SOLICITATION NUMBER: 720FDA19B00094

ISSUANCE DATE: November 18, 2019
CLOSING DATE AND TIME: December 9, 2019, 12:00 P.M. Eastern Time

SUBJECT: Solicitation for U.S. Personal Service Contractor (USPSC)

Dear Prospective Offerors:

The United States Government (USG), represented by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA), is seeking offers from qualified U.S. citizens to provide personal services as a Public-Private Engagement Team Deputy Team Leader under a United States Personal Services Contract (USPSC), as described in the solicitation.

Submittals must be in accordance with the attached information at the place and time specified. Offerors interested in applying for this position MUST submit the following materials:

Complete resume. In order to fully evaluate your offer, your resume must include:

(a) Paid and non-paid experience, job title, location(s), dates held (month/year), and hours worked per week for each position. Any experience that does not include dates (month/year), locations, and hours per week will not be counted towards meeting the solicitation requirements.
(b) Specific duties performed that fully detail the level and complexity of the work.
(c) Education and any other qualifications including job-related training courses, job-related skills, or job-related honors, awards or accomplishments.
(d) U.S. Citizenship
(e) Optional: How did you hear about this opportunity? (FedBizOpps, OFDA Jobs, Career Fair, etc.).

Your resume must contain sufficient information to make a valid determination that you fully meet the experience requirements as stated in this solicitation. This information must be clearly identified in your resume. Failure to provide information sufficient to determine your qualifications for the position will result in loss of full consideration.

Supplemental document specifically addressing the Quality Ranking Factors (QRFs) shown in the solicitation.

USPSC Offeror form AID 309-2. Offerors are required to complete sections A through I. This form must be physically signed. Electronic signatures will not be accepted. AID 309-2 is available at http://www.usaid.gov/forms.

NOTE REGARDING DATA UNIVERSAL NUMBERING SYSTEM (DUNS) NUMBERS
AND THE SYSTEM FOR AWARD MANAGEMENT

All USPSCs with a place of performance in the United States are required to have a Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number and be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) database prior to receiving an award. You will be disqualified if you either fail to comply with this requirement or if your name appears on the excluded parties list. The selectee will be provided with guidance regarding this registration.

NOTE: As of March 28, 2018, all new SAM.gov entity registrations will now require a signed notarized letter identifying the authorized Entity administrator for the entity associated with the DUNS number. Additional information on the format of the notarized letter and where to submit can be found via the below Federal Service Desk link:

https://www.fsd.gov/fsd-gov/answer.do?sysparm_kbid=d2e67885db0d5f00b3257d321f96194b&
sysparm_search=kb0013183

Offerors can expect to receive a confirmation email when offer materials have been received. Offerors should retain for their records copies of all enclosures which accompany their offers. Your complete resume and the supplemental document addressing the QRFs must be emailed to:

OFDA Recruitment Team
E-Mail Address: recruiter@ofda.gov
Website: www.OFDAjobs.net

Any questions on this solicitation may be directed to OFDA Recruitment Team via the information provided above.

Sincerely,

Renee Newton
Contracting Officer

I. GENERAL INFORMATION

SOLICITATION NO.: 720FDA19B00094

ISSUANCE DATE: November 18, 2019

CLOSING DATE AND TIME FOR RECEIPT OF OFFERS: December 9, 2019, 12:00 P.M. Eastern Time

POINT OF CONTACT: OFDA Recruitment Team, recruiter@ofda.gov

POSITION TITLE: Public-Private Engagement Team (PPET) Deputy Team Leader

MARKET VALUE: $117,191 – $152,352 equivalent to GS-14 (includes locality pay)

Final compensation will be negotiated within the listed market value and based upon the candidate s established salary history. Salaries over and above the top of the pay range will not be entertained or negotiated.

If the position is for a Washington based PSC, offerors who live outside the Washington, D.C. area will be considered for employment, but no relocation expenses will be reimbursed.

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE: One (1) year, with four (4) one-year options

PLACE OF PERFORMANCE: Washington, D.C.

ELIGIBLE OFFERORS: U.S. Citizens

SECURITY LEVEL REQUIRED: Ability to obtain and maintain a Secret up to Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information level clearance as provided by USAID.

STATEMENT OF DUTIES

POSITION DESCRIPTION

BACKGROUND

The Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) is the office within USAID that is responsible for providing emergency non-food humanitarian assistance in response to international crises and disasters. OFDA is part of the Bureau for Democracy, Conflict, and Humanitarian Assistance (DCHA) and is organized into six divisions.

The Africa (AFD) Response Division and the Asia, Latin America, Europe, and Middle East (ALE) Response Division are responsible for the provision of emergency humanitarian assistance through a grants mechanism to non-governmental organizations (NGOs), international organizations including United Nations (UN) agencies and to other partners to ensure the implementation and delivery of this assistance. These divisions also oversee OFDA s non-response efforts in disaster risk reduction and resilience. AFD and ALE Response Divisions also coordinate with other organizations for the provision of relief supplies and assistance. They devise, coordinate and implement program strategies for a variety of natural and complex disaster situations. Both Divisions encompass groups of operations specialists who provide technical expert capability in assessing the quality and strategic function of disaster response and risk reduction activities. The AFD Response Division is divided into two teams: East and Central Africa (ECA), and Southern, West, and North Africa (SWAN). The ALE Response Division is divided into four teams: East Asia and the Pacific (EAP), Europe, the Middle East, and Central Asia (EMCA), Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), and South Asia (SA).

The Operations (OPS) Division develops and manages operations for OFDA s disaster responses by readying people and systems; projecting U.S. Government (USG) humanitarian capacity quickly into the field; and delivering material and technical assistance. The OPS Division maintains readiness to respond to emergencies through several mechanisms, including managing Urban Search and Rescue Teams, coordinating, staffing, training, and equipping Disaster Assistance Response Teams (DARTs), and Washington-based Response Management Teams (RMTs), and stockpiling emergency relief commodities in key locations around the globe to ensure OFDA s capacity to execute and coordinate USG humanitarian assistance and response to natural disasters and complex emergencies. The OPS Division provides technical guidance and expertise in Disaster Logistics, Urban Search and Rescue, Operations Center management, activation/readiness, Civil-Military Liaison, and Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and Explosive Consequence Management. It also provides overseas support to OFDA offices and personnel and to other sectors necessary to ensure OFDA s capacity to execute and coordinate USG humanitarian assistance and response to natural disasters and complex emergencies. The OPS Division is divided into four teams: the Disaster Assistance Support Program (DASP), Military Liaison Team (MLT), Operations Support Team (OST), and Overseas Administration Team (OAT).

The Program Support (PS) Division provides operational management support, including general administration, budget and financial services, procurement planning, information technology, human resources management including staff care, and contract and grant administration support to OFDA. The PS Division supports OFDA’s mandate by providing innovative solutions in the areas of Information Technology, staffing, funds control, budgeting, human resource management, and procurement to facilitate timely disaster responses. The PS Division is divided into four teams: the Award, Audit, and Risk Management (AARM) Team, Human Resources Management (HRM) Team, Budget, Finance, and Information Technology (BFIT) Team, and the Acquisition and Management (ACQ) Team.

The Preparation, Strategic Planning and Mitigation (PSPM) Division is responsible for the technical oversight of all OFDA response and mitigation programs, as well as preparation for response, mitigation, and disaster risk reduction activities. The PSPM Division houses technical experts in all sectors potentially affected by disasters, and leads the Agency in developing and promoting best practices for programming in these specific sectors. In addition, PSPM will be the focal point for technological innovations for humanitarian assistance in areas such as monitoring and evaluation, assessment, and information management. The PSPM Division is divided into four teams: Cross-Cutting Sectors Team, Natural Hazards Team, Health Team, and the Food Security and Livelihoods Team.
The Humanitarian Policy and Global Engagement (HPGE) Division assists the DCHA front office, the OFDA Director and OFDA Deputy Director with tracking trends and policy developments in the humanitarian assistance field. It engages in policy dialogue with other parts of USAID, the USG interagency, other donors, multilateral agencies, and NGO partners; recommends strategies for action to DCHA; initiates development of policy and internal guidance for OFDA; maintains global relationships with implementing partners, other donors, and the broader humanitarian architecture; and engages with the UN to advance USG humanitarian policy objectives and promote humanitarian principles within the USG and internationally. The HPGE Division leads OFDA’s communications and social media outreach to effectively communicate OFDA s story to a variety of strategic audiences. It serves as the office s primary interlocutor on strategic issues with other federal partners to provide guidance to OFDA on policy issues pertaining to the interagency, and to improve USG humanitarian coordination and response during large-scale crises. The HPGE Division staff manages global programs, policy and outreach, strategic communications, and interagency training and engagement. HPGE is divided into seven teams: Policy Team, Global Programs Team, Strategic Interagency Team, Strategic Communications Team, Global Capacity and Leadership Development (globalCLD) Team, Public-Private Engagement Team (PPET), and the United States Mission to the UN (USUN) in New York, Geneva, and Rome.
INTRODUCTION

The PPET will focus efforts on informing the USG and the general public, including religious and community groups, diaspora communities, embassies, non-profit organizations, corporations and businesses, and USG agencies, about the most effective ways for the general public to support international disaster relief and recovery efforts. The PPET will generate and provide informational products and data analysis on diaspora and disaster information, as well as conduct public awareness activities designed to empower and guide private donors on the ways to most effectively and responsibly help people affected by disasters overseas.

The PPET Deputy Team Leader assists in leading USAID/OFDA s PPET. The Deputy Team Leader will assist the PPET Team Leader in developing strategic plans regarding the goals and objectives of the PPET. The Deputy Team Leader will assist the PPET Team Leader in representational capacities, as appropriate, with both interagency partners and private sector actors.

OBJECTIVE

OFDA requires the services of a PPET Deputy Team Leader in order to meet its objectives of guiding and informing the USG and the general public, including religious and community groups; diaspora communities; non-profits; corporations and businesses about the most effective ways for the general public to engage in international disaster relief and recovery efforts.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The PPET Deputy Team Leader is an integral part of OFDA who supports efforts on diaspora and private sector outreach for the office. This role requires significant interaction with the general public and USG offices, demanding strong diplomatic, facilitation and communication skills to accurately represent U.S. positions in a complex multilateral setting. The PPET Deputy Team Leader will be required to be available for deployments possibly lasting up to 90 days or 30% of the year.

The PPET Deputy Team Leader s duties and responsibilities will include the following:

Support the PPET Team Leader in managing, supervising and leading the PPET.
Act as PPET Team Leader when the Team Leader is out of the office on leave, on detail, or temporary duty assignment.
Help develop detailed strategic plans for the PPET.
Engage with USAID senior leadership and staff, the USG s interagency and the public on matters pertaining to diaspora engagement and donation management.
Serve as a subject matter expert on donation management, and sharing information on OFDA s mission, mandate, and relationships with USAID, and the NGO and donor communities.
Assist in the development and delivery around USAID s key messages about donating responsibly and diaspora engagement.
Maintain awareness of the private sector on partnering efforts with USAID in humanitarian response, and disaster risk reduction efforts.
Oversee guidance development for the private sector seeking business opportunities with USAID in response to humanitarian crises.
Support the establishment and maintenance of strong relationships and formal partnership agreements, where appropriate, with private sector entities.
Liaise closely with the USAID s Global Development Lab, to access private sector engagement tools and resources and customize them, when possible, for a humanitarian response context.
Develop strong understanding of USAID s partnership and private sector engagement authorities and approaches.
Initiate and maintain strong working relationships with the UN and other donor countries in order to coordinate on private sector and diaspora engagement during disaster response efforts.
Participate in the management of OFDA s hotline responses during specific disasters, including the training of volunteers, the maintenance of training materials and trainings, and serving shifts on the hotline to answer calls and e-mails.
Sign-up for and serve as needed multiple times throughout the year on Washington-based RMTs, which provides services and support to DARTs deployed in response to disasters. Serve as the OFDA after-hours duty officer on a rotational basis, for approximately one week every six months.
As needed, serve on DARTs which may require immediate (within 24 hours) deployment overseas.
As needed, may serve on temporary detail within the office to meet operational needs during staff shortages, not to exceed six months. Duties performed while on detail will be aligned with the Team s existing duties and responsibilities as well as directly related to the scope of work provided.

Additional skills and abilities for this position include the following:

Demonstrate excellent verbal and writing skills.
Demonstrate capability with Microsoft Office and its components (Outlook, Word).
Work effectively as a team member with other members of the Division and OFDA.
Work in rapidly changing, high-pressure situations that often exceed normal business hours.

SUPERVISORY RELATIONSHIP:
The USPSC will take direction from and report to the PPET Team Leader or his/her designee.

SUPERVISORY CONTROLS:
The PPET Team Leader provides administrative directions in terms of broadly defined missions or functions. The USPSC works in partnership to plan, design and implement programs, projects, training or other work. Results are considered authoritative and are normally accepted without significant change.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

The work is generally sedentary and does not pose undue physical demands. During deployment on DARTs (if required), and during site visits, there may be some additional physical exertion including long periods of standing, walking over rough terrain, or carrying of moderately heavy items (less than 50 pounds).

WORK ENVIRONMENT

Work is primarily performed in an office setting. During deployment on DARTs (if required), and during site visits, the work may additionally involve special safety and/or security precautions, wearing of protective equipment, and exposure to severe weather conditions.

START DATE: Immediately, once necessary clearances are obtained.

II. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED FOR THIS POSITION

EDUCATION/EXPERIENCE REQUIRED FOR THIS POSITION
(Determines basic eligibility for the position. Offerors who do not meet all of the education and experience factors are considered NOT qualified for the position.)

Bachelor s degree with significant study in or pertinent to the specialized field (including business, international development, public policy or related field) plus minimum of nine (9) years of progressively responsible and relevant professional experience in private sector engagement, diaspora engagement, humanitarian assistance, or disaster relief.

OR

Master s degree with significant study in or pertinent to the specialized field (including business, international development, public policy or related field) plus a minimum of seven (7) years of progressively responsible and relevant professional experience in private sector engagement, diaspora engagement, humanitarian assistance, or disaster relief.

III. EVALUATION AND SELECTION FACTORS

The Government may award a contract without discussions with offerors in accordance with FAR 52.215-1. The CO reserves the right at any point in the evaluation process to establish a competitive range of offerors with whom negotiations will be conducted pursuant to FAR 15.306(c). In accordance with FAR 52.215-1, if the CO determines that the number of offers that would otherwise be in the competitive range exceeds the number at which an efficient competition can be conducted, the CO may limit the number of offerors in the competitive range to the greatest number that will permit an efficient competition among the most highly rated offers. FAR provisions of this solicitation are available at https://www.acquisition.gov/browse/index/far.

SELECTION FACTORS
(Determines basic eligibility for the position. Offerors who do not meet all of the selection factors are considered NOT qualified for the position.)
Offeror is a U.S. Citizen.
Complete resume submitted. See cover page for resume requirements. Experience that cannot be quantified will not be counted towards meeting the solicitation requirements.
USPSC Offeror form AID 309-2. Offerors are required to complete sections A through I. This form must be physically signed. Electronic signatures will not be accepted.
Supplemental document specifically addressing the Quality Ranking Factors (QRFs) submitted.
Ability to obtain and maintain a Secret up to Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information level clearance as provided by USAID.
Ability to obtain a Department of State medical clearance.
Must not appear as an excluded party in the System for Award Management (SAM.gov).
Satisfactory verification of academic credentials.

QUALITY RANKING FACTORS (QRFs)
(Used to determine the competitive ranking of qualified offerors in comparison to other offerors. The factors are listed in priority order from highest to least. The evaluation of QRF responses will also take into consideration the quality of written responses. Aspects of written responses including, but not limited to typos, grammatical errors, spelling errors, and incomplete sentences will be factored into the evaluation process.)

QRF #1 Demonstrate your experience in providing expert guidance in the area of private sector engagement, in the humanitarian assistance context. Detail how your hands-on experience in the field of humanitarian action and your thorough knowledge of the international humanitarian system qualifies you to provide such guidance. Provide examples of any engagement with the private sector in conjunction with a disaster response or humanitarian emergency.

QRF #2 Demonstrate your experience in engaging with executive or senior leadership in the area of humanitarian assistance with regard to private sector engagement approaches utilized by public international organizations and non-governmental organizations. Describe your experience in establishing public-private partnerships and coordinating agreements between governmental and private sector entities.

QRF #3 Demonstrate your knowledge and experience with U.S. policy and regulations for responses to natural disasters and complex emergencies. Describe your understanding of U.S. humanitarian assistance approaches and USG messaging regarding public or private sector donations following a disaster.

QRF #4 Demonstrate your ability to provide management oversight within a team structure and ensure that team members are able to multi-task and consistently and independently perform in a high visibility, high-pressure environment and accurately represent USG policy positions. Demonstrate a strong work ethic and ability to initiate, develop and manage multiple projects and staff members simultaneously. Lastly, demonstrate proven diplomatic and leadership skills, as well as political acumen.

QRF #5 Demonstrate your skill in oral and written communication, preparing and presenting analysis, providing guidance, soliciting sensitive information, reviewing proposals, and negotiating agreements.

BASIS OF RATING: Offerors who meet the Education/Experience requirements and Selection Factors will be further evaluated based on scoring of the QRF responses. Those offerors determined to be competitively ranked may also be evaluated on interview performance and satisfactory professional reference checks.

Offerors are required to address each of the QRFs in a separate document describing specifically and accurately what experience, training, and/or education they have received as it pertains to each factor. Be sure to include your name and the announcement number at the top of each additional page. Failure to address the selection factors and/or Quality Ranking Factors may result in not receiving credit for all pertinent experience, education, and/or training.

The most qualified offerors may be interviewed and required to provide a writing sample. OFDA will not pay for any expenses associated with the interviews. Professional references and academic credentials will be evaluated for offerors being considered for selection. Note: Please be advised that references may be obtained independently from other sources in addition to the ones provided by an offeror. OFDA reserves the right to select additional offerors if vacancies become available during future phase of the selection process.

The Offeror Rating System is as Follows:
QRFs have been assigned the following points:
QRF #1 15 points
QRF #2 10 points
QRF #3 10 points
QRF #4 10 points
QRF #5 5 points

Interview Performance 30 points

Satisfactory Professional Reference Checks 20 points

Total Possible Points: 100

How to apply:

IV. SUBMITTING AN OFFER

Offers must be received by the closing date and time at the address specified in the cover letter.

Qualified individuals are required to submit:

Complete resume. In order to fully evaluate your offer, your resume must include:
(a) Paid and non-paid experience, job title, location(s), dates held (month/year), and hours worked per week for each position. Any experience that does not include dates (month/year), locations, and hours per week will not be counted towards meeting the solicitation requirements.
(b) Specific duties performed that fully detail the level and complexity of the work.
(c) Education and any other qualifications including job-related training courses, job-related skills, or job-related honors, awards or accomplishments.
(d) U.S. Citizenship
(e) Optional: How did you hear about this opportunity? (FedBizOpps, OFDA Jobs, Career Fair, etc.).

Your resume must contain sufficient information to make a valid determination that you fully meet the experience requirements as stated in this solicitation. This information must be clearly identified in your resume. Failure to provide information sufficient to determine your qualifications for the position will result in loss of full consideration.

Supplemental document specifically addressing the QRFs shown in the solicitation.

USPSC Offeror form AID 309-2. Offerors are required to complete sections A through I. This form must be physically signed. Electronic signatures will not be accepted. AID 309-2 is available at http://www.usaid.gov/forms.

Additional documents submitted will not be accepted.

By submitting your offer materials, you certify that all of the information on and attached to the offer is true, correct, complete, and made in good faith. You agree to allow all information on and attached to the offer to be investigated. False or fraudulent information on or attached to your offer may result in you being eliminated from consideration for this position, or being terminated after award, and may be punishable by fine or imprisonment.

To ensure consideration of offers for the intended position, please reference the solicitation number on your offer, and as the subject line in any email.

DOCUMENT SUBMITTALS

Via email: recruiter@ofda.gov