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How to Use this DocumentOverview

• The GSA SmartPay® Program Office recognizes that A/OPCs need the support of their agency/organization Executives to get the resources they need to carry out the transition to SmartPay® 2 (SP2).

• This presentation is meant to be used as a guiding document for a discussion between an agency’s/organization’s Lead A/OPC(s) and Agency Executives.

• Prior to the meeting, the A/OPC should complete the “fill ins” (denoted by [red, underlined, bracketed text]) that appear throughout this presentation template with agency/ organization-specific information.

• For example, on the title page (currently, slide 3) you should replace [Agency Name], which appears in the top right corner with your agency’s/ organization’s name.

• Slide-by-slide instructions are included, starting in the next column.

• A/OPCs should also feel free to add, delete or modify the slides as needed to meet their specific needs. This document is only intended to serve as a guide.

• For specific questions or assistance developing estimates or recommendations in this document, please contact your GSA SmartPay® Point of Contact or the Program Office at gsa.smartpay@gsa.gov.

• Bolded, bright blue, underlined text as shown above is hyper-linked. To access the linked pages, right click on the text and choose “Open Hyperlink” from the list provided.

Page-by-Page Instructions

• Slide 3 (Title Slide): Fill in “Agency Name” (top right) and “Meeting Date” (bottom right).

• Slide 5: Fill in “Agency Name” where requested in bullets 1 and 2.

• Slide 7: Fill in the name of the “Contractor” currently serving your agency/organization for each business line. If your agency does not use one of the business lines, or has awarded its task order for multiple business lines, modify the slide as needed.

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How to Use this DocumentPage-by-Page Instructions (cont’d)• Slide 8: Insert your

agency’s/organization’s name, as requested. Fill in the figures requested in the table for FY 06 (or change the text on the slide to denote the correct FY) for all applicable business lines. Some of this data may be available through the GSA SmartPay® website.Delete columns for business lines that your agency/organization does not use. (NOTE: “Spend volume” refers to the total dollar amount of transactions that were processed on the cards for the indicated business line(s).)

• Slide 9: If the Executive(s) you’re presenting to already has a good understanding of what the GSA SmartPay® Program is, you may either move slide 9 to the back of the package to use as a reference, or delete the slide. If the Executive(s) does not have a good understanding of the Program, leave the slide as is.

• Slide 11: Insert your agency’s/ organization’s name as requested. Insert the figure for the total refunds your agency/organization received from the program in FY 06. Insert the figure for administrative cost savings, which can be calculated by multiplying $67.38 by the total number (not dollar value) of purchase card transactions your agency/organization completed in FY 05. (NOTE: In its 2005 purchase card study, RPMG Research estimates $67.38 as the per transaction savings in administrative cost for using the purchase card versus traditional procurement methods.)

• Slide 14: Insert your agency’s/ organization’s name as requested.

• Slide 15: Insert your agency’s/ organization’s name as requested in the slide title.

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How to Use this DocumentPage-by-Page Instructions (cont’d)

• Slide 16: Insert your agency’s/ organization’s name as requested. Insert the dates you are recommending that your agency/organization award its task order and begin transaction processing. REMEMBER: You cannot award your task order(s) until after the new Master Contracts are awarded (first half of calendar year 2007), and your new Contractor must begin processing transactions no later than November 30, 2008.

• Slide 19: Fill in your estimate of the additional FTEs or estimated costs you will require to support your agency’s/organization’s transition. The “Estimated Cost” column should only include additional costs that your organization will bear due to the transition, but should not include figures for funds that have already been allocated (e.g., wages for an employee detailed from an office within your organization).

• Slide 22: Insert your agency’s/organization’s name as indicated. This slide is meant to be used to start a discussion with your Executive about the decisions that he/she will need to make.

• Slide 23: Insert your contact information on this slide.

• Once you have completed making your agency-specific changes, you should delete these instructions pages, and be sure that the red, underlined text from the “fill ins” is formatted to match the surrounding text (i.e., no longer red and underlined).

• If you have additional questions about how to customize or deliver this presentation for your agency’s/organization’s Executives, please contact your GSA SmartPay® Point of Contact or the Program Office at gsa.smartpay@gsa.gov.

and the General Services Administration

Government Charge Cards:

[Agency Name]’s Transition to

GSA SmartPay® 2

Executive Briefing

[Meeting Date]

[Agency Name]

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Discussion Topics• Objectives of the Meeting• Overview and Benefits of the GSA SmartPay®

Program• Transition to GSA SmartPay® 2• What We Need to do to Prepare for the Transition• How the GSA SmartPay® Program Office Will Help• Why We Need Your Input

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Objectives of the Meeting• To update you on the GSA SmartPay® charge card program, the

transition to GSA SmartPay® 2, and how the transition will impact [Agency Name]

• To obtain your support for [Agency Name] transitioning to GSA SmartPay® 2

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GSA SmartPay® Program Overview• Established in 1998, the GSA SmartPay® program provides

government agencies with commercial charge card-based procurement and payment solutions through “Master Contracts”

• The period of performance for the current Master Contracts is 10 years (five year base plus five one-year options); the Contracts expire November 29, 2008

• The program offers four business lines: purchase, travel, fleet, and integrated

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[Agency Name]’s Card Program• Under the GSA SmartPay® Master Contracts, our agency awarded:

– Purchase card business line to [Contractor name]

– Travel card business line to [Contractor name]

– Fleet card business line to [Contractor name]

– Integrated card business line to [Contractor name]

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[Agency Name]’s Card Program

Purchase Travel Fleet Integrated Total

Spend Volume

$[insert] $[insert] $[insert] $[insert] $ [insert ]

Number of Transactions

[insert #] [insert #] [insert #] [insert #] [insert #]

Number of Cardholders

[insert #] [insert #] [insert #] [insert #] [insert #]

In FY 06, [Agency Name]’s spend volume, number of transactions and number of cardholders for each business line were as follows:

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GSA SmartPay® Program Benefits• This is the largest program of its kind in the world

– The program provides service to over 350 federal agencies, organizations, and Native American tribal governments

– Program-wide, in FY 06, over 98 million purchase, travel and fleet transactions were processed through 3 million cards

– Total program spend in FY 06 was nearly $26.5 billion

• As a result of its size, the GSA SmartPay® program has leverage to drive innovation and achieve economies of scale

– The program compelled the current contractors to develop electronic access systems (EAS) that allow cardholders and A/OPCs to access card data online; this technology has since been widely adopted in the industry

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GSA SmartPay® Program Benefits • In FY 06 the government-wide GSA SmartPay® program provided

the framework for the following agency benefits:– $156 million in refunds to the agencies based on sales volume and

payment performance

– $1.7 billion in estimated annual administrative processing cost avoidance for purchase cards alone

• Other government-wide program benefits include:– Acceptance of the cards worldwide

– Point-of-Sale discounts offered by participating merchants, including Staples, Home Depot, Office Depot, etc.

– Travel card access to the City Pair Program, which provides an average of 72% off commercial, unrestricted economy airfares

– Access to timely electronic transaction data, enabling better reporting

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[Agency Name]-Specific Benefits • In FY 06, [Agency Name] received a total refund of $[Insert]

• Refunds are calculated based on “sales” and “productivity”– Sales refunds are calculated by multiplying the spend volume by a fixed percentage that

was negotiated with the Contractor bank prior to task order award

– Productivity refunds are calculated by multiplying the spend volume by a variable percentage rate, also negotiated prior to task order award. The percentage varies based on the speed of payment, billing cycle length, etc.

– Total refunds are the sum of the sales and productivity refunds

• [Agency Name] also saved a total of $[Insert = 67.38 x # of purchase card transactions] in administrative processing for purchase card transactions

• Administrative cost savings are calculated by multiplying $67.38 by the total number of purchase card transactions; in its 2005 purchase card study, RPMG Research estimated $67.38* as the per transaction savings in administrative cost for using the purchase card versus traditional procurement methods.

* Palmer, R. & Gupta, M. (2005). 2005 Purchasing Card Benchmark Survey Report. RPMG Research Corporation.

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Transition to GSA SmartPay® 2• The existing Master Contracts end November 29, 2008

• New Master Contracts for “GSA SmartPay® 2” (“SP2”) will

– Be awarded by summer 2007, allowing agencies up to 18 months to transition to SP2

– Include a four-year base period, one four-year option period, and one three-year option period

• Agency option periods need not be tied to the options exercised at the Master Contract-level, however, agency option periods cannot exceed the limits of the Master Contracts

• Transactions under the new contract cannot begin before November 30, 2007, but must begin no later than November 30, 2008

• Once all new system interfaces have been developed and tested (if any), cards issued and users trained on any new processes, transactions can begin under the new contract

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GSA SmartPay® Transition Timeline

Transition Planning

Transition Management

FY07 FY08 FY09FY06

Attend Kick-off conference

Award task order(s)

Coordinate transition activities

Identify / define needs

Secure resources

Transaction processing may begin (11/30/07)

Existing Master Contracts end

(11/29/08)

New Master Contracts awarded

Final RFP released

Transitional Period

Transactional Period

Contractors begin processing transactions

Transition Planning

Transition Management

FY07 FY08 FY09FY06

Attend Kick-off conference

Award task order(s)

Coordinate transition activities

Identify / define needs

Secure resources

Transaction processing may begin (11/30/07)

Existing Master Contracts end

(11/29/08)

New Master Contracts awarded

Final RFP released

Transitional Period

Transactional Period

Contractors begin processing transactions

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How Transition Affects [Agency Name]• All agencies will need to award new task orders under the new

Master Contracts, even if the incumbent Contractor(s) is/are selected again

• Transition activities will include:– Defining [Agency Name]’s charge card program needs

– Determining the appropriate task order type(s) based on our needs• Standard (same as Master Contract)

• Tailored (including agency-specific requirements)

• Tag-along, using another agency’s task order

• Join a “pool”, to develop a task order to meet multiple agencies’ needs

– Preparing and awarding [Agency Name]’s task order(s)

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How Transition Affects [Agency Name]Transition Activities (cont’d):– Working with the incoming and outgoing Contractor(s) to prepare to

begin processing charge card transactions • Issuing new charge cards to cardholders

• Cleansing and migrating data from the current contractor to the new contractor

• Establishing and testing system interfaces

– Communicating changes to stakeholders (e.g., cardholders, billing personnel) and conducting training

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Suggested Transition Milestones• [Agency Name]’s new task order(s) must be in place, and the

Contractor(s) ready to process transactions no later than November 30, 2008

• To ensure ample time to transition from the current Contractor to the new Contractor:– We recommend that we target [Date] for task order award, and that

– Transactions begin under the new contract on [Date]

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Transition Management Team• GSA recommends that agencies designate their own transition

management team (TMT) to support the move to the new task order(s)

• The TMT would be responsible for:– Developing a project plan and milestones

– Analyzing options and making recommendations (e.g., task order type)

– Coordinating the definition of agency needs and development, negotiation, and award of the new task order(s)

– Managing logistics, including issuance of new charge cards, coordinating the integration of contractor systems with existing agency infrastructure, providing training to cardholders, etc.

– Identifying and securing your support for necessary resources in a timely manner

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Additional Resources• In addition to the dedicated TMT resources, additional budget

and/or resources may be needed to support:– Systems migration and testing (particularly if switching contractors)

– User Training (e.g., on new or modified EAS)

– Administering two task orders concurrently

• The chart on the following page shows an estimate of the budget and FTE resources required to support the transition

• FTEs shown are expected to be detailed from other units; if needed, we may obtain Contractor support using a GSA-established Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA) for transition support Contractors

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Additional Resources (cont’d)Budget Estimate for Additional Resources

Resource FTEs Estimated Cost*

Definition of Agency Needs [insert #] $[insert]

Task Order Development [insert #] $[insert]

Task Order Award [insert #] $[insert]

System Testing / Other IT Support [insert #] $[insert]

User Training [insert #] $[insert]

Transition Management Team (TMT) [insert #] $[insert]

Transition Support Contractors (under BPA) N/A $[insert]

Total Additional Resources Required [insert #] $[insert]

* The “Estimated Cost” does not include figures for funds that have already been allocated (e.g., wages for detailed employees).

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How GSA Will Help• The GSA SmartPay® Program Office will:

– Work closely with agencies and contractors to facilitate a seamless transition

– Develop transition planning tools for agency use:• Agency pre- and post-award checklists

• Frequently Asked Questions

• Agency program self assessment tool

• Statement of work template

– Establish BPAs for transition support contractors to help agencies transition to the new program

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How GSA Will Help (cont’d)– Provide guidance on developing Statements of Work

– Provide assistance with developing task orders, conducting negotiations

– Coordinate “pool” arrangements

– Post “highlights” of the Master Contracts on the website

– Post awarded task orders to the GSA SmartPay® website

– Facilitate user group meetings for A/OPCs to discuss their current Contractors

– Provide transition sessions at the GSA SmartPay® Conferences

– Operate a transition help line

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Why We Need Your Input• There are several areas where agency Executives need to make

decisions or provide support to facilitate the transition: – Would [Agency Name] be willing/able to transition as an “Early

Adopter”?

– Will [Agency Name] provide support/resources required for a Transition Management Team (TMT)?

– Are the resources needed to support the transition available?

– What task order type will [Agency Name] use? (i.e., standard, tailored, join a “pool” or “tag along” with another agency)

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Contact Information

[Name][Title]

Tel. (XXX) XXX-XXXX

Email: [Insert]

If you have any additional questions, please contact: