Questions and Answers for Enterprise Voice over Internet Protocol RFP

Transcription

1 Q1 R1 Q2 R2 Q3 R3 Q4 R4 Q5 Questions and Answers for Enterprise Voice over Internet Protocol RFP Many of the requirements outlined in this RFP (e.g., VoIP telephony project successfully provided for 3,000 or more users, VoIP telephony deployment for at least 1,000 users) seem to be geared more toward larger service providers, even though a smaller, more agile provider could be more effective and efficient. Can the State please clarify whether or not you are open to receiving solutions from smaller, yet experienced providers that may not meet those specific size requirements, and whether we would all be evaluated the same? DII will consider all proposals who meet the criteria identified in Phase 1 and 2. Proposals will be scored on their abilities to achieve the requirements identified in Section 4, utilizing the scoring process identified in Section 9. RFP Section 7.4 Solution and Technical Requirements, page 42: Can you please confirm that vendors should include RFP Attachments G and J in this section of our Technical Proposal? RFP Section 8 Cost Proposal, page 46, states that offerors must utilize the cost tables provided in Attachment J as part of the Cost Proposal. Attachment G provides data that assists with vendor to develop proposed solution. Vendors must submit Attachment J as required, and are encouraged to submit basic and enhanced cost breakdown information as a separate workbook or document. RFP Section 7.9 Experience, Qualifications and References, page 44: The RFP states: The Offeror must include at least two (2) but not more than three (3) references in the Offeror s Profile Tab of their Proposal. Can you please clarify what is meant by Profile Tab? Is the reference information to be included in the Experience, Qualifications and References section of our Technical Proposal or is there another section where the State wants it to be inserted? The sentence should read The Offeror must include at least two (2) but not more than three (3) references in their Proposal. You may include the references in the Experience, Qualifications and References section of your Technical proposal. RFP Section 7.15 Econometric Modeling, page 46: We were unable to locate the referenced Attachment E: Econometric Modeling Questionnaire. Can you please provide a copy? The current forms, including the Econometric Modeling Questionnaire can be found at: RFP Sections 6 Sealed Bid Instructions, page 40, and 10.1 Closing Date, page 54: RFP Section 6 states the following: All bids must be sealed and must be addressed to: Brian Berini, Technology Procurement Administrator, State of Vermont, Office of Purchasing & Contracting, 10 Baldwin St. Montpelier, VT RFP Section 10.1 states the following: The closing date for the receipt of proposals is Month, Day, YYYY at 3PM. Sealed bids must be delivered to: Vermont Purchasing and Contract Administration Division Office of Purchasing & Contracting 10 Baldwin St, Montpelier VT Can you please clarify which address vendors should use for submitting sealed bids?

2 R5 Q6 Brian Berini, Technology Procurement Administrator, State of Vermont, Office of Purchasing & Contracting, 10 Baldwin St. Montpelier, VT RFP Section 10.2 Submission Checklist, page 55: With regard to Standard State Provisions for Contracts and Grants (Reference Attachment C) and License & Maintenance Agreements (Reference 5.20 if applicable), can you please clarify if vendors are to include these items in our proposal response? R6 Yes, these items are part of the submission checklist. Any objections to Attachment C must be submitted with the proposal response. (see section 5.5) Q7 What is State of Vermont s (SOV) ideal deployment model, timelines, to migrate to the new UCM platform? R7 The state anticipates VoIP deployment to start August and completed within 36 months. Deployment model will either be by region or Agency/Department. Q8 Will the SOV be responsible for configuring the LAN/network to follow best practices for VoIP deployment? R8 Yes Q9 How many Attendant Operator Console answering positions are currently deployed and needed for SOV? R9 The state currently has nine hundred and eighteen (918) multi-line answering stations. Q10 What platform does the State currently use for ? Please provide version information. R10 Microsoft Exchange 2010 Service Pack 2 Q11 Requirement ID APVF-02: Is the state leveraging MS Active Directory or an LDAP system for user authentication? Please provide version information. R11 Yes, MS Active Directory 2008 R2 Requirement ID APVF-02: Can the State please provide some detail on the current configuration of the LDAP/Active directory? Does the state have a single system for Q12 all users? R12 The State has multiple instances of active directory. Q13 Is automatic integration with state 911 services for location updates required? R13 The solution must be compliant with FCC Rules for VoIP and E911. Q14 Requirement ID APVF-09: Does the State require Fax over IP solution, to the desktop? R14 Yes Q15 RFP Section 4.3 Contact Center Requirements: Does the State prefer to keep Interactive Intelligence for their ACD? R15 The State will weigh its options once a VoIP vendor is selected. Q16 R16 Q17 RFP Section 4.3 Contact Center Requirements: Can the State provide details on the current call flow and capacity for the existing Interactive Intelligence? Current ACD system in not part of the scope of this project. The State will provide this information to selected vendor for possible future integration/consolidation. Will some remote locations connect to SOV network via a VPN?

3 R17 Q18 R18 Q19 R19 Q20 R20 Q21 R21 Q22 R22 Q23a R23a Q23b R23b Q24a R24a Q24b R24b Q24c R24c This is largely dependent on network topology and vendor design. The SOV expects the vendor to propose a flexible solution that will provide secure communications to on and off network participants. However, the sites listed in Attachment G do not currently utilize a VPN solution. Requirement ID RRS-04: Phones obtain power via POE from the client LAN. Is it the intent of the State to procure back power for all locations via this RFP? Uninterruptable power supplies are out of scope of this RFP. Requirement ID VF-13: Can the State define the requirements for paging? The State is seeking support for station to station and multiple page groups. Requirement ID VF-13. Is overhead paging in place today? Is it analog or IP-based paging? Yes, overhead paging is in place today. It is analog. The State does not require integration with the existing paging systems. Can the State please elaborate on its definition of a hosted environment? The State defines this as an environment that is off-premise and not residing in the State data centers. Can the State please elaborate on its definition of a multi-tenancy environment? The State refers to multi-tenancy environment as any group, business unit, agency or department, etc. Phone Types, page 49: Numerous phone types are specified in this section but there is no mention of soft clients and whether there is a cost for either licensing or centralized technology to allow these devices to function correctly and provide the functionality of a truly any to any architecture. Security is also a consideration as remote workers may need firewalls or other technology to access the UC functionality while maintaining a secure environment for both State workers and clients. Is any of this core technology required and exactly what should be included in the proposed solution? The State would like pricing for licensing and soft clients. We are looking for vendors to propose what they feel is in the best interest of the State of Vermont. The vendor is being requested to provide a secure end to end call infrastructure. The State has the expectation that the vendor will define core technology required to accomplish this task. Phone Types, page 49: Are GIG phones a requirement across all locations or is 10/100 capability sufficient to respond to the RFP? No, the State would like pricing for both GIG and 10/100 phones; however, we anticipate the majority of VoIP phones to be 1 Gbps capable. RFP Table Minimum Technical Requirements, page 13, Question 4 Local Survivability: 4. Does your proposed solution provide survivability in the event of a loss of data connectivity? How does the State define survivability and what other facilities should be included in the design to meet those requirements? Survivability refers to secondary (i.e., redundant) voice capability. Sites yet to be determined. RFP Table Minimum Technical Requirements, page 13, Question 4 Local Survivability: 4. Does your proposed solution provide survivability in the event of a loss of data connectivity? Local survivability requires the ability to access secondary trunking facilities. Is there a quantity of local trunks that should be built into any type of survivable function? The State is looking for a solution that delivers a reliable voice service. We are looking for vendors to propose a built-in solution that enables continued voice capability in case data connectivity at a location is lost. RFP Table Minimum Technical Requirements, page 13, Question 4 Local Survivability: 4. Does your proposed solution provide survivability in the event of a loss of data connectivity? Is survivability a requirement for all office locations as well as for remote workers from their homes? No. Sites are yet to be determined teleworker locations not in scope of project.

4 RFP Table IP Telephony Features, page 15, Requirement ID VF-17 E911: FCC Regulations require that Enhanced 911 services deliver calls to the correct PSAP along with delivering a subscriber call back number and location information. Is the delivery of the call back number a requirement for this response and if so, is it Q25a necessary across all locations? R25a The solution must be compliant with FCC Rules for VoIP and E911. RFP Table IP Telephony Features, page 15, Requirement ID VF-17 E911: Does the State see value in the ability to use mobile phones for applications tied into the Q25b central UC system? R25b The State may consider leveraging existing mobile devices to use with the proposed solution. Q26a SIP Trunking Option, page 48: Can you please provide the number of concurrent calls that need to be supported? Based on the information provided, the State would like Vendors to provide a solution that predicts number of concurrent calls based on size of location and number R26a of end users. Q26b R26b Q27 R27 Q28 R28 Q29 R29 Q30 R30 Q31 R31 Q32 R32 Q33 SIP Trunking Option, page 48: Can you please specify how many Interstate LD, International LD, 800 toll, Intrastate, and local minutes are currently used monthly? a. Local: 910,632 b. Instate LD: 385,662 c. Interstate LD: 2,640 d. International: 1,512 (All values provided are average minutes per month and do not include cellular usage.) RFP Table Minimum Technical Requirements, question 11, page 13: Does your proposed solution provide detailed calling records that allow the State flexibility in how it distributes invoices to end-users and organizations? With respect to the State s CDR Billing Requirements, can you please provide information regarding what is currently in use today? Does the State currently invoice departments or agencies for the use of the phones? The State bills back to individual Agencies/Departments for voice services. The State is looking for a solution that allows it flexibility on how to charge the end-users for voice related services. Page 14 VF-02/03 Please clarify automatic callback requirements and message details? Automatic callback is a computer telephony calling feature that permits a user, when encountering a busy condition or other condition where the called individual is unavailable, to instruct the system to retain the called number and to establish the call when there is an available line or when the called number is no longer busy. Refer to Federal Standard 1037C. Page 16 APVF-16 Please clarify your device mobility requirements? The State is seeking for users to be able to log into any physical device and have access to their profile features. The State is seeking the Vendor to describe the mobility capabilities of their solution. Page 17 VM-05 Please clarify Login Announcement Option requirements? A login announcment that plays automatically when an end-user logs into their voice mailbox. Page 19 OP-12 Please clarify Forced remote logoff and logon of users from users device? The ability to remotely force any device to re-authenticate. Page 20 IL-02 Please clarify what inventory info is required for Services and Numbers? Services are equivalent to features provided. Numbers refers to the inventory of actual DID numbers system currently supports. Page 21 TAR-01 Please clarify - Please define transaction recording requirement: a) Phone calls only, b) Screen captures, and c) Call recordings.

5 R33 Q34 R34 Q35 R35 Q36 R36 Q37 R37 Q38 R38 Q39 R39 Q40 R40 Q41 R41 Q42 R42 Q43 R43 Q44 R44 Q45 R45 Q46 R46 Q47 R47 Q48 Some examples of audit requirements: All transaction info call duration, who called what, when, what receiver, logging info for VM checked what, deleted what. Select areas will have call recording requirements, call recording retention period (IRS = 7yrs). Refer to IRS Pub Page 21 TAR-02 Please provide additional info for - search transaction logs. The State wants to have a record of every transaction (e.g., voice call by user, duration of call, etc.), to potentially allow for transaction-based billing. Page 21 TAR-03 Please provide additional info for - detailed audit capability. The State is looking for the ability to perform detailed audits on voice transactions for certain groups (e.g., Dept of Tax) to meet regulatory compliance. Page 21 TAR-04a Please provide additional info for - reporting flexible. The RFP provided enough detail to solicate a response without need for further clarification. Page 21 TAR-05a Please provide additional info dashboard, showing. The RFP provided enough detail to solicate a response without need for further clarification. Page 21 TAR-05b Please provide additional info Allocate communications costs. Ease of gathering monthly/annual costs by groups for annual budget analysis. Page 23 OD-09 Please clarify - emergency message capability. Refers to emergency mass notification system capabilities. Page 25 CN-05 Does this question refer to inbound call routing only? How does the system support time-of-day (TOD) routing, which allows the call routing patterns accessed to be changed based on the TOD? How many TOD tables does it support? How many times per day can this occur? This refers to both inbound and outbound. Page 25 SS-09h & 09g - Please clarify - unauthorized use and invasion. Invasion can be described as eavesdropping or communication snooping for these purposes. Unauthorized use is description as inappropriate service use by those that are not permitted access to the VOIP infrastructure. Page 26 RRS-02 Please clarify - describe the connectivity. The RFP provided enough detail to solicate a response without need for further clarification. Page 26 RRS-04 Please clarify - uptime requirements per site. The RFP provided enough detail to solicate a response without need for further clarification. Page 46 Section 8 please clarify - Monthly Telephony Service plans is this for Dial Tone or a Cloud Based Phone system? Both? Neither. This is an attempt to solicite a cost proposal from a vendor. It is based on vendor's proposal, whether it is an on-premise or cloud-based solution. Can you further explain what the SOV is looking for in regards to Extension Mobility? The State is seeking for users to be able to log into any physical device and have access to their profile features. The State is seeking the Vendor to describe the mobility capabilities of their solution. Are all offerers required to be authorized resellers of all products and services? Whatever solution is provided must be fully supported by the vendor. Can the SOV provide a breakdown of line/stations for each location? Attachment G was updated to include # of lines. Can the SOV provide a breakdown of minutes of use (MOU) by inbound, outbound intrastate, outbound interstate and international calling?

6 R26b Q49 R49 Q50 R50 Q51 R51 Q52 R52 Q53 R53 Q54 R54 Q55 R55 Q56 R56 Q57 R57 Q58 R58 Q59 R59 Q60 R60 Q61 R61 a. Local: 910,632 b. Instate LD: 385,662 c. Interstate LD: 2,640 d. International: 1,512 (All values provided are average minutes per month and do not include cellular usage.) What is the SOV s desired timeline for migration? The state anticipates VoIP deployment to start Summer 2015 and completed within 36 months. Deployment model will either be by region or Agency/Department. Does the SOV expect the Offeror to place phones on desks in each location? State of Vermont personnel will physically place phones on desks as required for this solution. There may not be a physical phone on every desk. Will the state be maintaining local PSTN trunks or lines at all Survivable Sites (82 small, 33 medium, 6 large, 4 enterprise) to support local-survivability? The state is willing to consider this as an option, but the State is looking at all possible solutions. What specific Unified Communications features will be desired by the SOV? Unified Communications features are not mandatory as part of the solution. Will the SOV require instant messaging? Unified Communications features are not mandatory as part of the solution. Will the SOV require presence (in-office-available, out-of-office, in-a-meeting, etc.)? Unified Communications features are not mandatory as part of the solution. Will the SOV require the ability to share desktops and perform presentations? Unified Communications features are not mandatory as part of the solution. Will the SOV require Conference bridges? Yes. Will the SOV require Video Conference? Unified Communications features are not mandatory as part of the solution. Will the SOV require Video handsets for phone options? No. What Mobile Clients (iphone, Android) will be required by the SOV? The State seeks information on all the mobile devices that the offeror's solution can support. Does the SOV require support for existing analog fax machines? No Does the SOV have any analog devices in addition to fax machines, such as credit card readers, elevator phones, door phones, overhead-paging devices, or other ordinary non-digital analog telephones? If so, can SOV provide a breakdown of the number of analog lines at each location, or (if that is not available) the number of analog lines at the largest locations? The examples provided in this question are out of scope of this RFP. The analog lines supporting the examples above will not change or require integration with proposed VoIP solution.

7 Q62 R62 Q63 R63 Q64 R64 Q65 R65 Q66 R66 Q67 R67 Q68 R68 Q69 R69 Q70 R70 Q71 R71 Q72 R72 Q73 R73 Q74 R74 Q75 R75 Q76 R76 Does the SOV have any T1 CAS or T1 ISDN PRI devices, such as fax servers, hardware call-center platforms, media/announcement servers, or Vocera like communicators? Yes Does the SOV require any communication privacy functions for HIPAA or similar compliance, such as encryption of call signaling or call audio? Yes Requirement ID VF-16: Computer-telephony integration (CTI): CTI can have a broad range of definitions. Can you please provide greater details of your expectations? The State is looking for whether offeror's solution enables interaction on a telephone and a computer can be integrated and/or co-ordinated. Requirement ID APVF-06: Call Admission Control, Client Matter codes: Please provide a more detailed definition of these features. The State is no longer requesting information on this feature. Requirement ID APVF-12: Manager-Assistant: Please provide a more detailed definition of this feature/capability. The State is looking for a solution that allows dynamic call routing features to call agents (i.e., assistant) that can be controlled/managed by a call manager. Requirement IF APVF-16: Device Mobility: Please provide a more detailed definition of this feature/capability. The State is seeking for users to be able to log into any physical device and have access to their profile features. The State is seeking the Vendor to describe the mobility capabilities of their solution. Section 4.2 VM-05 Login announcement options: Please explain requirement, logging into what application/device? Is this referring to a tone or voice message to be played? A login announcment that plays automatically when an end-user logs into their voice mailbox. Section 4.3 CC-01 & 4.3 OD-01 Multi-tenant capable to preserving business group partitioning: Please expand on this requirement, separation of contact center groups within the state? The State refers to multi-tenancy environment as any group, business unit, agency or department, etc. Section 4.3 CC-05 Unlimited call tree depths: Please expand on this requirement, what functionality we are trying to accomplish? The State is no longer requesting information on this feature. Section 7.9 Experience, Qualifications and References: 1. Will the State accept proposed staff s technical summaries in place of resumes at the proposal stage? Yes. Section 7.15 Econometric Modeling - 2. Please provide a copy of the questionnaire. The current forms, including the Econometric Modeling Questionnaire can be found at: Are all Ethernet switches PoE capable (IEEE 802.3af)? Not currently, but they will be. The State will be responsible for upgrading, installing and maintaining SOVNet switching environment Any previous voice traffic studies available for review? No, there are no voice traffic studies available. Paging through the phone or overhead via speakers? Through the VoIP phones. Can you tell us what manufacturer(s) do you currently use for switching? Cisco and HP

8 Q77 R77 Q78 R78 Q79 R79 Q80 R80 Q81a R81a Q81b R81b Q82 R82 Q83 R83 Q84 R84 Q85 R85 Can you please provide the following information for each site? # users # analog ports on station side (i.e. fax) # PSTN circuits (FXO, T1, PRI) Attachment G was updated to include # of users and data circuits at each location. T1/PRI supporting ACD system are not in scope of this project. Section 4 Scope of Work Page 11: You list three potential sites for the demark. Is the Tech Vault address the same as the site called South Burlington Data Center that is in the diagram on page 12? If no, can you please provide the address for the South Burlington Datacenter? Yes, the South Burlington Data Center is the same address as Tech Vault. Section 4.6 Proposed Support/training Page 30: If we are proposing a turnkey hosted voice solution do you still want the offeror to provide the fixed cost add-on for a dedicate system/voice engineer? Dependent upon vendor's solution, this requirement can be negotiated. Section 7.9 Experience, qualifications and References Page 44: You have requested One (1) must be for a VoIP telephony project where the Offeror has successfully provided services for 3,000 or more users, with integration to a client supported network. Can you please define integration to a client supported network? Proposed solution must integrate with WAN/LAN being managed by State personnel. Section 5.5 Terms and Conditions Page 36: Do we need to include our terms and conditions with our RFP response? Or are we to provide those during the negotiation phase? If you want them as part of our response where should we put them in our response? Vendor must agree to State s terms and conditions. If there is anything the vendor does not agree to, it must be provided with the Proposal. Attachment J Cost Models and Section 8 Cost Proposal. We price out some of the enhanced features as an a-la-cart model since some features are add ons. Things like paging to the phone, fax over IP and call recording fall into that category. In section 4.2 s (IP Telephony Services) tables you ask us to include the cost for each add on feature yet in the cost proposal and cost model spreadsheet there is only one place to provide the cost for an enhanced feature for each quantity of phones. The following text is what I m referring to. Below each feature is a blank box where the Offeror shall describe any costs pertaining to an enhanced feature that is not inclusive with a standard feature of the proposed solution. Along with the cost for the add-on feature, the Offeror must signify if this is a one-time charge, or an annual cost per user. Can we provide a separate price for each enhanced option? Or do we need to add up all enhanced options and provide a single price for the enhanced option? If we can provide a separate price for each enhanced feature in attachment J cost models where should we put them? Vendors must submit Attachment J as required, and are encouraged to submit basic and enhanced cost breakdown information as a separate workbook or document. Can respondents modify or add-to the pricing spreadsheet to include all pricing elements? Respondents may add additional worksheets, but may not modify existing worksheets structure. Will you please define multi-vendor network switching? Does this mean multi-vendor LAN Ethernet switches? Does this mean interoperating with other PBXs? Does this mean interoping with other LECs? This means multi-vendor LAN Ethernet switches. Is Desktop Faxing considered a mandatory requirement, or a separate optional consideration? Only Table 4.1 is mandatory. Select staff will need capabilities for desktop faxing. Please provide mandatory requirements for Desktop Faxing. Yes, to select staff.

9 In the Scope of Work you request optional dedicated SIP Trunking Services for State Entities. Does the State envision these SIP Trunking services to be stand-alone for specific entities? If so, could the State provide a few sample configurations with which we could design and price a solution? (including location, concurrent call paths, PBX Make/Model/Release/CODEC). If this is the case, where would the State like to see these cost proposals in vendor s response? I believe tab 2 - SIP Q86 Trunking Option in Attachment J is for the State-Wide SIP Trunking quote only. Yes, the State envisions these SIP Trunkig services to be "stand-alone" for specific entities. No, the state cannot provide sample configurations. Tab "2 -SIP Trunking R86 Option" covers the information the State desires at this time. Q87 In regards to the contact center elements: Faxing Is this required for both inbound and outbound faxes? R87 Yes, to select staff. Q88 VF-13 How many paging zones will be needed be location? R88 The State is seeking support for station to station and multiple page groups. The number of paging zones is yet to be determined. Q89 VF-15 What level of CTI support/features will be needed for this RFP? R89 The State is looking for whether offeror's solution enables interaction on a telephone and a computer can be integrated and/or co-ordinated. Q90 APVF -09 How many Fax machines per location will need to be supported? Will the Fax over IP use Analog, PRI or ATA connections for Layer 1? R90 No fax machines will need to be supported through this solution. Q91 APVF-12 Manager/Assistant is that the same as intercom feature? R91 No. The State is looking for a solution that allows dynamic call routing features to call agents (i.e., assistant) that can be controlled/managed by a call manager. Q92 VM-03 What languages will need to be supported R92 Please provide how your solution would support multiple languages, and if so, which languages. Q93 Does the exisng Vermont 10G network support QoS from data centers to each remote? If so how many levels of QoS are available? R93 The State will provision Classes of Service based on QoS requirements provided by offeror. Q94 RFP Requirement: Application Security Standards (4.14). Should this be 4.15? As hosted system requirements is R94 Yes, Application Security Standards is section Q95 R95 Q96 R96 Q97 R97 RFP#: Attachments: The RFP table of contents states Attachment D: Commodity Purchases Terms and Conditions. Attachments listed in 10.3 does not list Attachment D: Commodity Purchases Terms and Conditions but list Attachment D to be Econometric Modeling Questionnaire. Please Clarify. Attachment D is Commodity Purchases Terms and Conditions. Attachment E is Econometric Modeling Questionnaire. The current forms, including the Econometric Modeling Questionnaire can be found at: RFP #7.2: Transmittal Letter: RFP states we are to include a Transmittal Letter with our Proposal but the outline refers to a Cover Letter. Is this in addition to the Cover Letter Section? Are we to include the Transmittal Letter in the Technical Proposal only? Please clarify. A Transmittal Letter (same as a cover letter) must be submitted with the proposal. One transmittal letter for the entire proposal is acceptable. RFP Section 7.15: Econometric Modeling. RFP states the following: For bid amounts exceeding $100, bidders are required to complete and submit the Econometric Modeling Questionnaire included as part of this RFP (refer to Attachment E: Econometric Modeling Questionnaire, at time of bid. Please clarify Attachment. Is it D or E? See question above where we also ask for clarification. Attachment D is Commodity Purchases Terms and Conditions. Attachment E is Econometric Modeling Questionnaire. The current forms, including the Econometric Modeling Questionnaire can be found at:

10 Q98 R98 Q99 R99 Q100 R100 Q101 R101 Q102 R102 Q103 R103 Q104 R104 Q105 R105 Q106 R106 Q107 R107 RFP Section 5.14: Business Registration. RFP states the following: To be awarded a contract by the State of Vermont a Vendor must be (except an individual doing business in his/her own name) registered with the Vermont Secretary of State s office and must obtain a Contractor s Business Account Number issued by the Vermont Department of Taxes 1&instr.pdf Some of the links are incorrect, please provide the correct links. The Vermont Department of Taxes form can be located at: or by contacting the Department by phone. Section 4.9 Contractor Intellectual Property. This Section states that with regard to Contractor intellectual Property, Contractor shall grant the State a royalty free license for the development and use.contractor would like to clarify that the license grant to Contractor Intellectual Property and any derivative works thereof is provided for the term of the agreement, unless otherwise expressly agreed to in writing by Contractor, and is conditioned upon payment in full by the State. There is no question here. Section 4.9 Work Product. The definition of Work Product. In the delivery of the services, unless otherwise expressly agreed by Contractor, any ideas, concepts, know-how, data processing techniques, software, documentation, diagrams, specifications, schematics, or blueprints developed or used Contractor personnel in connection with the Services will be and remain the property of Contractor. There is no question here. Section 4.12: Required Project Policies, Guidelines and Methodologies: Compliance with laws, regulations etc. that result in a change in scope of the services should be subject to a change order process. There is no question here. Section 5.5 Terms and Conditions: The State s ability to cancel under this provision should relate solely to Contractor s material failure and then only after Contractor has been given a reasonable opportunity to cure. There is no question here. Section (IV) The State s requirement is that the deliverables or other materials or technology will not infringe upon or misappropriate the intellectual property rights of third party. Contractor requests a clarification that the Contractor not knowingly infringe. There is no question here. Section (Vii) The State services warranty text: Contractor shall perform services consistent with Industry standards. If the State identifies a deficiency based on objective standards within 90 days of delivery, Contractor shall re-perform the services. Delete the refund text since Contractor shall not charge the State for the reperformed services. There is no question here. Section (Viii) The States deliverable text: Clarify that this commitment does not apply to Contractor IP. There is no question here. Section (ix) The States disabling code text: Contractor requests a clarification that a knowing standard be included. There is no question here. Section 5.8 Contract Term pricing commitment: This commitment should clarified to add text that the pricing commitment must relate to services of similar volume, scope and customers with similar terms and conditions There is no question here.

11 Q108 R108 Q109 R109 Q110 R110 Attachment C, item 7 Insurance Requirements: General Liability Replace the words for liability arising out of this Agreement with to the extent of the liabilities assumed by Contractor as set forth in the indemnification section of the Agreement in paragraph five. Automobile Liability Same comments as in the General Liability section. There is no question here. Attachment D, item 10 Cancellation: Cancelation should be based on a material breach of objective requirements after the opportunity to cure. There is no question here. Section 4.3 Current Contact Center: Can we receive more details about the current contact centered deployed to better assess integration versus replacement? Interactive Intelligence CIC version 4.0. The call centers are currently under contract for managed services and will not be considered for replacement as part of this project. Section 1 General Information: Department Background and Philosophy: Has the state evaluated the potential of cloud services for the Office components, O365? Can the state share information regarding the current licensing capabilities within the Microsoft environment? Many enterprises and state agencies utilize Lync and Lync enterprise voice through the use of license mobility, saving s/w licensing costs. We would like to consider this approach. Q111 Yes, the State is evaluating the potential of cloud services for the Office components, O365. The State currently has 9000 Exchange licenses and 6000 Microsoft Office R111 licenses. Q112 Will the state agree to extend the due date for the rfp response for at least 2 weeks after the response to all questions has been posted? R112 No. Q113 Will the state post all questions and answers from all vendors? R113 Yes. Q114 Will the state accept internet connectivity to the vendors host site as the primary connections as defined in the RFP? R114 The State may consider this option. Q115 What voice system(s) do the call center agents use today as part of the existing contact center environment described in sections 4.3? R115 Interactive Intelligence CIC version 4.0 Q116 Does the state require that all handsets be replaced as part of all vendors proposals? R116 All handsets will be replaced by VoIP phones and/or soft clients. Q117 Please provide the make, model, location, quantity of PBX s and handsets, and serial numbers of the AVAYA/Nortel equipment that is installed today. R117 The State declines to provide this information at this time. Will provide to selected vendor. Q118 R118 Q119 R119 In addition to AVAYA equipment mentioned on page 6 please identify the same information requested in question 6 (now 117) above for all on premise VOIP telephony systems who wish to migrate from their existing digital PBX to the new trunks mentioned on page 11in the final bullet point. The State declines to provide this information at this time. Will provide to selected vendor. What manufacturer s equipment is used for the LAN and WAN switching and routing within Gov Net? Cisco Routers and Cisco/HP switches.

12 Q120 R120 Q121 R121 Q122 R122 Q123 R123 Q124 R124 Q125 R125 Q126 R126 Q127 R26b Does the state require all agencies to use a specific manufacturer s LAN and WAN equipment for switching and routing? Yes, Cisco and HP. Will the state agree to extend the date for questions for 5 business days? No. How will the state evaluate a vendor response for a hybrid solution to the questions in table 4.2? The scoring defined in section 9.1 (there is no 9.2) does not clearly define how this will evaluated. The State will evaluate a vendor's solution the same regardless of whether the response is for a hybrid solution, or for a cloud-hosted/on-premise solution. Please define the evaluation criteria found in Attachment J. a. Are all service plans to be computed as price per user per month? b. Should the service plans include the price of the connection to Gov Net or is that a separate charge? And if so where would that charge appear? c. How would the price be computed for a Hybrid system to support the various server plans? d. Should the price for maintenance be included as part of the price to be defined above in question a? a. Yes b. Yes, include it in your cost model on a monthly basis. c. Please present how you would do it in the cost model. d. No see Attachment J Vendor 7 Year Cost Model. On page 54 the state indicates it may reject proposals based on excessive costs. How does the state define excessive costs? Is there a budget for this project and if so will the state please define the budget or define what the state feels would qualify as an acceptable cost vs. and excessive cost? The State does not know what the cost will be, and what will be considered acceptable versus excessive. How fast will the state allow the winning vendor to roll out the service? The State intends to start no later than August 1, The selected vendor and the State shall agree upon a deployment plan as part of the contract development. If the state selects a hosted offer based on price per user per month, will the state agree to begin payment for each user as it is accepted by the state? The selected vendor and the State shall agree on the payment structure as part of the contract development. Please list monthly usage in minutes for local, instate and out of state long distance. a. Local: 910,632 b. Instate LD: 385,662 c. Interstate LD: 2,640 d. International: 1,512 (All values provided are average minutes per month and do not include cellular usage.)

13 Q128 R128 Q129 R129 Q130 R130 Q131 R131 Q132 R26b Q133 R133 Q144 R144 Q145 R145 Please elaborate on the desired use scenario with cellular as the state provided dial tone. Is it the intent to use these cellular phones as mobile extension accessing the state s network to perform calling functions and integration? Some users have abandoned desk phones altogether and opted for cellular as their State provided dial tone. This current environment requires longer then desired deployment times for new users and MAC requests as well as difficulty in procuring replacement equipment specifically for ISDN stations. Please describe how this option would be beneficial to the State as part of your proposal. For integrated directory, does the State share the same directory application across all sites? The State needs further clarification on your question. Please provide additional details in regards to type of transactions for the following section: also, provide level of recordings including Audio and video. This section was outside the contact center section. TAR-01 Full transaction recording (i.e., every transaction that is performed will be record) Some examples of audit requirements: All transaction info call duration, who called what, when, what receiver, logging info for VM checked what, deleted what. Select areas will have call recording requirements, call recording retention period (IRS = 7yrs). Refer to IRS Pub Will DII please provide a list of numbers ( NPA-NXX) for porting, so that provider may identify rate center and CLLI for porting purposes. Yes, the State will provide this information upon award of Contract. Will DII provide a minutes of use breakdown, ideally categorized into intrastate, interstate, international inbound and outbound traffic, on an aggregated basis? a. Local: 910,632 b. Instate LD: 385,662 c. Interstate LD: 2,640 d. International: 1,512 (All values provided are average minutes per month and do not include cellular usage.) Will DII provide a current features by DID number or a percentage of DID s that have each requested feature? No. DII is not sure how this will be relevant to the vendor's proposal. The current features may not be utilized or desired in the future. Section 1 : Overview and General Information Does the State envision making a single award or multiple awards for this solicitation and if multiple awards are anticipated, will the State attempt to select a single vendor in each of the two categories? Single Award. Department Background and Philosophy Does the State have plans for additional centralized applications that will need to interface with the proposed VoIP solutions such as MS Lync. Yes, but it will not be part of the scope of this project.

14 Q146 R146 Q147 R147 Q148 R148 Q149 R149 Q150 R150 Q151 R151 Q152 R152 Q153 Compatibility with Standards and existing Technology Will the State clarify the term, other Vermont entities as wishing to purchase VoIP services from the awarded contract? Does the State intend to offer the use of the contract to Vermont cities and towns, local schools, libraries and other entities? Please identify which other entities will be eligible to procure off the new contract. The State does not intend to develop a master service agreement to allow other entities to purchase off of it. The State may procure additional services with a selected vendor to incorporate other Vermont entities who are not currently connected to the State's WAN at a future date. Such entities may include, but are not limited to, Vermont State Colleges, non-profit partners, county sheriff and local police departments. Will the State identify the locations by address and size and type of each existing Agency VoIP system? Attachment G was updated to include # of current VoIP users. Will the offeror be required to integrate the new platform with the current Centrex environment or will the platforms remain independent? Will cross platform abbreviated dialing be required? Independent. No cross-platform required. What is the current voice mail platform and where is it located? The State s voic is part of our Centrex system. Will the State consider a two week extension of the proposal submission date to March 10, 2015 to allow sufficient time following the publication of responses to finalize technical and pricing solutions. No. The State s Project Manager shall: (1) supervise the Contractor s performance to the extent necessary to ensure that the Contractor meets performance expectations and standards; (2) work closely with the State s Project Manager on a day to day basis; (3) be on-site in Vermont as the State may require during the entire project based upon an agreed project schedule; and (4) be required to schedule and facilitate weekly project team status meetings either onsite in Vermont or via teleconference. Given it is often common practice to remotely manage large scale projects such as this, will the State clarify if the contractor s Project Manager is expected to be onsite in Vermont and if so, define the anticipated frequency? The State does not expect the contractor s PM to be on site. Please propose what you feel is the best approach. Will the State accept the identification of Key Personnel such as the Service Manager and Project Manager during the Evaluation Phase 3 and Phase 4 to ensure those key personnel will be available upon award of a contract? Given the time between proposal submission and award, personnel availability could change. Please provide the information as requested in the RFP. Any personnel changes may be discussed during vendor finalist presentations (Dates TBD). All Vermont intrastate on-net and off-net calls by end-users of this solution, are to be included at no additional charge as part of either of Offeror s Basic, Enhanced or Miscellaneous Line monthly service plans. Offeror may also propose per-minute costs and/or bundled inclusions for interstate and international long distance calling. Will the State provide or make available current intrastate on-net and off-net usage data for evaluation.

15 R26b Q154 R26b Q155 R155 a. Local: 910,632 b. Instate LD: 385,662 c. Interstate LD: 2,640 d. International: 1,512 (All values provided are average minutes per month and do not include cellular usage.) Will the State provide or make available current interstate and international long distance calling data for evaluation? a. Local: 910,632 b. Instate LD: 385,662 c. Interstate LD: 2,640 d. International: 1,512 (All values provided are average minutes per month and do not include cellular usage.) Will the State provide guidance on the FISMA Level Requirements (Low, High etc.) The State does not have defined FISMA baselines for all areas at this time. A moderate control baseline via NIST rev. 4 will provide the most consistent coverage across agency needs. Below each feature is a blank box where the Offeror shall describe any costs pertaining to an enhanced feature that is not inclusive with a standard feature of the proposed solution. Along with the cost for the add-on feature, the Offeror must signify if this is a one-time charge, or an annual cost per user. Will the State accept a monthly feature price where an annual commitment is not required? Q156 R156 Yes. Q157 Will the State advise how many anticipated Fax Machines need to be supported? R157 None. Q158 Will the State advise the approximate number of Soft Client, Desktop / Laptops will be needed? R158 No, it is unknown at this time. Will the State define the integrated use of the Paging functionality (ie. System Manufacturer, locations, etc. and also describe if paging is intended through the Q159 desktop phone or through a third-party adjunct system? The State is seeking support for station to station and multiple page groups. Yes, overhead paging is in place today. It is analog. The State does not require integration R159 with the existing paging systems. Q160 What is your current call center platform? R160 Interactive Intelligence CIC version 4.0 Q161 Are your agents identified by location or departments? R161 Our current system ID s agents by region (i.e., location), but would prefer more options of grouping agents. Q162 How many agents are in each department or location?

16 R162 Q163 R163 Q164 R164 Q165 Q170 R170 Q171 R171 Q172 R172 Q173 R173 Q174 R174 Q175 Location 1: 125 Location 2: 5 Location 3: 6 Location 4: 4 Location 5: 8 Location 6: 36 Location 7: 10 Location 8: 143 Location 9: 17 Regarding CC-10 Agent recorded greetings could you expand on this requirement? The ability for an agent to record greeting when unavailable to caller(s) What is the average daily hours an agent is on the phone? This will vary and is dependent upon busy season for the particular Department. What is the average number of days an agent works per month? Most SOV agents are Mon-Friday 8 hours each day. One Call Center is open longer than that (7:45am 11:45pm) every day of the week. Each Call Center has the capability to stay open longer if necessary. How many IVRs do you currently have? R165 Q166 R166 Less than 100. Q167 How many skill sets for the agents do you have? R167 Currently there are five. Only one department is using skills at this time. Q168 How many supervisors do you have? R168 We are currently licensed for 44 Supervisors. Q169 Do you want you call campaigns agent and or platform initiated? R169 Regarding Auto dialer, we only use agentless campaigns at this time. Regarding basic test to speech: a. Do you want speech touch or full speech? b. How many automated speech recognition (ASRs) do you have/require? The State does have the TTS server in place. The State does not use ASRs currently but would not rule it out for the future. How many languages do you support and what are they? 1- English, with a desire to support additional languages. Does you call center require both toll free and local numbers for customers to call into? Yes What are your call queuing requirements? The State is looking for information on vendors call queue capabilities. How many ports do you require for queuing? The State is looking for information on vendors call queue capabilities. How many incoming calls per month do your call centers handle?

17 R175 Q176 R176 Q177 R177 Q178 R178 Q179 R179 Q180 R180 Q181 R181 Q182 CY 2014 ACD system had 960,307 Incoming calls and 295,854 outgoing calls. However, it varies month-to-month. Can we get the following information broken down by call center/department? a. How many incoming calls per month? b. Outgoing calls per month? c. Average call in minutes? d. Average time (minutes) in queue? e. Average IVR time in minutes? f. Total usage (minutes) annually? g. Total minutes per month by unit? h. Average hold time (minutes)? i. Average time with agent (minuets) j. What is your average ACD time in minutes? k. What is your abandon rate (minutes)? No, the information requested is not in scope of this project. Do you require multimedia interaction (Chat, , texting)? No, this is not in scope of this project. Do you require database communication? a. What database technology do you need to access? b. How many databases do you have that the call center accesses? c. Do you need CRM or CTI communication? d. How many data dips do you require to retrieve data? e. How many menu options do you have? f. Do you have web services to communicate with your databases? The information requested is not in scope of this project. Can you provide call flows by IVR? The State is only seeking a vendor response as to whether or not their solution provides an IVR feature, and if it is an additional license cost. Do you require quality management for training of agents? a. What quality management tools for scoring are you using today? There is one call center using scoring which is a feature of the current platform. Do you require workforce management for scheduling of agents? a. What workforce management tools are you using today? The State is not currently using this feature but would consider it in the future. Do you require a call back feature?

18 R182 Q183 R183 Q184 R184 Q185 R185 Q186 R186 Q187 R187 Q188 R188 Q189 R189 Q190 R190 Q191 R191 Q192 R192 Yes Do you need to record calls? a. How long do you require call recordings to live? b. Do you require long term storage of calls? c. How many months would you like to store call recordings? d. What percentage of calls would you like recorded? e. Will you allow FTP to your site for storage? a. Retention period is currently 90 days. b. Each Call Center can "archive" records which are manually purged. c. Retention period is currently 90 days. d. Each call center has their own configuration. If they record, they record all incoming and outgoing calls. e. Not at this time. Do you need to screen recording? The State is not currently using this feature but would consider it in the future. How many applications make up your current contact center? The State requests further clarification on this question. Will you allow vendors to bid on individual items or all inclusive? All inclusive. Would awarding the call center separately be an option? No, the call centers are not in scope for this project and are currently under contract for managed services. Do you require surveying of calls? If the vendor defines surveying as "listening", then yes. What type of surveying do you require? Current functionality allows agents to click on a listen or coach button. Will the Contact Center need to interface with a third party CRM tool and if yes, please provide information on the CRM database the State is using. The State is not currently using this feature but would consider it in the future. Will the State define the scale of the test period (ie. How many users, number of sites etc. to be included in the 90 day acceptance period)? These items will be developed as part of the testing plan in collaboration with the selected vendor. During an anticipated phased deployment of 8500 users, what are the minimum quantities needed for a suitable test and acceptance evaluation? These will be defined during testing plan development in collaboration with the selected vendor. A selected vendor shall agree to terms regarding the hold back of a percentage of each deliverable payment as retainage. Upon completion of all deliverables to the satisfaction of the State, all retainage withheld will be paid to a Contractor in full, subject to the terms and conditions of the Contract. Q193 Will the State elaborate on and define the terms and expectations for Retainage?

19 R193 Terms and expectaons will be discussed as part of contract negoaons with a selected vendor. The Bidder s interpretation of the RFP in Section and Section allows for the Bidder to note or propose exceptions/clarifications in its bid response provided they are incorporated into the Cover Letter as part of its response. Vendor expects its response to raise objections/exceptions for some of the following issues/items: MFN provision, set-off provision, cost of cover for Defaults, certain IP Rights provisions and certain indemnification provisions. Please confirm that Section 2.2 does Q194 not conflict with Section or Section 7.3.2? Section s and specify that objections to the State s Attachment C, Standard State Provisions for Contracts and Grants, must be noted in the cover letter of R194 your response. Section 2.2 specifies that questions regarding the RFP need to be received by the date and time indicated. These do not conflict. Will the State allow for a third Service Plan other than Basic and Enhanced for limited use locations such as lobbies, hallways, access doorways, lounge areas, etc. as Q195 these locations typically need minimal functionality? R195 Yes. The RFP mentions Audio Conferencing as included in a Basic Monthly Service Plan. Will the State define the Audio Conferencing requirements in terms of the number of participants / ports per user. Should offerors interpret this requirement as the basic three-way calling feature offered in a Centrex environment or is a true audio Q196 conferencing platform required? R196 Vendors should include their ad-hoc conferencing capabilities. If a separate Audio Conferencing platform is in use today and will need to be integrated with the new VoIP platform, please provide the manufacturer, site locations, Q197 number of users and historical usage data. R197 The current Audio Conferencing platform will not be integrated with proposed VoIP solution. Q198 Will the State provide approximations for the quantity of each phone type, including the number of anticipated Mobile or Mobile only users? R198 No. The RFP states that some locations will want SIP Trunking to replace their existing PRIs to their IP PBXs. Will these locations need an SBC provided for on-premise SIP Q199 Trunk termination? R199 If the State chooses to replace the PRIs with SIP trunks, then yes. The SBCs requested indicated significant call session licensing, which will increase the cost. Can lower SBCs be included with lower call session licensing (i.e. 300 Q200 sessions, 600 sessions etc)? R200 Yes. Q201 Overview: What version of Microsoft Active Directory is in use? R201 Microsoft Active Directory 2008 Service Pack 2 The RFP mentions training on Video Conferencing yet there is no mention of a video conferencing platform in the technical requirements. Should offerors interpret this reference as an option to use videoconferencing to deliver certain types of end user training and if so, will the state provide details on the video conferencing Q202 system that will be available? R202 Video conferencing is not included in the scope of this RFP. Training on video conferencing is not required. The State requests a seven year Fixed Price Cost Model to be included in submitted proposals (Attachment J), yet the period of time is not specified in section above. Will the State clarify the expectations for the fiscal years after the first year? Will vendors be allowed to include anticipated cost escalators in the out years Q203 and if so, will costs be allowed to change year to year?

20 R203 Q204 R204 Q205 R205 Q206 R206 Q207 R207 Q208 R208 Q209 R209 Q210 R210 The State desires to see an accurate outlook of costs for a seven year period. Vendors may take into consideration cost escalators in the out years. Costs agreed upon during contract negotiations with the selected vendor will not be allowed to change during the contract period unless for a compelling reason and a mutually agreed change order is approved. Will the State define the period of time for which pricing is to remain fixed before price changes would be allowed? The State desires to see an accurate outlook of costs for a seven year period. Vendors may take into consideration cost escalators in the out years. Costs agreed upon during contract negotiations with the selected vendor will not be allowed to change during the contract period unless for a compelling reason and a mutually agreed change order is approved. When evaluating cost proposals during the Phase III Review, will anticipated costs for all seven years be the basis for cost evaluations or will a shorter period be evaluated? It will be evaluated on all seven years. Given the current ongoing labor dispute at Fairpoint Communications, it is anticipated that many offerors may have delays in obtaining diverse access circuit quotes as part of proposed network designs and may materially impact the time needed to propose the most economical solution and cost quote. Will the State consider this as an additional factor when considering a request for a proposal submission extension of two weeks? The State has access to data that offeror's need in order to provide a viable solution. The current situation with one of our voice providers will not necessitate a need to allocate additional time to solicate proposals. Many of the requirements stated in this RFP for management, administration, monitoring, maintenance, upgrades, patching and support are not applicable to hosted solutions as those elements are built into the service delivery. How would the State prefer hosted solution respondents to address these requirements? We would like you to explain how these elements are built into your service delivery model. This section references a minimum initial deployment of 7,500 users. For contracting purposes is the State willing to accept 7,500 users as a minimum commitment level. No. Section 3 Project Management and Implementation Requirements Items 2-4 appear to be intended as Contractor PM requirements not State PM requirements as stated. Please confirm and adjust accordingly. The State is not clear which Items the vendor is referencing. If the State desires comparable responses from all soliciting respondents, then providing functional descriptions of each feature instead of a feature name is a suggested modification. Different vendors naming conventions often overlap while the functionality is completely different and may not match what the State has in mind. If the State does not wish to define each feature listed, then it is suggested that the respondents be required to include a definition of how each feature operates and not just have a check box for each feature. There is no question here.