GSA proposal Steps & Marketing of a GSA Contract
Session 5
Steven Spilker
GCAP Procurement Counselor
1
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
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 -https://vsc.gsa.gov/RA/research.cfm
REQUIRED! Go to GSA’s Vendor Toolbox https://vsc.gsa.gov/RA/research.cfm 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.
Obtain required numbers and
registrations ( DUNS, SAM,
Open Ratings, Etc.)
Completely fill out the
web-based E-offer
(template proposal)
including all applicable
attachments
Electronically
submit to GSA your
completed E-offer
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…
Solicitation/RFP Sections
Section I – Administrative / Contract
Data
Section II – Technical Proposal
Section III – Price Proposal
6
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
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
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
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
Factor Three – Past Performance
Offerors must order and obtain a Past Performance Evaluation (PPE) from Open Ratings, Inc. (Dun & Bradstreet) www.ppereports.com
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
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
Section III – Price Proposal
13
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
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
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
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
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
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
What if I need to raise my prices????
or
Economic Price Adjustment clauses
Based on Commercial Price List:
◦ 552.216-70 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
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!!!!!!
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
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 /1st 2 years(not cumulative)
◦ $25,000 / year per year ongoing
23