What is BIC MAC?
BIC MAC is the General Services Administration’s (GSA) upcoming next-generation Services IDIQ, Best-in-Class Multi-Agency Contract. It is expected to replace GSA’s One Acquisition Solution for Integrated Services (OASIS) contract vehicle. While the new IDIQ has been referred to as Services MAC, BIC MAC, BIG MAC, Next Generation Services IDIQ, and OASIS 2, GSA has yet to decide on the official contract name, and the funding information is currently unavailable.
In this blog, we have provided an overview of this upcoming Services IDIQ that both small and large businesses can bid for, and how you can create a winning proposal using a streamlined process for contract vehicles.
Why is GSA creating another MAC?
The types of services that can be offered through the new service contract are still under deliberation, however, a post on GSA.gov confirms that the ultimate goal of this procurement is to support complex service requirements from the Federal Government and reduce duplication of contracts. GSA has noted that there are a number of important reasons why there’s a dire need for an improved MAC for Services. Some of the reasons that GSA officials have mentioned during industry day presentations include:
- OASIS ordering period ends in 2024
- There is limited access to best-in-class contracts for services beyond the scope of existing enterprise IDIQ contracts like OASIS
- Contracting needs of Federal agencies are evolving: Federal agency requirements have become increasingly complex with many services procurements having elements of several categories of spend. Mission requirements are constantly shifting due to changing threats, policies, and the emerging public needs for federal agency support. Because of this, agencies expect GSA to provide easy access to flexible contracts that can change over time and have well-qualified contractors that understand their evolving missions.
- There is a lot of contract duplication: The industry is managing way too many contracts, including those awarded by GSA. This is driving up acquisition costs, which are in turn passed on to federal agency programs. One example of this duplication is that in the professional services category, for 80% of spend, less than 1,000 contractors are managing about 11,000 contracts. These figures indicate that a small number of suppliers are managing a large volume of contracts. Given the historical constraints of federal procurement law, current GWACs and MACs have left many highly qualified contractors – both traditional and new to the federal market – with limited access to best-in-class contracts driving many agencies to create duplicative contracts to access their core industrial base.
- GSA wants to leverage the full potential of its new procurement authorities: Procurement authorities given recently to GSA provide the agency with a great opportunity to create a next-generation services MAC that is broader and addresses federal agencies’ services needs better. GSA FAS Office of Professional Services and Human Capital (PSHC) Categories began the work in 2020, to develop a services contract that achieves four goals:
- Deliver a simpler buying experience that allows for both commercial and noncommercial services, supporting commodities, all contract pricing types, and leverage competition at the task order level to establish a price.
- Reduce friction in the procurement process through vetted open enrollment based on agencies’ needs, thoughtful selection and fair opportunity standards, enhanced systems, and innovative practices.
- Meets best-in-class contract requirements and improves government oversight and management of spend, contract and subcontract performance, and small business participation.
- Position the federal government to reduce contract duplication and to achieve significant burden reduction for both government and industry
6. Multiple Award Schedules not able to accommodate the full spectrum of acquisition strategies: Multiple Award Schedules (MAS) have a number of streamlined and effective practices that will be incorporated into the acquisition strategy, without duplicating the MAS with the BIC MAC. The contract will be complementary to GSA’s other contract offerings, providing needed flexibility and the ability for agencies to transition unmanaged spend to a Best In Class, centrally managed contract. Specifically, a large segment of Federal spending is not able to be accommodated via MAS due to the requirement involving Non-commercial services, Cost Reimbursable contract types, and Integrated services.
As such, the above needs represent top priority objectives for the Government’s requirements. PSHC does not intend to limit BIC MAC to these parameters, though; the goal is to provide a flexible, dynamic contract vehicle that can meet the full scope of potential services needed, which may also include commercial and fixed price requirements. How this will relate to other Multiple Award Contracts and Government-Wide Vehicles is still being determined within GSA.
What does GSA intend to achieve with BIC MAC?
Among the primary goals of the IDIQ is to reduce unnecessary contract duplication, remove friction from the acquisition process & deliver an easier buying experience, and expand the industry base. GSA intends to deliver a simpler buying experience through a contract program that allows for commercial and noncommercial services, procurement of supporting commodities, all contract pricing types, and use of GSA’s authority to leverage competition at the task order level to establish a price. Additionally, GSA desires to reduce friction in the procurement process through vetted open enrollment based on agencies’ needs, thoughtful selection and fair opportunity standards, enhanced systems, and innovative practices.
Another goal is meeting best-in-class (BIC) contract requirements while improving government oversight and management of spend, contract, and subcontract performance. This improves small business participation and access to a BIC contract, positions the federal government to reduce contract duplication by achieving significant burden reduction for both government and industry, and eliminates contract duplication while improving access. BIC MAC is designed to Complement MAS and will provide customer agencies a contract solution when seeking a BIC solution or non-commercial services, a mix of commercial and non-commercial services, or commercial services with tailored pricing requirements. It will have the flexibility for all contract pricing types, provide access to highly complex integrated solutions and ensure that industry capabilities are closely aligned to agency missions.
What is in BIC MAC for you?
While GSA explores the utilization of Small Business Reserves, one of the BIC MAC’s priority goals is to reduce contract duplication, which will prove beneficial to the Small Business contractors. Moreover, considering that OASIS accounted for more than $35 billion in sales, the prospects look promising for the new MAC as well. BIC MAC is a golden opportunity to work with the GSA, make a mark in the government marketplace, and take your business to the next level. Our teams are closely monitoring contract vehicles such as GSA BIC MAC and tracking all their latest developments. Bidding for large-scale contract vehicles such as these entails a lot of administrative and resource-intensive exercises for small businesses. iQuasar can help you prepare and guide you through the process of developing a winning proposal. iQuasar supports Small Businesses in bidding for contract vehicles, including GSA MAS, OASIS, Polaris, GSA FSS, Alliant SB, 8(a) STARS, HCaTS, Navy SEAPORT-E, CATS+, MOBIS, RMAS, other GWACs, and NIH CIO-SP4. Our team is well-acquainted with the federal market and is proactively helping Small Businesses in preparing for it. Our team of experts will manage the entire process by helping you assess your eligibility, increase your readiness levels, prepare a proposal development strategy tailored to your firm’s unique requirements, and create a high-quality and compliant proposal response to help you win.
