Whether you are in the process of obtaining a GSA Schedule or already have one, it's essential to understand the roles responsible for not only acquiring your contract, but maintaining post-award compliance. A lot of our clients ask us what the specific roles mean and who they should have filling these positions. In this blog, we’ll discuss the standard roles you must fill for your GSA Schedule, and what's expected of them to maintain contract compliance.
GSA Schedule Roles
Just like the members of your team hold different titles and specific job duties, you’ll need to consider who would become responsible for certain aspects of your GSA Schedule. One person can hold all the roles, but if you have a team available, we suggest splitting them up. Below are the typical roles Schedule holders must fill and enter via the Eoffer/Emod portal.
Authorized Negotiators
These individuals represent your company and are authorized to make updates or changes to your GSA Schedule. Authorized negotiators have access to all the key GSA sites such as eMod/eOffer, Mass Modification portal, and the FAS Sales Reporting Portal (SRP). You must have at least one authorized negotiator, but many of the roles below overlap with this one. You can also add your consultants working on the offer or post-award support as authorized negotiators. This is the only role your GSA Schedule consultant should hold for your contract.
Order Point of Contact (POC)
This individual manages orders placed under your GSA Schedule contract. They coordinate with government agencies, handle order inquiries, and ensure timely fulfillment of orders. Maintaining accurate and up-to-date order POC information is crucial to effective communication with your customers.
Industrial Funding Fee (IFF) POC
The Industrial Funding Fee (IFF) POC oversees the reporting and payment of the Industrial Funding Fee every quarter, which is a percentage of sales generated through GSA Schedule contracts. Contractors must accurately report their sales data through the FAS Sales Reporting Portal (SRP), and the IFF POC plays a vital role in this process.
Contract Administrator
The contract administrator manages the overall administration of the GSA Schedule contract and is listed as your main contact in GSA eLibrary. They handle modifications, compliance, and other contractual matters. Keeping your contact information current (including authorized negotiators, contact details, and administrative information) is essential to successful contract management. This role is often held by the same person as the IFF POC.
GSA Schedule Requirements
Now that we’ve covered the roles essential to your GSA Schedule, let’s talk a little more about the GSA Schedule maintenance requirements that must be fulfilled within these roles. This list is not exhaustive, but rather a sample of how the roles above assist with daily maintenance responsibilities.
Reporting GSA Schedule Sales
Another critical aspect of keeping your contract complaint is GSA sales reporting. When accessing the FAS SRP, your contract administrator must be listed as an IFF Point of Contact (POC), an administrative representative, or an authorized negotiator. Contractors must also register to gain access to the FAS SRP with a valid GSA FAS ID. The GSA FAS ID is a multi-factor, secure identity management system contractors can access with one email and password.
To prevent your account from being suspended, you are required to access the system at least once every 90 days. You can enter the SRP by clicking the "Contractor Login," entering your credentials and validating your entry with the code sent to you by phone or email.
Even if you report $0 in sales for that specific quarter, you will still be required to enter that field as $0.00. If you prefer not to enter your sales manually, you can upload a file containing your sales reports. To do this, use the Reporting Tab drop-down menu and select "File Upload."
If you opt into Commercial Sales Practices (CSP), you must report your sales quarterly. Sales are due on the 30th of January, April, July, and October. Your sales are due monthly if you opt into Transactional Data Reporting (TDR). If you want to know the difference between CSP and TDR, check out our blog, which compares the two.
Calculating and Paying the Industrial Funding Fee (IFF)
Another important aspect of sales reporting and contract compliance is paying the Industrial Funding Fee. The IFF is a fee to cover GSA's cost of operating the Federal Supply Schedules (FSS) program. This fee is 0.75% of reported GSA Schedule sales paid quarterly or monthly by the IFF POC. The IFF is included in the price government agencies pay the contractor when they purchase items from GSA Schedules.
GSA Schedule Modifications
Your GSA Schedule will inevitably have changes from basic address updates, to adding a new product, or adjusting pricing. It’s important that your contract administrator is staying on top of these and submitting GSA Schedule modifications in a timely manner.
GSA will also initiate Mass Modifications (or Mass Mods) whenever there is a new Solicitation Refresh, and you must be an authorized negotiator to accept the newest Refresh in the Mass Mod system.
Do You Need Help with Your GSA Schedule?
Keeping your GSA schedule compliant can be laborious, often requiring multiple employees to keep everything in order. If you have any questions regarding GSA Schedule compliance and getting a little extra support, our consultants can help walk you through some solutions. You may be feeling overwhelmed with the compliance requirements, and whether these roles are filled or not, it’s not uncommon for a GSA Schedule holder to turn to experts for some help managing all the responsibilities.
