SEAPORT-e: SPC's Quality Assurance & Management
The SPC Center for Radar Physics, the development and manufacturing division of the company, became ISO 9001:2000 certified in June 2003.
MANAGEMENT APPROACH
System Planning Corporation (SPC) has refined its management approach to the performance of government contracts over its 36-year history. The SPC team’s overriding objective is to provide each customer with exceptional results, in terms of deliverables and services, regardless of the type of task order request.
SPC’s program management and control system has as its primary goal the provision of quality products and services that meet all contract and task requirements. Our management approach is characterized by and successfully accomplishes the following objectives:
- Responsiveness to client needs
- Flexibility to address the full range of technical and contract requirements
- Adaptability to shifts in program direction and focus
- Technical competence and initiative to meet all challenges
- Efficient use of personnel.
SPC’s Performance Management System integrates automated cost and schedule control with a regular schedule of technical and management reviews to provide continuous visibility of performance to SPC management and our clients. Our organizational structure minimizes management layers and provides clean lines of authority and communications to prepare and submit proposals in response to task orders, process task assignments expeditiously and perform tasks in a cost-effective and timely manner. It prevents program management weaknesses such as fragmented authorities and responsibilities and weak controls that could lead to a lengthy proposal review process, missed program milestones, or delays in providing critical program documents.
TASK MANAGER AND RESPONSIBILITIES
The key to SPC’s management approach is single-point responsibility and accountability. This begins with the Task Manager (TM) who is selected when a task order is bid. SPC TMs have the responsibility and authority to plan, execute, and deliver all products and services requested in accordance with contract and Statement of Work terms. If SPC is awarded multiple tasks from the same Navy activity, a Project Manager (PM) will be named to provide a single-point of contact and assume the management responsibilities described below for the TM. Task Managers, then, will lead the task team in performing the technical aspects of the task.
To fulfill their roles, SPC TMs have direct access to corporate resources such as the Contracts Department, Technical Publications and Graphics Department, Accounting Office, Technical Library, Computer Center, and Web Center. Because personnel assignments and resource allocations are also the TM’s ultimate responsibility, they are delegated the authority to make all technical and management decisions necessary to satisfy task orders. As part of their management duties, the TM maintains cognizance of all work ongoing under this contract and meets with the team members on a regular basis to discuss the technical, schedule, and cost status of work and related issues. Additionally, the TM will coordinate regularly with the Navy’s technical and contractual personnel to assess overall schedules and efforts, resolve issues, provide information on resources and other contract items, and ensure technical progress and coordination. The TM will be supported by the SPC Contracts Department for all contractual interactions.
In fulfilling his/her responsibilities, our TM will:
- Maintain a close working relationship with the government project and contract officers.
- Organize the work effort, plan and budget costs, monitor work performed, ensure schedule and budget compliance, and maintain quality control of deliverables.
- Identify resources and assemble a task team having the necessary qualifications and experience to perform the task. As described in our Subcontracting Plan, every effort will be made to include small businesses on the team in order to meet our small business participation goals.
- Review each task order, assess requirements, develop a response by determining the best approach, and identify required resources.
- Serve as technical/substantive leader and contributor to assist in analysis, evaluation, development, and review of deliverables.
- Implement the SPC program management and control system, identify and resolve problems, conduct cost/schedule reviews with SPC management and the customer, and submit monthly reports.
- Interface regularly with the corporate management of our subcontractor personnel.
RESPONDING TO TASK REQUIREMENTS
As described in the RFP, this contract is planned by the Navy as a multiple-award, ID/IQ contract. Because we have extensive experience with these types of contracts, SPC has been able to streamline its proposal development process to respond to requests for proposals within 24 hours. Responses to task orders will be electronically submitted via PDF file on the SeaPort Portal. Our management approach on previous efforts is virtually identical to those outlined for this contract.
CORPORATE INVOLVEMENT
SPC maintains full corporate involvement in every project it performs. For each task, a specific oversight process will be established at a corporate vice president or higher level. This individual will review the contract progress regularly with the government technical and contract officers to determine customer satisfaction. Moreover, this individual will always be available to meet with government representatives to resolve problems and identify ways in which SPC can improve its support to the Navy client.
MANAGEMENT METHODS
The management methods used by SPC have successfully allowed us to meet cost/schedule commitments on thousands of tasks and associated deliverables. Our systems, plans, and reviews described below provide management with a powerful tool for early detection of technical, schedule, and cost anomalies so that corrective action can be taken before problems arise.
Processing Tasks
The SPC program management and control system starts with a thorough planning process. After the task order solicitation is posted on the SeaPort Portal, a TM with extensive experience in the technical or programmatic field will be chosen. For specialized technical assessments, SPC will select a team of knowledgeable staff members, subcontractors, or consultants with the expertise needed to perform the required task. The TM will develop a response to the task order, providing all proposed labor hours, a technical plan, and a cost proposal for performing the Statement of Work. Subject to review by the government, negotiation, and award to SPC, the TM will implement the detailed plan that is prepared based on the necessary technical skills, schedule requirements, and projected costs. This plan will include a project organization, staffing, responsibility assignments, the sequence of activities to be accomplished, deadlines and noncritical milestones, mandatory quality reviews, resource requirements and constraints, technical methods to be employed, and contract deliverables. Additionally, the plan will identify the technical and management challenges that may arise and known solutions that could be implemented.
Performing Work
Upon award of the task, the TM and his senior technical staff will review the technical approach. A kickoff meeting with the COTR, the TM, and other appropriate staff will be held within 5 days of task award. This meeting is important to ensure that all technical, programmatic, schedule, and deliverable requirements are clearly understood.
Reviews
Reviews will be conducted throughout the contract to ensure effective project management and accomplishment of the work. These reviews will alert management, in a timely fashion, to problems that could delay a particular deliverable and provide the opportunity to adjust staff assignments and workloads accordingly. Concurrently, the reviews will identify personnel available for reassignment to a different area or for release from the project, resulting in an efficient, cost-effective use of personnel for the completion of simultaneous tasks.
SPC-mandated reviews include:
- Formal reviews (quarterly) of the overall efforts by the TM.
- Informal meetings (at least weekly) between the TM and the Navy’s project officer to assess project status.
- Informal reviews (as required) of overall project efforts between the TM and corporate vice president.
- Formal SPC corporate reviews (quarterly) of project efforts by the TM and critical team members, chaired by the corporate vice president.
These reviews facilitate transmission of information between all levels of personnel and the Navy activity. For example, the SPC Task Manager will be able to pass on guidance received from the Navy project officer to appropriate team members for implementation. In turn, team members will be able to inform the Task Manager of any information they receive from Navy project personnel that might necessitate redirection of efforts and require the approval of the Navy project officer. In this latter case, the TM will immediately inform the project officer and seek resolution of any issues.
Upon request by the Navy’s Term Determining Official (TDO), SPC will provide a written self-assessment of its performance. It is understood that this assessment will be used in the Award Term Board’s evaluation of our task performance.
Cost and Labor Expenditures Control System
SPC’s management information system provides the basis for financial control and overall program management. This automated system will supply data on the contract, on each task area within the contract, and on all indirect expenses. Contract costs will be detailed by direct labor costs as well as travel, computer, documentation, and other direct costs. This system provides corporate management and Task Managers with readily accessible data for financial reports and project cost/labor graphs as a function of time.
SPC uses the commercially produced Deltek cost accounting and control system for all of its accounting. The system provides prompt and accurate processing of all financial records and data. This DCAA-approved cost and schedule management system enables SPC to plan, execute, and monitor its contracts at any point in time. The system is capable of integrating resource requirements, costs, and schedules into a single, comprehensive plan where the relationship between resource utilization, costs, and schedule are established. SPC’s monthly cost accrual accounting is performed in a manner consistent with the plan (i.e., costs are segregated by specific task requirements) so that costs can be tracked at many levels. Deviations from the plan are automatically generated so that management is immediately alerted to variations. Our cost–control-based accounting system has proved to be a successful tool for identifying and managing critical program resources.
An equally important function of Deltek is its job planning and scheduling system. Our TM will use this feature to track task area progress and costs. Cost information from the Deltek accounting system is automatically fed into the Deltek job costing subsystem so that deviation reports are generated. These reports will be the primary tool by which the TM will identify resources or cost anomalies and ensure that work is conducted in accordance with plans. Deltek is a sophisticated and proven tool for managing and controlling an entire company’s resources or those of a small task within the company. Its use is another value-added feature that SPC brings to its customers.
Monitoring and Reporting Contract Progress
SPC’s management philosophy is based on ensuring that the approved work plan is followed rigorously; our progress monitoring and reporting system is an integral part of this process. Our systems afford SPC and Navy managers with timely information on which to base critical program planning decisions. Most importantly, because our cost accounting and scheduling systems are integrated, we are able to fully understand the interrelationships between technical progress, schedule and cost. We will report all the results from our systems analysis to Navy COTRs in a timely manner.
Our progress reports are an integral part of our management process—not just a mandatory contract deliverable. The procedures by which progress reports are prepared and approved are critical to the usefulness of the reports for SPC management and control purposes. The primary responsibility for the preparation of progress reports is assigned to the TM. These reports are prepared and submitted monthly; concurrently, the TM also prepares an overall contract progress report for review by corporate management.
Ensuring Quality Services
SPC’s highest priority is meeting or exceeding all customer requirements and expectations. The quality of our products and services is a key component of success. SPC stresses continuous quality improvement. Our system of reviews, culminating in the corporate quarterly management reviews, emphasizes SPC’s ability and duty to provide “added value” to our customers. Our approach to ensuring high-quality program support services involves three critical components:
- Assigning experienced personnel with precisely the right skills to perform the work.
- Employing a systematic series of quality reviews and training to ensure the professionalism and accuracy of products.
- Creating an environment in which employees are empowered to achieve excellence and are motivated to continuously improve the quality of services.
These principles have been embodied at SPC through a systematic, documented, corporate-wide, “excellence through leadership” initiative. This initiative emphasizes customer satisfaction and personal accountability.
The key element in providing quality products and services is to first determine the customer’s requirements and then apply appropriately skilled personnel to accomplish the resulting tasks. To match requirements with people, we implement the structured planning process discussed in this section. If the technical expertise is not readily available on staff, or if a task team member has to be replaced, our Human Resources Department has numerous methods for and is skilled at finding and hiring staff who are well qualified for the task at hand. Because SPC’s benefits and compensation packages are competitive with similar industries, we are able to hire and retain excellent personnel.
A second element of SPC’s quality program is the implementation of the structured internal review process. This review process guarantees the overall technical quality, accuracy, and credibility of our work. It begins with the development of the proposal responding to the task order statement of work. Once awarded and accepted, the quality progress of all elements of the task is reviewed according to the approved schedule. At established project milestones, the SPC Task Manager will convene a formal peer review for quality, which will typically be performed by staff members who have not been involved with the project. Quarterly, a corporate-level review is held.
A third element of SPC’s quality program is the involvement of SPC’s corporate support. For example, the Publications Department is involved in all phases of major studies, documents, and briefings (including those that will be generated as part of this contract) to ensure the quality of written products. This includes reviewing and assisting with grammar as well as presentation and integration of well-designed graphics and pictures to enhance the document, CD-ROM, or Web-based production.
* * *
This Management Approach was written by an SPC staff member who may be selected to serve on task teams under a resulting contract.
| |
