FROM: Linda B. Oliver (signed)
Associate Administrator for Procurement Law,
Legislation and Innovation
SUBJECT: OFPP Awards for Outstanding Alternative Dispute Resolution Programs in Acquisition
I am pleased to announce the initiation of an awards program to recognize outstanding uses of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) in acquisition. These awards are designed to showcase successful acquisition-related ADR programs in both the Federal and private sectors.
The Administrative Dispute Resolution Act of 1996 (Pub. L. 104-320) requires agencies to facilitate and encourage use of ADR. The awards will recognize programs that use a variety of innovative techniques to resolve disputes related to Federal acquisitions in a manner that is more efficient and effective than traditional litigation processes. OFPP created this program at the suggestion of the Contracts & Procurement Section of the Interagency Alternative Dispute Resolution Working Group (IADRWG) and in consultation with the Procurement Executives Council. The IADRWG was formed in 1998 to facilitate, encourage, and provide coordination to help agencies establish ADR programs.
The attached materials provide complete information on award program eligibility and selection criteria. This information will also be available online at www.financenet.gov/iadrwg.htm. Please carefully consider potential nominees. I would appreciate your sharing this announcement with interested agency personnel – including program managers, your office of general counsel, and agency dispute resolution specialists – as well as your private sector business partners.
Nominations are due by June 15, 2001. If you have any questions, you may contact Tony Baumann of OFPP at (202) 395-7188 or via e-mail at abaumann@omb.eop.gov.
Attachments:
1. OFPP Awards Nomination Requirements
2. Nomination Form
Traditional dispute resolution through formal administrative procedures and litigation often imposes a "solution" handed down by a third party, where neither party walks away satisfied, and the disputants' conflict continues or increases. By contrast, ADR is often significantly less costly and time consuming, and can provide long-term solutions to conflicts between Federal agencies and private sector contractors through stakeholders' participation and buy-in.
Outstanding ADR programs are designed to satisfy an organization’s needs and are administered in such a way as to optimize use of resources and to encourage use of ADR as a primary means for resolving disputes. They provide meaningful ADR awareness and skills training for personnel. Not only do such programs achieve significant positive results in terms of fair and expeditious dispute resolution, but they should also include appropriate means for measuring and evaluating program effectiveness and success.
The OFPP awards for outstanding ADR programs in acquisition are intended to:
§ Recognize Federal and private sector organizations that are providing innovative and effective ADR programs to resolve disputes relating to Federal acquisitions and contracts;
§ Encourage the establishment and improvement of highly effective acquisition-related ADR programs throughout the Government, and similar initiatives in private industry; and
§ Publicize exemplary acquisition-related ADR programs to serve as models of “best ADR practices.”
§ Each department, agency, private sector entity, or component thereof may nominate itself for this award.
§ Nominations may describe an entire agency or company-wide program, a regional or installation program, or a facility or office-level program.
§ ADR programs may be informal or formal and may involve small organizations as well as large, and new programs as well as more established ones.
§ Awards will be made, based on the number and quality of nominations received, to private sector ADR initiatives as well as to ADR programs of Federal agencies and agency components.
§ To ensure adequate representation of, and recognition for, new and innovative usage of ADR techniques at all levels within the public and private sectors, nominations will be grouped as appropriate in the following categories for award consideration:
§ Large Agency/Component ADR Program
§ Small Agency/Component ADR Program
§ New ADR Program (within first 2 years)
§ Private Sector Government Procurement ADR Initiative
- A. Large Business
- B. Small Business (as defined by the Small Business Administration)
The following selection criteria will be applied in evaluating nominations. Accordingly, nominations should address each of the major criteria in some manner. Questions listed are illustrative only. OFPP encourages organizations to focus the discussion supporting their nominations on elements of their programs that have contributed to fair and efficient resolution of acquisition-related disputes, organizational effectiveness, and the fostering of positive relationships between Federal agencies and their private sector partners.
§ How is the program designed and what facilitated its development?
§ What are the goals and objectives of the program?
§ What types of acquisition related disputes are covered or excluded by the program?
§ What type(s) of ADR technique(s) does the program use?
§ How were obstacles to development of the program overcome?
§ When did the program become operational?
§ What procedures are used for resolving individual disputes?
§ How is the program staffed and funded?
§ How is the program publicized and its use encouraged (required)?
§ How is the program integrated with other programs in your agency or company?
§ What procedures are used by the program to obtain the services of neutrals?
§ What criteria does the program use in determining who qualifies as a neutral?
§ How long does it take for neutrals to become involved after their need is established?
§ What measures are taken to train neutrals employed in the program? How effective is this training and what is its cost?
§ What processes are in place to assess training needs, and how do they work?
§ How are your personnel trained to recognize when and how to use ADR?
§ Who does the training, who receives it, and how are its costs paid?
§ How does the program judge the success of training already provided?
§ How do (could) other agencies or organizations benefit from your training programs?
§ What types of records are used to ascertain the benefits of ADR?
§ What concrete cost-savings, including staff time, has the program provided?
§ How has the program affected dispute resolution processing times and resolution rates?
§ What types of specific, positive effects can be attributed to the program?
§ How has the program changed the culture of your organization?
Supporting materials that the organization believes will assist in reviewing the nomination may be submitted in a file attached to the nomination. Such materials could include policy statements, regulations, brochures, illustrations, photographs, presentation slides, awards, newspaper and periodical articles, etc.
Submission of Nominations
Please prepare nominations in triplicate using the attached form and submit to:
U.S. Office of Management &
Budget
Office of Federal Procurement Policy
Attention: Tony Baumann
725 17th Street, NW, Room 9013
Washington, DC 20503
Questions about the nomination process or the award itself may be directed to Tony Baumann by telephone at (202) 395-7188 or by e-mail at abaumann@omb.eop.gov.
All nominations must be received at OFPP by June 15, 2001, to ensure sufficient time in which to carefully review, evaluate, and select the most outstanding programs.
OFPP, in consultation with the Chair of the Interagency ADR Working Group, Contracts & Procurement Section, will select a blue-ribbon panel of individuals with backgrounds in Government procurement and ADR to assist OFPP by reviewing the nominations and recommending award winners. The OFPP Administrator will review those recommendations and make final selections for the awards. The number of awards granted within each award category will be determined on the basis of the number and quality of nominations received. Winning organizations will be recognized by OFPP in the Fall of 2001.
OFPP AWARDS FOR OUTSTANDING ACQUISITION RELATED
ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION PROGRAMS
Please
type all information requested below and attach a description of the nominated
program in triplicate.
Attach
a program description that addresses each of the selection criteria contained
in the award announcement.
1. Nominee
Name of Agency, Department,
or Company
_______________________________________________
Name of Organization
Submitting Nomination
_______________________________________________
Name of Program Being
Nominated
_______________________________________________
Address
_______________________________________________
_______________________________________________
_______________________________________________
2. Contact Person if Further Information is Needed
Name
_______________________________________________
Title
_______________________________________________
Address
_______________________________________________
_______________________________________________
_______________________________________________
Telephone No.
_______________________________________________
Fax No.
_______________________________________________
E-mail
_______________________________________________
Nominations are due
by June 15, 2001.