Deadline Date:
Monday 22 September 2025
Requirement:
Support for Microsoft Power BI Implementation, Service Operations, Development and Training
Location:
Braine-l'Alleud, BELGIUM
Full Time On-Site:
Yes
Time On-Site:
100%
Not to Exceed:
2025 Base: NTE 64,800 EUR (9 weeks x 3,600 EUR per week x 2 resources)
2026 Option: NTE 165,600 EUR (46 weeks x 3,600 EUR per week x 1 resource)
2027, 2028 Option.
Period of Performance:
2025 BASE: 20 October 2025
Required Security Clearance:
NATO SECRET
Please do NOT
apply for any NATO contract positions unless you meet ALL the following criteria:
- Current National or NATO SECRET clearance
- Nationality of one of the NATO member countries
- Current work visa for the specific location if applying for an in-country position
Any applications that do NOT meet all the above - and do not CLEARLY show these on the CV - will be deleted.
Introduction:
- To strengthen the Alliance through connecting its forces, the NCIA delivers secure, coherent, cost effective and interoperable communications and information systems in support of consultation, command & control and enabling intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities, for NATO, where and when required. It includes IT support to the Alliances' business processes (to include provision of IT shared services) to the NATO HQ, the Command Structure and NATO Agencies.
- The NATO Business Application Centre (NBAC), as part of the NCIA, and in line with the Agency's Charter and its Cloud broker role, is to provide Business Applications Capabilities & Services to the Agency, and across NATO Enterprise, and ensure their harmonization rationalisation, and coherence, with the aim to enable overall efficient day-to-day operations, support transparency, and foster internal control.
- In the light of these activities, NBAC (hereafter referred to as the "Purchaser") is seeking support for Support for Microsoft Power BI Implementation, Service Operations, Development and Training.
- This support will focus on ensuring the implementation, configuration, operational support, development, documentation and training of Microsoft Power BI based solutions, including both Power BI Report Server (on-premises) and Power BI Service (cloud-based) environments, in alignment with NATO's IT Service Management processes.
- The Contractor is expected to deliver and maintain high-quality data visualization solutions, aligned with business and governance requirements, while contributing to Level 2 and Level 3 Support (incident, problem, change and service request management) in accordance with ITIL standards. The service includes coordinating with internal infrastructure service teams, documenting technical work, provisioning end-user training, and supporting secure access and authentication configurations (e.g., ADFS claims-based setup for Power BI Report Server).
- The Contractor is also expected to demonstrate flexibility to support project priorities in a dynamic operational environment and may be to work on-site at NATO classified levels in various NATO locations, including but not limited to NATO Headquarters (Brussels), SHAPE (Mons), and Wiesbaden, or other sites within NATO nations, as operationally required.
- The Analytics and Core Business Applications is a Branch in NATO Business Application Centre (NBAC) consisting of multiple flavours. It provides technical, architectural, and operational support for enterprise business applications and data analytics platforms; and enables business users to access, interpret, and leverage data-driven insights across NATO entities, including ACO, NATO HQ, and the NCIA.
- Due to the limited time left in 2025, the services depicted in this SOW are expected to be delivered by two resources and aims to enhance the support model for NBAC Analytics and Core Business Applications, focusing on the development, administration, and operational support of Microsoft Power BI platforms (Report Server and SaaS) while providing support for ITSM-aligned incident and problem resolution, dashboard and report development, data integration, end-user enablement, service coordination and end-user training across NATO business areas. If the 2026, 2027 and 2028 option is exercised, only one resource will be needed to deliver the service.
Under the direction / guidance of the local NCIA Point of Contact, assigned Project Manager, Service Manager or NBAC Analytics and Core Business Application Head, the contractor will support the following:
Power BI Platform Installation & Configuration:
- Deploy, configure, and harden Power BI Report Server (on-premises) and possibly Power BI Service (SaaS) in line with NATO and NCIA security policies and architectural guidance.
- Ensure secure setup of claims-based ADFS authentication and compliance with change-control windows.
Produce a detailed Installation & Configuration Plan covering both environments (NR and NS), authentication setup, and security controls. The plan shall serve as a baseline for deployment and accreditation activities.
Security Hardening & Accreditation Support:
- Provide a hardened, operational platform with tested ADFS login for at least three representative user roles (admin, analyst, and viewer).
- Support accreditation with NCIA Security Authority and ensure documentation is stored in relevant project repositories (e.g. CMDB).
- Deliver ongoing Level 2/3 support, including monitoring of backups, logs, and performance tuning.
- Maintain compliance with ITIL processes and NATO service operation protocols, and contribute to operational resilience of BI platforms.
- Resolve Service Desk tickets in line with SLA targets (≥98% availability, MTTR per priority class) and participate in change management, including impact assessments, patching, and upgrades.
- Ensure coordination with cross-service infrastructure teams.
Collaborate with infrastructure and database teams under OLAs to resolve performance or upgrade-related issues.
Data Integration & ETL Development:
- Design and implement ETL pipelines using NATO authorised tools (e.g. SQL Server 2014+, KNIME, Oracle Data Integrator or Java...) as appropriate, ensuring compliance with NATO data-classification and retention rules.
- Produce complex SQL queries for accurate data extraction, transformation, and loading.
- Build and maintain interactive Power BI dashboards, reports, and data models to support enterprise reporting needs.
- Prototype dashboards shall be validated and signed off by the designated Business Product Owner.
- For the assignment in scope of the project/service for this RFQ, the aim is to empower the Power Users to build/deploy their own dashboards. And focus will be on platform provisioning and supporting the users in their endeavour.
- Contribute to the creation and maintenance of the documentation of relevant architectural artefacts, data modelling and coding guidelines, standards and best practices.
- Contribute to the creation and maintenance of relevant Standard Operating Procedures
- Develop and deliver a Knowledge-Transfer Plan & Schedule for NBAC staff, including end- user training sessions (both remote and in-person).
- Provide clear training materials, deliver class-room and/or virtual training classes and maintain attendance records
- Provide ad-hoc technical mentoring to Power Users as part of the Service.
- Deliver complete and accurate documentation of platform administration, operational processes, and support procedures.
- Training shall culminate in a live walkthrough where NBAC staff demonstrate independent execution of administration tasks.
The measurement of execution for this work is sprints, with each sprint being planned for a duration of 5 working days.
Coordination and Reporting:
- The contractor shall participate in daily status update meetings, activity planning and other meetings as instructed, physically in the office, or in person via electronic means using Conference Call capabilities, according to the Service Delivery Manager / Team Leaders instructions.
- For each sprint to be considered as complete and payable, the contractor must report the outcome of his/her work during the sprint, first verbally during the retrospective meeting and then in written within three (3) days after the sprint's end date. The format of this report shall be a short email to the NCIA Point of Contact mentioning briefly the work held and the development achievements during the sprint.
- The Contractor shall deliver Delivery Acceptance Sheet (Annex B) for Purchaser approval and signature for each resource providing services under this SoW.
- The contractor shall follow all general rules, terms and conditions as applicable for working in the NCIA, Braine L'Alleud Offices.
Services are to be delivered on the NATO/NCIA network(s) and appropriate hardware and connectivity will be provided by the NATO/NCIA, for the duration of this contract, and is to be returned upon completion of the contract.
Contractor shall furnish everything required to perform the contract except for the items specified and covered under NCIA Furnished Property and Services mentioned above.
Security:
- The services require a valid NATO SECRET security clearance.
- All the deliverables provided under this statement of work will be based on NCIA templates or agreed with the project point of contact.
- All code, scripts, documentation, etc. will be stored under configuration management and/or in the provided NCIA tools.
- The deliverables shall be produced within the Sprint as requested and be of satisfactory quality to avoid re-work, ensure the achievement of the objectives stated herein (i.e. following vendor, industry and NATO best practices and requirements) and Sprint-specific tasks.
- The Purchaser reserves the right to request change of Contractor personnel in case at least two Sprint out of four have non-satisfactory deliverables.
- The Purchaser reserves the right to request change of Contractor personnel in case of non-compliance with requirements of this SoW, NCIA Code of Conduct and accepted social norms (e.g. unprofessional behaviour, etc.).
Required Qualification:
Contractor - MANDATORY Requirements:
- All Contractor personnel delivering services on the contract must hold a NATO SECRET Security Clearance.
- At least 5 years of proven, recent and relevant experience as a consultant on large implementation projects of business application, with a strong understanding of Power BI and DWH architecture, components, functionalities and Oracle and Microsoft Databases.
- At least 5 years of proven knowledge and experience of installation, configuring, administering, troubleshooting and maintaining Power BI Reports Server.
- At least 5 years of proven working experience in MS SQL Server (2014 and higher) and or Oracle databases
- Prior experience of working in Agile development methodologies.
- Experience developing complex SQL queries and ETL.
- Data Modelling and Design. Proficient in designing normalized and denormalized data models, star/snowflake schemas.
- In depth knowledge and extensive experience with Power BI, including data modelling, DAX, and dashboard design.
- Proven work experience of Level 2 and Level 3 support—including incident, problem, change, and service request fulfilment—using ITIL processes and service-management tooling.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to analyse complex data sets.
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to explain technical concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences.
- Strong project management and organizational skills.
- Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
- Ability to document work done.
- Full proficiency in the English language
- Configure PBI Server to work with claims based ADFS authentication
- Knowledge of KNIME Analytics Platform.
- Experience in developing in Java.
- Prior experience of working in an international environment comprising both military and civilian elements.
- Knowledge of NATO responsibilities and organization, including ACO and ACT.