The DC Office of Contracting and Procurement (OCP) is excited to announce the next session in our OCP in the Wards event series, How To Be A Better Bidder. In this session, the Chief Procurement Officer of the District of Columbia will share updates and progress on initiatives central to his goal of improving the quality, efficiency, and integrity of contracting in the District. OCP's General Counsel and Interim Deputy Chief Procurement Officer will offer tips on competing for contracts with DC government in a presentation called "How To Be A Better Bidder." OCP in the Wards: How To Be A Better Bidder is a part of the DC Office of Contracting Procurement’s ongoing efforts to engage the business community in the contracting process from the concept of need through award of a contract. The goal of our outreach initiatives is to demystify the District’s procurement process and make it easier for current and future industry partners to effectively compete for contracts. About the DC Office of Contracting & Procurement (OCP) The DC Office of Contracting and Procurement (OCP), under the direction of the Chief Procurement Officer, was established by DC law in 1997 and provides contracting services for selected agencies and offices in the District. The mission of OCP is to partner with vendors and District agencies to purchase quality goods and services in a timely manner and at a reasonable cost while ensuring that all purchasing actions are conducted fairly and impartially. OCP manages the purchase of $5.2 billion in goods, services and construction annually, on behalf of over 77 District agencies.

2. OCP IN THE WARDS
“How to be a Better Bidder”
November 16, 2017

3. AGENDA
WELCOME
OCP FY17 ACCOMPLISHMENTS
OCP FY18 PRIORITIES
OCP OMBUDSMAN
INTRODUCTION OF SPEAKER
HOW TO BE A BETTER BIDDER
QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
NEXT OCP IN THE WARDS EVENT
STAY IN CONTACT WITH OCP
CONTACT INFORMATION

4. OCP FY17 ACCOMPLISHMENTS
• Improve the acquisition planning process and identified $5.6 billion
of planned procurements in FY18
• Generated $4 million in revenue through the sale of 4,760 lots of
materials and assets of District surplus property
• Identified $5.1 million in realized cost avoidance through re-
utilization of District surplus property
• Launched the automated DC Supply Schedule Application
• Refined DDOT’s Architecture/Engineering Schedule
• Engaged with over 1,200 vendors through events and workshops
• Increased transparency of District contracting by posting
procurement law and regulations, forecast, contract award
documents on the OCP website

5. OCP FY18 PRIORITIES
QUALITY
– From purchase card transactions to surplus property
sales
– Continued focus on system and process
– Three-tier certification of District contracting
professionals (joint with District + GW University)
• Drives consistency in services
– Continued focus on contract administration and
contractor performance
• Revamped Contract administrator training
• Review e-Val System

6. OCP FY18 PRIORITIES
EFFICIENCY
– Continued focus on system and process
• e-Signature
• e-Invoicing
– Consolidated portal for solicitations, policies and awarded
contracts
– Procurement Forecasting
• Coordination within the government and forecasting with
industry: 90/10 rule
• Strategic Sourcing

7. OCP FY18 PRIORITIES
INTEGRITY
– Performance management
– Transparency
– Purchase Card transactions & purchase order transactions
– The District’s Open Data website
– Awarded Contracts Database
– Payments to prime contractors posted on OCP's website

8. OCP OMBUDSMAN
• First procurement ombudsman at OCP
• The OCP Office of the Ombudsman will:
– Serve as a resource for members of the business
community that need support resolving complaints and
concerns related to general contracting and subcontracting
matters, or an issue with a specific contract in a timely
manner
– Review information holistically to identify potential
patterns and make policy recommendations to the Chief
Procurement Officer

9. OCP OMBUDSMAN
CONTACT INFORMATION
WILLIAM “PETE” TEAGUE
OCP Ombudsman
PHONE: (202) 727-0252
EMAIL: WILLIAM.TEAGUE2@DC.GOV
OCP.DC.GOV

10. INTRODUCTION OF SPEAKER
Nancy Hapeman
Interim Deputy CPO & General Counsel

11. HOW TO BE A BETTER BIDDER

12. BE AN INFORMED BIDDER OR
OFFEROR
• Know the statutes, regulations, and policies of the
jurisdiction
• Learn what is important to the jurisdiction (budget,
savings, preference programs)
• Understand the differences between public sector and
private sector procurement

13. READ AND UNDERSTAND
• …...the complete solicitation
• …...any attachments
• …...instructions for submitting bid or proposal (paper or
electronic submission)
• …...any certifications that are required

14. IFB vs. RFP
Invitation for Bids
• Award based on lowest
price or lowest evaluated
price
• Lowest responsive and
responsible bidder
receives award
Request for Proposals
• Award based on evaluation
of proposals in accordance
with stated technical,
experience, or price
evaluation criteria
• Generally award to highest
ranked, responsible offeror

15. COMPLY WITH INSTRUCTIONS
• Complete all certifications
• Sign all documents on which signature required
• Complete all checklists
• Submit all required documents or information, such as
bid bond, correct number of copies, descriptive
literature, bid samples

16. MEET SOLICITATION DEADLINES
• Failure to submit bid or proposal on time may be fatal
(unless government at fault)
• Burden on bidder or offeror to allow sufficient time to
find parking, get through building security, take elevator,
locate room
• Submit any additional information, such as responsibility
information, within designated timeframe

17. GENERAL TIPS
Neatness Counts
• In IFB, bid may be
nonresponsive if there are
so many corrections or
scratch-outs that cannot
determine actual bid price
• In RFP, organization is
important so proposal is
clear as to what is being
offered and how
evaluation criteria are met
Quantity Is Not Everything
• In IFB, any document
submitted with bid will
count towards
responsiveness
• For RFPs, multiple glossy
brochures and boilerplate
submissions are not
desired and detract from
overall content of proposal

18. GENERAL TIPS (CONT.)
Check Your Work
• Eliminate typos,
grammatical errors,
incorrect section numbers
• Make sure your math is
correct (total amounts,
extension of unit prices)
• Include all elements of
pricing in your bid as
corrections may not be
allowed
Understand Electronic
Bidding Requirements
• Allow sufficient time to
register as a vendor in the
electronic system
• Keep your registration up-
to-date with current email
addresses and contact
persons
• Pay attention to required
formats and size
limitations

19. AVOID ASSUMPTIONS AND
COMPLACENCY
• Don’t assume that the government knows everything
about your product or solution, especially if you are the
incumbent
• Avoid thinking that you “know” what the government
wants even though the solicitation says something
different
• If you have questions, or solicitation is ambiguous or
inconsistent, don’t ignore the issues and think that it will
all be worked out after award

20. LAST THOUGHT
Above all, respect the integrity of the procurement process
so that there can be a robust competition that results in the
government obtaining the goods or services it needs at a
fair and reasonable price

21. QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

22. NEXT OCP IN THE WARDS EVENT
Topic: District Surplus Property
Marvin Manassa
Director of Business Resources
and Chief Property Officer
Woodridge Public Library
1801 Hamlin Street NE
December 5, 2017
3:00 PM – 5:00 PM
LIMITED SPACE AVAILABLE
REGISTER
NOW: http://ocpinthewardsdcsurplusproperty.eventbrite.com

23. STAY IN CONTACT WITH OCP
• Visit ocp.dc.gov
• Register for monthly workshops
• Call the Customer Contact Center (CCC) for general
information at (202) 724-4477
• Follow OCP on social media

24. CONTACT TEAM OCP
Office Hours
Monday to Friday, 8:30 am to 4:30 pm
Connect With Us
441 4th Street NW, 700S, Washington, DC 20001
Phone: (202) 727-0252
Fax: (202) 727-9385
Email: ocp@dc.gov