Public Services and Procurement Canada Departmental Oversight Branch In-Service Support for the Government of Canada Pay System

1. Introduction

Samson & Associates was contracted to participate as a Fairness Monitor (FM) on September 8, 2018 to observe the competitive acquisition process for the In-Service Support for the Government of Canada Pay System, undertaken by Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) as solicitation number EP961-200285/A. Samson & Associates is an independent third party with respect to this activity.

The PSPC solicitation, a Letter of Interest (LOI), was issued on June 19, 2019 and had one amendment to extend the closing date from August 9, 2019 until September 3, 2019.

We reviewed all of the information provided and observed all relevant activities subsequent to our engagement. We had full access to all aspects of the procurement process and co-operation from all stakeholders at PSPC.

We hereby submit the FM report covering the activities of the FM during Request for Information (RFI) phase of the competitive acquisition process.

This report includes our attestation of assurance, a summary of the scope and objectives of our assignment, the methodologies applied and relevant observations from the activities undertaken.

2. Attestation of assurance 

The Fairness Monitor hereby provides the following unqualified assurance statement concerning the competitive selection process for the In-Service Support for the Government of Canada Pay System Request for Information phase.

It is our professional opinion that the activities we observed were carried out in a fair, open, and transparent manner.

3. Requirement

Currently, the Government of Canada is examining all aspects of the HR-to-Pay environment, including a review of all systems and processes involved in the end to end chain, with a view to stabilizing operations and lowering the queue of outstanding transactions awaiting processing.

Canada anticipates that the service provider will be required to support the Government of Canada’s pay system. In general terms, the required services include but are not limited to:

• Batch & Interface Management
• Application System Administration
• Security Administration
• System Enhancements
• Incident Management
• Configuration Management
• Release Management
• Change Management
• User Support

Canada was seeking information on industry capabilities, constructive suggestions and interest to work collaboratively with PSPC to support Government of Canada Pay Solution.

The RFI sought interest from potential suppliers to participate in an early engagement process that included an information session (Industry Day) and subsequent one-on-one supplier consultations. The content of the RFI was intended to provide industry with initial context and details pertaining to anticipated requirements.

The LOI included a Request for Information (RFI) which included a series of questions to industry. RFI responses, and any resulting one-on-one supplier consultations held as a result of this RFI, were intended to help Canada define the procurement strategy and be considered during the development of requirements.

4. Methodology

Samson & Associates was engaged as an FM to observe the competitive acquisition process for the In-Service Support for Government of Canada Pay System, and to attest to the fairness, openness and transparency of this monitored activity.

An LOI was issued (solicitation number EP961-200285/A) on June 19, 2019 and had one amendment to extend the date for responses to the request for information from August 9, 2019 until September 3, 2019. We reviewed all the information provided and observed all relevant activities from the time of our involvement and had full access to all aspects of the procurement process and co-operation from all stakeholders.

The LOI sought interest from potential suppliers to participate in an early engagement process that included an information session (Industry Day) and subsequent one-on-one supplier consultations. The content of the RFI was intended to provide industry with initial context and details pertaining to anticipated requirements. All suppliers wishing to participate in the early engagement process were required to register.

4.1. Activities and observations: request for information phase

The consultative process began on June 19, 2019, when PSPC posted an LOI, Solicitation number EP961-200285/A, to initiate engagement with industry. The LOI invited interested suppliers to participate in the engagement activities of a consultative process. LOI EP961-200285/A closed on September 3, 2019.

The Industry Day was held June 27 and was attended by approximately 35 people representing 15 firms (13 in person and two via teleconference). The FM had not been formally involved at this point in the process and did not attend the Industry Day.

The Government of Canada received RFI responses from three firms. These three firms all had one-on-one meetings in October and November, which the FM attended.

We identified fairness-related matters to the contracting and technical authorities and ensured that responses and actions were reasonable and appropriate. 

No fairness issues were identified.

5. Reference documents

The following documents are referenced by number in this report and unless otherwise indicated, are all available through PSPC and are available on buyandsell.gc.ca.