ProServices Method of Supply

The ProServices Method of Supply is a Government of Canada mandatory method of supply for acquiring professional services, both informatics and non-informatics, when the requirement is valued below the Canada-Korea Free Trade Agreement (CKFTA) threshold. Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) administers it as a government-wide tool. The details are set out on the ProServices overview page.

ProServices operates through supply arrangements, not standing offers. It creates a pool of pre-qualified suppliers, and federal departments use that pool to solicit proposals for specific requirements. The government's explanation of how the supply arrangement works states that the arrangement itself is not a contract. A contract exists only once a department awards one for a particular requirement.

Streams and categories in ProServices

ProServices has 15 streams covering 185 categories. Streams 1 to 7 mirror the task-based informatics professional services (TBIPS) categories, and the categories also align with the task and solutions professional services (TSPS) methods of supply. Because the categories overlap, a supplier that holds a TBIPS or TSPS arrangement will recognize much of the ProServices structure.

The dividing line is the value of the requirement. For professional-services requirements at or above the CKFTA threshold, the Government of Canada identifies TBIPS or TSPS as the applicable mandatory methods of supply, and ProServices does not apply. The TSPS page on how methods of supply work describes that side of the structure.

How departments buy through the Centralized Professional Services System

Federal departments and agencies search for pre-qualified suppliers through the Centralized Professional Services System (CPSS) e-portal. The rules for selecting suppliers depend on the value and the nature of the requirement.

• For requirements below $40,000, a department may direct a contract to a pre-qualified supplier, according to the CanadaBuys tender notice for ProServices.
• For competitive requirements below the CKFTA threshold, a department invites at least two pre-qualified suppliers, or has CPSS select suppliers for a request for proposal (RFP).
• Suppliers invited to compete receive an RFP and at least five calendar days to submit a proposal.

The competitive steps are described in the supply arrangement guidance.

Qualifying through the Request for Supply Arrangement

A supplier becomes pre-qualified by responding to the relevant Request for Supply Arrangement (RFSA) through the supplier module of CPSS. ProServices evaluates supplier bids quarterly and awards supply arrangements to the bids found compliant. Suppliers can find the registration steps on the CPSS supplier registration page.

Qualification does not guarantee work. It places a supplier in the pool from which departments draw, in the specific streams and categories where the supplier was found compliant.

What ProServices means for a supplier bidding on Canadian public contracts

Because ProServices is mandatory below the CKFTA threshold, a supplier without an arrangement cannot be invited to compete for these lower-value professional-services requirements. A department that wants to buy outside ProServices must seek an exemption and show due diligence, including a review of the applicable ProServices streams and categories, as set out in the exemption checklist.

Bid teams should match their services to the right streams and categories, respond to the RFSA, and watch for RFPs issued through CPSS. For work at or above the CKFTA threshold, they should look to TBIPS or TSPS instead.