FY25 Debt Mgmt Center IT Division Support Contract (VA-24-00043029)

1. Has the draft PWS provided sufficient detail to describe the technical requirements that encompass the services to be performed under this effort? ______ YES _______ NO (if No, answer question below) If NO , please provide your technical comments/recommendations on elements of the draft PWS that may contribute to a more accurate proposal submission and efficient, cost-effective effort. 2. Please provide the labor categories that you think will be required to perform the work described in the PWS. Also include the labor category descriptions and estimated number of annual hours for each labor category. 3. Please describe your past performance in providing the type of services described in the PWS. (Section 3.0/Section 5.0) 4. Describe both your experiences using an API first strategy with a legacy Mainframe batch processing system and your experience with transforming away from the mainframe backend. 5. Describe your experience design, implementation, and integration of complex systems. 6. Describe your experience developing synthetic test data to mock partner systems and to support performance testing. (Section 5.2.7) 7. How do you determine your roadmap and/or product strategy? (Section 5.1) 8. Describe your experience balancing modernization and new development while maintaining operation and sustainment of the same system. (Section 5.0) 9. Describe your experience with working within the SAFe construct for developing software as described in the PWS (Section 3.3.5/Section 5.2). 10. If your company is a small business, please confirm that in the solution provided, your company will be performing at least 50% of the work in accordance with the set aside regulations. Reference Department of Veterans Affairs Acquisition Regulations clause 852.219-73, Notice of Total Set-Aside for Certified Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses.

Background
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Technology Acquisition Center (TAC) is seeking information concerning development and sustainment support to the Information Technology Division of the Debt Management Center systems to include sustainment of fielded systems as well as modernization activities to stay current with external VA modernization mandates identified in the Performance Work Statement (PWS).

Work Details
The contractor shall contribute to the creation of the PI Plan in collaboration with the project team prior to beginning the increment as required. The PI Plan is the scope of work which will be completed in the agreed upon increment timeframe. An increment shall consist of a series of sprints (typically 2-3 weeks in duration). The Contractor shall continuously support an iterative build and development methodology to complete all epics and features and associated user stories identified in the backlog.
Backlog grooming and prioritization are continued throughout the product life cycle and shall be managed throughout the period of performance. The contractor shall support backlog grooming sessions with the DMC designated Product Owners and ITD personnel to properly understand and elaborate properly forwarded customer functional requirements designated in the applicable PI. The Contractor is responsible for proposing non-functional requirements from the technical debt backlog for inclusion in builds with an emphasis on those items where would realize savings by integrating functional and non-functional requirements into a single build. The Contractor shall provide input to the DMC designated PM or Product Owner on prioritization of non-functional requirements. The Contractor shall inform the PM or Product Owner of any nonfunctional requirement that must be completed prior to the next production release of the solution such as resolving security findings.

Period of Performance
03-22-2024 16:00 EASTERN TIME, NEW YORK, USA - 90 DAYS AFTER THE RESPONSE DATE

Place of Performance
Department of Veterans Affairs, Technology Acquisition Center, 23 Christopher Way, Eatontown NJ 07724