UPDATE: On March 14, 2018, protests were submitted to GAO over the ALLIANT 2 SB awards. EZGovOpps counts 7 protesters currently on the docket, with decision dates currently scheduled for June 22, 2018. EZGovOpps will continue to monitor this large acquisition and associated protests.
UPDATE: On February 14th, 2018, GSA released the final list of 81 Small Business awardees. 4 of those awardees are still awaiting final SBA Size Challenge results.
UPDATE: GSA has released a “Preaward Notice” for the $15 billion small business portion of ALLIANT 2, with 80 potential awardees.
UPDATE: In the last weeks of November, 5 companies have now filed protests with GAO over the ALLIANT 2 awards. According to the docket, GAO decisions are not due until March 2018.
UPDATE: On November 17th, 2017 GSA announced the award of ALLIANT 2 to 61 contractors, out of 170 bidders.
Dive deep into the hottest contracts and Government Wide Acquisitions Services (GWAC) coming out this summer! ALLIANT 2/ ALLIANT 2 Small Businesses are behemoths in their category, with them ranking as second non-schedule MACs in 2015, making their acquisition essential for an IT company. Small businesses especially will benefit as they will be able to graduate to mid-level companies.
ALLIANT 2 (QTA0016JCA0003) is an unrestricted GWAC with a ceiling of $50 billion, with a five-year base ordering period and a five-year option to extend. The ceiling is higher than its predecessor, ALLIANT, which saw a recorded $17 billion in sales since 2009. ALLIANT expires on April 20th, 2019.
ALLIANT 2 SB has a ceiling of $15 billion. A potential decade full of opportunities awaits 60 companies in ALLIANT 2 Unrestricted and 80 small businesses in ALLIANT 2 SB. The winners will be able to compete for programs through the ALLIANT 2 programs, while all other companies can subcontract to the prime winners. Proposals for submission are due August 29th 2016, and final awards are expected in early 2017.
What’s new?
After launching an objective scoring method for its OASIS (One Acquisition Solution for Integrated Services) contracts, the GSA has decided to employ the same method with its IT Federal contracts, making ALLIANT 2 contracts the first of its kind to be evaluated with this objective method.
So what does this objective method entail? It is a new self-scoring method for companies vying for prime positions on ALLIANT 2/ALLIANT 2 SB. Once scores are submitted, the GSA either accepts or rejects the bidders’ scores. It’s like the Olympics – score close to 83,100 points and you’re in good shape for a spot in the GWAC.
This also means that there is now a greater burden upon companies to present their best selves in their bid. If you are planning on bidding, focus on the following four critical areas:
1) Experience and Certifications: Basically, put your best foot forward. Bidders should capitalize on their Product Service Codes (PSC) and Leading Edge Technologies (LETs). There are three groups of PSC codes to focus on: Group 1 (D codes) for IT, Group 2 (D307) comprising of telecommunications and IT, and Group3 (R425) for professional services. Group 3 is a new addition and is likely to attract more defense users to ALLIANT 2.
Use PSC codes and LET groups to show that you have served across multiple agencies with large value contracts, emphasizing on your breadth of experience. The key here is identifying your best projects and aligning them to PSCs, especially to the three groups mentioned above. Keep in mind that all past performance must have been performed as PRIME to be considered. In addition, bidders should also submit any project experience they may have had with a parent, affiliate, or any company with whom they have had a ‘substantial’ relationship.
Certifications are like the cherry on top, not required but definitely an advantage.
2) Past Performance: Practice makes perfect and practice is rewarded in terms of points to augment your overall score. Use projects in which you’ve attained ‘Exceptional’ ratings and align those to relevant PSC codes and provide performance references of the same.
ALLIANT 2 is especially crucial for Health IT this time around, given the extensive health records modernization efforts by the DoD and the VA, as well as the cancellation of the Defense Health Agency’s health IT IDIQ. So any past performance here would be a definite plus.
3) Systems and Clearance: Although not required, any documentation that proves that you have facilities clearance or systems clearances (such as EVMS) will be looked upon favorably. The greater the depth of your experience, the more likely you are to have certifications and clearances.
4) Risk Assessment: 7,500 of the total number of points have been allotted to this category. Bidders must use past performance and past experience to claim these points. The scoring for this category is only dependent upon the bidder showing previous performance in the proposed business arrangement.
Three Step Solution to Winning a Spot on ALLIANT 2
STEP 1 : Complete the Self Scoring Sheet!
The Document Verification and Self Scoring Worksheet is perhaps the most important step in the guide. The score you obtain will be used solely to rank scores, from highest to lowest. The highest 80 form the preliminary 80 bidders, who will then undergo an acceptability review based on four core sections These four sections are part of six key requirements that each company has to satisfy to pass the acceptability review. Therefore, to ensure that you make the top 80, take care while filling out the Self Scoring Worksheet! A copy of the scoring sheet is here
STEP 2: Find Out How to Get the Most Points!
EZGovOpps research shows that, because ranks matter more than just scores, bidders’ chances improve drastically the more they capitalizing on past performance and experience, and their PSC and LET codes, as well as on teaming partners. This is imperative, because given the competition this GWAC will elicit; only a few hundred points might separate the winners from losers.
The research alludes to four key areas, as mentioned above, where the most points are housed. They are listed as follows (maximum possible points):
1) Relevant Experience – 17,100 points
2) Past Performance – 17,500 points
3) Systems, Certifications, and Clearances – 17,100 points
4) Organizational Risk Assessment – 7,500 points
These four areas will help you determine your score. Remember, to win, you need to be better than the 60th ranked bidder for ALLIANT 2 and the 80th ranked small business bidder for ALLIANT 2 SB. Therefore, as much as scores are important, ranks are crucial. Capitalizing on past performance and experience is imperative, because given the competition this GWAC will elicit; only a few hundred points might separate the winners from losers.
In the event of a tie at the maximum number 60 position, all bidders precisely tied at the 60th position will receive an award. A tie is determined exclusively at the 60th position when two or more bidders receive an identical score. If a tie score occurs at any other position before the 60th position, the tie does not result in two or more bidders holding that same numbered position.
STEP 3: Get a Market Intelligence Tool!
According to the NDAA 2016, ALLIANT 2 and ALLIANT 2 Small Business will allow teams of small businesses to bid on multiple award contracts, but at the same time, it will limit the number of teams by attributing points to stand alone bidders and teams that have previously worked together. This means that if a small business wants to win a spot, it mush rush to collaborate with other small businesses to gain maximum points in the PSCs and LETs project experience categories by showing great involvedness in the same. In addition, teams must also have a proven track record of working together to achieve set goals.
I predict that, given the huge set of points given to Relevant Experience and Past Performance, we will see a lot of mergers and acquisitions, especially with and/or by previous ALLIANT winners. Therefore, get yourself a market intelligence tool, like EZGovOpps, and get teaming! A market intelligence tool is crucial to find partners and establish relationships that can allow you to present a winning proposal, and to monitor company profiles to make sure that you pick the right partners.
Other noteworthy changes in ALLIANT 2 are the flexibility of labor categories over time. The contract allows for secondary, “non-standard” and ancillary service categories, in addition to the primary labor category.
In a statement, Mary Davie, assistant commissioner for GSA’s Office of Integrated Technology Services said, “The results of that engagement are well-rounded final RFPs that build on the success of the first generation Alliant solutions and that incorporate feedback from customers and the vendor community. These next-gen Alliant vehicles have great potential to provide agencies with new IT offerings, expanded scope and flexible options while driving down costs for the American taxpayer.”
All in all, ALLIANT 2 is like the Holy Grail of IT services, covering cloud computing, agile development, biometrics and identity management, IT operations and maintenance, enterprise app stores and mobile security, Internet of Things, cybersecurity, data center consolidation and shared IT services. Market intelligence is paramount in aiding companies to score themselves against their competitors and, thus putting together a winning bid.
For more information, an in-person pre-proposal conference will be held on July 13 at GSA headquarters in Washington, D.C.
