Sources Sought Notice

Title: Internal Revenue Service University

The Office of the Chief Human Capital Officer (OCHCO), Internal Revenue Service University, is seeking contractor support to strengthen its learning and development programs for delivery to all IRS employees. Services shall include the acquisition of Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) and customized training, analyzing current training course delivery, policies and procedures and providing recommendations to assist with the modernization of those training course deliveries, policies, and procedures. In addition, support is needed to train IRS staff on training courses that will be rolled out agency wide. The geographic scope of this request covers nationwide training services accessible for employees located throughout the Continental United States, Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. This includes the development of training materials with in-person and remote instruction at the vendor site and government facilities throughout the United States. This is a new requirement with no procurement history available.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is conducting this Sources Sought to identify small business contractors who possess the capabilities to provide services as specified above to determine their availability, capability, and adequacy. If your firm may be interested in this requirement, is a qualified small business for the NAICS code 611430 Professional and Management Development Training, and has performed similar projects, we request the information shown below. An organization that is not considered a small business under the appliable NAICS code should not submit a response to this notice.

As permitted by FAR Part 10, this is a market research tool being utilized for informational and planning purposes. Your responses will assist the Government in the development of its acquisition strategy for a possible Request for Quote (RFQ), to be issued as a later date, and in determining whether any type of small business set-aside is possible for this procurement or whether full and open competitive procedures should be utilized. If full and open competition is ultimately pursued, responses to this synopsis will be used to aid in establishing small business subcontracting goals.

This notice shall not be construed as an RFQ or RFP, or as any commitment or obligation on the part of the Government to issue a solicitation. The Government does not intend to award a contract on the basis of this request, so proposals/quotes will not be considered. No reimbursement will be made for any costs associated with providing information in response to this synopsis or any follow-up information requests.

Response is strictly voluntary - it is not mandatory to submit a response to this notice to participate in any formal RFQ process that may take place in the future. However, it should be noted that information gathered through this notice may significantly influence our acquisition strategy. All interested parties will be required to respond separately to any solicitations posted as a result of this sources sought notice.

Submission Instructions: Responses via email are due by Friday, January 12, 2024 at 2:00 pm EST to Courtney Alston at email address Courtney.K.Alston@irs.gov and James Tryniak at email address James.M.Tryniak@irs.gov. Responses must include the information requested below. Capability Responses greater than ten double-sided pages (including all attachments) will not be considered. Late responses will not be accepted. This is strictly market research. The Government will accept questions pertaining to the attached draft Performance Work Statement (PWS) (Attachment 1). If submitting questions pertaining to the PWS, use Attachment 2 - Comments and Questions Matrix to submit questions. The questions will not be counted against the Capability Responses page limitation. However, the questions and comments submitted will be used based on the Government’s discretion. Due to the acquisition timeline, the Government may not respond to the Respondents’ questions.

Respondents will not be notified of the results of the evaluation. We appreciate your interest and thank you in advance for responding to the Sources Sought Notice.

Qualified firms shall submit a statement of interest on company letterhead demonstrating the firm’s qualifications to perform the defined work. Responses must be complete and sufficiently detailed to address the specific information. The documentation shall address, at a minimum, the following:

Acquisition Strategy Questions:

1. Name of the firm, point of contact, phone number, email address, UEI number (as registered in the Systems for Award Management (SAM) http://www.sam.gov/), CAGE code, small business status/designation (including small business type(s)/certifications(s) such as SDB, 8(a), HUBZone, SDVOSB, WOSB, etc.) for NAICS code 611430.

2. Identify whether your firm is interested in competing for this requirement as a prime contractor? Identify subcontracting, joint ventures or teaming arrangement that will be pursued, if any.

3. Identify what percentage of work will be performed by the small business prime contractor and all similarly situated entity subcontractors. Note: In accordance with FAR 52.219-14 Limitations on Subcontracting (DEVIATION 2021-O0008) “Similarly situated entity” means a first-tier subcontractor, including an independent contractor, that has the same small business program status as that which qualified the prime contractor for the award and that is considered small for the NAICS code the prime contractor assigned to the subcontract the subcontractor will perform. An example of a similarly situated entity is a first-tier subcontractor that is a HUBZone small business concern for a HUBZone set-aside.

4. Identify type(s)/certification(s) such as SDB, 8(a), HUBZone, SDVOSB, WOSB, etc., of the proposed subcontractors.

5. List any GSA Schedule or other Federal Contracts the firm has that is appropriate to support this requirement.

Capability Questions:

1. Describe your experience developing and delivering each of the tasks of the PWS, including the types of training products, services, and programs you have/can create, deliver, and facilitate, including details of any training support material used.
2. How do you approach instructional design and delivery, specifically needs assessment, adult learning principles, learning models like ADDIE, measuring the effectiveness of training using the Kirkpatrick Model, and coordinating with subject matter experts (SMEs)?
3. Do you have contract experience in the planning and implementation of a new and/or enhanced training programs in a government agency, include any active contracts?
4. Describe your experience providing comprehensive written Contract Status Reports including a list of deliverables, and a list of government furnished property currently and formally possessed by the contractor at the end of each period of performance (annually, quarterly, monthly, and bi-annually).
5. What methods will you use to ensure that your staff maintains any generally required professional certification, accreditation, license, bond, and proficiency relative to their area of expertise? What are your methods for retaining documentation of such records?
6. Describe your process for developing customized training curricula to align with your customer’s goals and objectives, such as making training products accessible to all learners (regardless of physical, mental, and other limitations), adapting training to different learning methods, and relevant to technical requirements?
7. Describe your company’s capacity in terms of the number of staff, facilities, geographical locations, systems used, and any other tools that will be utilized to complete the tasks as stated in the PWS, including any data or file size limitations?
8. Are your proposed training services compatible with the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) requirements?
9. Describe your experience creating Quality Control Plans that will ensure compliance with contract requirements.

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