GSA issues RFI to build federal buying guide on human-centered design
The General Services Administration wants to create a federal buying guide for human-centered design services.
The agency issued a request for information Monday soliciting feedback from industry partners to “understand industry capabilities related to providing human-centered design (HCD) and customer experience (CX) services for the Federal Government.”
In a release, GSA defines human-centered design as “the discipline of navigating complex problems and creatively designing effective solutions to meet people’s real needs.” Many federal IT practitioners — particularly those with Silicon Valley experience — champion human-centered design as a critical element in modern technology services. The U.S. Digital Service and GSA’s 18F, in particular, have been vocal about the use of HCD in building citizen-facing services and creating policy.
GSA will use the information not to build a specific contract or vehicle but to create a report that it says will “inform a federal buying guide as well as future procurement actions.” The RFI explains, “The intent of this research is not to market any one specific company but to demonstrate to government agencies how to purchase HCD services utilizing the various contracts GSA manages and to demonstrate existing capabilities and past performance under these contracts.”
“We are looking forward to learning more about the capabilities that industry partners can offer agency programs as they accelerate customer-centered experiences across the federal government,” GSA acting Chief Customer Officer Matt Ford said in a statement.
GSA may publish any comments it receives as part of that buying guide.
Responses are due by Nov. 18.
