Booz Allen sees problems with Navy business operations RFP

Booz Allen Hamilton is preparing to take on incumbent Deloitte for a Navy business operations contract but first wants to get some things cleared up about the solicitation.

Booz Allen has filed a pre-award protest over the RFP for the Navy Business Operations Support contract to support the Navy’s Bureau of Medicine and Surgery. Deloitte is the incumbent contractor.

According to the performance work statement, the bureau is facing many disruptors to its business model including requirements for greater efficiency, the new Genesis military electronic health record, and a move to a new financial accounting system.

With these initiatives on the horizon, the Navy is looking for a contractor to provide services such as program management, operations support, studies and analysis, financial management operations, audit support, business process improvement and change management.

There also is a need for systems deployment and implementation, records management, information management and event coordination support.

The Navy released a solicitation on Nov. 14 and since then there have been several amendments released. The original due date for proposals was Dec. 8, but in a Dec. 7 amendment, the Navy said it was extending the due date indefinitely. A later amendment will establish a new due date.

Booz Allen filed its pre-award protest on Dec. 7 as well to complain that the solicitations requirements are overly restrictive in several areas, including the planned evaluation scheme.

The company declined to comment on the protest.

A decision from GAO is expected by March 16. The Navy can continue moving forward with the contract, but cannot make an award while the protest is pending.

No estimated value of the contract is available but when the sources sought notice was issued in June, the Navy estimated the contract would need 218,880 labor hours over four years.

Work will take place in Washington, D.C., Portsmouth, Va., San Diego, San Antonio, Frederick, Md., Falls Church, Va., and Jacksonville, Fla.

A couple things crossed my mind with this protest.

First, the timing of Booz Allen’s protest and the Navy’s indefinite suspension of the due date. I suspect the Navy already knew they had a problem with the solicitation because I’m sure Booz Allen had pointed it out to them.

I expect the Navy will likely take some sort of corrective action.

Second, complaints about “restrictive requirements” makes me think that they think the solicitation was written in a way that favors Deloitte.

We’ll have to see how this one plays out.