Management, Team Building and Leadership Training Workshop

Questions and Clarifications Round 2 Amendment 2 USAID Solicitation # 383-09-503 USAID Title: Management, Team Building and Leadership Training Workshop 1) Can you tell us the number of contractors that inquired about this program? ANSWER: Information regarding other interested parties is unavailable at this stage of the procurement. 2) What percentage of those who inquired were from the United States? ANSWER: See question #1. 3) Have you determined what hotel will be used outside of the capital for the 3 day program? If so can you tell us the name and location? This would be helpful in assisting us in calculating our hotel expenses. ANSWER: The hotel has not been selected yet. 4) Can you tell us if the last week of October could be an option and would work for the staff there? ANSWER: The preference is early November. 5) Will anyone from DC Headquarters of USAID or the State Department be attending this program? ANSWER: No 6) Can we assume that you have a preferred hotel in Colombo that you suggest visitor use? If so, can you tell us what hotel that would be. ANSWER: Our visitors usually stay at the Cinnamon Grand Hotel or The Galle Face Hotel which is in close proximity to the office. However, it is at the discretion of the contractor to select where to stay. 7) Under the �background� section of the SOW, it states there will be a 3-day workshop and an in-house half-a-day session for each of the five offices. Our understanding is that in addition to the 3-day workshop for 50 staff, that separate half-day sessions will be held with each of 5 Mission offices over a period of an additional 3 days, for a total of 6 training days. Please confirm that this is correct. ANSWER: That is correct. 8) The Agency is undergoing change both internally and in its relationship with the State Dept. In the background section, the SOW mentions "changes in the agency and our programming." In order to better understand the requirement, should this project assist in addressing specifics related to those changes, or in preparing to deal with �managing change� at the Mission level effectively, or both? Is the timing of this training tied to specific USAID changes, directives or requirements that the Mission is responding to? ANSWER: Both. It is tied to general changes. 9) The SOW says the "contractor should discuss with each office director what session to include." If so, how do we propose a design if this is supposed to happen after the contract is awarded? Does this mean that the contractor must be prepared to arrive on site and to conduct interviews in person, or to interact with each Mission office director through email or telephone interviews, or both? ANSWER: Broad outline could be proposed and specifics, as required, could be incorporated through e-mail correspondence with the office directors. 10) Again, the SOW says "specific outcomes and agenda will be developed as part of the process of planning the workshop, and shall work collaboratively with the mission to identify issues that are of specific concern to USAID/Sri Lanka." Does that mean the design in the proposal should incorporate this development as part of the process of the assignment? ANSWER: Specific outcomes and agenda will be developed after the award. Please see answer #9 11) The Mission-wide program is to include coaching. Does this include providing learning so that manager/leaders can effectively coach their employees? ANSWER: Coaching could be included as a topic, and not necessarily to coach the employees. 12) The requirement mentioned both management and leadership. How does the mission distinguish between leadership and management? ANSWER: Leadership: 1) capacity to lead. 2) the act or an instance of leading. Management: 1) the act or art of managing: the conducting or supervising of something (as a business). 2) judicious use of means to accomplish an end. 13) The Mission-wide training requirement appears to include a number of methodologies, including various exercises and other interactive approaches for up to 50 persons. Such exercises are normally conducted with far fewer numbers. Yet the RFP speaks in terms of �the consultant.� Please address the issue of how many trainer/facilitators the contractor is expected to provide. ANSWER: Contractor could propose the number of trainers/facilitators as required to conducting both the in-house training and the workshop. 14) Are there any page limits for the technical proposal? If so, please define what can be included within the page limits in terms of charts, graphs, tables of contents, CVs, past performance, etc. ANSWER: There is no page limit. However, excessive documentation is neither necessary nor wanted. 15) In the technical proposal, in addition to the proposed approach and experience of the consultant, should any other topics be addressed such as understanding of the problem, institutional past performance or experience? ANSWER: The proposed approach and experience of the consultant is sufficient. 16) If indeed we can/should provide more than a single consultant, will the requirement that the instructor/consultant be a qualified U.S. citizen be fulfilled if the Lead Trainer is a U.S. citizen, supported by a trainer/facilitator who is not a U.S. citizen? ANSWER: Only the Lead Trainer/consultant is required to be a qualified U.S. citizen. 17) Please provide an explanation of how the proposals will be evaluated in terms of importance of approach, qualification of trainer(s), institutional experience and performance, and between technical and cost. ANSWER: USAID shall take into consideration the proposed approach, experience of the Lead Trainer/consultant and the cost to arrive at the best value to the Government. 18) Although this is a Firm Fixed-Price contract, will EBDs be necessary to support staff costs? ANSWER: The EBDs are required to ascertain the reasonableness of costs proposed. 19) Please confirm that the off-site workshop will be held at a resort hotel that is selected by USAID, not the contractor, and that USAID will pick up all associated costs for the USAID participants, including their travel and per diem associated with the training. Put another way, is USAID expecting the contractor to include any of these kinds of costs in its proposal? ANSWER: The resort hotel will be selected by USAID. All costs incurred for the participants including the workshop facilities, lodging and travel will be borne by USAID. 20) Can USAID provide guidance on or a maximum amount on cost that they are anticipating for this activity? ANSWER: A maximum amount has not been established. 21) Will USAID be providing copies of �Strength Finder� with access codes for the associated on-line instrument? Or should that be included in the proposal and therefore assume all employees will require a copy? ANSWER: All employees have been given a copy of the �Strength Finder� book. 22) Does the mission-wide training include supervisory and non-supervisory personnel? ANSWER: Yes. 23) Do the tailored office-trainings include supervisory and non-supervisory personnel? ANSWER: The same employees are attending both training sessions. 24) Are there any restrictions on the type of interaction that can occur in the training due to participants religions or cultural backgrounds? Answer: No restrictions. However, considerations should be given to avoid religions sensitivities. 25) What should the weather be like in October or November for outdoor activities? ANSWER: The temperature is around 25 - 30 C (80 � 85 F) with humidity level of in the range of 70%. 26) Are we to assume the participants will be dressed to participate in outdoor activities? ANSWER: The participants will be dressed �casual� as appropriate. 27) How quickly after the in-country meetings with the office directors do you want the tailored office trainings to occur? ANSWER: Within the same week. Prior e-mail correspondence could be held with the office directors. 28) How quickly after the tailored office trainings do you want the mission-wide training to occur? ANSWER: The least number of days. (As quickly as possible). 29) Would several days breaks between meetings with office directors and tailored office trainings, and between tailored office trainings and mission-wide trainings be acceptable? Assume no cost to the government for these breaks. ANSWER: Minimal number of days breaks between meetings are preferred. 30) How can one facilitator deliver a high quality training with sustainable outcomes for a group of 50 participants? How can a lecture-type training with very little interaction be effective and generate long-lasting results? ANSWER: See question #13. 31) How can �Personal Strengths� be utilized when results of a reliable assessment instrument are not available of each and every participant? ANSWER: See answer #21. 32) What was the previous training? Is it known or has it been documented which effects this previous training had? Have there been any positive long-term outcomes? Have training objectives been reached and fulfilled? ANSWER: See answer #17 of Questions and Answers, Amendment #1. Additional information could be provided to the successful contractor. 33) Will there be an evaluation at the end of the training and is a monitoring of the outcomes planned? ANSWER: Monitoring and evaluation of participants is not required. This could be included as a topic. 34) What is meant by interactive? Should there be interaction between participants and/or between instructor and participants? ANSWER: Activities shall be proposed to encourage interaction between participants and/or between instructor and participants. 35) Is the use of the Strength Finder assessment mandated to use in execution of this contract? ANSWER: It is not mandatory, but preferred. 36) Will we have some access to Team members as well as team leaders prior to training? ANSWER: You will have access to team leaders prior to training. 37) Regarding Question #5: Tailored office training as a 1-dayer for how many participants? ANSWER: See question #7 above. 38) In regard to your response to question #8, how many participants in each team building group? With or without team leaders? ANSWER: Each office has a team leader. 39) In response to Question #10 you stated: "In-house sessions separately for all offices up to 3 days and the workshop in an outside venue for all the 50 employees together up to 3 days making total training up to 6 days. The group is mainly locals with approx. 15 expatriate staff. Our follow-up question is: Does this mean 2 x 3 days for 2 groups of 25 each? ANSWER: The same 50 employees will attend both training sessions. See under �Background� in the formal solicitation. 40) The solicitation requires the workshop agenda for each of the 5 Mission offices to be coordinated with the head of each office prior to start of training. How many days do you require for this coordination? ANSWER: The contractor shall propose the number of days required. 41) How many days do you expect the consultant to remain in Country for the post-event coordination with Mission leadership in the solicitation? ANSWER: Preferably, one day. 42) Since statistically the most productive groups sizes for team building is 15 - 25, will it be possible to break the 50 persons into groups of 25? If so, can these be taught sequentially to meet your desire for only one facilitator, or must this be a group of 50? ANSWER: The outside workshop will be for the whole group of 50. 43) Could we have further explanation on how the timeline relates to the procedure? Meaning, will we be developing the curriculum stateside? If so, will we have the opportunity to ask questions regarding the larger lecture series as well as the smaller department specific consultations prior to arrival on location? ANSWER: See question #7 above and under �Background� in the formal solicitation posted on July 22, 2009. E-mail correspondence could be held with the office directors prior to arrival on location. 44) Once on location will we be expected to make material changes to either the larger lecture or smaller office consultation? If so, to what extent? ANSWER: You may change the specific activities and the agenda as required after consultations.