SOLICITATION NOTICE
U -- Customer Service Training
- Notice Date
- 12/9/2004
- Notice Type
- Solicitation Notice
- Contracting Office
- Attn: Department of Veterans Affairs Capitol Network Acquisition Center, Contracting Officer, (688/90C), 50 Irving Street, NW, Washington, District Of Columbia 20422
- ZIP Code
- 20422
- Solicitation Number
- 688-44-05
- Response Due
- 1/11/2005
- Archive Date
- 2/10/2005
- Small Business Set-Aside
- Total Small Business
- Description
- This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in FAR Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; proposals are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued. Offers are due in the designated contracting office by 2:00 p.m. local time, January 11, 2005. Offers may be Express Mailed, Mailed, or hand delivered. The solicitation number is 688-44-05, and is issued as a Request for Proposal (RFP). The solicitation/contract will include all applicable provisions and clauses in effect through FAC 2001-24. This is a 100% set aside for Small Business. The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code is 611430 and the size standard is $6,000,000. This solicitation is a small business set-aside. The Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center requires the services of qualified training consultants to customize Commercial Training Package for customer service in a VHA healthcare setting for approximately 1,800 employees. The vendor will deliver and facilitate training of employees. OVERALL OBJECTIVES Improve patient satisfaction through teaching appropriate service skills to Washington DC VA Medical Center employees _ and holding people accountable to apply the skills through structured follow-up. Improve internal service quality and employee satisfaction. Build teamwork among departments and employees at every level of the organization. Enhance problem solving skills at all levels. The High Performance Development Model, framework for the Veterans Health Administration to identify and develop future leaders. Provide supportive coaching strategies for Washington DC VA Medical Center leaders and managers. Recognize and reward Washington DC VA Medical Center employees for appropriate service behaviors by establishing attainable parameters for customer service within the medical center and highlighting the achievements of employees who demonstrate appropriate customer service behaviors (e.g., an awards ceremony.) Reinforce VA healthcare values of Trust, Respect, Excellence, Compassion and Commitment. ELEMENTS TO ACHIEVE OBJECTIVES Execute a customer service training program for all Washington DC VA Medical Center employees, regardless of job function, education or experience. The customer service program will be sustainable for a minimum of two years through reinforcement training by the contractor for approximately 35 in-house facilitators and 100 leaders and managers with the use of training materials or additional on-site contractor training. Leaders and managers will receive an introduction from the contractor on coaching skills, concepts of supporting and leading a service culture, and how to manage internal and external customers. To demonstrate measurable improvement, participants are asked to score their organization and themselves on 10 service-oriented questions (pre-determined by the contractor) prior to and after completing the training. This measurable data is collected and summarized by contractor. TIME LINE Determine and select Planning Team and Project Coordinator. Plan organizational implementation. Select leaders and managers to participate in initial training. Select facilitators to participate. Overview and certification evaluation Phase I Implementation Contractor to conduct three 1.5 day leadership sessions for approximately 100 Washington DC VA Medical Center employees in leadership roles and approximately 35 potential facilitators. Selected facilitators (who have participated in one of the 1.5 day leadership sessions noted above) are trained in an additional 2-day facilitator training provided by the contractor. Selected facilitators to conduct follow-up sessions for leadership group. Phase I to be completed in 8 weeks. Continuous services support provided by the contractor to Washington DC VA Medical Center via e-mail or telephone consultation. Phase II Implementation Approximately 4 weeks later, implementation begins with front-line staff. Staff seminars can be conducted by in-house facilitators or the contractor. Follow-up sessions conducted by in-house facilitators. Approximately 2-3 weeks after leadership training is complete, begin staff training implementation for approximately 250 per quarter. Staff training proceeds at approximately 250 per quarter. All training to be completed in 24 months. Continuous services support provided by the contractor to Washington DC VA Medical Center via e-mail or telephone consultation. Additional facilitator training provided by the contractor on a per diem basis (post implementation.) Additional leadership training and/or staff training provided by the contractor on a per diem basis (post implementation.) TRAINING MATERIALS At the time of each training session, the contractor will provide materials for training leadership, facilitators and medical center staff. These materials should minimally include the following: General Staff Training Materials Course Manual: Used during initial seminar and follow-up process to complete assignments Pocket Guide: Used for reinforcement and review of key concepts during all follow-up sessions. Leadership Materials Coaching Manual: Binder used during initial coaching seminar and follow-up sessions. Also includes information on coaching and building people. Pocket Guide: Overview which reinforces customer service principles that the front-line staff are being taught. Coaching Pocket Guide: Overview which reinforces the coaching system that supports service concepts taught to staff. Problem-Solving/Service Recovery Pad: Used to support application of the problem-solving/service recovery system. Facilitator Kit Facilitator Manual: Outlines for conducting seminar sessions for supervisors and front line staff; and any follow-up sessions for both groups. Posters: Laminated posters for the initial seminar and any follow-up sessions. Implementation Manual: Used by Project Coordinator and Planning Team, containing: - Detailed implementation information - Outlines for conducting advanced reinforcement sessions DEFINITIONS Facilitator: A facilitator is a VA employee trained by the contractor to provide customer service training to the medical center staff. High Performance Development Model: The High Performance Development Model (HPDM) provides a framework for the Veterans Health Administration to identify and develop future leaders, but also to allow for expanded development of VHA_s entire workforce. This model has four tiers, ranging from entry-level employees in Level I to senior executives in Level IV. It focuses on eight core competencies, which are used to develop training, select new employees and serve as a basis for promotion decisions. These competencies include: Interpersonal Effectiveness, Customer Service, Systems Thinking, Flexibility/Adaptability, Creative Thinking, Organizational Stewardship, Personal Mastery, and Technical Skills. HPDM facilitates career development through continuous learning, coaching/mentoring and continuous assessment throughout a career span. Progression from one tier to another in the model is based on successfully competing for promotions using a performance-based interview system, which focuses on demonstrated success in core competencies. The model increases access to training and development for a larger percentage of the workforce, allowing the entire VHA to move forward together rather than just developing a new breed of leaders at the top. The model increases the pool of potential executive leaders who come to the pool with a broader level of experience in both line and staff positions. Leader: A leader is a senior-level manager within the VA medical center. The definition includes: Medical Center Director, Associate Medical Center Director, Chief of Staff, Nurse Executive, Chiefs of Service, Associate Chiefs of Staff and Associate Chief Nurses and Administrative Assistants and Administrative Officers to the leaders. Manager: A manager is a supervisory employee up to the level of, but not including, a Chief of Service. Planning Team: VA employees working with the contractor to plan the implementation of the customer service training program. Project Coordinator: A VA employee with overall responsibility for assuring coordination of the training occurs with the contractor and VA. Leads the planning team in the development of the implementation plan for the medical center. Service Recovery: A process in which Washington DC VA Medical Center employees listen carefully to veterans about how their service expectations could have been better met and sets into motion ways to affirm our commitment to exceed their satisfaction. VA Survey of Healthcare Experiences of Patients (SHEP) Report: Presidential Executive Order 12862 was issued in September 1993. This Executive Order required agencies to publish customer service standards, survey their respective customers and use customer feedback information to manage the agency. Veteran patient satisfaction surveying is designed to promote health care quality assessment and improvement strategies that address patients' needs and concerns as defined by patients. In 1995, VHA began surveying its patients using a standardized instrument modeled from the Picker Institute, a non-profit health care surveying group -- Surveys of the Healthcare Experiences of Patients (SHEP). SHEP Survey Reports are published electronically. These reports give Network, facility, bed section and community-based outpatient clinic level data (where applicable) and comparisons, including statistical variance from the National mean and an external referent, where applicable. The contractor shall provide five (5) copies of the package. The training package should focus on the following evaluation factors: (1). Project Team (staff) qualifications and experience (30%) (2). Past performance in contracts of a similar scope and nature (health related, length of project, changes, and cost) (30%) (3). Project approach for planning, training design and delivery including anticipated problems and solutions (20%) (4). Quality of proposed training materials (20%). The proposal package shall include separate price proposals with supporting pricing documentation and responses to technical evaluation questions. Please include a completed Standard 1449 which can be found at www.gsa.gov/forms/farnum, and required provisions. Acceptance time will be 60 days from proposal due date. The following provisions apply to this solicitation: 52.212-1 Instructions to Offerors-Commercial, 52.212-3 Representations and Certifications-Commercial Items, 52.214-4 Contract Terms and Conditions-Commercial Items, 52.219-2 Equal Low Bids, and 52.212-5 Contract Terms and Conditions including Clauses incorporated by reference under Section (b)(6) 52.222-26 Equal Opportunity (EO 11246), 52.222-3 Affirmative Action for Special Disabled and Vietnam Era Veterans (38 USC 4212), 52.222-36 Affirmative Action for Handicapped Workers (29 USC 793), and 52.225-3 Buy American Act-Supplies (41 USC 10). Offerors responding to this announcement shall submit a proposal along with the information required in 52.212-1 and a completed copy of provision 52.212-3 and VAAR 852.219-70 Veteran Owned Small Business (Dec 1990) to VA Medical Center (688/90C), Room 3D233, 50 Irving Street, NW, Washington, DC 20422 by 1/11/05 at 2:00pm Local Time. A written notice of award will be mailed or otherwise furnished to the successful offeror within the time for acceptance specified in the offeror shall result in a binding contract without further actions by either party. All responsible sources will be considered.
- Web Link
-
RFP 688-44-05
(http://www.bos.oamm.va.gov/solicitation?number=688-44-05)
- Place of Performance
- Address: 50 Irving Street, NW Washington, DC
- Zip Code: 20422
- Country: United States
- Zip Code: 20422
- Record
- SN00719157-W 20041211/041209211742 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps.gov Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)
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