REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS CONSULTING SERVICES FOR THE PROCUREMENT OF AN ELECTRONIC DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM CITY OF HIGHLAND PARK PLEASE COMPLETE ATTACHMENT 1 RFP ACKNOWLEDGEMENT FORM AND RETURN TO THE CITY IMMEDIATELY UPON RECEIPT OF THIS RFP ISSUE DATE: MARCH 14, 2013 DUE DATE: 4:00 P.M. CDT, APRIL 5, 2013* * PROPOSALS RECEIVED AFTER THE DUE DATE WILL BE RETURNED UNOPENED NOTE: QUESTIONS PERTAINING TO RFP ARE DUE MARCH 22, 2013 BY 4:00 P.M. CDT
Request for Proposal Consulting Services for the Procurement of an Electronic Document Management System Table of Contents Section I Section II Section III Section IV Attachments General Information A. Introduction B. Description of City C. Highland Park s Computer Services Environment D. Public Records E. RFP Coordinator F. RFP Schedule G. Questions Regarding the RFP H. RFP Amendments I. Proposal Submission J. Terms and Conditions Scope of Services A. Objectives of the Project B. Information Gathering C. Anticipated Specific Tasks and Services RFP Response Instructions A. Proposal Format Proposal Evaluation A. Responsiveness to RFP B. Ability to Perform Required Services C. References D. Fees E. Optional Interviews 1. RFP Acknowledgement Form 2
Section I General Information A. Introduction The City of Highland Park, Illinois (the City ) is seeking proposals from qualified consultants to assist in the procurement of an electronic document management system (EDMS). The qualified consultant would assist in the following: Determine the requirements and develop an RFP for an EDMS system Aid in selection of an EDMS System Aid in contract negotiations with the software vendor Develop an implementation plan B. Description of City The City of Highland Park was incorporated in 1869 and became a home-rule government in 1970. The City has a current population of 29,763 and is located approximately twenty-five miles north of Chicago. Highland Park currently employs 244 full-time staff members in six operating departments City Manager s Office, Community Development, Finance, Fire, Police and Public Works. The City operates under a Council/Manager form of government and follows a calendar fiscal year. C. Highland Park s Computer Services Environment With the exception of the Police Department s New World Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) system and the Water Plant s Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition (SCADA) system, Information Technology (IT) Division is involved with all upgrades of hardware and software, ensuring compatibility with all other devices on the network. The IT Division administers the capital planning function and represents the interests of all City departments. The division manages the budgeting, purchasing and deployment of all network, hardware and software solutions, as well as ongoing maintenance. The most critical software applications are maintained under software agreements with the vendors. This provides the City with access to upgrades of the latest versions and service patches. The vendor agreements also include support for the software applications via phone and/or access through a secure remote connection. The IT Division handles calls for user support related to hardware and software. Users can enter their calls into a help desk system or contact the IT professional staff directly. City Information Technology (IT) services are provided by three (3) full-time employees who are members of the Finance Department. The following is a brief description of the environment in which the IT Division operates: 34 physical and virtual servers running Windows Server 2003 & Windows 2008 r2 3 physical server systems running VMware ESXi 5.0 17 total sites connected via gigabit fiber 1
290 users and 325 email accounts Over 190 desktop and 58 laptop computers are supported by the IT Division Approximately 35 print devices D. Public Records The documents submitted in response to this request for proposal become a public record upon submission to the City subject to mandatory disclosure upon request by any person unless the documents are exempted from public disclosure by a specific provision of the Illinois Freedom of Information Act. If the City receives a request for inspection or copying of any such documents, it will promptly notify the person submitting the documents to the City by U.S. mail. The City assumes no contractual obligation to enforce any exemption on behalf of a respondent to this RFP. E. RFP Coordinator Upon release of this RFP, all communications concerning this proposal request should be directed to the RFP Coordinator listed below. Unauthorized contact regarding this RFP may result in disqualification. Any oral communications will be considered unofficial and nonbinding to the City. The respondent should rely only on written statements issued by the RFP Coordinator. Jon O Connell, Manager of Information Systems City of Highland Park 1707 St. Johns Avenue Highland Park, IL 60035-3532 Telephone: (847) 926-1026 Fax: (847) 432-2617 Email: joconnell@cityhpil.com F. RFP Schedule The City anticipates the following schedule, which is subject to change March 14, 2013 Issuance of Request for Proposal (RFP) March 22, 2013 4 p.m. CDT Deadline for Submission of Written Questions to the City March 27, 2013 City Releases Responses to Questions April 5, 2013 4 p.m. CDT RFP Submissions Due to City April 12, 2013 Select final consultant April 22, 2013 April 29, 2013 Recommendation to Council for Approval of selected consultant Kick off Meeting with consultant 2
G. Questions Regarding the RFP Requests for clarification or additional information must be made in writing to the RFP Coordinator prior to the date specified in the RFP Schedule. Written responses to all requests will be furnished to all potential proposers as determined by the City s receipt of a completed RFP Acknowledgement Form (Attachment A). The RFP Coordinator will be unable to respond to requests for additional information or clarification received after 4:00 p.m. CDT, March 22, 2013. H. RFP Amendments In the event of a material modification, all known and/or potential proposers will be notified of an amendment to the RFP as determined by the City s receipt of a completed RFP Acknowledgment Form. If deemed necessary by the City, proposers will be given an opportunity to modify their proposal in the specific areas that are affected by the modification. I. Proposal Submission Each proposer must submit five (5) copies of their proposal. In addition, one electronic copy of the proposal and any supporting documentation (Microsoft Word or PDF) must be submitted on CD-ROM. The complete proposal package must be submitted in a sealed envelope, clearly identified as Consulting Services for the Procurement of Electronic Document Management System. The proposals may be mailed or delivered to: City of Highland Park City Hall Department of Finance Attn: Manager of Information Systems 1707 St. Johns Avenue Highland Park IL 60035-3532 Proposals shall be submitted no later than 4:00 p.m. CDT on April 5, 2013. Any proposal submitted after this time will not be accepted and will not be considered. Proposers accept all risk of late delivery of mailed proposals regardless of fault. Facsimile and other electronically transmitted proposals will not be considered. All proposals and accompanying documentation become the property of the City and will not be returned. J. Terms and Conditions 1. The City reserves the right to amend the RFP schedule or issue amendments to the RFP at any time. The City also reserves the right to cancel or reissue the RFP, to reject any or all proposals, to waive any irregularities or informalities in the selection process, and to accept or reject any item or combination of items. The City reserves the right to request clarification of information from any proposer or to request supplemental material deemed necessary to assist in the evaluation of the proposal. The City reserves the right to effect any 3
agreement deemed by the City to be in its best interest. This RFP does not obligate the City to accept or contract for any expressed or implied services. 2. In the event that the proposer to whom any services are awarded does not execute a contract within thirty (30) calendar days after City Council approval, the City may give notice to such proposer of intent to award the contract to the next most qualified proposer or to call for new proposals and may proceed to act accordingly. 3. The City will not reimburse any proposer for any of the costs involved in the preparation and submission of responses to this RFP or in the preparation for and attendance at subsequent interviews. 4. Proposers shall thoroughly examine and be familiar with these specifications. The failure or omission of any proposer to receive or examine this document shall in no way relieve any proposer of obligations with respect to this proposal or the subsequent contract. 5. The executed contract may be terminated by the City in the event the successful bidder: Fails to meet delivery schedules; Defaults in the payment of any fees; Otherwise fails to perform in accordance with this contract; Becomes insolvent and/or files for protection under the bankruptcy laws. 6. The vendor shall be entitled to just and equitable compensation for any satisfactory work completed through the termination date. Under no circumstances will any damages be paid as a result of the termination of this contract. If the City exercises the right to terminate the contract early, the vendor may be prohibited from submitting future proposals to the City for a specified period. 4
Section II Scope of Services A. Objectives of the Project The City of Highland Park, Illinois (the City ) is seeking proposals from qualified consultants to assist in procuring an electronic document management system (EDMS). The qualified consultant would assist in the following: Determine the requirements and develop an RFP for an EDMS system Aid in selection of an EDMS System Aid in contract negotiations with the software vendor Develop an implementation plan The consultant must provide a detailed plan and timeline of how they will complete this project by September 20, 2013, which is when the final EDMS solutions provider is to be chosen. B. Information Gathering The key to developing a credible RFP for an EDMS system is reliant upon the comprehensive efforts utilized to gather sufficient input from City staff and departments. The results of the information gathering sessions must be categorized in a logical and systematic fashion and incorporated into the RFP for the EDMS system. The consultant shall develop a plan to conduct interviews in order to gain an in-depth understanding of how document management can be used throughout the organization. City officials and departments that should be included in the interview process include: City Manager s Office Finance Department Police Department Fire Department Public Works Department Community Development Department City professional staff will be available to aid in the logistics of reserving facilities, setting up forums and interviews. The consultant will remain responsible for facilitating events, conducting interviews, gathering, quantifying, analyzing and reporting on all information obtained throughout this process. 5
C. Anticipated Specific Tasks and Services Initial meeting with Finance Director and other City staff to discuss the project scope and timetable and gain an understanding of the City operations. Assessment of the current IT infrastructure including existing document management solutions and/or practices, current enterprise software solutions, hardware and multifunction devices. Analysis of the current business processes of all City departments with regards to document management. Educate City staff of the potential benefits of an EDMS solution. Meet with the Directors and the IT Steering Committee to discuss the electronic document management system alternatives, direction and development. Discuss the request for proposal for EDMS software solutions and timetable for the RFP process. The completion date in the time table for the final vendor selection for an EDMS solution should be no later than September 20, 2013. Evaluate current City systems i.e. Tyler s Eden ERP System, Firehouse, Cardinal Tickie Trak, New World CAD and RMS for EDMS software integration. Develop the request for proposal for the selection of an EDMS software solution. Assist in the evaluation of the proposal responses, scheduling of software demonstrations and/or vendor interviews. Assist in contract negotiations with selected vendor. Appear before department heads and/or City Council to present the results of the EDMS Selection process recommendations. Development of implementation plan based upon the result of the vendor selection and software solution chosen. 6
Section III RFP Response Instructions A. Proposal Format Proposals should be prepared simply and economically, providing a straight-forward, concise description of proposer capabilities to satisfy the requirements of this request. Special bindings, colored displays, promotional materials, etc., are not desired. Emphasis should be placed on completeness and clarity of content. All proposal responses must be in the following format: 1. Cover Letter / Executive Summary 2. Table of Contents 3. Company Background /Qualifications 4. Scope and Methodology 5. References 6. Cost Proposal 7. Attachments The desired information in each of these sections is described below. 1. Cover Letter / Executive Summary The cover letter should contain the name of the proposing Company, the address of the proposing officer(s), and the contact individual(s) authorized to answer technical, price, and contract questions. Contact information should include telephone number, fax number, mailing address, and email address. The cover letter must be signed by a person or persons authorized to bind the proposer. The proposer shall include a brief summary that includes the factual core aspects of basic services offered, experience and qualifications of the proposer, staff, consultants, sub-consultants and/or suppliers, a list of relevant projects in the last five (5) years and the timeliness in which they were completed and any other relevant information. 2. Table of Contents The contents of the proposal shall be included in an index at the beginning of the proposal and should include all contents and attachments. 3. Company Background / Qualifications This section should include the full name and principal address of the company, as well as the distance of your nearest office to Highland Park City Hall. Include the state in which the Company is incorporated to operate and the date of incorporation. Provide a brief overview of the general background and services provided by your firm, including size of organization, description of organization structure, and number of years in business, and experience in serving governmental entities. Discuss the company s willingness to work with multiple government jurisdictions in the event other communities wish to partake in this EDMS selection process. 7
Identify key staff in your company and affiliates including subcontractors or subconsultants to fulfill the contract requirements. Provide their resumes with job descriptions and other detailed qualification information. Include the proposed role and estimated amount of time to be spent on this project for each person. If your company is selected as one of the final vendors, please be prepared to show your financial strength by providing a copy of your company s financial statements for the past two years. 4. Scope and Methodology Provide in detail how your firm would add value to this process. Set forth a work plan, including the methodology and processes to be followed to perform the services as identified in Section II. Also outline a project timeline from award of contract to final vendor selection of an EDMS system. Allow for sufficient time for presentations to City Council and other internal steering groups. Confirm in the timeline that a qualifying vender can be selected by September 20, 2013. 5. References Provide a minimum of three (3) client references of similar sized and/or municipal accounts which the proposer has served over the past two years and/or is currently serving. Provide a contact person, telephone number, and email address for each reference customer. 6. Cost Proposal Provide an all-inclusive, not to exceed cost estimate for the engagement. Break out the costs of service into the four major areas: Requirements and develop an RFP for an EDMS system Selection of an EDMS System Contract negotiations with the software vendor Implementation plan 7. Attachments Additional information that the proposer believes is critical to the City s assessment of the proposal should be included in this section. As noted previously, marketing promotional materials are not desired for review of the response to the RFP. 8
Section IV Proposal Evaluation Proposals will be evaluated by a committee of City staff. Evaluations will be based upon the criteria outlined herein which may be weighted by the City in a manner it deems appropriate. All proposals will be evaluated using the same criteria and weighting. The criteria used will be: A. Responsiveness to RFP The City will consider all the material submitted to determine whether the proposer s offering is in compliance with the RFP. It is important that the responses be clear and complete so that the evaluation committee can adequately understand all aspects of the proposal. B. Ability to Perform Required Services The City will consider all the material submitted by each proposer, and other relevant material it may otherwise obtain, to determine whether the proposer is capable of and has a history of successfully completing contracts of this type. The proposer shall furnish acceptable evidence of their ability to perform, regarding such categories as expertise and experience. Municipal experience will be taken into consideration along with the company s willingness and ability to work with multiple government jurisdictions in the event other communities wish to partake in a this EDMS selection process. C. References The City may contact references directly to inquire about the quality and type of services that have been or are currently being provided to other customers. D. Fees The City s evaluation process is not designed to simply award the contract to the lowest cost proposer. Rather, it is intended to help the City select the vendor with the best combination of attributes including price. E. Optional Interviews At the discretion of the City, interviews may be arranged with the top finalists to assist in making a final selection. Selection shall be based upon evaluation criteria, committee s recommendations and subject to City Council approval. It is the City s intention to select one firm to perform these requested services. 9
ATTACHMENT 1 RFP Acknowledgement Form Consulting Services for the Procurement of an Electronic Document Management System Recipients of the City s Request for Proposals for Consulting Services for the Procurement of an Electronic Document Management System should complete this form and return as directed below to ensure receipt of any communications issued by the City in regards to the RFP. Responses to vendor questions issued by the City on March 27, 2013, will be sent to all vendors for whom a completed RFP Acknowledgement Form has been received. Contact Name: Company: Mailing Address: Phone Number: Email: Return completed RFP Acknowledgement Form to: Patty Post, Finance Department City of Highland Park 1707 St. Johns Avenue Highland Park, Illinois 60035 finance@cityhpil.com