--MARKET RESEARCH FOR EEO COMPLIANCE CONSULTING FIRMS

NA The John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (Volpe Center) will be conducting market research and information exchange interviews with companies providing Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) compliance consulting services in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 15.201, entitled Exchanges With Industry Before Receipt of Proposals. The purpose of exchanging information is to improve the understanding of Government requirements and industry capabilities, thereby allowing potential offerors to judge whether or how they can satisfy the Government’s requirements, and enhancing the Government’s ability to obtain quality services, at reasonable prices, and increase efficiency in proposal preparation, proposal evaluation, negotiation, and contract award. The Volpe Center will be conducting this market research through one-on-one meetings with potential offerors. Due to time and space requirements, these one-on-one meetings will be held with the first 20 (twenty) companies who request an interview. The District of Columbia Department of Transportation (DDOT) has asked the Volpe Center to develop a program and reporting system for EEO requirements both internally, for the department employees, and externally, for all DDOT consultants and sub consultants. We are looking for firms who are capable of : making an initial assessment of the current state of DDOT’s compliance policies and procedures; identifying what components of DDOT’s EEO reporting requirements are insufficient or lacking and what DDOT needs to accomplish in order to fully comply with EEO reporting requirements; developing standard operating procedures complete with roles and responsibilities, timelines for internal DDOT deliverables, a how to guide, and standardized electronic forms; creating an electronic template for annual EEO reporting based on the Arkansas model ( or similar best practice model); producing the first joint submission of an internal and external EEO report to the DC Division office of FHWA and, conducting an orientation session on the standard operating procedures and the electronic template for the current and newly hired DDOT staff that will be working in the Procurement and Civil Rights Office The contractor will be required to know and incorporate both federal and District EEO regulations, identify the elements of those regulations and put the missing items in place to ensure that the end product is complete and adheres to all EEO regulations. The contractor may also need the support of an editor who is skilled in developing easy to use electronic templates, in a form that does not require additional software purchase (e.g., Microsoft Word) and can be added to over the course of time. The interviews will take place at the District Department of Transportation, Reeve Center, 2000 14th Street, N.W., Washington, DC in the 5th floor conference room on October 1st and 2nd, 2002. The interviews will be for one hour each. Due to space limitations, not more than three representatives from each company will be interviewed. Point of Contact: Jeffery Bryan, Program Manager, Volpe Center (617) 494-2061