As prescribed in 19.9007, insert a provision substantially as follows:
DLA MENTORING BUSINESS AGREEMENTS (MBA) PROGRAM (DEC 1997) DLAD
(a) The offeror is invited to participate in a program whereby small, small disadvantaged, and women-owned small businesses are afforded the opportunity (through the offeror's provision of developmental assistance in its capacity as prime contractor) to participate in the DLA procurement process. (The offeror may alternatively propose to mentor a Javits-Wagner-O'Day (“ABILITYONE”) Act-qualified nonprofit agency.) In order to participate, the offeror shall submit a proposal outlining the assistance already rendered or to be provided to the protege, as well as the kinds of value-added activity the offeror might expect to receive, in return, from the mentored entity. The offeror-mentor may propose to provide the benefit of its managerial expertise, technical capabilities, market knowledge, etc.; the protege will be expected to provide a specialized service or product, or, potentially, admission into its own market. Participation is entirely voluntary.
(b) The Government will evaluate the offeror's proposal for participation in the DLA MBA Program on a comparative basis among all offerors, rather than via establishment of an "acceptable" standard. The factor is an independent element in the overall award decision; the offeror who proposes or demonstrates the most comprehensive plan for tutoring a protege will receive the highest rating for this evaluation factor during the source selection process. The evaluation will assess the offeror's willingness to assist such entities in receiving better market shares, improving their processes, and generally contributing to their viability under long-term contracting arrangements.
(c) The proposal submitted by the successful offeror will be incorporated into its contract with DLA. The successful offeror will be expected to incorporate the salient points of the evaluated proposal into a written agreement (the MBA) with a protege selected by the offeror. The offeror's performance under the proposal will be monitored by the contracting officer and cognizant small business specialists (from the buying activity and/or the Defense Contract Management Agency) during the contract period. This performance will be one factor used to determine placement of orders against multiple-award contracts and/or exercise of options in the contract's follow-on years (as applicable). It will also be used as an independent evaluation factor, and as an element of past performance evaluation, in subsequent source selection decisions.
(End of Provision)
