Chevo Consulting, LLC (1605TA-21-Q-00027)

B-420242,B-420242.2 Jan 18, 2022 Jump To FULL REPORT VIEW DECISION RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights Chevo Consulting, LLC, a small business of Rockville, Maryland, protests the issuance of a task order to Broadleaf, Inc., also a small business of Manassas, Virginia, under request for quotations (RFQ) No. 1605TA-21-Q-00027, issued by the Department of Labor (DOL) for program management office support services. Chevo, the incumbent contractor, contends that the agency unreasonably and unequally evaluated its staffing plan, and improperly selected a vendor that submitted a noncompliant quotation. The protester also challenges DOL's evaluation of the awardee's past performance, and the agency's best-value tradeoff, which concluded that the technical advantages of Chevo's quotation did not warrant its nearly 50 percent price premium. We deny the protest. View Decision DOCUMENT FOR PUBLIC RELEASE The decision issued on the date below was subject to a GAO Protective Order. This redacted version has been approved for public release. Decision Matter of:  Chevo Consulting, LLC File:  B-420242; B-420242.2 Date:  January 18, 2022 Michelle E. Litteken, Esq., C. Kelly Kroll, Esq., and Andew J. Mohr, Esq., Morris, Manning & Martin, LLP, for the protester. Jose Otero, Esq., and Jonathan Pomerance, Esq., Department of Labor, for the agency. Kasia Dourney, Esq., and Evan C. Williams, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision. DIGEST 1.  Protest that the agency unreasonably and unequally evaluated the protester’s staffing plan is denied where, despite errors in the evaluation, the record does not show that the protester was competitively prejudiced by such errors. 2.  Protest challenging the agency’s evaluation of past performance is denied where the evaluation was reasonable and consistent with the terms of the solicitation. 3.  Protest that the agency performed an improper best-value tradeoff determination is denied where the source selection authority considered and compared the competing quotations and reasonably concluded that the potential benefits of protester’s higher-rated quotation did not warrant the associated price premium. DECISION Chevo Consulting, LLC, a small business of Rockville, Maryland, protests the issuance of a task order to Broadleaf, Inc., also a small business of Manassas, Virginia, under request for quotations (RFQ) No. 1605TA-21-Q-00027, issued by the Department of Labor (DOL) for program management office support services.  Chevo, the incumbent contractor, contends that the agency unreasonably and unequally evaluated its staffing plan, and improperly selected a vendor that submitted a noncompliant quotation.  The protester also challenges DOL’s evaluation of the awardee’s past performance, and the agency’s best-value tradeoff, which concluded that the technical advantages of Chevo’s quotation did not warrant its nearly 50 percent price premium. We deny the protest.  BACKGROUND On July 15, 2021, the agency issued the RFQ as a small business set-aside, seeking quotations for program management office services supporting DOL’s Office of the Chief Financial Officer, and its new core financial management system.  Contracting Officer’s Statement (COS) ¶ 7; Agency Report (AR), exh. 1, RFQ at 1; id. at 3, Performance Work Statement (PWS) § 1.1.  The solicitation was issued to small business holders of the General Services Administration’s (GSA) One Acquisition Solution for Integrated Services (OASIS) indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract, using the procedures of Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) subpart 16.5.  RFQ at 1; COS ¶ 22.  The RFQ contemplated award of a single fixed-priced task order, for a 1-year base period and four 1-year option periods.  RFQ at 1-2, 7. The solicitation provided for award on a best-value tradeoff basis, considering technical, past performance, and price evaluation factors. RFQ at 1, 7, 49.  The technical evaluation factor included four subfactors:  technical approach, relevant corporate experience, staffing plan, and quality control plan.[1]  Id. at 49.  For purposes of award, the non-price factors were each of equal importance, and were more important than price.  Id. Relevant here, under the staffing plan subfactor, vendors had to provide “[a] narrative demonstrating how the proposed staff possess the technical skills to satisfy the requirements in the PWS.”  RFQ at 46.  The solicitation instructed vendors to include “a discussion of anticipated or potential difficulties and problem areas that may be encountered in supporting the requirements, . . .