Request for Proposals:

Transcription

1 Central Pennsylvania Workforce Development Corporation Request for Proposals: Career Hub Website Issue Date: January 4, 2018 Submission Deadline: January 19, 2018 The enclosed specifications may be modified as required by the Central Pennsylvania Workforce Development Board without prior notice to Proposers.

2 Background Central Pennsylvania Workforce Development Corporation (CPWDC) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization formed in 2000 and is a Workforce Development Board (WDB) authorized under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of CPWDC is responsible for developing and implementing strategies around a broad workforce development agenda for the nine county region of Central Pennsylvania, including Centre, Clinton, Columbia, Lycoming, Mifflin, Montour, Northumberland, Snyder, and Union Counties. The WDB s diverse partners in the workforce development system include public agencies, private and non-profit businesses, education and training providers, community and economic development partnerships, and job seekers using the PA CareerLink system. Project Summary CPWDC is a recipient of the PA Department of Labor & Industry s Business-Education Partnership Grant. With support from the grant, CPWDC convened a group of individuals including Career & Technical Education Administrators, PA CareerLink staff, Chambers of Commerce staff, and local employers to meet, brainstorm, and strategize to answer: How might we get more students to see the value of pursuing a career in the skilled trades? Although the original question was geared specifically towards skilled trades, the conversation evolved to how do we increase students awareness for all local career options. One idea that emerged from these meetings is the creation of an online career hub website that will build on the expertise of the PA CareerLink and other local resources with a goal of enhancing student, parent and teacher awareness of quality career opportunities in our community. CPWDC in partnership with the Columbia Montour Chamber of Commerce and the Greater Susquehanna Valley Chamber of Commerce and PA CareerLink are now moving forward with developing the web platform. Purpose of Request for Proposal Through this RFP, CPWDC competitively seeks a web development company for the design, CMS development, custom application development, site maintenance, and hosting for a onestop career hub for students, parents, teachers and employers in the nine county Central PA Region. The goal of the website is to enhance these stakeholder s awareness of quality career opportunities available locally. The main functionality will be a searchable database that helps match students with local employers offering career experiences like job shadowing, internships, company tours, similar to what is available at The site will also host other information including company profiles, career pathway maps, and other information to help inform students of available career opportunities similar to The site must be capable of hosting a variety of multimedia resources and have a contemporary web design that makes the content compelling and easy to access. What will set this site apart from similar career resource hubs online will be CPWDC RFP for Career Hub Website Page 2 of 8

3 the local nature of the vast majority of the content, and all aspects of the website should reflect this key differentiator. Scope of Work 1. Design & Development Requirements The website will be designed to engage visitors with a stimulating visual design which may include the use of long scrolling, short scrolling, sticky pages, etc. that make the site easy to navigate. These website pages must be responsively designed for use on mobile devices and viewable through all major browsers. CPWDC will provide all content and will rely on the vendor s aesthetic sensibilities and design talents to develop an appealing look and feel for the site. As part of the design process, vendor will also create a style sheet so that CPWDC can be consistent in all other marketing materials. The goal is to quickly convey information in a visually compelling manner. 2. Content Management Requirements This project will require the building and implementation of a full Content Management System to allow multiple novice users with minimal training to add, edit and remove pages and content for the site through a web-based, secure administrative area. Users should be able to register with the site, and administrators should be able to modify the permissions for registered users, including who can view, post and approve content. Content will include things such as: Career experiences (see 3a below) Blog posts / success stories Calendar entries Career resources for different site stakeholders in a variety of multimedia formats. For example: o Companies: speaker tips, presentation talking points, expectations to consider, etc. o Teachers: tips for teachers during workplace tours, safety considerations, availability of company tours, how apprenticeships/mentoring programs work, educational opportunities, etc. o Students: career interest survey and employability assessments, questions to ask during a job shadow or during an employer presentation, etc. Profiles of local companies that include embedded multimedia, linked files, and categorized information that is searchable through the experience matching database Information on local training providers/educational institutions Content should be as easy to modify as possible. For example, a company who wishes to create a profile on the site should be presented with a template that allows them to easily CPWDC RFP for Career Hub Website Page 3 of 8

4 upload logos, text, multimedia and other links which will then automatically appear in an appealing format. 3. Custom Application Development Requirements Additional functionality required includes: a. Employer/student matching functionality: The site will include the ability for companies to add Experiences that are searchable by multiple criteria (i.e. Industry Cluster, Experience type, Location, Education/Age requirements, Current availability). These experiences should go through an approval process between being uploaded and visible on the site, and certain information like contact details should only be available to users with permissions (e.g. guidance counselors arranging experiences for their students). b. Events calendars: The site will include an easily updatable events calendar. On mouseover, the calendar will reveal additional details about the events, including brief description, time and location. c. Reporting functionality: Some amount of reporting functionality should be built in, making it easy to track outcomes and gather quantitative and qualitative feedback. Examples include: How many people attended events, quality of experience, etc.? How often certain employers are being contacted on the site for experiences? How frequently experience types are utilized? Functionality for employers, teachers and/or students to provide feedback after an experience, perhaps through an automatically generated /text within 5 days of an experience to remind them to provide feedback. 4. Site Maintenance Requirements The vast majority of content creation on site will be done through the CMS. Occasionally, the static text and pictures on the websites will also need to be updated. These minor updates should be able to be accomplished by staff with basic HTML programming experience. More substantial site updates will also be needed from time to time. Your proposal should include your service options for ongoing maintenance, including the pricing, number of hours and scope of services included for each. 5. Hosting Requirements Proposal should include cost estimates for site and data hosting of the site. Include a description of your hosting capabilities, as well as specific details and costs of your levels of hosting services, if applicable. CPWDC RFP for Career Hub Website Page 4 of 8

5 Use The vendor must provide all permissions to allow CPWDC and additional organizations to host the website and provide ongoing site maintenance after the initial launch if the website designer is not selected to provide the continuous hosting and site maintenance beyond June 30, Project Reimbursement CPWDC will approve invoices aligned with an approved budget and compensate vendor once deliverables are met on a cost-reimbursement basis. Timeline January 4, 2018: RFP issued January 12, 2018: Technical Assistance January 19, 2018: Proposal due to CPWDC February 5, 2018: Selected vendor notified June 30, 2018: Final product delivered to CPWDC Eligible Applications Professional web development companies or other agencies with the capabilities to produce and deliver high-quality web design within the parameters of the RFP are eligible. Applicants must have prior web development experience. Proposal Requirements The proposal must include the following elements and be delivered in Microsoft Word or PDF to: John Paul, jpaul@cpwdc.org and must be received by the close of business on January 19, 2018 in order to be considered. 1) Contact Information/Agreements Include organization name, address, contact information for person responsible for proposal, identification of any proposed sub-contracts, and signature, title and date indicating certification that to the best of its knowledge and belief, the data supplied in this application/proposal is true and accurate and that the organization agrees to comply with all local, state and federal regulations if a contract is awarded and maintain applicable insurances. 2) Expertise Include evidence of expertise relevant to the needs outlined in this RFP, including: A professional resume that describes what your general capabilities are as a company, and what separates you from others in your industry. Proposal should include a list of the principal personnel that would lead your development team for the project, along with a short bio for each listing their qualifications and experience. 4 References CPWDC RFP for Career Hub Website Page 5 of 8

6 Links to 4 samples of similar projects or related work completed to date. These samples should be as similar as possible in form and function as the proposed career hub site. 3) Approach Include a maximum of 4 page narrative explaining your approach and methodology to meeting all of the project requirements outlined in the Scope of Work. 4) Project Process and Timeline Outline process and timeline for the proposed project by breaking the development into stages and then listing time ranges for each to be completed. 5) Comprehensive Budget Submit a complete budget with detail for each stage of development including all anticipated costs including but not limited to: o Anticipated hours for each stage of development and rate o Travel o Materials and supplies o Maximum Project Budget: Please include a maximum cost for the development project. Payments for the website development and final product will not exceed this amount. o Include separate budgets/rates for the following beyond June 30, 2018: Site maintenance and updates Site Hosting Technical Assistance Other costs, as deemed necessary Please indicate if there is a cost savings if your company is awarded the development contract and provide the ongoing site maintenance and hosting. 6) Other supporting material may be attached as appropriate. Technical Assistance Technical assistance will be provided through a written question and answer format. Applicants will be given an opportunity to identify specific questions and submit them in writing to CPWDC via only. Questions may be ed on an on-going basis but must be submitted by 4:00 p.m. on January 12, 2018 to: John Paul, Business Engagement Coordinator, jpaul@cpwdc.org Answers to submitted questions will be posted on Consistent with strict procurement policies, CPWDC will provide no technical or program assistance to individual proposers. CPWDC RFP for Career Hub Website Page 6 of 8

7 Selection Criteria Vendor selection will be made based on the following criteria: Background and experience working with website design Proposed methodology to meet the intended objectives and deliverables The proposed project timeline The proposed project budget and any related terms and conditions. Disclaimer CPWDC reserves the right to cancel or modify this request for proposal or the scope or funding to any extent necessary to ensure compliance with state and/or federal guidelines regarding Business & Education Partnerships or if available Business & Education funding is impacted due to the federal and/or state budget appropriations. All successful proposers must demonstrate the capability to modify the product in order to comply with new regulations and/or changes to available funds, and by submitting a proposal, agree to do so. CPWDC may, at its discretion, request presentations by, or meetings with, any or all respondents, to clarify or negotiate modifications to the respondent s proposal. However, CPWDC reserves the right to make an award without further discussion of the proposals submitted. CPWDC may decide not to fund part or all of a proposal even though it is found to be in the competitive range if, in the opinion of CWPDC, the services proposed are not needed, or the costs are higher than CWPDC finds reasonable in relation to the overall funds available, or if past management concerns lead CPWDC to believe that the respondent has undertaken more services that it can reasonably provide. CPWDC reserves the right to accept or reject any or all proposals, in whole or in part, to negotiate any offer made, and/or to cancel or amend any part of this application package for whatever reason. A contract for the accepted proposal will be based upon the factors described in this RFP. CPWDC has the right to fund a lower ranked proposal over a high ranked proposal because of valid policy considerations, including but not limited to, organizational experience, geographical considerations, leveraging of outside resources and target populations. CPWDC reserves the right to determine both the number and funding levels of contracts financially awarded. CPWDC is not responsible for any costs incurred by respondents prior to the selection. The cost to develop and submit a proposal in response to this RFP is not reimbursable. This RFP is being solicited based on available funds. Materials submitted with the proposal, and the proposal itself, become the property of the CPWDC and will not be returned. CPWDC RFP for Career Hub Website Page 7 of 8

8 CPWDC must comply with Pennsylvania s Right-To-Know Law, Act 3 of 2008, effective January 1, 2009, and may be requested and required to release information from proposals received in response to this RFP. All proposals submitted will receive a response as to the action taken by the CPWDC. Respondents may request a briefing on the action taken on the proposal. The submission of a proposal to the CPWDC does not assure or imply an award of a contract to the firm submitting the proposal. CPWDC RFP for Career Hub Website Page 8 of 8