In This Week's Hinz Sight:

• Opportunity Spotlight: ITES-4S

• AI Corner: Bid More for Less!

• Culture Corner: How to be Human in a Technology Driven World

• Competitive Intelligence & Pricing: Strategic Pricing Strategies for LPTA Procurements

• Four To Follow: Get the lowdown on four interesting pursuits!

ITES-4S 

Contact Len: [email protected]

This is the follow-up to the successful Army's PEO/EIS/CHESS Information Technology Enterprise Solutions (ITES)-3 which has 135 contracts. This estimated $12.1B acquisition has a potential RFP release in Sept 2024, but awards not until Sept 2027, so we may see a slip in RFP release in 2025 or later. This is again a MA/IDIQ with both SBSA and Full/Open Unrestricted pools.  POP is anticipated to be 9 years.

CHESS is planning on a Market Research Phase, RFI Questionnaires and then holding an Industry Day. Some planned, new items for ITES-4S are:

• Multiple NAICS Codes

• 8(a) Set-aside planning to include an increase in small business goals and allowing Government Customers to use ITES-4S to meet their SB goals

• FedRAMP standards for Cloud Services

• Metrics for Proposal and RFI submissions

• Minimum requirements for Vendors to have on their forward-facing websites.

The scope is anticipated to be similar to ITES-3S and should include these primary areas:

• Business Process Reengineering

• Information Systems Security

• Information Assurance

• IT Services

• Enterprise Design, Integration, and Consolidation

• Education/Training

• Program/Project Management

• Systems Operation and Maintenance

• Network Support

Bid More for Less!

Contact Josh: [email protected]

We recently talked to clients about their goals for 2024. The consensus was that they need to bid more with the same resources. Most of them were targeting a 28-42% increase in submissions. Increasing their bids is a fundamental path to more revenue, but the risk can include compromised quality and a daunting workload increase, which could result in turnover - both outcomes impact the win rate.

Implementing the right AI solution plus a coherent knowledge management approach mitigates these risks:

1. Mitigating Employee Attrition: Increasing the number of proposals may inadvertently lead to employee attrition, jeopardizing a company's capacity to meet new submission goals. Generative AI serves as a strategic solution to alleviate this risk.

2. Optimizing Proposal Team Size: Executives contemplating team expansion face the challenge of heavy fixed overhead costs associated with adding at least 1 Full Time Employee (FTE). Using AI will leverage your existing resources.

3. Revolutionizing Productivity Cost-Effectively: Generative AI products should be evaluated for security, quality, and speed to make sure you get the best fit. Implementing the right solution can increase team productivity by up to 30%, presenting a cost-effective method to meet goals and avoid burnout.

How to be Human in a Technology Driven World

Contact Angela: [email protected]

Technology is transforming our lives in ever expanding ways from how we entertain ourselves to how we conduct business and, most importantly, write proposals. This wonderful gift of efficiency has also challenged us with information overload, digital addiction, and social isolation. At Hinz, we balance technology and humanity as we adapt to the new normal. It’s not one or the other, it’s both! We can use technology wisely and responsibly, while celebrating our human uniqueness. Our corporate culture is built on empathy, compassion, curiosity, and accountability. We’ll delve into these values more in this newsletter over the next few weeks!

“Race to the Bottom” – Strategic Pricing Strategies for LPTA Procurements

Contact Chris: [email protected]

In Lowest Price, Technically Acceptable (LPTA) procurements, pricing strategies focus on offering the lowest price while (just) meeting technical requirements. This involves rigorous cost analysis, lean operations for cost reduction, market and competitor understanding, and highly customized pricing for each opportunity. Success hinges on balancing aggressive pricing with maintaining quality and long-term financial sustainability.

Three Key Takeaways

1. Cost Efficiency is Crucial: Success in LPTA procurements hinges on a company's ability to efficiently manage and minimize costs. Thorough cost analysis and lean operational strategies are vital to offer the lowest possible price while ensuring all technical requirements are met.

2. Balanced Pricing Approach: In LPTA bids, it is essential to find a balance between competitive pricing and maintaining quality. Underbidding can jeopardize profitability and sustainability, while overbidding can lead to losing the contract. Understanding market pricing and competitor strategies is key to this balance.

3. Meeting Technical Standards is Paramount: While offering the lowest price is the primary goal in LPTA procurements, adhering to the specified technical requirements is equally important. Pricing strategies must be developed with a detailed understanding of these requirements to ensure compliance without unnecessary cost additions.

Four to Follow:

2024 and beyond is a target-rich environment for the GOVCON space.  Here are a few more high-value opportunities you should keep your eyes on and decide if you are pursuing as a prime or sub.

1.  Defense Air Force Strategic Transformation Support II (DAFSTS II) - the follow-on to the AFSTS program which has 8 incumbent contracts.  DAFSTS II is estimated at a $5B program value across multiple full/open unrestricted awards.  Estimated draft RFP in late winter/early spring and current contracts expire mid-June 2025.

2. Department of State (DOS) ACCESS - the Bureau of Information Resource Management (IRM) at DOS is looking to acquire IT equipment and hardware.  DOS stated at the Q1FY24 Virtual Industry Day that a solicitation was anticipated for Q2FY24 and that this estimated $5B effort would be an SBSA.  

3. USAID NextGen Procurement Services Agent HIV (PSA HIV) - this estimated $3B agency MA/IDIQ is set to be a full/open unrestricted competition with an RFP being released in late January 2024 and awards by the end of 2024.  Contract POP is estimated to be a 10-year base contract.

4. HHS National Education Campaign and Outreach Contract (NEC) - this potential $3B agency MA/IDIQ is planned to have a 7-year base performance period.  RFP is estimated for release by the end of Aug 2024 with an award in Aug 205.  This is a follow-on to the existing NEC IDIQ contract which has 4 incumbents.

About Hinz Consulting

Hinz Consulting provides services across the full business development cycle:

• Proposal Consulting

• AI Services

• Strategic Pricing

• Training

• Capture

• Competitive Intelligence

• BD Transformation Consulting

• Process/Methodology Consulting

• Tools and Templates

• Production Services

• Small Business