Public Member Service on Foreign Service Selection, Reconvened, and Reconstituted Boards

Introduction:The Department of State maintains a rigorous system to identify and promote employees, as required under the Foreign Service Act of 1980. One key requirement is to include Public Members on the Foreign Service Selection Boards to review the performance records of Foreign Service personnel; recommend employees for promotion; and recommend other personnel actions when warranted alongside the department's board members. Public members bring diverse experience and perspectives to Board deliberations that enhance the integrity of the performance review process for employees who represent the United States.Anticipated Requirement:The Contractor will be responsible for wide-spread recruitment of qualified candidates, providing multiple qualified candidates for the government's ultimate selection, replacement of members when necessary, and payment to public members for their service. The government estimates a need for approximately 40 Public Members per year.Reference, 3 FAM

2320, Promotion of Members of the Foreign Service:Public Members – Each public member of a Selection Board must, so far as possible, meet the following qualifications:(1) Have gained prominence in a profession, in business, in labor, or in a non-governmental organization or institution serviced by, or having an interest in the Foreign Service;(2) Have some overseas experience;(3) Be available to serve on a full-time basis during the entire time that the boards are in session; and(4) Not be employed in the Federal service.(5) Not be an agent of a foreign principal, a lobbyist for a foreign entity, or receive income from a government of a foreign country at the time of appointment or during his or her service on a Selection Board.Additionally, each Public Member will meet the following minimum requirements:Career Background:Including but not limited to: Information Technology, Law Enforcement, Educators (at all levels), Medical Practitioners, Business, Human Resources, Building Operations, Transportation and Freight, Security Engineer, Media, or Finance ProfessionalsEducation:Minimum of a Bachelor’s DegreeTechnical Skills:Hands-on experience with Microsoft Office Suite (particularly Word, Excel, & Teams)Have extensive experience in a profession, in business, in labor, or in a non-governmental organization or institution serviced by or having an interest in the Foreign Service and/or foreign policy.Have relevant overseas experience, including but not limited to time living, studying, or working abroad.May not be employed by the Federal government.Not be an agent of a foreign principal, a lobbyist for a foreign entity, or receive income from a government of a foreign country at the time of appointment or during his or her service on a Selection Board.Not be a relative or other personal contact of any person employed in the office of Performance Evaluation, or within the Bureau of Global Talent Management. A “relative” is a spouse or ex-spouse, domestic partner or ex-domestic partner as described in 3 FAM 1610, father, mother, son, daughter, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, first cousin, nephew, niece, father-in-law, mother-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in law, stepfather, stepmother, stepson, stepdaughter, stepbrother, stepsister, half-brother, or half-sister.Not be a current or former employee of the Department of State, whether retired or otherwise no longer employed.Not a direct recipient of grants or other funding from the Department of State such that it could be deemed a conflict of interest.Also reference, 22 USC 4002: Establishment of Selection Boards.Public Members will require a successful Public Trust Security background check. Upon selection, Public Members will be required to complete required onboarding documents for the Bureau of Diplomatic Security to perform a background investigation.Anticipated Strategy: Multiple Award Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA). BPAs will be awarded to multiple vendors, where all call orders are competed among active BPA holders.Anticipated Type of Contract: Hybrid. The recruitment, management, and administrative effort will be Firm-Fixed-Priced. The hours expended by the public members will be Labor Hour.Anticipated Period of Performance: Base year, plus four option years. The period of performance will begin approximately May 15 (Monday-Friday) and will remain full time until August 30th. Other boards (e.g., Reconstituted, Performance Pay, etc.) will be scheduled after August 30th. GTM/PE will coordinate with vendors to schedule additional boards, as needed. Board members are required for the duration of the board. The awarded BPAs will contain option provisions.Depending on their caseload, the Boards can meet from four to nine weeks for a minimum of 40 hours per week during the period the Boards are in session. Public members will be expected to be available and online during core business hours of 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM ET.This Sources Sought Notice is a Request for Information (RFI) and is NOT a Request for Proposals (RFP), nor is it a Request for Quotes (RFQ). In accordance with FAR 15.201(e), responses to this notice are NOT offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. The government will NOT award a contract on the basis of this notice, or otherwise pay for information solicited by it. All costs associated with responding to this notice will be solely at the interested respondent’s expense. Participation in this effort is strictly voluntary. Objective of this Sources Sought Notice:The objective of this notice is to understand vendor capabilities and interest levels in the commercial marketplace. Review of the responses to this notice will focus on the offeror’s technical capability to provide a quality solution, corporate experience/past performance for relevant scope with commercial activities or government agencies. The requested information is for planning and market research purposes only. Not responding to this notice does not preclude participation in any future RFP, if any is issued.The information provided in this notice and any future changes to this notice are subject to change and are not binding on the Department of State. It is the responsibility of the interested parties to monitor Contract Opportunities on SAM.gov for additional information or any subsequent notices pertaining to this RFI. Offerors shall clearly identify their socio-economic small business status in the first paragraph of their cover letters or capability statements, if applicable. Capability statement should explain the relevance to this planned requirement.Please send capability statements to TosoCL@state.gov.