3090-0297_Req-36_FAS Supplier Porta User Testing

Request for Approval under the “Generic Clearance for the Collection of Routine Customer Feedback” (OMB Control Number: 3090-0297)

TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION: FAS Supplier Portal User Testing of the Offer Submission Process

PURPOSE: In modernizing the FAS contract writing system, a portal is needed to replace eOffer for industry (potential offerors, offerors, contract holders, and consultants) to input, upload, and store information related to a contract offering. Also, the supplier portal will be used for the Department of Veterans Affairs Federal Supply Schedule (VA FSS).

We’ll be recruiting participants for 60 minute moderated usability tests of wireframes for our new Supplier Portal initiative. While participation is voluntary, testers will be expected to attend 4 usability testing sessions between June - August 2023. Sessions will include scenarios where we’ll ask testers to complete various tasks and share their thoughts when navigating the wireframes.

The Federal Acquisition Service (FAS) aims to have a better user experience (UX) leading to higher-quality offers and modification requests for FAS contract vehicles. Improving our UX starts with a new Supplier Portal - we’re building a web-based application that, when complete, will be the single point of entry for all requirements related to getting on a FAS contract vehicle or modifying existing contracts. The portal will improve usability, data quality, and integrations with immediate upstream and downstream systems. We’re building this in stages and our Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) contract holders will see changes first.

User testing goals include:

• Learn about any desirability or usability issues in the design.

• Gauge whether the new design is effective at allowing users to complete their tasks.

• Confirm that what we're building is intuitive and will lead to a better user experience than exists today.
  
  Feedback received will inform future development and enhancements to the Supplier Portal, ensuring we meet contractor needs and improve the user experience from what it is today.

DESCRIPTION OF RESPONDENTS: We will focus on testing actual users of the website because they will have real experience of submitting a MAS offer. We will use a Request for Information (RFI) to ask for volunteers. The RFI will ask industry a series of questions which will inform who we select for testing.

Questions the RFI respondents will answer include:

1. Are you a MAS contract holder?

   1. If yes, how long have you held your contract?

      1. Less than 1 year

      2. 1-5 years

      3. 5-10 years

      4. More than 10 years

2. Are you a VA FSS contract holder?

   1. If yes, how long have you held your contract?

      1. Less than 1 year

      2. 1-5 years

      3. 5-10 years

      4. More than 10 years

3. Are you Other than Small or Small Businesses?

4. Are you a Small Socially and Economically Disadvantaged Businesses

5. Are you a partner in a Joint Venture?

6. Are you a Third-party Consultant that supports businesses in offer submission?

Ideally, we will talk to a mix of participants from across the following user types:

• New/prospective MAS Offeror (Small, Other Than Small, SEDB)

• Recent MAS Offeror (Small, Other Than Small, SEDB)

• Current MAS contractors (Small, Other Than Small, SEDB)

• MAS/VA Schedule Holders

• Joint Venture Offeror

• APEX Accelerators (formerly Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) Technicians)

• Third-party Consultants

The User Research Plan (also attached) includes the script and associated questions we will ask testers.

TYPE OF COLLECTION: (Check one)

[ ] Customer Comment Card/Complaint Form [ ] Customer Satisfaction Survey

[X ] Usability Testing (e.g., Website or Software) [ ] Small Discussion Group

[ ] Focus Group [ ] Other: ______________________

CERTIFICATION:

I certify the following to be true:

1. The collection is voluntary.

2. The collection is low-burden for respondents and low-cost for the Federal Government.

3. The collection is non-controversial and does not raise issues of concern to other federal agencies.

4. The results are not intended to be disseminated to the public.

5. Information gathered will not be used for the purpose of substantially informing influential policy decisions.

6. The collection is targeted to the solicitation of opinions from respondents who have experience with the program or may have experience with the program in the future.

Name: Kelly Deao Phone: 703-795-0737

To assist review, please provide answers to the following question:

Personally Identifiable Information:

1. Is personally identifiable information (PII) collected? [ ] Yes [ X ] No

2. If Yes, will any information that is collected be included in records that are subject to the Privacy Act of 1974? [ ] Yes [ X ] No

3. If Yes, has an up-to-date System of Records Notice (SORN) been published? [ ] Yes [X ] No

If PII is collected, please provide a brief statement regarding why PII is necessary, how it will be stored and for how long, and how it will be destroyed once the collection is over.

Gifts or Payments:

Is an incentive (e.g., money or reimbursement of expenses, token of appreciation) provided to participants? [ ] Yes [ X ] No

BURDEN HOURS

Category of Respondent	No. of Respondents	Participation Time	Burden
Private Sector	26	60 minutes / 4 sessions per participant	104 hours
Totals	26	(4 sessions * 60 mins/session) * (26 responses) / 60	104 hours

FEDERAL COST: The estimated annual cost to the Federal government is $9,878.96 (104 * 45.51) + (104 * 24.74) + (104 * 24.74)

If you are conducting a focus group, survey, or plan to employ statistical methods, please provide answers to the following questions:

The selection of your targeted respondents

1. Do you have a customer list or something similar that defines the universe of potential respondents and do you have a sampling plan for selecting from this universe? [X ] Yes [ ] No

If the answer is yes, please provide a description of both below (or attach the sampling plan)?

Description of target audience is noted in the “Description of Respondents” section above. This includes contacts gathered from the existing MAS offer submissions survey.

If the answer is no, please provide a description of how you plan to identify your potential group of respondents and how you will select them?

Administration of the Instrument

1. How will you collect the information? (Check all that apply)

[ X ] Web-based or other forms of Social Media

[ ] Telephone

[ ] In-person

[ ] Mail

[X ] Other - Observations via Google Meet while the user accesses the new Supplier Portal site.

2. Will interviewers or facilitators be used? [ X ] Yes [ ] No

Please make sure that all instruments, instructions, and scripts are submitted with the request.

User Research Plan includes our script and wireframes we plan to test.

Instructions for completing Request for Approval under the “Generic Clearance for the Collection of Routine Customer Feedback”

TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION: Provide the name of the collection that is the subject of the request. (e.g., Comment card for soliciting feedback on xxxx)

PURPOSE: Provide a brief description of the purpose of this collection and how it will be used. If this is part of a larger study or effort, please include this in your explanation.

DESCRIPTION OF RESPONDENTS: Provide a brief description of the targeted group or groups for this collection of information. These groups must have experience with the program.

TYPE OF COLLECTION: Check one box. If you are requesting approval of other instruments under the generic, you must complete a form for each instrument.

CERTIFICATION: Please read the certification carefully. If you incorrectly certify, the collection will be returned as improperly submitted or it will be disapproved.

Personally Identifiable Information: Provide answers to the questions. Note: Agencies should only collect PII to the extent necessary, and they should only retain PII for the period of time that is necessary to achieve a specific objective.

Gifts or Payments: If you answer yes to the question, please describe the incentive and provide a justification for the amount.

BURDEN HOURS:

Category of Respondents: Identify who you expect the respondents to be in terms of the following categories: (1) Individuals or Households; (2) Private Sector; (3) State, local, or tribal governments; or (4) Federal Government. Only one type of respondent can be selected per row.

No. of Respondents: Provide an estimate of the Number of respondents.

Participation Time: Provide an estimate of the amount of time required for a respondent to participate (e.g., fill out a survey or participate in a focus group)

Burden: Provide the Annual burden hours: Multiply the Number of responses and the participation time and divide by 60.

FEDERAL COST: Provide an estimate of the annual cost to the Federal government.

If you are conducting a focus group, survey, or plan to employ statistical methods, please provide answers to the following questions:

The selection of your targeted respondents. Please provide a description of how you plan to identify your potential group of respondents and how you will select them. If the answer is yes, to the first question, you may provide the sampling plan in an attachment.

Administration of the Instrument: Identify how the information will be collected. More than one box may be checked. Indicate whether there will be interviewers (e.g., for surveys) or facilitators (e.g., for focus groups) used.

Submit all instruments, instructions, and scripts in a separate file.

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