Request for Information (RFI) The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is issuing this RFI in accordance with FAR 15.201(e). The agency does not intend to award a contract but rather gather information on capability, delivery and other market information pertinent for acquisition planning. The result of this market research will contribute to determining the method of procurement and identify parties having an interest in and the resources to support this requirement for the following: VEO is focused on creating a Veteran-centered VA and placing Veterans in control of how, when and where they want to receive services. Agents, comprised of both contractor staff and Government Full time Employees (FTEs) shall answer inquiries, provide directory assistance, document concerns about VA care, benefits and services, and route contacts and cases to the appropriate organization/person within the VA to resolve the concern. Agents undergo currency and competency training on VA benefits and services based on trends and are assisted by a knowledge management tool and newly implemented tracking software to help VA capture and improve its response, referral and resolution processes to best support Veterans. Other Tier 1 responsibilities include on-line navigation and assisting with simple technical problems like password resets. Data captured by the agents in the Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tool is used by VA stakeholders to identify local, regional and enterprise-wide program and process Veteran experience improvement opportunities. A Government FTE Training Section will be responsible for development/delivery of initial, new and refresher training content. Contract supervisors will be responsible for coaching agents in accordance with established standard operating procedures and training curriculum. Agents will use resources available such as Job Aids, Knowledge Management (KM) tool, FAQs, email alerts, Bulletins, SOPs, mandated scripts, and reference materials to improve knowledge and utilize these materials as the only source of needed information or guidance. This contact center will be operated 24/7, with staffing adjusted to meet varying call volume. The Government Workforce Management Section will be responsible for forecasting labor requirements and creating staff schedules. A rapid surge capability is part of this PWS (see options for details). The contractor staff with be comprised of agents and supervisors and will follow the same performance criteria of government full time employee (FTE) agents and supervisors. Performance, quality, and analytics functions are all performed by the government. All staff should have customer service experience and to have service recovery skills. Service Recovery is a new focus area in the Department of Veterans Affairs and the contact center is a leader in that change effort. Service Recovery is the process or reaction taken to return an aggravated, dissatisfied customer to a state of calm satisfaction. The successful bidder must understand and have experience with the process of effectively engaging customers to recover the damage done from a prior poor customer experience. This could originate from direct (i.e.; phone) and indirect (i.e.; survey) customer interactions. At the Supervisory level, the Contractor shall provide the Government with call data (Call Volume, Abandon Rate, Average Speed of Answer, and other measurements that will be required). Of note, none of the contractor staff will be supervising Government FTEs. Supervisors will interact with clients and other members of the contact center team with respect, courtesy, focus and professionalism. They will actively participate in improving the VEO Contact Center s performance by assisting in balancing all workload requirements, responding in a positive manner to management requests for information or ideas that enhance the effective operation of the contact center or reinforcing training on matters regarding the contact center. This contract requires a Contractor s Program Manager to manage, monitor, and control all subsequent tasks completed by contractor staff and initiated to obtain services required to satisfy the VEO Contact Center objectives. The Program Manager required by this PWS shall oversee and provide direction and guidance to the Supervisors and Agents of the Contact Center. The Program Manager shall coordinate efforts between all tasks and projects. There will be two places of performance, one is at a VA secure facility located at located in Salt Lake City, UT. A second VA secure facility will be in Shepherdstown, WV. Telework was allowed during the COVID-19 emergency and will be considered on a case-to-case basis. The following capabilities are identified for this requirement: The contact center must operate 24/7, with staffing adjusted to meet varying call volume including rapid surges as required. Able to recruit and onboarding quality candidates in a timely manner. Agents providing Tier 1 support as detailed in the introduction. Program Manager to manage, monitor, and control all subsequent tasks completed by contractor staff. Contractor Supervisors will supervise all contracted agents and provide data metrics to the government as required. Personnel retention: Demonstrate ability to retain personnel to maintain continuity in the call center and also to handle the volume of calls. Documenting into a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tool during the interaction with the customer Able to demonstrate Service Recovery capabilities. Service Recovery is defined as the process or reaction taken to return an aggravated, dissatisfied customer to a state of calm satisfaction. Agents are required to be telework capable as defined by the VA telework request/agreement (VA 0740). Agents must have at least two years of experience using computers in a professional setting. Agents have to be able to pass a Low Risk (NACI) background investigation. The contact center handles on average anywhere from 79,000 to 130,000 calls per month. There are spikes in call volume due to events such as a news story, a VA outreach campaign or the COVID-19 pandemic. The contact center is expected to maintain the following metrics: Call Abandonment Rates less than 3%. Average Speed of Answer of less than 20 seconds. Staffing Readiness: Schedule Deviation < +/- 10% and In-Service Time at least 78%. Outbound Service Recovery activities for failed customer satisfaction surveys and complaints against contract staff. Agent, Supervisor & Program Manager metrics are met. Providing reports on performance and other areas as determined by the government at a later date. Able to maintain and track inventory of Government Furnished Equipment (GFE). Demonstrate previous success in contact center or related fields of work. Able to show a staffing model. THERE IS NO SOLICITATION AT THIS TIME. This request for capabilities information does not constitute a request for proposals; submission of any information in response to this market survey is purely voluntary; the government assumes no financial responsibility for any costs incurred. Your responses may be shared with all stakeholders, thus the information received will not be considered proprietary. If your organization has the potential capacity to perform these contract services, please provide the following information: Cover Sheet 1 page Please provide the following information: 1. Organization name, address, and web site. 2. Point of contact to include e-mail address and telephone number. 3. Business size (large or small). If small, please provide type of small business. 4. North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) that best fits these task areas. 5. If applicable, GSA contract number, schedule, and SIN category. Index 1 page Please provide an index to assist the Government in identifying where you have addressed each question below in your Capabilities Statement and Market Information. Please provide question number and corresponding page and section heading and/or paragraph number. Capabilities Statement and Market Information Please respond to the following questions by providing a capabilities statement and market information. Please describe your recruiting and screening process? Describe your supervisor to agent ratio? Indicate that you can source personnel in two locations Salt Lake City, UT and Shepherdstown, WV? Can you provide a snapshot of your onboarding process once someone is hired? Can you provide a snapshot of your retention strategy? What challenges do you face with retention? What size call center contracts have you previously/currently managed? Indicate how you support a call center of 200 to 400 agents? Can you indicate methods used to mitigate predicated and unpredicted call volume surges? Can you indicate how you monitor metrics, that are managed by the government? What is your policy on hiring veterans? Do you have experience with Govt security and background investigations? What level of agents can you provide? What is your ability to support both Tier 1 and Tier 2 call centers? Can you describe your approach to coaching in a call center environment? STRUCTURE AND SUBMISSION OF RESPONSES Contractors should respond to this RFI by May 23, 2022, by 12:00 PM ET via e-mail to
[email protected]. Limit all responses to 20 pages.