Do you supply goods and services to Shared Services Canada? As of July 2016, all Shared Services Canada (SSC) suppliers must submit their bids and invoices using the Procure-To-Pay (P2P) portal. As well as providing an electronic procurement and payment system, the portal will provide enhanced visibility of procurement activities in SSC, and is expected to result in an improved end-to-end service delivery experience.

Suppliers must register to use the P2P portal. Before registering on the portal, suppliers are invited to attend an interactive WebEx training session, followed by a Q&A. These sessions run every Wednesday (2-4 pm) through the summer and fall of 2016. To register for a training session, please send your request to: SSC.p2p-p2p.SPC@canada.ca.

“How-to” documents and instructional videos are also available on the P2P portal. Support questions may be addressed to SSC.p2p-p2p.SPC@canada.ca.

As part of the security screening process for Government of Canada contractors, the Contract Security Program completes a criminal record check in accordance with the Treasury Board Standard on Security Screening. The Contract Security Program conducts criminal record checks through the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).

The RCMP is retiring the name-based criminal record check process in favour of mandatory electronic fingerprinting. This process entails the police service or an accredited fingerprinting company taking a copy of your fingerprints with an electronic scanner. The fingerprints are used by the RCMP only to confirm your identity. After completion of service, the copy of your fingerprints is destroyed. It is not kept or searched for other purposes.

Mandatory electronic fingerprinting is already in place for employees of most government departments; but has not yet been implemented for industry clearances. Once this process is implemented, all new requests for personnel security screening will require confirmation that an electronic fingerprint check has been completed to initiate the criminal record check.

Company security officers will direct their employees to service providers to have their fingerprints taken prior to submitting their application. A confirmation that the fingerprints were taken, along with the employee’s personnel screening forms will be submitted electronically to the Contract Security Program. This change is expected to expedite the time it takes to process screening requests.

The Contract Security Program is working with the RCMP on an implementation plan for industry that will identify how the changes will be rolled out. The new process is expected to be launched in fall 2016. A detailed communiqué on the new process and its requirements will be sent to all company security officers and their alternates closer to the launch date.

For more information, contact the Contract Security Program.

[ARCHIVED November 10, 2016 – This page will no longer be updated. Please see https://blog.theproposalcentre.ca//list-of-primers/ for current information on key Government of Canada and Government of Ontario contract vehicles]

The Government of Canada purchases professional services primarily through contract vehicles such as standing offers and supply arrangements. In some cases, the use of a standing offer or supply arrangement is mandatory.

Task-Based Informatics Professional Services (TBIPS) Standing Offer (SO) and Supply Arrangement (SA): Qualify for Contracts for IT Professional Services [Currently closed for bids. Next refresh is anticipated for January 2017]
The TBIPS SO and TBIPS SA are two of several mandatory contract vehicles related to the provision of IT Professional services. Read the rest of this entry »