MODCloud Adoption 2 – Access to Project and Service Management Professional Services resource to support development and growth of Cloud Services across Defence

Tender description

Work done so far Existing supplier under predecessor contract has been delivering Professional Services resource according to demand raised through Statements of Work, for the past 3 calendar years. The Authority wants successor contract to run on similar basis. Which phase the project is in Live Existing team Resource supporting CES through the MODCloud Adoption 2 contract will embed within existing Project Teams across CES (and potentially wider), according to demand signal raised through requestors’ submission of Statement of Work (which may be co-drafted by supplier). The Professional Services resource currently supporting CES deliverables is ~35 persons in strength. As at Jun 23, under the Predecessor contract within CES 6 roles were supporting Emporium; 15 roles were supporting SECRET CLOUD; 7 roles supporting the Data Centre Rationalisation (DCR) team; 1 role supporting ABOVE SECRET (AS) team. There is also an enduring role requirement to support external OEHE team. A further 6 roles supporting DEFNET application under the predecessor contract will be discontinued. The main distribution of resource across CES has shifted from Emporium to SECRET CLOUD teams over time, with this trend likely to continue- as Emporium transitions towards service maintenance and management, where SECRET CLOUD remains in developmental stage. Address where the work will be done Where work is required to be performed in location work will typically take place in Mustang Building, Rudloe Site, MOD Corsham, SN14 9NR. However, in majority of roles significant/ majority of time can be spent working remotely. Working arrangements Contractors employed under contract will be required to embed themselves within a team of Crown Servants, typically working 8-hour days within Civil Service core hours. Contractors should be prepared to work onsite when it is requested by Authority. For a small number of cases in SECRET CLOUD, there will be a requirement to work exclusively onsite. Expenses (including T&S) will not be eligible for travel to base location stipulated under Statement of Work (understood to be Corsham, if not otherwise stated). Onsite work performed away from home location may attract entitlement to T&S expenses in accordance with MOD Travel Guide rates, providing it is approved in advance by Emporium contract Authority. Provide more information about your security requirements: Security Check (SC) Provide more information about your security requirements: Developed Vetting (DV) Provide more information about your security requirements (optional): All roles must hold SC as a minimum. Supplier MUST also be able to provide DV cleared individuals for select roles, to be dictated within Statements of Work. Latest start date 2023-10-02 Enter the expected contract length: 2 years Extension period: 1 year Special terms and conditions Role specific requirements to be agreed at point of agreeing Statements of Work. However, Authority reserves the right to demand that select roles are exclusively based on-site (typically in Corsham). Special terms and conditions Security requirements of a minority of select roles may dictate that only MOD provided laptops may be appropriate to perform role. Special terms and conditions Inside IR35. Supply of Resource. Are you prepared to show your budget details?: Yes Indicative maximum: 13500000 Provide further information: £13.5M (ex VAT) Limit of Liability. Confirm if you require a contracted out service or supply of resource Supply of resource: the off-payroll rules may apply Summary of work Project Emporium is responsible for developing the MODCloud hosting service. A successor to a current contract is required by Emporium, SECRET CLOUD, Data Centre Rationalisation (DCR) and ABOVE SECRET teams within Defence Digital Core Enabling Services (CES), to employ suitably qualified experienced personnel (SQEP) contractors in fields which include project management; service support; customer engagement and onboarding; Scaled Agile methodology; governance and approvals. The support this contract will offer should also be accessible to other Defence customers on a call-off basis, to establish and maintain their applications within MODCloud, subject to Emporium Authority approval. 35 resources are currently contracted to work in support of CES delivery under the predecessor MODCloud Adoption contract. Emporium intends to reduce its dependency upon external contractors through a SUSTAIN Plan over life of the new contract, however, a similar requirement is currently forecast over the initial period of the MODCloud Adoption 2 contract. Where the supplied staff will work South West England Who the organisation using the products or services is MOD StratCom - Defence Digital - Core Enabling Services Why the work is being done The availability of a successor contract to a current contract will ensure continued access to a reservoir of potential resource that CES requesters can call upon to fill urgently required role gaps at short notice. MODCloud Adoption2 contractor support is typically required to support delivery within CES because of desired flexibility of the role; a skillset being required in which a Crown Servant is not readily available to perform the required function; or the urgency of demand requiring the role to be filled earlier than would be possible via Crown Servant recruitment. The business problem you need to solve The task of developing and growing Cloud Services across Defence is a considerable one. In the 6 years that Emporium has been established demand for SQEP to support project delivery has remained consistent- whilst the nature of role requirement; skillset required, and where this is to be employed has evolved considerably. CES require access to Professional Services resource in order to maintain programme delivery, driving significant cost savings across Defence through economies of scale- by increasing Defence customer take-up of MODCloud, and reducing dependency upon legacy discrete data hosting solutions. CES need to reduce excessive dependency upon Professional Services resource over the life of the MODCloud Adoption 2 contract. This will be a progressive transformation, as the immediate wholesale transfer of role responsibilities to Crown Servants would create significant gaps and programme disruption. Therefore, the new supplier must support plans to handover contractor-held responsibility to Crown Servant. There will nevertheless be an enduring, albeit reduced, requirement for Professional Services contractor support to CES delivery following SUSTAIN Plan transformation. First user type: Predecessor contract has been utilised by: Project Emporium; SECRET CLOUD, the Data Centre Rationalisation (DCR) team, and the ABOVE SECRET (AS) project team. Enter more details about this user type: Over the life of the contract the specific customer requirements for each role will evolve considerably (both in terms of the roles needing to be filled, and in terms of the responsibilities and skills needed to effectively perform more enduring roles). It is envisaged that the MODCloud Adoption 2 contract will serve the same customer base. Specific customer needs that are required for individuals to perform requested roles are dictated within Statements of Work (SOWs) which will typically be raised on a recurring 4-6 month basis for any enduring roles. SOWs must be agreed between Authority and supplier prior to delivery commencing in every instance. Questions and Clarifications 1. Does the existing supplier have an exit strategy or plan that can be shared? The current incumbent does hold an obligation to provide an Exit Plan, and specific details will be shared with winning supplier following contract award and signature. However, key details around Exit relevant to the prospective supplier are as follows: The existing contract is due to expire on 30 Nov 23 and the Authority intends full Handover Takeover of responsibility between existing supplier and prospective supplier to be completed no later than 31 Oct 23. The Authority plans to facilitate a one/two week (role dependent) Handover Takeover period between contractors, to ensure transfer of key corporate knowledge and to maintain continuity of support. Existing contractor will be instructed by Authority to document their responsibilities and key information associated with their role, and share with Crown Servant Product Owner for review prior to sharing with prospective supplier’s contractor. In any instance where preferred face-to-face Handover Takeover is not possible, Authority will play greater involvement in familiarising new starter with role requirements and expectations to ensure a successful transition. The Authority expects key roles to be filled to enable HOTO from the incumbent to ensure no loss of support to the MODCloud Team. Prospective suppliers should articulate how they intend to provide resources to meet Authority requirements on time. Last Updated: 27 July 2023, 12:41 2. There are no JSPs mentioned within the documentation shared, can the Authority share which JSPs are pertinent. Familiarity with JSP 440 is expected, particularly in relation to Security Classifications and information handling instructions. Specific roles may hold additional requirement for familiarity or compliance with Joint Service Publications or other Government policy. Such role-specific requirements will be defined post contract award when requester, Authority and supplier agree the Statement of Work (SOW) content. Two examples of specific role requirements are that a number of Service Management related roles (particularly JSP 604 Case Officer roles) will require familiarity with JSP 604 Network Joining Rules, and a number of roles with involvement in approvals work will need to be familiar with JSP 655 Investment Approvals document. Last Updated: 27 July 2023, 12:40 3. Please could the authority confirm their definition of a Client-Side Lead role in support of contract governance; I.e. is this seen to be a Project Management type role that supports the delivery, or a customer liaison role that sits outside the project delivery team? The nature of the Client Side role will, to some extent, depend upon how the supplier plans to deliver requirement to the Authority and how the contract evolves. However, this role is envisaged by Authority as being a customer liaison role that sits outside the project delivery team. There are Crown Servant Product Owners already in place within the organisation to co-ordinate Programme Delivery, and contractors from supplier integrated within Project Delivery team would typically be employed in defined, paid roles under mutually agreed Statements of Work. However, the following functions (not exclusive) would be desirable to the Authority in performance of a Client Side Lead role: -To schedule and lead regular and ad-hoc Governance meetings with the Authority (keeping Authority updated upon delivery progress across the contract); -To provide the Authority with mutually agreed Management Information; -To coordinate role hiring and filling on behalf of supplier with Authority, better understanding requirement and communicating any delays and challenges; -To engage with Authority around any contractor performance concerns, and lead upon any remedial actions required; -To be contactable and available to Authority in event of situation arising that may require urgent action to resolve; -To liaise with prospective customers and support/ lead upon activity drafting and agreeing Statement of Works (SOWs); -To consolidate contractor timesheet information and confirm monthly Invoice amounts and successful payment Last Updated: 27 July 2023, 12:39 4. Please can the authority confirm the grade range of the skills across the required SFIA categories and their current balance? For example, of the 25 SQEP 2 are Grade 6+ for Strategy & Architecture, 10 are Grades 4 & 5 for Development & Delivery and 10 are Grade 3 and below for Delivery & Operations. Role grade range requirements are subject to change, and a degree of flexibility may exist for Authority to accept slight deviation from requested SFIA level fill, depending upon the experience and suitability of the Suitably Qualified Experienced Personnel (SQEP) made available by supplier to fill role. As an indication only, at Jun 23 SFIA rates by CES team area were as follows (these will have changed by contract start date): 6 roles supporting EMPORIUM were @ 1* SFIA 6; 2* SFIA 5; 2* SFIA 4 and 1* SFIA 3. 15 roles supporting SECRET CLOUD were @ 6* SFIA 5; 5* SFIA 4; and 4* SFIA 3. 7 roles supporting the Data Centre Rationalisation (DCR) team were @ 2* SFIA 6; 2* SFIA 5; 2* SFIA 4; and 1* SFIA 3. One role supporting ABOVE SECRET (AS) team was @ SFIA 6. There was also one role external to CES supporting the OEHE Project Team @ SFIA 6. Last Updated: 27 July 2023, 12:38 5. Please can the authority confirm which of the selected roles require DV? In general, all roles will require SC as a minimum, with only SECRET CLOUD and ABOVE SECRET Cloud roles potentially requiring additional DV clearance status. As it currently stands none of the 15 SECRET CLOUD roles being delivered require Security Clearance status greater than SC. However, role DV clearance requirements are subject to change. Last Updated: 27 July 2023, 12:37 6. Please can the authority provide guidance on the SFIA grades and description of the client-side role? SFIA grades are understood by the Authority as follows: SFIA 1 Follow- ie Very limited to no prior experience of required task expected. Should be able to perform largely repetitive administrative tasks under close supervision of overseeing Line Manager; SFIA 2 Assist- ie Very limited experience but able to perform tasks with some level of complexity effectively in support of, and under the looser supervision of, colleague/s who hold over-arching responsibility for successful task completion; SFIA 3 Apply- ie Limited prior experience of required task, but ability to hold responsibility for task completion; learn new skills quickly and work relatively independently whilst exercising limited initiative to understand higher intent and solve problems unsupported; SFIA 4 Ensure- ie Relevant prior experience to task typically expected, with ability to adapt and incorporate newly required skills quickly. Resource to own accountability for task completion and is able to work independently. Resource is highly motivated and is able to work upon multiple significant tasks simultaneously, if required; SFIA 5 Ensure/ Advise – ie As with SFIA 4, but with greater experience or performing role or a greater level of complexity or responsibility demanded by the role, and ability to provide dependable advisory function, and represent the Authority to external stakeholders, as required; SFIA 6 Initiate/ Influence – ie Highly experienced contractor able to receive intent and devise tasks and deliver upon them at pace and with attention to detail. Highly motivated; able to provide leadership function over a small team; and routinely and confidently represent the Authority to external and senior stakeholders, as required. SFIA 7 Set Strategy – ie An individual with deep expertise and authority that can operate at Director level. The nature of the Client Side role will be explained within another clarification question. Last Updated: 27 July 2023, 12:36 7. Please can the authority expand on what is it seeking when “exercise control of the contract”? This question is understood to relate to the Technical – Essential Skills criterion: ‘6. Provide example of experience establishing and maintaining governance structures and meeting regimes that have enabled customer to more easily understand and exercise control over the contract. (12%)’ Provision of resource to Authority by the supplier will be spread across multiple teams within, and sometimes external to, Core Enabling Services. However, the contract itself will be managed by a Contract Manager within the EMPORIUM Project Management Team, who has very limited direct engagement with supplier’s resource and delivery. This means that the Contract Manager has a significant level of dependence upon the supplier to reassure that the contract in running as intended, particularly through the regular provision of delivery updates and wider Management Information within regular catch-up meetings. In this context, exercising control over the contract is intended to mean such things as (but not exclusively): -Understanding new and continuation Statement of Work requirement dates and the planned costs of proposed work, in order to minimise risk of incurring unapproved spend under the contract, or of exceeding the maximum contract value spend. -Receiving regular communication from both the customer and supplier to Authority about resource performance levels. Being responsive to Authority requests to supplier around addressing unsatisfactory resource performance. -Having confidence that if appropriate remediating direction is provided to supplier by Authority, that the supplier will tend to respond promptly and be supportive of this (eg when instructed to stand-down resource to prevent working at risk and unapproved spend). -That key documentation exists to create an audit record of contractual agreements, and to avoid misunderstandings arising between supplier and Authority.] -That billing and invoicing operation happens efficiently, professionally and transparently. Last Updated: 27 July 2023, 12:35 8. Please could you clarify if the 750 character count includes spaces? I can confirm that the 750 character limit does NOT include spaces. You are able to use 750 characters plus spaces. Last Updated: 24 July 2023, 06:39