EBSA Financial Training Through E-Learning Modules - DOL-OPS-EBSA-RFI-0324A

PLEASE NOTE: This AMENDMENT 0001 corrects the title within the last sentence of the last paragraph from "LARO Professional Development Services" to "EBSA Financial Training Through E-Learning Modules". This is SOURCES SOUGHT only. The Government reserves the right to compete any acquisition resulting from this survey among small businesses based on the responses received. The sources sought notice is for planning purposes only and does not commit the Government to pay for the information requested, issue a solicitation, or award a contract. No solicitation document exists at this time. BACKGROUND: The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) performs complex mission critical work related to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). Employee benefit plans investigated and regulated by EBSA invest in a wide variety of financial and insurance products. In some instances, financial managers attempt to sell new and complex financial and insurance products to employee benefit plans which are not knowledgeable about the products they are purchasing. In response, EBSA is focusing its enforcement efforts on large, sophisticated employee benefit plans as well as service providers who manage money for medium-sized to small plans. These service providers may include financial managers who invest assets of plans established to provide retirement benefits for employees. In order to support EBSA's enforcement priorities, agency employees need to have a full understanding of the complex and changing nature of finance and the financial world. This knowledge will allow them to determine if employee benefit plans are being properly administered, specifically whether financial managers are properly handling the assets of trillions of dollars in employee benefit plans. Therefore, EBSA must obtain training from experts in the field of finance to provide agency employees with knowledge of complicated and multi-layered financial concepts in order to better investigate and regulate employee benefit plans and service providers. The subject financial training will be provided in a distance learning/e-learning format to allow maximum educational flexibility to agency staff. The training should be presented in sophisticated e-learning modules created by leading industry experts in the field of finance. OBJECTIVE: Description of Services Sought: - Offer a wide variety of e-learning modules on at least 25 business financial topics including, but not limited to, the basics of securities (i.e., introductory level presentations of stocks, bonds, etc.), portfolio management, broker-dealers and how they work, valuations of securities and businesses, financial products (i.e., hedge funds and mutual funds), financial statements and how to analyze them, and insurance products. Each e-learning module should be no more than two hours long, contain state of the art animation, and be 508 compliant. - EBSA employees shall register for modules through the provider's learning management system. EBSA shall have final approval authority over module registration through the learning management system. - EBSA should have access to the learning management system in order to run reports indicating completion, registration and progress of modules by individuals. - Management rights under the learning management system, to the extent possible, should be given to EBSA for its employees. - At least 3,000 slots for the topics will be offered, to be allocated as EBSA deems appropriate. - Each EBSA employee who takes a module should be given an electronic survey at the completion of the module. EBSA POC should receive copies of all electronic surveys for review on a monthly basis. Key Personnel: The provider and presenter/creators shall have at least ten years experience in the financial field. Instructors' must be market practitioners and should have experience teaching business financial topics at the higher education level. Submissions of all available financial e-learning modules are required, preferably identified by level: basic, intermediate or advanced. A brief description of each module and the name and brief biography of each presenter/creator should also be submitted. Dates and Places: Modules will be offered in a sophisticated e-learning format, available through a learning management system accessible at any time during the contract period. Travel: Because the e-learning presentations will be available in a distance learning format, no travel is anticipated. Period of Performance: The financial e-learning services to be provided under this contract are composed of an initial contract period of one year beginning May 1, 2015, with four non-guaranteed option years, for a total potential contract life of five years. WHO MAY RESPOND: All capable businesses are invited to participate, while SMALL BUSINESS ARE ENCOURAGED TO RESPOND. Please include whether or not you are a small business; HUBZone small business; service-disabled veteran-owned small business; 8(a) small business; woman-owned small business; or small disadvantaged business in order to assist the Government in determining the appropriate procurement method, including whether a set-aside is possible. The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for this requirement is 611430 - Professional and Management Development Training. The small business size standard is $11 million. INSTRUCTIONS: In accordance with FAR 4.1102, all prospective contractors shall be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) database prior to award or agreement. The website for registration is www.sam.gov. All interested parties are required to submit a capability statement package that shall not exceed 10 pages, single space, including a cover letter that must cite the following information, but not limited to: 1. Response to RFI No. DOL . . . . ; 2. Vendor's Company Name, Address, Contact Person Information; 3. Vendor's DUNS Number; and 4. Business Size Standard/Classification The closing date for the receipt of responses is March 24, 2015, at 3:00 p.m. Eastern. Send your responses to Miriam Holst, Contract Specialist, at the following e-mail address: holst.miriam.j@dol.gov. The subject line of your e-mail response must cite RFI No. DOL-OPS-EBSA-RFI-0324A, EBSA Financial Training Through E-Learning Modules.