[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 115 (Tuesday, June 16, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34459-34464]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-14683]


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OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET


Announcement of Requirements and Registration for the Digital 
Service Contracting Professional Training and Development Program 
Challenge

AGENCY: Office of Management and Budget.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Digital Service and Office of Federal Procurement 
Policy (OFPP), as part of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), 
give notice of the availability of the ``Digital Service Contracting 
Professional Training and Development Program'' prize competition and 
rules. Through a multi-phased challenge, participants are eligible for 
prize money up to $360,000.00 under this competition.
    In August 2014, the U.S. Digital Service was launched to bring in 
the country's brightest digital talent to

[[Page 34460]]

transform how government works for American citizens and businesses by 
dramatically improving the way government builds and buys digital 
services.
    On December 4, 2014, Anne Rung, Administrator for Federal 
Procurement Policy, issued a memorandum titled Transforming the 
Marketplace: Simplifying Federal Procurement to Improve Performance, 
Drive Innovation, and Increase Savings.\1\ In this memorandum, 
Administrator Rung lays out several initiatives for driving greater 
innovation and strengthening Federal acquisition practices, one of 
which is building digital information technology (IT) acquisition 
expertise.
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    \1\ Available at http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/procurement/memo/simplifying-federal-procurement-to-improve-performance-drive-innovation-increase-savings.pdf.
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    As part of this initiative, OFPP and the U.S. Digital Service are 
working together to focus on improving the process of IT acquisition, 
and specifically the acquisition of digital services. OFPP and the U.S. 
Digital Service recognize the need for improving and simplifying the 
digital experiences that citizens and businesses have with the 
Government. Strengthening digital services expertise in the Government 
is a key component of being able to reduce the risk of failed 
acquisitions and systems, and save taxpayer dollars. The Digital 
Service Contracting Professional Training and Development Program prize 
competition seeks to spur innovation in the training and development of 
Federal Contracting Professionals who are fundamental to the success of 
digital service acquisitions. Through program concept white papers, up 
to three design presentations, and a pilot program, the effectiveness 
and feasibility of innovative training and development program 
approaches will be explored.

ADDRESSES: Questions about this prize competition may be emailed to 
[email protected].
    Prize Competition Managers:
Traci Walker--US Digital Service, OMB
Joanie Newhart--OFPP, OMB

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Objective

    The goal of this prize competition is to develop a Digital Service 
Contracting Professional Training and Development Program for the 
Federal Government, which will be used to add a digital service core-
plus specialization for contracting professionals under the Federal 
Acquisition Certification in Contracting (FAC-C) Program issued by 
OFPP.\2\ The final results of the challenge will be provided to Federal 
training institutions, such as the Federal Acquisition Institute (FAI) 
and Defense Acquisition University (DAU), for those institutions to 
implement and maintain the program. This program will be one of many 
initiatives to foster transformative change in the Federal Digital 
Service acquisition culture.
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    \2\ http://www.fai.gov/drupal/sites/default/files/2006-1-20-OMB-Memo-FAC-C-Certification.pdf.
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    No formal contract to any challenge participant will be awarded as 
a direct result of this prize competition.
    The optimal comprehensive training and development program, 
intended for Federal Contracting Professionals, specifically 
Contracting Officers and Contract Specialists, will enable them to 
understand and apply strategic thinking, industry best practices, 
market place conditions, and appropriate acquisition strategies to the 
procurement of digital supplies and services. An ideal training and 
development program will be no longer than 6 months in total, and may 
include strategies such as rotational assignments, mentoring, in-
classroom training, and detail assignments woven into an innovative 
approach to accomplish the stated objectives. A definition of a 
successful digital service buyer, novel ideas, leading-edge approaches, 
and iterative methodologies are highly encouraged in response to this 
Challenge.
    Digital services, as defined by OMB, refers to ``the delivery of 
digital information (data or content) and transactional services (e.g., 
online forms, benefits applications) across a variety of platforms, 
devices, and delivery mechanisms (e.g., Web sites, mobile applications, 
and social media).'' Digital services may be delivered to customers 
either internal or external to the Government, or both.\3\
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    \3\ http://www.whitehouse.gov/digitalgov/digital-services-governance-recommendations.
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    The primary outcomes of this Digital Service Contracting 
Professional Training and Development Program are that participating 
Federal contracting professionals:
     Become digital service procurement experts;
     Are equipped with the knowledge necessary to be imbedded 
within agency Digital Service teams to serve as a business advisor to 
the team, its customers, and its stakeholders; and
     Have the knowledge to lead agency training, workshops, and 
consultations in order to expand digital service procurement expertise 
within their agency and the government.
    Specifically, the program must teach Federal Contracting 
Professionals how to:
    (1) Understand and procure digital services and supplies utilizing 
concepts such as those described in the Digital Services Playbook \4\ 
and the TechFAR \5\ (e.g, DevOps, UX, Design Services, Agile Software 
Development, Open Source, Cloud, Iaas, SaaS, and PaaS);
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    \4\ https://playbook.cio.gov/.
    \5\ https://github.com/WhiteHouse/playbook/blob/gh-pages/_includes/techfar-online.md.
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    (2) Appropriately measure the success of these contracts based on 
industry standards;
    (3) Accurately describe and define the value received; and
    (4) Encourage the use of commercial practices and innovative 
approaches (e.g. modular contracting, broad agency announcements, 
challenges and prizes) to ensure procurements can capture flexible and 
rapidly changing technology advancements.
    The prize challenge will include three phases. Phase I asks for 
participants to submit a white paper that describes their concept for a 
training and development program that will meet the stated objectives. 
Up to three Phase I submissions will be selected as finalists and move 
to Phase II. These finalists are awarded $20,000 each in prize money to 
design in more detail their proposed concept program. At the end of 
Phase II, these finalists will present their in-depth program designs 
at an oral presentation and a one hour mock classroom training to a 
panel of Federal senior leaders. One winner will be selected and moves 
to Phase III, which requires that participant to develop and pilot its 
program for approximately 30 students. In Phase III, up to $250,000 in 
milestone payments will be provided to assist the participant in 
developing their proposed pilot for a training and development program 
that can be easily adopted and implemented by the Government. Upon 
completion of Phase III, the finalist can win up to $50,000 in 
additional prize money for developing a program that fully met the 
stated objectives.
    The pilot will be held in the Washington, DC area with local 
students. However, approaches for the proposed program that include 
virtual components to allow participation of students outside of the 
Washington, DC area (with some in-person sessions required) and/or 
self-pacing are highly encouraged, but must also demonstrate cost 
effectiveness.

[[Page 34461]]

Eligibility and Rules for Participating in the Challenge

     To be eligible to win a prize under this Challenge, an 
individual or entity:
    [cir] Shall have registered to participate in the Challenge under 
the rules promulgated by OMB and published in this Notice;
    [cir] Shall have complied with all the requirements in this Notice;
    [cir] In the case of a private entity, shall be incorporated in and 
maintain a primary place of business in the United States, and in the 
case of an individual, whether participating singly or in a group, 
shall be a citizen or permanent resident of the United States. Non-U.S. 
citizens and non-permanent residents are not eligible to win a monetary 
prize (in whole or in part);
    [cir] In the case of an individual, whether participating singly or 
in a group, must be at least 18 years old at the time of entry;
    [cir] May not be a Federal entity;
    [cir] OMB reserves the right to disqualify and remove any 
submission that is deemed, in the judging panel's discretion, 
inappropriate, offensive, defamatory, and/or demeaning;
    [cir] May not be a Federal employee acting within the scope of his/
her employment, and further, and may not work on his or her 
submission(s) during assigned duty hours;
    [cir] May not be an employee of the US Digital Service, OFPP, a 
judge of the Challenge, or any other party involved with the design, 
production, execution, or distribution of the Challenge or the 
immediate family of such a party (i.e., spouse, parent, step-parent, 
child, or step-child).
     Federal grantees may not use Federal funds to develop 
their Challenge submissions unless use of such funds is consistent with 
the purpose of their grant award and specifically requested to do so 
due to the Challenge design.
     Federal contractors may not use Federal funds from a 
contract to develop their Challenge submissions or to fund efforts in 
support of their Challenge submission.
     Submissions must not infringe upon any copyright or any 
other rights of any third party. Each participant warrants that he or 
she is the sole author and owner of the work and that the work is 
wholly original. It is the responsibility of the participant to obtain 
any rights necessary to use, disclose, or reproduce any intellectual 
property owned by third parties and incorporated in the entry for all 
anticipated uses of the submission. Submissions must not violate or 
infringe upon the rights of other parties, including, but not limited 
to, privacy, publicity or intellectual property rights, or material 
that constitutes copyright or license infringement.
     By participating in this Challenge, each individual 
(whether competing singly or in a group) and entity agree to assume any 
and all risks and waive claims against the Federal Government and its 
related entities (as defined in the COMPETES Act \6\), except in the 
case of willful misconduct, for any injury, death, damage, or loss of 
property, revenue, or profits, whether direct, indirect, or 
consequential, arising from their participation in the Challenge, 
whether the injury, death, damage, or loss arises through negligence or 
otherwise.
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    \6\ https://www.congress.gov/110/plaws/publ69/PLAW-110publ69.pdf.
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     Based on the subject matter of the Challenge, the type of 
work that it will possibly require, as well as an analysis of the 
likelihood of any claims for death, bodily injury, or property damage, 
or loss potentially resulting from Challenge participation, no 
individual (whether competing singly or in a group) or entity 
participating in the Challenge is required to obtain liability 
insurance or demonstrate financial responsibility in order to 
participate in this Challenge.
     By participating in this Challenge, each individual 
(whether competing singly or in a group) or entity agrees to indemnify 
the Federal Government against third party claims for damages arising 
from or related to Challenge activities.
     An individual or entity shall not be deemed ineligible 
because the individual or entity used Federal facilities or consulted 
with Federal employees during the Challenge if the facilities and 
employees are made available to all individuals and entities 
participating in the Challenge on an equitable basis.
     Each individual (whether competing singly or in a group) 
or entity retains title and full ownership in and to their submission 
and each participant expressly reserves all intellectual property 
rights (e.g., copyright) in their submission. However, each participant 
grants to the Federal Government, and others acting on behalf of the 
Federal Government, a royalty-free non-exclusive worldwide license to 
use, copy for use, and display publicly all parts of the submission for 
the purposes of the Challenge and future training and development 
programs. This license may include posting or linking to the submission 
on the official OMB Web site and making it available for use by the 
public.
     OMB reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to (a) 
cancel, suspend, or modify the Challenge, and/or (b) not award any 
prizes if no entries are deemed worthy.
     Each individual (whether competing singly or in a group) 
or entity agrees to follow applicable local, State, and Federal laws 
and regulations.
     Each individual (whether participating singly or in a 
group) and entity participating in this Challenge must comply with all 
terms and conditions of these rules, and participation in this 
Challenge constitutes each participant's full and unconditional 
agreement to abide by these rules. Winning is contingent upon 
fulfilling all requirements herein.
     The Federal government will not provide any travel 
expenses for participants in the pilot projects.
     Prizes awarded under this Challenge will be paid by 
electronic funds transfer and may be subject to Federal income taxes. 
Payment will comply with the Internal Revenue Service withholding and 
reporting requirements, where applicable. Any entrant on the Excluded 
Parties List will not be selected as a finalist or prize winner.

Registration and Submission Process

    All submissions must include information addressing all of the 
mandatory elements. Any submission not including all information will 
not be eligible for award.
    All submissions must be in English. Each submission must consist of 
a PDF file. The PDF documents must be formatted to be no larger than 
8.5'' by 11.0'', with at least 1 inch margins. The participant must not 
use OFPP's or OMB's logo or official seal, or the logo of the U.S. 
Digital Service in the submission, and must not claim Federal 
Government endorsement.
    Certification: Each submission must include a cover letter that the 
individual or every member of the team responding has read and consents 
to be governed by the Challenge Rules and meets the eligibility 
requirements. This cover letter must be signed and dated by all 
participants. The following statement must be included:

    ``I have read and understand the OMB Challenge Rules (``Rules'') 
for the Digital Service Contracting Professional Training and 
Development Program prize competition. I hereby agree to abide by 
such Terms and Rules.
    I hereby agree to assume any and all risks and waive claims 
against the Federal Government and its related entities, except in

[[Page 34462]]

the case of willful misconduct, for any injury, death, damage, or 
loss of property, revenue, or profits, whether direct, indirect, or 
consequential, arising from participation in this prize challenge, 
whether the injury, death, damage, or loss arises through negligence 
or otherwise.
    I hereby agree to indemnify the Federal Government against third 
party claims for damages arising from or related to challenge 
activities.
    I certify that I am over the age of 18 and a United States 
Citizen or a permanent resident.
    I hereby grant to the Federal Government, and others acting on 
behalf of the Federal Government, a royalty-free non-exclusive 
worldwide license to use, copy for use, and display publicly all 
parts of the submission for the purposes of the Challenge. This 
license may include posting or linking to the submission on the 
official OMB Web site and making it available for use by the 
public.''

Submission Requirements and Pilot Implementation

    This Challenge will be conducted in three phases.

Phase I: Program Concept

    Challenge participants will have one month from the date of this 
Notice to submit a program concept. Those submissions must comply with 
the requirements provided below. Up to three Phase I submissions may be 
selected as finalists. The names of the finalists will be posted on the 
Challenge.gov Web site as will the names of any participants receiving 
an honorary mention. Honorary mentions may be given to highly ranked 
submissions that were not identified as one of the final three 
finalists.

Phase II: Detailed Program Design

    The Phase I finalists will receive $20,000 each and will have one 
month from the date of this award, to transform their program concepts 
into a detailed program designs, which meet the requirements provided 
below. One finalist will be selected as the winner of the challenge. 
The winner's name will be posted on Challenge.gov.

Phase III: Pilot

    The challenge winner receives up to $250,000 in milestone payments 
and will have five months to develop and implement their design with up 
to 30 government contracting students. Milestone payments will be made 
based on mutually agreed upon deliverables throughout the pilot based 
on the accepted design. An initial milestone payment will be determined 
to assist with the startup costs of the pilot.
    OMB will select and provide students for the pilot project. The 
students in the pilot project will be selected from contracting 
professionals who are certified at the Federal Acquisition 
Certification--Contracting (FAC-C) or Defense Acquisition Workforce 
Improvement Act (DAWIA) Level II or above.\7\ These pilot students are 
the target demographic for the program, are influential early adopters 
of new and innovative acquisition strategies, and will have some 
experience in IT acquisition. These students will have managerial 
commitment and approval to fully participate and meet the requirements 
of the pilot; however it is anticipated that pilot participants will be 
not required to be 100% assigned to the pilots for the entire length of 
the program, and will remain in their current jobs during the pilot.
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    \7\ Additional information on the FAC-C program is available at 
www.fai.gov and the DAWIA program at https://dap.dau.mil/career/cont/Pages/Certification.aspx.
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    Assignment: In order to help judge the effectiveness of the 
training and development program, as part of the pilot, the Federal 
contracting students will be expected to complete a ``live'' digital 
service assignment, which could be an actual project, procurement, or 
agency engagement. OMB will work with the Phase II winner to determine 
which assignment is best-suited for its specific pilot based on its 
proposed design.

Phase I Program Concept

    Each submission for this Challenge shall consist of a white paper 
describing the concept for a training and development program that will 
meet the stated objectives. It must include a concept overview that 
describes how the proposed program will improve the ability of 
Contracting Specialists/Officers to purchase digital services. The 
white paper must detail how the solution will create a competent 
digital buying contracting workforce and how this workforce will help 
agencies buy digital services better. The white paper must also 
include:
    [cir] Outline of major content focus areas with their performance 
objectives;
    [cir] Suggested instructional strategies for each content area;
    [cir] Overall expected program outcomes and how the concept will 
meet them.
    [cir] A clear description of what innovative training and 
development approaches are proposed along with the benefits of those 
approaches to this program.
    [cir] The type of Government stakeholder input required if the 
design is selected for the pilot in Phase III.
    [cir] The anticipated cost of the pilot and proposed program and 
any expected intangible benefits related to the program, or ways to 
utilize virtual components and/or quantities of scale strategies to 
leverage the program across the government for Federal Contracting 
Professionals.
    [cir] A concept for defining and evaluating how well the students 
have achieved the objectives of the program, including a comprehensive 
survey for the students and a description of how the digital assignment 
outcome will be assessed.

Phase II: Program Design

    The finalists chosen in Phase I shall prepare a detailed program 
design, including the following three sections:
 Program Description
    [cir] More details on the major content focus areas with their 
performance objectives,
    [cir] Comprehensive Syllabus
    [cir] Defined instructional strategies and educational method for 
each content area,
    [cir] Mock-ups or prototypes,
    [cir] Proposed speaker lists,
    [cir] How a digital assignment will be incorporated into the 
program,
    [cir] An understanding of how the program components will achieve 
the desired program outcomes,
 Assessment Plan
    [cir] More details on the planned assessment of how well the 
students have achieved the objectives of the program;
    [cir] A remediation plan for trainees who do not achieve the goals; 
and
    [cir] A concept for a Capstone or Practical Skills Test that might 
be required for certification.
 Anticipated Cost To Implement Program
    [cir] The estimated investment required to implement both the pilot 
and the resulting program. The pilot would be estimated on a basis of 
30 students as will the resulting program. If the pilot is a scaled-
down version of the fully-implemented program, the differentiation must 
be explained.
    [cir] Any expected intangible benefits related to the program, or 
ways to leverage quantities of scale strategies to facilitate a 
widespread adoption of the program in the government.

Phase II Oral Proposal

    This program design will be presented to the judges through oral 
proposals. Additionally, a one hour mock classroom training shall be 
provided to the judges in order for the challengers to demonstrate one 
aspect of their

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proposed design. It will be up to the challenger to determine which 
aspect and method of delivery will best encompass the concept of their 
proposed design.

Phase III: Program Development and Pilot

    In this phase, the training and development program is developed 
and major components are piloted by the Phase II winner with up to 30 
students to validate the content, feasibility, instructional 
strategies, and expected outcomes of the training program. There shall 
be complete lesson plans, participant materials, mock-ups and 
prototypes, and training aids to test during the pilot delivery. The 
pilot program delivery is the ``test drive'' of the proposed challenge 
solution to determine whether it meets expected outcomes. In addition 
to the students assigned to the pilot, OMB will provide key 
stakeholders and government subject matter experts who can provide 
other limited assistance required to develop and pilot the program as 
requested by the challenger in Phases I and II. OMB will assist the 
Phase II winner with the identification of current Procurements/
Projects/Digital Service teams that students will be assigned to work 
on during the course of the pilot. The nature of the assignment chosen 
will be based on a discussion between the Phase II winner and OMB 
during pilot program preparation. Sample assignments might include:
     Conducting a solicitation from Request For Proposal to 
Award to establish a Federal-wide Blanket Purchase Agreement.
     Working with a Digital Service Agency team on drafting a 
Request for Proposal.
     Assisting GSA's 18F with a consulting effort and resulting 
acquisition.
     Drafting a Digital Service Agency team's acquisition 
strategy for multiple projects/acquisitions.
    Submission shall include an end user survey to be delivered to the 
students based on the proposed program concept which will be used to 
determine how confident the participants are in their ability to apply 
the knowledge and skills learned.

Final Submission: Results of Pilot and Update of Proposed Program

    Upon completion of the pilot, the following information shall be 
provided to OMB by January 31, 2016 to help OMB judge the outcome of 
the proposed training and development program:
    [cir] Results of the assessment of how well the students achieved 
the objectives of the proposed program, and update of the proposed 
remediation plan and concept for a Capstone or Practical Skills Test 
that might be required for certification;
    [cir] Any logistical problems that surfaced in the execution of the 
pilot (this could relate to scheduling challenges, absenteeism on 
behalf of the participants, physical or logical roadblocks 
encountered), including what was done to resolve the problems, or what 
should be done if a scaled program were to be implemented to ensure 
success;
    [cir] The pilot's actual cost breakdown including contract 
services, equipment, facilities, hardware, software, training 
materials, as it relates to the proposed submission (this could include 
return on investment evaluations and alternative analyses);
    [cir] An accountability report that captures how well the pilot was 
executed (pilot's projected cost breakdown compared to the actual cost 
breakdown) and how quality was measured to get the expected results of 
the pilot.
    [cir] The documented program design incorporating lessons learned 
and any changes made to the design initially proposed;
    [cir] The final estimated investment required to implement the 
proposed program; and
    [cir] A description of how Return on Investment (ROI) should be 
monitored (e.g., linkage to performance metrics, etc.).

Evaluation Process

    The evaluation process will begin by removing those that are not 
responsive to this Challenge or not in compliance with all rules of 
eligibility. Judges will examine all responsive and compliant 
submissions, and rate the entries. Judges will determine the most 
meritorious submissions based on these ratings and select up to three 
finalists to include in Phase II--Program Design.
    Honorable Mentions may be included as non-monetary prizes and 
announced along with the winners on Challenge.gov.

Phase I: Program Concept Submission

    The judging panel will rate each submission based upon the 
effectiveness of the overall concept to help foster transformative 
change in the Federal Digital Service acquisition culture, the 
viability of the proposed program, the anticipated cost and its 
reasonableness, the effectiveness of the proposed assessment of the 
pilot, the innovativeness of the approach, and its potential for 
achieving the objectives of the program.

Phase II: Program Design

    Evaluation will be based on the following criteria:
Overall Effectiveness of the Proposed Program Design
    [cir] This factor examines the quality of the design and the mock 
classroom experience and how it demonstrates how the proposed training 
solution will help participants learn the skills and concepts that are 
desired outcomes for this program. It also examines the creativity and 
innovativeness of the program.
Overall Assessment Capability
    [cir] This factor examines the effectiveness of the proposed 
assessment capability, including whether the data collection, tracking, 
and analysis methods proposed demonstrate the participants' ability to 
meet the program objectives.
Feasibility of Implementation
    [cir] This factor examines whether the relative cost of 
implementation is reasonable and commensurate with the caliber of the 
proposed solution and whether the concept can be scaled and modified to 
suit local resources and constraints in terms of number of 
participants.
    Scores from each criterion will be weighted equally.

Phase III: Pilot Development and Implementation

    Evaluation of the effectiveness of the proposed program will be 
based on the final submission and on the following criteria:
Results of Assessment of Pilot and Proposed Program
    [cir] This criteria examines whether the skills students learned 
through the pilot met the objectives of the program and whether or not 
students demonstrated confidence in their ability to apply the 
knowledge and skills learned. This includes whether the students 
indicated an understanding of how to procure Digital Services utilizing 
concepts such as those described in the Digital Service Playbook and 
the TechFAR, how to appropriately measure the success of contracts, how 
to accurately describe and define the value received, and how to 
encourage the use of commercial practices and innovative approaches to 
ensure procurements can capture flexible and rapidly changing 
technology advancements.

[[Page 34464]]

    [cir] This criteria also examines the likelihood of the proposed 
program to meet the program objectives.
Expected Return on Investment
    [cir] This criteria examines the benefits of the pilot and the 
proposed program as compared to the cost. Judges may examine the cost 
effectiveness of the proposed program compared to alternatives. Judges 
may examine expected intangible benefits related to the pilot.
    [cir] This criteria also examines the accountability report.
    The winner of the challenge will be eligible for an additional 
prize of $50,000.00 based upon the results of the evaluation of the 
final submission.

    Authority: 15 U.S.C. 3719.Dated:

    Dated: June 9, 2015.
Joanie F. Newhart,
Office of Federal Procurement Policy, OMB.
[FR Doc. 2015-14683 Filed 6-15-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3110-05-P