REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL P PROFESSIONAL TELEPHONE ANSWERING SERVICES

Transcription

1 Procurement Department 450 Cowie Hill Rd., PO Box 8388, RPO CSC Halifax, NS, B3K 5M1 Telephone: (902) REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL P PROFESSIONAL TELEPHONE ANSWERING SERVICES Sealed proposals submitted in a plain envelope marked: REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL P PROFESSIONAL TELEPHONE ANSWERING SERVICES Addressed to: Brent Hickman, S.C.M.P. Procurement Officer Halifax Water 450 Cowie Hill Road Halifax, NS B3P 2V3 Will be received until 2:00 p.m. Atlantic Time, Thursday, March 12, 2015 for the above Request for Proposal as per the specifications and terms and conditions. Check for changes to this request Before submitting your bid, visit the Provincial Government Web Portal at to see if any Addenda detailing changes have been issued on this proposal. Changes may be posted up until the proposal closing time. It is the bidders responsibility to acknowledge and take into account all Addenda. Bidders shall be solely responsible for the delivery of their bids in the manner and time prescribed. Bids received after the date and time specified shall be rejected. Electronic and facsimile bids are not accepted. The lowest or any submission will not necessarily be accepted. Proposal Issue Date Thursday February 19, 2015

2 Page 2 of 16 PROPONENT S SUBMISSION SHEET The undersigned hereby acknowledges that he/she, as an officer of the stated corporation, has read and understands the specifications, requirements, and proposed agreement regarding Professional Telephone Answering Services for Halifax Water. He/she further acknowledges that the seller s proposed product, equipment, materials, and services fully meet or exceed those as specified in Halifax Water s Proposal. Additionally, the Proponent agrees that all its bid documents and responses to the aforementioned Request for Proposal will, at the option of Halifax Water, become a legally binding and essential portion of the final contract between the successful Proponent and Halifax Water. The following information must be completed to ensure tender acceptance. *ADDENDA No. to INCLUSIVE WERE CAREFULLY EXAMINED. DATED THIS DAY OF, 2015 PROPONENT S COMPANY NAME: ADDRESS: CITY/ PROVINCE: POSTAL CODE: PHONE NO.: FAX NO.: ADDRESS: WEBSITE: CONTACT NAME (please print): TITLE (please print): PHONE NO.: AUTHORIZED SIGNATURE: HST REGISTRATION NO: WCB COVERAGE: YES NO * The proponent shall list and initial all addenda received during the period and shall take them into consideration when preparing their bid submission. A signed copy of each Addendum must be included with the bid submission. Failure to comply may be cause for rejection of bid submission. HALIFAX WATER RESERVES THE RIGHT TO REJECT ANY OR ALL SUBMISSIONS. THE LOWEST OR ANY SUBMISSION WILL NOT NECESSARLIY BE ACCEPTED. This proposal will adhere to Halifax Water s Standard Terms & Conditions. They can be found on our website at

3 Page 3 of INTRODUCTION Halifax Regional Water Commission (Halifax Water) is soliciting proposals for professional telephone answering services for the support of Halifax Water s operations and activities during night, holiday, weekend hours, or on an as-needed basis. The normal hours for the answering services will typically be from 4:00 pm to 8:00 am, Monday through Friday and 24-hours per day on all weekends and holidays. 2.0 BACKGROUND Halifax Water is the municipally owned water, wastewater and stormwater utility responsible for service within the urban and suburban core of the Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM). The utility provides service to more than 80,000 customers (service connections) and a population of approximately 350,000. Halifax Water receives approximately 450 calls per month (600 minutes) to the answering service. Calls are typically higher in the winter months when water line breaks are more common (1,500 calls). The types of calls received could involve water line breaks, broken hydrants, service disconnects, loss of water pressure, cloudy water, no running water and complaints about water construction or repair projects, etc. Halifax Water call types may soon include sewer line breaks, sewer backups, manhole cover missing/dislodged, sewer odors, flooded streets, etc. These type calls are anticipated to be an additional 400 calls per month. 3.0 SCOPE OF WORK 3.1 Service Requirements: a. The telephone service provider shall accept telephone calls by live operators stationed at an offsite, 24-hour call centre that can forward messages, faxes, and s to designated staff. The provider must have the ability to evaluate and prioritize the severity of important calls and provide detailed reporting of calls. b. The Vendor is required to answer Halifax Water s after business hours, weekends and holiday telephone calls. c. The Vendor shall make available on-call personnel in case of a known event whereby Halifax Water would expect to receive an excessive number of calls. d. After speaking with the customer, Vendor shall call the appropriate Halifax Water contact person immediately upon receiving the emergency call. Vendor shall record Halifax Water contact person that was called, the time of the call and the resolution of the call.

4 Page 4 of 16 If the contact person cannot be reached, the next Halifax Water contact person shall be called immediately thereafter. If unable to reach any Halifax Water contact person, record who contact was attempted with and the time the contact was attempted. Continue the above process until someone is contacted. e. Any calls not answered by the Vendor must be switched to a recording device that can take a message from the caller. Busy signals and drops shall not be allowed. Any recorded message must be answered or appropriately addressed within 10 minutes. Every incoming call must be addressed. f. During regular business hours between 8:00 am to 4:00 pm, overflow calls may be forwarded to the vendor when call volume is high. g. The Vendor shall answer calls by saying Thank you for calling the Emergency Answering Service for Halifax Water. h. Vendor shall follow scripts as provided by Halifax Water, which could change at any given time. i. The vendor will provide the following service standards: - The answering service shall answer all calls by the fifth ring. On average, calls shall be answered by the third ring. During period of high (near continuous) call volume these requirements will be waived. - Callers may be put on hold after the call is answered however the hold time shall not exceed one minute. - Any calls not answered within 5 rings must be switched to a recording machine that can take the inquiry/complaint. Any recorded message must be answered or appropriately addressed within 10 minutes. Every incoming call must be addressed. j. A voice recording of all calls shall also be made available upon request from Halifax Water. All calls shall be stored for six (6) months from the date received. The Vendor will not share call recordings with any outside party at any time and calls recordings must be purged on a regular basis. 4. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS a. All calls must be recorded in a commonly available electronic computer program approved by Halifax Water. b. All calls must be logged in a clear, concise and accurate manner. c. The following information must be recorded from each call:

5 Page 5 of 16 - Caller s name - Phone number where they can be reached - Address of the emergency - A description of the emergency - Time of call - Length of call - Halifax Water contact that was called - Time Halifax Water contact was called and resolution of call. d. Call reports must be submitted to Halifax Water via to a distribution list provided by Halifax Water at 8:00 am each morning for all calls received and recorded the prior day. e. The vendor shall provide call reporting statistics on a monthly basis for the term of the Agreement. Reports must include a minimum of the following: - Total number of calls received for the month - Number of calls answered for the month - Average number of calls per day - Busiest call day - Slowest call day - Average length of call - Average speed of answer - Number of calls abandoned - Call Type - Number of calls recorded and not answered - Average number of minutes to return these calls 5.0 PERSONEL REQUIREMENTS a. The vendor shall provide adequate personnel, trained in the proper methods and techniques in order to properly and satisfactorily accept phone calls and relay information and have the necessary public relations skills to interact with employees and customers in a professional, courteous, and businesslike manner. b. The vendor staffing levels shall be adequate to handle the volume of calls received from Halifax Water customers. c. Halifax Water will provide training that will include screening of calls, identifying pertinent information and making an appropriate referral. Training to take place at Halifax Water s office located at 450 Cowie Hill Road, Halifax, NS. 6.0 VENDOR EXPERIENCE AND QUALIFICATIONS The proposal shall include information on the experience of the company as it relates to the scope of work. Please include a minimum of three (3) references of similar type, including

6 Page 6 of 16 contact person and phone number, indicating if they serve other public sector clients. Proponents should assume that the references will be contacted. REFERENCES Vendors are to provide a list of three (3) references for any work of a similar nature done by your firm in the past three years. References from Halifax Water staff cannot be considered as it might be perceived as a conflict of interest. Halifax Water staff shall be sole judge if their references are suitable to carry out this work. The vendor must be qualified in this field of work and through references and past performance must demonstrate their firm is qualified to carry out this work. 1 Company Contact Number Description of work provided 2 Company Contact Number Description of work provided 3 Company Contact Number Description of work provided 6.1 Required Vendor Qualifications: Vendor has been in a related business providing similar services for a minimum of two (2) years. Please indicate total number of years of service. Indicate the type of Customer Service training program you have for your employees. Vendor must be able to direct calls to a back-up location in case of an emergency at the Vendor s location. Vendor will provide their privacy policy and practices related to protecting the privacy of Halifax Water customer information. All contractors, consultants and their employees working for Halifax Water must obtain a Police Record Check (PRC). The process for obtaining PRCs is outlined in Appendix A. Vendor to indicate any additional value added services that they can provide to Halifax Water. The vendor must be able to handle at least XX calls simultaneously under normal circumstances. The vendor must be able to handle XX calls simultaneously when Halifax Water is experiencing an emergency, such as a major water or sewer line break. The vendor will provide their monthly service level with respect to the following:

7 Page 7 of 16 - Average call answer time per calendar month - Percentage of calls answered with a live operator per calendar month 7.0 CONTRACT The contract will be an agreement between Halifax Water and the successful proponent. Services and products to be delivered shall be in keeping with the scope of work requirements. The contract term will be for a two (2) year period from April 1, 2015 to March 31, Halifax Water reserves the sole right to extend the contract for an additional two (2) years in one (1) year increments based on performance and price. 8.0 INFORMATION FOR PROPONENTS 8.1 Proposal Submission The response to this RFP shall be submitted as follows: The technical proposal shall include five (5) bound copies of the proposal, one (1) marked ORIGINAL and four (4) marked COPY. The Original and Copies should be identical (excluding any obvious differences in labeling, as noted). If discrepancies between these items are discovered during the evaluation or during the life of any contract that emerges from this RFP, the Original retained by Procurement, shall be taken as the correct version and the Proponent will be advised accordingly. 8.2 Insurance The consultant is required to provide professional liability insurance in the amount of 2 million dollars, covering the services described in the agreement. The policy shall be continuous from the commencement of the services and continue for a twelve (12) month period following completion of the services. 8.3 Indemnification The proponent agrees to indemnify and save harmless Halifax Water from and against all claims, actions, losses, expenses, costs or damages of every nature and kind whatsoever which may occur through the performance of this contract.

8 Page 8 of Acknowledgement A complete acknowledgement, in the form set forth in the Proponent Submission Sheet confirming that the Proponent acknowledges and agrees to all the conditions of participation in the RFP. 8.5 Assumptions The proponent shall clearly identify all assumptions made in the preparation of the proposal. Additionally, the proponent is encouraged to outline other work considered essential to the successful completion of this project that was not identified by Halifax Water in this RFP. 8.6 One Response Proponents may not submit more than one (1) proposal. 8.7 Address for Submission The proposals shall be delivered in a sealed envelope marked Request for Proposals #P , not later than 2:00 pm, Thursday March 12, 2015 addressed to: Brent Hickman, S.C.M.P. Procurement Officer Halifax Water 450 Cowie Hill Road Halifax, NS, B3P 2V3 Phone: (902) Under no circumstance will proposals received after the Submission Closing Date and Time be accepted. 8.8 Hard Copies All proposals must be in hard copy form. No facsimile transmissions will be accepted. However, amendments to the original document will be accepted by facsimile, if received before the Submission Closing Date and Time. Originals must be forwarded to Halifax Water so that they may be attached to the original hard copy for validity.

9 Page 9 of Official Date and Time of Receipt The date and time of receipt of a Proposal shall be the date and time indicated by Halifax Water staff marked on the Proposal Revision of Request for Proposals Any changes or revisions to this RFP will be issued to all proponents in writing as a formal addendum to this RFP. Prior to the Submission Date and Time, Halifax Water may modify any provision or part of the RFP at any time upon notice in writing to the proponents. Halifax Water will provide a reasonable time for the proponents to respond to such modifications including, without limitation, the opportunity to make any necessary revisions to their respective proposals Request for Clarification Any proponent who has questions as to the meaning or intent of any part of this RFP or of the project, or who believes this RFP contains an error, inconsistency or omission, should submit a request for clarification. All requests for clarification or inquiries concerning this RFP should be forwarded in writing by to the Halifax Water representative identified below: Brent Hickman, S.C.M.P. Procurement Officer Halifax Water 450 Cowie Hill Road Halifax, NS, B3P 2V3 Phone: (902) Fax: (902) procurement@halifaxwater.ca Responses to all requests for clarification will be provided by Halifax Water in writing to all proponents. Halifax Water will assume no responsibility for oral instructions or suggestions. Halifax Water core hours of operation are Monday to Friday, 8:30 am to 4:30 pm Proposal Evaluation Proposals will be evaluated on the basis of all information provided by the Proponent. Each proposal will be reviewed to determine if the proposal is responsive to the submission requirements outlined in the RFP. Failure to comply with these requirements may deem the proposal non-responsive. In recognition of the importance of the procedure by which a proponent may be selected, the following criteria outline the primary considerations to be used in the evaluation and form the basis of the consequent awarding of this project (not in any order). Selection of a proposal will be based on the following criteria and any other relevant information provided by the proponent in the submission.

10 Page 10 of 16 Criteria Weight Score Technical Proposed Approach / Methodology 25 Demonstrated Expertise in Conducting Similar Services 25 Qualifications and Experience 25 Subtotal - Technical Financial 25 Total 100 Note: The Financial component shall exclude HST. Do not include any Provincial or Federal sales tax. All prices to be quoted in Canadian dollars Selection Process An Evaluation Team comprised of Halifax Water representatives will evaluate responses to the RFP. Proponents may be invited to make a presentation to the Evaluation Team prior to award. Proponents must be prepared to present their training module and must have members of the proposed project team participate in the presentation. The Evaluation Team may use this opportunity to discuss the submitted proposal and request clarification of information provided in the proposal submission. Proponents are encouraged to provide any additional information that may be relevant in the evaluation of their proposal Award Provided that at least one of the received proposals meets the approval of the Evaluation Team, a recommendation on Contract award will be made on the basis of the evaluation and overall best value to Halifax Water. All awards are subject to the approval of Senior Management and the availability of funds. No announcement concerning the successful proposal(s) will be made until a complete report is prepared and approved by the appropriate bodies. Halifax Water reserves the right to reject any or all proposals and not necessarily accept the lowest priced proposal. Halifax Water also reserves the right to waive informality or technicality in any proposal. Written communication to the Successful Proponent of notification of award before the time of expiration specified by Halifax Water shall result in a binding Contract without further action by either party. Halifax Water may accept an offer whether or not there are negotiations after its receipt. Negotiations conducted after receipt of an offer do not constitute a rejection or counteroffer by Halifax Water. Neither acceptance of a proposal nor execution of a contract will constitute approval of any activity or development contemplated in any proposal that requires any approval,

11 Page 11 of 16 permit or license pursuant to any federal, provincial, regional or municipal statute, regulation or by-law. 9.0 PROJECT ADMINISTRATION 9.1 Payment The vendor shall submit a monthly invoice for services provided to: Halifax Water Attn: Accounts Payable P.O. Box 8388, RPO CSC Halifax, NS, B3K 5M1 Payment shall be made upon receipt of a proper invoice from the vendor and authorized by the head of the department or designee. Normal payment terms for Halifax Water are net 30 days from receipt of the invoice. Halifax Water administers its payables via an electronic payment process known as EDI payment GENERAL INFORMATION 10.1 Proponent Responsible for Proposal / No Reliance on Halifax Water The Proponent accepts sole responsibility for the preparation and submission of its Proposal including satisfying itself as to the requirements of all documents and the submission of materials and the Proposal within the required time frames Rights of Halifax Water The issuance of this RFP constitutes only an invitation to submit Proposals. It does not commit Halifax Water to enter into an Agreement with any of the Proponents. Halifax Water is not bound to accept any Proposal(s) and may proceed, in its sole discretion, as it determines on receipt of Proposals. The rights reserved by Halifax Water include the right at any time and for whatever reason and without liability to any Proponent to: (a) conduct investigations with respect to the qualifications and experience of the Proponent and its members; (b) require one or more Proponents to supplement, clarify, provide additional information in order for Halifax Water to evaluate the Proposal submitted; (c) reject the Proponent as organized and suggest changes to the Proponent's members prior to the execution of any Agreement;

12 Page 12 of 16 (d) terminate, in its sole and absolute discretion, any and all subsequent consideration of, or Agreement with, any Proponent, if it believes a change in the membership of the Proponent, from that described in its Proposal, adversely affects the scoring of the Proponent's Proposal or the Proponent's ability to carry out the Engagement in accordance with the terms and conditions stated herein; (e) supplement, amend, substitute or otherwise modify any part or all of this RFP including by extending any schedule or period of time; (f) issue one or more addenda to this RFP; (g) reject any or all Proposals or any portion thereof; (h) disclose to the public information contained in the Proposals; (i) suspend, postpone or cancel this RFP in whole or in part with or without substitution of another RFP or proposal process; (j) take any action affecting this RFP, the RFP process or the Engagement that would be in the best interests of Halifax Water; and (k) use any concept or approach suggested in any Proposal including its use in negotiating an agreement with the Successful Proponent or any other Proponent; 10.3 Disclosure of Information and Communication Procedures (a) Disclosure by Halifax Water Halifax Water will consider all Proposals as confidential, subject to the disclosure requirements imposed by applicable law. Halifax Water will, however, have the right to make copies of all Proposals received for its internal review process and to provide copies to its staff, technical and financial advisors and representatives. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Proponent acknowledges and agrees that Halifax Water will not be responsible or liable in any way for any losses that the Proponent may suffer from disclosure of information or materials to third parties. (b) Disclosure by the Proponent The Proponent shall not disclose any details pertaining to its Proposal or any part of the selection process to anyone not specifically involved in its Proposal, without the prior approval of Halifax Water. The Proponent shall not issue a news release or other public announcement pertaining to details of its Proposal or the selection process without the prior approval of Halifax Water Clarification of Proposals Halifax Water is not obliged to seek clarification from the Proponent regarding any

13 Page 13 of 16 aspect of its Proposal. Halifax Water shall have the right to request the Proponent to submit information to clarify or interpret any matters contained in its Proposal and to seek the Proponent's written acknowledgement of that clarification or interpretation. In addition, Halifax Water may request supplementary documentation from the Proponent when there is an irregularity or omission in its Proposal or the documents submitted therewith. The Proponent should not assume Halifax Water will request clarifications. Supplementary documentation accepted by Halifax Water and written interpretations that have been supplied or acknowledged by the Proponent shall be considered to form part of the Proposal No Interest in Another Proponent The Proponent shall not have any interest whatsoever in any other Proponent or in the Proposal of any other Proponent nor enter into any arrangement, agreement or understanding either before or after the Submission Date that would have that result. Provided however, after the Closing Date, the unsuccessful Proponents or members of the unsuccessful Proponents may, with the consent of Halifax Water, become involved in the Engagement, provided such involvement is limited solely to acting as a subcontractor to the Successful Proponent Proponents to Ensure They Understand the Engagement It is the Proponent's responsibility to ensure that it has all the necessary information concerning the intent and requirements of this RFP and the Engagement. The Proponent is solely responsible for examining and reviewing all documents and information provided or required pursuant to this RFP and for satisfying itself as to all other matters which may in any way affect the Engagement or the cost or time required to complete the Engagement. Nothing contained in this RFP or in any communications from Halifax Water shall constitute any express or implied warranty or representation by Halifax Water, except as explicitly stated herein and therein Waiver / No Reliance Halifax Water does not accept responsibility for any information, advice, errors or omissions which may be contained in this RFP or its appendices or any addendum. Halifax Water makes no representation or warranty, either express or implied, in fact or in law, with respect to the accuracy or completeness of this RFP or its appendices or any addendum and Halifax Water shall not be responsible for any action, cost, loss or liability whatsoever arising from the Proponent's reliance on or use of such information or any other technical or historical schedules, data, materials or documents provided by Halifax Water. The Proponent is responsible for obtaining its own independent financial, legal, accounting, engineering and technical advice with respect to any information included in this RFP, its appendices or any addenda or in

14 Page 14 of 16 any documents provided by Halifax Water False or Misleading Information If there is any evidence of misleading or false information in any Proposal, Halifax Water may reject that Proposal.

15 Page 15 of 16 Appendix A Police Records Check (PRC) PROCESS FOR OBTAINING POLICE RECORD CHECK FOR CONTRACTORS/CONSULTANTS 1. All contractors, consultants and their employees working for Halifax Water must obtain a Police Record Check (PRC). 2. It is the responsibility of the Halifax Water staff member that engages a contractor/consultant to ensure that a PRC is conducted. 3. To obtain a PRC, contractors or consultants should either: a) Book an appointment with or visit their local Police Department. Once completed, the results of the PRC should be sent to the address below indicating the organization the individual is currently employed with, the HW Project Manager, and the name of the project that the PRC s relate to. Halifax Water Safety & Security Dept. 450 Cowie Hill Road Halifax, NS B3P 2V3 or by monicastc@halifaxwater.ca b) Go online to If this method is chosen, the individual will have to create a personal account with mybackcheck. They have the option of verifying their ID either online by answering a couple of quick questions regarding their credit history or in person at any of the 5000 participating Canada Post locations nationwide. Once verified, the Police will complete the PRC. The individual will receive an indicating the results are in. They will then have to login to their mybackcheck account and choose to Share the results with Halifax Regional Water Commission again indicating the organization the individual is currently employed with, the HW Project Manager and the name of the project that the PRC s relate to. For residents of the United States, a FBI record check is acceptable. 4. The Safety & Security Department will notify the Halifax Water Project Manager who requested the PRC whether the contractor/consultant has received clearance. 5. If a contractor/consultant requires Card Access to a Halifax Water facility(s) the Project Manager will schedule an appointment with the Human Resources Department to have a Contractor Card created and access granted, based on the contractors/consultant s needs. 6. Certain contractors/consultants, depending on the work or services they are providing, may require a fingerprint-based check. Halifax Water reserves the right to request fingerprints where applicable. 7. All contractors, consultants and their employees are required to renew their PRC every 3 years.

16 Page 16 of 16 Appendix B Bid Form TENDER # DATE CLOSING DATE CONTACT P February 19, 2015 March 12, 2015 Brent Hickman DESCRIPTION PRICE Calls charged per minute or volume. Please indicate the proposed fee structure: Monthly fee for calls per month Monthly fee for minutes per month Holiday fee Training cost during initial set-up $ $ $ $ Note: HST Extra (Do not include in price) Please indicate total # of years in service: years. Location of vendor s call centre and number of full time employees working there.