into TPSS CDS? RESPONSE: This is not a finite number. The number of courses, modules and lessons change weekly as new products are developed and requirements change. b.How many participants are VBA entering into the TMS? RESPONSE: Potentially all VBA employees, each taking multiple courses, modules and lessons. c.Did VBA have these systems designed especially to meet VBA needs? RESPONSE: For CDS, Yes. For TMS, no. d.If not, are they commercial off the shelf products (COTS)? RESPONSE: TMS is a COTS product that has had additions and modifications to meet VBA requirements. i.If COTS, what brand name systems are VBA using to support TPSS CDS and TMS? RESPONSE: CDS is not COTS, TMS is COTS produced by Plateau. e.If not COTS, from whom is VBA contracting these services? RESPONSE: For CDS, the incumbent. All requests for information regarding an incumbent contractor can be submitted via a FOIA request. i.Who holds the contract? RESPONSE: All requests for information regarding an incumbent contractor can be submitted via a FOIA request. ii.What services does this contractor provide? RESPONSE: Operate and maintain a help desk, maintain and upgrade the CDS system, maintain records and data of student enrollment and tracking of student progress, ensure continuing interface between CDS and TMS, and provide training reports upon request. iii.What is the end date of the contract? RESPONSE: All requests for information regarding an incumbent contractor can be submitted via a FOIA request. iv.Is there a preference to stay with this system? RESPONSE: Yes, for both CDS and TMS 5.VBA mentions training products in a wide variety of media. Regarding Live Meeting training: a.How many participants does VBA serve? RESPONSE: Potentially all VBA employees. b.How often does VBA hold sessions? RESPONSE: Frequently, varies according to need. c.Is VBA conducting these sessions in-house? RESPONSE: The sessions are can be conducted in-house by VBA personnel, through a VBA-contracted partnership and through contractor-only presentations. i.What is the system brand name that VBA is using? RESPONSE: The question is not clear; if it refers to Live Meeting, that is a Microsoft product. ii.What services are VBA providing? RESPONSE: Training for VBA employees. VBA provides subject matter experts and reference documents for training development. d.If VBA is not conducting these sessions in-house, does VBA have a contract in place for this capability? RESPONSE: The sessions are can be conducted in-house by VBA personnel, through a VBA-contracted partnership and through contractor-only presentations. All requests for information regarding an incumbent contractor can be submitted via a FOIA request. i.If so, who holds the contract? RESPONSE: All requests for information regarding an incumbent contractor can be submitted via a FOIA request. ii.What services does the contractor provide? RESPONSE: Refer to the Sources Sought announcement for this information. iii.What is the end date of the contract? All requests for information regarding an incumbent contractor can be submitted via a FOIA request. RESPONSE: Regarding video training: e.How many participants does VBA serve? RESPONSE: Potentially all VBA employees. f.How often does VBA hold sessions? RESPONSE: Varies according to need. g.Does VBA have its own production and broadcast studio? RESPONSE: No. These facilities do exist at VA level; however, they are not normally used for the type of VBA training products envisioned under this set of requirements. i.If so, what services does the studio provide? RESPONSE: The VA studio provides pre-production, production, and post-production services. However, as noted, these services are not normally used for the VBA training products envisioned under this set of requirements. ii.Where is the studio located? RESPONSE: The VA studio is in Washington, D.C. h.If not, does VBA have a contract in place for this capability? RESPONSE: Yes. i.If so, who holds the contract? RESPONSE: All requests for information regarding an incumbent contractor can be submitted via a FOIA request. ii.What services does the contractor provide? RESPONSE: All requests for information regarding an incumbent contractor can be submitted via a FOIA request. iii.What is the end date of the contract? RESPONSE: All requests for information regarding an incumbent contractor can be submitted via a FOIA request. iv.Where is the contract studio located? RESPONSE: The studio is provided by the contractor. v.Is there a preference to stay with this system? RESPONSE: Video production and studio systems are selected and provided by the contractor. Regarding satellite training: i.How many participants does VBA serve? RESPONSE: Potentially all VBA employees j.How often does VBA hold sessions? RESPONSE: As training requirements dictate. k.Does the VBA have its own production and broadcast studio? RESPONSE: No. These facilities do exist at VA level; however, they are not normally used for the type of VBA training products envisioned under this set of requirements. i.If so what services does the studio provide? RESPONSE: The VA studio provides pre-production, production, and post-production services. However, as noted, these services are not normally used for the VBA training products envisioned under this set of requirements. ii.Where is the studio located? RESPONSE: The VA studio is in Washington, D.C. However, for the work envisioned for these requirements, the studio must be provided by the contractor. l.If not, does VBA have a contract in place for this capability? RESPONSE: Studio systems are selected and provided by the contractor. i.If so who holds the contract? RESPONSE: All requests for information regarding an incumbent contractor can be submitted via a FOIA request. ii.What services does this contractor provide? RESPONSE: All requests for information regarding an incumbent contractor can be submitted via a FOIA request. iii.What is the end date of the contract? RESPONSE: All requests for information regarding an incumbent contractor can be submitted via a FOIA request. iv.Where is the studio located? RESPONSE: All requests for information regarding an incumbent contractor can be submitted via a FOIA request. v.Is there a preference to stay with this system? RESPONSE: Studio systems are selected and provided by the contractor. 6.Approximately how many separate courses projects are anticipated to occur each year? RESPONSE: Multiple; the number of courses and projects each year varies according to training requirements. 7.Is the delivery of these courses scheduled well ahead of time? RESPONSE: Generally yes, however this varies according to training requirements. 8.Does the delivery of these courses follow a stable pattern, or are there period of more intense course delivery? RESPONSE: There are periods of more intense course delivery. 9.What levels of evaluation are expected to be provided for all courses? Will there be a need to extend evaluation to levels 3 and 4 for certain courses (or for all)? RESPONSE: All levels of evaluation may be required. 10.Approximately how many new needs analyses are conducted each year that require full implementation of the ADDIE model? RESPONSE: This number varies according to organizational requirements. 11.Will the contractor be able to access and leverage existing needs analyses, job tasks analyses, and SME formulation of KSA's for existing courses, as an aid to creating new courses? RESPONSE: Yes 12.Does the VBA intend to follow the guidance contained in the recently-released OPM Field Guide to Evaluation in building, delivering and evaluating new courses? Will this model be applied retroactively to existing courses? RESPONSE: The OPM Field Guide to Evaluation is one of many sources of evaluation approaches that VBA considers and applies in its evaluation activities. The VBA Evaluation Program Manager is a member of the professional evaluation community and continuously monitors and applies evaluation approaches as these approaches continue to develop in evaluation texts, journals, and communities. 13.Will appropriate SME's be available to work with the contractor throughout the ADDI process? RESPONSE: Yes. 14.Is leadership training included in the subject matter for this RFP? RESPONSE: This could occur, depending upon training requirements and organizational requirements. 15.What LMS and/or CMS (if any) does the VBA utilize? RESPONSE: Answered previously. 16.How has the VBA evaluated courses prior to now? RESPONSE: VBA has used a wide variety of evaluation approaches and tools, according to the assessment requirement. 17.What percentage of delivered VBA courses is electronic vs. ILT? RESPONSE: The great majority of work under this vehicle will be for distributed training of some type. 18.For the reliability and validity assessments, does the VBA have its own staff psychometricians, or is the successful vendor expected to provide this capability? RESPONSE: The successful vendor is expected to provide this capability. 19.Can the vendors be provided descriptions of EPSS, VBA-TPSS, CDS and VA-TMS? RESPONSE: Electronic Performance Support Systems (EPSS) are products that support task performance by employees on the job. EPSS may also be built into task training. EPSS may be of varying levels of complexity and contain a wide variety of features. Training and Performance Support Systems (TPSS) are distributed training products in a variety of media, using a variety of training methods and evaluation methods. The VBA Courseware Delivery System (CDS) is a VBA-owned, non-proprietary learning management system specifically designed to support TPSS, including the use of cooperative learning groups in those course which use that approach. CDS interfaces with the VA-level Talent Management System (TMS) to provide trainee data from CDS to TMS. The VA Talent Management System is a state-of-the-art online training and employee development system that allows current VA employees to: "Search and register for courses from an extensive online course catalog "Track professional development through a single, integrated database "Build an online Individual Development Plan (IDP) 20.Is the selected vendor expected to have prior knowledge of EPSS,VBA-TPSS, CDS and VA-TMS? RESPONSE: Knowledge of VBA-specific approaches to EPSS, distributed training such as TPSS, and learning management systems such as CDS and TMS is not required but would be advantageous. 21.Are there incumbent vendors on this contract? Can they be identified to the prospective vendors? RESPONSE: There is an incumbent contractor; however, no additional information at this time. All requests for information regarding an incumbent contractor can be submitted via a FOIA request. 22.Will the final RFP be set aside for SDVOSB vendors? RESPONSE: This is to be determined. 23.How many projects anticipated in a year? RESPONSE: Multiple projects each year, depending on organizational needs and resources. 24.Who internally would project manage? Multiple project managers? RESPONSE: It is anticipated that multiple program and project managers would be required, both for VBA and the contractors. 25.Have topics already been identified and prioritized for instruction? RESPONSE: This is a continuous process. 26.What existing templates, documentation, or other pre-design work could be leveraged? RESPONSE: The contractor will be provided all existing training products and documentation. 27.Where would the work be performed? RESPONSE: That will vary according to project requirements, but it will most frequently be done at the contractor's facility. 28.If the client is in Orlando, will VBA support travel expense? RESPONSE: Travel will be required as part of project work and will be reimbursed in accordance with Federal travel regulations. 29.Would VA consider this solicitation to come out under any other NAICS codes? RESPONSE: As requested in Question 8 under Capabilities Statement and Market Information, the Government has provided the NAICS code which it is contemplating for this requirement; however, would like feedback in responses to this sources sought if this is the best code to classify this requirement. 30.The description indicates that you are requesting responses from "qualified service-disabled Veteran owned small business (SDVOSB), Veteran owned small business (VOSB), 8(a), Hubzone, etc." When you list "etc." are you listing other set-aside categories or are you only looking for veteran-owned businesses for this particular solicitation? RESPONSE: We are looking for any small business categories. Our intent is to see if there are any small business that can meet the requirement.
- Web Link
-
FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/spg/VA/AFMLOVASS/VASSMD/VA79812I0088/listing.html)
- Document(s)
- Attachment
- File Name: VA798-12-I-0088 VA798-12-I-0088_1.docx (https://www.vendorportal.ecms.va.gov/FBODocumentServer/DocumentServer.aspx?DocumentId=300250&FileName=VA798-12-I-0088-001.docx)
- Link: https://www.vendorportal.ecms.va.gov/FBODocumentServer/DocumentServer.aspx?DocumentId=300250&FileName=VA798-12-I-0088-001.docx
- Note: If links are broken, refer to Point of Contact above or contact the FBO Help Desk at 877-472-3779.
- File Name: VA798-12-I-0088 VA798-12-I-0088_1.docx (https://www.vendorportal.ecms.va.gov/FBODocumentServer/DocumentServer.aspx?DocumentId=300250&FileName=VA798-12-I-0088-001.docx)
- Record
- SN02683172-W 20120226/120224235719-64247860b794e0c83a7893746a8b6977 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
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