THE PURPOSE OF THIS MODIFICATION TO THE BELOW REQUEST FOR INFORMATION IS TO EXTEND THE DUE DATE FOR PROPOSALS TO 3 PM EST NOVEMBER 2, 2012. This is a Request for Information (RFI) for Commercial Services. No proposals are requested by this announcement; all responses shall be solely in the form of information and materials. In accordance with FAR 15.201(e), responses to this notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. The Government is under no obligation to issue a solicitation or to award any contract on the basis of this RFI. All costs associated with responding to this RFI will be the sole responsibility of the contractor. All submissions will be treated as business confidential materials, become Government property, and will not be returned. Background The Leadership Veterans Affairs (LVA) 2012 is a year-long corporate leadership development program to develop high-performing leaders. As part of the program, the LVA Innovation Project, a VA-centric pilot program, provides participants with a unique opportunity to define and shape leadership expectations. As problem solvers of the 21st century, LVA 2012 participants are called upon to utilize innovation and communicate a vision that drives change. To support organization-wide initiatives LVA 2012 will lay the foundation to participate in the VA's Innovation Initiative (VAi2). The VA's Innovation Initiative (VAi2) is a flagship program designed to tap the talent and expertise of individuals both inside and outside government to contribute new ideas that ultimately produce new, innovative solutions that advance VA's ability to meet the challenges of becoming a 21st-century organization. The LVA 2012 Innovation Task Force on Budget is proposing the development of an interactive Simulated Learning system focused on the Veterans Health Administration budget and Veterans Equitable Resource Allocation (VERA) process that will engage and excite staff at all levels of the organization. Through this educational tool, VHA staff will develop a better understanding of factors that contribute to a healthier budget and build business acumen based on their Medical Center's strengths and opportunities. Additional information on the VERA process can be found in the attached "VERA 2012 Patient Class Handbook" (attachment 0001). Much of the VHA workforce is naïve to the complexities of the budget process. While training exists, it is usually targeted only at those staff with direct responsibility for budget and planning. However, lack of understanding can result in costly but common process errors, such as missed opportunities in vesting, poor documentation, inaccurate coding, and billing errors. The Simulated Budget tool will enable staff in various functions in the organization to simulate actions that impact budget and the VERA allocation process, and experience the outcomes of their decisions through an interactive process, much like a sophisticated video game. Requirements The scope of this work effort is the development, operations, and maintenance of a Simulated Learning tool that addresses the VERA budget allocation process with support for continued enhancements to the application, as determined and approved by the Government. Please see the Veterans Equitable Resource Allocation 2014 Patient Classification Handbook posted. Additionally, there may be future requirements to address the Veterans Benefit Administration and National Cemetery Administration budget allocation processes. The Contractor shall perform all activities needed to develop and support the program including: Project Management, application administration and maintenance (to include, but not limited to, defect repairs and regulatory updates to examination templates), end user support, documentation development, and DM&E. Additionally, the Contractor shall provide support as needed to VA in response to mandates or requirements set forth by the Administration and Congress, specifically related to the tasks referenced below. This effort will provide the Department of Veterans Affairs, particularly the VHA, with an interactive training simulator that educates staff on building healthy VHA budgets initially focused on the Veterans Equitable Resource Allocation (VERA) process. Additionally, it will provide immediate feedback on the results from their decisions on the long term ramifications to their VERA budget. Specifically, this effort will: " Develop a translational educational tool for providers and administrative staff using a simulated learning methodology provided on an interactive, electronic "game like" platform. " Develop a Simulated Budget tool will be versatile as both an educational and operational planning tool, and will include modules for clinical, administrative and leadership staff. " The Simulated Learning platform will be flexible enough to replicate for any Medical Center Setting, and a variety of other VA environments. " The simulator will be designed in phases as future modules may be developed to address the Veterans Benefit Administration and the National Cemetery Administration budget allocation processes. Written responses should address the following: 1. It is requested that interested contractors submit a response (electronic submission) of no more than 10 pages in length, single spaced, 12 point font minimum that addresses the above requirement. In response to this RFI, interested contractors shall submit the following information via email to Carol Phelan (
contact@example.gov) by 3PM EST NOVEMBER 2, 2012. 2. Capabilities/Qualifications - Description of the capabilities/qualifications/skills your company possess to perform the work. 3. Teaming Arrangements - Description of Teaming Partners, Joint Ventures that your company would consider to perform the work. 4. Socio-Economic Status - Indicate whether your company, subcontractors, teaming partners, joint ventures have a Federal Socio-Economic status, e.g., Small Business, Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business, Veteran Owned Small Business, Woman-Owned Small Business, Disadvantaged Small Business, and Hub Zone. If Service-Disabled or Veteran Owned Small Business, is your company and or partners certified in VA's VetBiz (www.vip.vetbiz.gov) repository? 5. Price information - Provide your commercial price history and rough order of magnitude for the same or similar products/solutions. 6. Other Market Information - Provide any other relative information, however this information must be included within the 10 page limitation. Additional Submission Information Required Please include, at a minimum, the following information in the initial paragraph of the submission: " Vendor Information, including point of contact " Website " If you have a contract with GSA and/or any other Government Wide Acquisition Contract, please include number, expiration date, etc. " Socioeconomic data " Tax ID This is a request for information and does not obligate the Government in any way, nor does it commit the Government to any specific course of action. Please address any inquiries in reference to this effort to Carol Phelan (
contact@example.gov) (
+1 (555) 000-0000).
