Professional Services Contract (PS)

A professional services contract is an agreement under which the Government of Canada buys specialized professional assistance, advice, expertise or related services to address a specific governmental need. It is not a single contract type. "Professional services" is a broad category of contracted services, and the contracts within it vary widely in size, complexity and subject matter.

The Treasury Board Secretariat describes the category as including technical, scientific and professional expert assistance and advice, certain health-care, welfare and training services, and contracted operational and maintenance services. Its guidance, Key Considerations When Procuring Professional Services, covers the decision to procure, the structuring of the procurement and the management of the resulting contract.

What federal professional services cover

Federal professional services span many disciplines. Examples include architecture, engineering, medical personnel, management consulting, auditing, financial and business consulting, human resources, project management, information technology, training and technical services. Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) describes the categories on its ProServices overview page.

Contracts in this category often depend on the people supplied. Government contracts commonly require resources to meet specified qualifications such as prior experience, professional designation, education, language proficiency and security clearance. The task-based supply arrangement documents for informatics services and for task and solutions services set out these resource requirements.

The $40,000 Treasury Board threshold

Treasury Board mandatory procedures apply to professional services contracts, amendments and task authorizations that exceed $40,000, including applicable taxes and fees. The requirements are set out in the Treasury Board procedures for professional services and the related contracting procedures. Contracting officers and requirement owners use these rules to decide how a professional services requirement is structured and approved.

ProServices, TBIPS and TSPS

PSPC administers the federal methods of supply for professional services. ProServices is the mandatory method of supply for professional services requirements below the Canada-Korea Free Trade Agreement threshold. It covers 15 streams and 185 categories, including informatics, non-informatics, human resources, business consulting, change management and project management, as described on the ProServices about page.

• ProServices: a pool of pre-qualified suppliers for requirements below the trade agreement threshold.
• Task-Based Informatics Professional Services (TBIPS): used for specific IT services with defined deliverables.
• Task and Solutions Professional Services (TSPS): covers non-IT services such as human resources, business consulting, change management, project management and learning services.

A ProServices tender notice is called a request for supply arrangement (RFSA). Suppliers use it to determine whether they can meet the qualification and evaluation criteria for admission to the method of supply.

From supply arrangement to contract

A ProServices supply arrangement is not itself a contract. It creates a pool of pre-qualified suppliers. Departments then use the Centralized Professional Services System to identify those suppliers, solicit bids for a particular requirement and award a contract. PSPC explains the sequence in how a supply arrangement works.

Resulting contracts carry federal general conditions. One example is 2010B, General Conditions: Professional Services (Medium Complexity), which is referenced on the ProServices supply arrangement page.

What it means for a supplier

A supplier seeking federal professional services work should first register and maintain its business profile in the federal electronic procurement and professional services systems. PSPC's page on supplying services outlines the process.

• Qualify under the applicable method of supply, such as ProServices, TBIPS or TSPS.
• Respond to individual solicitations issued to pre-qualified suppliers and show compliance with the technical, corporate, resource, security and delivery requirements.
• Provide resources who meet the required experience, education, designations, language and security clearance conditions.
• Deliver the services and deliverables within the contractual timelines. Missing them can require a corrective-action plan at the contractor's expense.
• Comply with the contract clauses and general conditions that apply.

Bid teams that hold a supply arrangement should treat each department's solicitation as a separate competition with its own criteria.