Infusing Innovation into Acquisition at DHS
A group of procurement officials at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is steadily transforming how the agency does business. Using the Procurement Innovation Lab (PIL), officials are experimenting with new acquisition strategies to streamline processes and improve efficiency for industry and government.
“The PIL framework, backed by data-driven outcomes, builds stronger comfort in taking smart risks across our DHS procurement community,” stated Paul Courtney, the Chief Procurement Officer (CPO) at DHS, in the lab’s annual report. “As the complexity of our mission requirements and associated procurements continues to evolve and grow, this risk-tolerant, mission-focused mindset is a must have within our procurement culture.”
In fiscal year (FY) 2021, all DHS components received at least one PIL project—a first for the Department. The project begins with a procurement team member approaching the lab. With the guidance of two PIL officials, the procurement team discusses its goals, picks a PIL technique, or devises a new one. While the acquisition process proceeds using the PIL technique, the teams remain in regular contact to ensure success. PIL officials interview all successful and unsuccessful vendors after the agency awards the contract and subsequently provide feedback to the team.
Among the new procurement techniques is the Highest Technically Rated Offeror with Fair and Reasonable Price evaluation model. The General Services Administration (GSA) developed this model for evaluating prices as fair and reasonable with a focus on technical factors, with consideration for potentially fusing procurements with closely related projects. In their responses, vendors provide metrics, outcomes, and results from specific project-based experiences in a case-study format.
The lab's new Knowledge Management System (KMS), which manages the day-to-day activities of the PIL team while simultaneously collecting data with minimal burdens, reveals trends and identifies the “best of the best” in certain categories.
In celebration of the achievement, the lab presented the following awards:
Most PIL Innovative Techniques Used: Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Law Enforcement Investigative Database Subscription (LEIDS)—13 innovations;
Highest Dollar Value (BPA/IDIQ): Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) COVID-19 Response, National Medical Staffing Services—$3.2 billion;
Highest Dollar Value (non-BPA/IDIQ): Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Integration Verification Validation and Testing (IVV&T)—$118 million;
Lowest Dollar Value (non-BPA/IDIQ): FEMA National Incident Management System (NIMS)—$4.2 million;
Fastest Solicitation to Award: FEMA Course Review—31 days;
Most Offers/Quotes Received: FEMA COVID-19 Response, National Medical Staffing Services—54 offers;
Most Saved Percentage from Independent Government Cost Estimate (IGCE) to Award (non-BPA/IDIQ): U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) Quality and IV&V Services for Delivery (QISD)—45.8 percent;
Most Saved Percentage from IGCE to Award (BPA/IDIQ): Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Specialized Security Training— 56.5 percent; and,
Highest Dollar Amount Awarded to Small Business (non-BPA/IDIQ): Department of the Interior (DOI), Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE), Enterprise Information Technology Core Services (EITCS)—$70 million.
In FY 2022, PIL launched an idea competition to tap into the collective intelligence of DHS acquisition workers using crowdsourcing along with a tiered training pilot program aimed at betterment, affordability, and mission-oriented evaluations.
PIL officials also intend to prepare a concise executive briefing summarizing the piloted innovation techniques and conveying the value impact of each innovation to senior leaders and expand opportunities to external agencies for short or project-based details.