OPM set to recompete USAjobs
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The development and management of the government's jobs Web site is up for grabs, again.
The development and management of the government's jobs Web site is up for grabs, again.The Office of Personnel Management by July 31 will release a new request for proposals to upgrade the USAjobs.opm.gov site under the Recruitment One-Stop e-government project.'We are very happy with the Recruitment One-Stop project as it exists right now,' said Mark A. Robbins, OPM's general counsel. 'The decision to move forward with another competition is based on two elements: We wanted to reassure ourselves that we are getting the best value in terms of pricing and technology and we were intrigued by the responses we received from the request for information we issued earlier this year.'The decision comes more than a year after the Government Accountability Office upheld a bid protest of the original contract and seven months after Rep. Tom Davis (R-Va.), chairman of the House Government Reform Committee, threatened to withhold funding if OPM did not recompete the contract.OPM, which originally awarded Monster Government Solutions of Maynard, Mass., a 10-year, $62 million contract, issued a request for information in March to see what other technologies are available.'Chairman Davis appreciates OPM's decision to move forward with a new RFP,' said David Marin, committee spokesman. 'This decision satisfies the process-oriented concerns he raised with [OPM] director [Kay Coles] James.'OPM received 10 to 12 responses from small and large businesses to the RFI, said Ron Flom, OPM's senior procurement executive.OPM said the new contract will be firm fixed-price for one base year with four one-year options, done under full and open competition. OPM used the General Services Administration Federal Supply Service schedule for the previous contract.'Based on the responses we received from the RFI, we opened competition up to any qualified firms,' said Clarence Crawford, OPM chief financial officer and associate director for management. 'Any firm with demonstrated capability can apply and compete for Recruitment One-Stop.'OPM's troubles with the first contract started with FSS. Simplicity Inc. of Arlington, Va., protested that Monster did not have the proper schedule contract to bid on the solicitation. Monster has since gotten on the correct schedule, but GAO ruled that OPM should re-evaluate all the proposals. OPM balked at GAO's ruling, prompting Davis to exert his influence.'Knowing in the IT field how quickly technology turns over, a five-year contract is more realistic' than the previous 10-year deal, Flom said. OPM's decision was not a surprise, a Monster official said.'OPM is not recompeting this contract because of our contract performance, it is more because of political pressure based on [the] protest,' said Brent Pearson, general manager of Monster Government Solutions. OPM extended Monster's first contract through Sept. 30, and Pearson said the agency has not approached him about another extension.
Schedule problems
Schedule problems
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