Office of Statewide Pretrial Services State of Illinois Judicial Branch Human Resources Information System Request for Proposal

Status
Closed
Publish Date
09/13/24
Due Date
Due November 10, 2024, no later than 5:00 P.M. CST - See "Key Dates" for additional deadlines.
Attachments
Directed To
pretrialservices@illinoiscourts.gov

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

The Office of Statewide Pretrial Services’ (OSPS or Office) mission is to assist in the administration of justice and promote community safety by ensuring fairness and equality in the pretrial process. OSPS is a rapidly growing statewide office that provides pretrial services, under the Pretrial Services Act, 725 ILCS 185. OSPS prepares pretrial investigation reports for the courts and supervises individuals released from custody as directed by the court.

The Office invites submissions of proposals for a Human Resources Information System (HRIS) for management of sensitive and confidential employee information for around 300 to 400 OSPS employees and associated implementation services in compliance with the terms and conditions set forth in this request for proposal (RFP) and accompanying documents.

DIRECTIONS

The OSPS is seeking competitive proposals from interested and qualified vendors with proven experience and a quality HRIS. Vendors shall submit proposals for the use of their HRIS by OSPS to pretrialservices@illinoiscourts.gov no later than 5:00 P.M. CST on November 10, 2024. Vendors who are deemed to have submitted responsive proposals may be asked to provide a 90-minute live software demonstration and implementation presentation to the Evaluation Committee.

The proposal must be submitted in two separate packets. The first packet includes the vendor’s statement of interest, bid form, bid narrative, timeline narrative, references and other attachments, other than Attachment C, Budget Template. The first packet must not include any pricing information. The second packet includes pricing information, which must be presented on the attached Budget Template (see Attachment C) and submitted separately. Each document will be evaluated separately.

Section I: Statement of Interest: Each bid must include a statement of interest. The statement of interest must be signed by an individual authorized to bind the vendor contractually, indicating the signer’s title position. The Statement of Interest must state that the offer will remain in full force and effect for 90 days beyond the deadline for submittal and that the offer may be accepted by OSPS at any time during those 90 days. An unsigned Statement of Interest will result in rejection of the bid.
Section II: Bid Form (Attachment A)
Section III: Bid Narrative: The following bid narrative must be completed and included with your response to this RFP. (10 pages max)

Section IV: Timeline Narrative: Please provide an estimated timeline for the implementation and OSPS access to the HRIS. It is recognized the timeline to provide all functionality may depend on certain variables and the enhancements to the HRIS, but it is important to know a timeline based upon the resources assigned to the project, the vendor’s experience, and ability to meet OSPS’ HRIS requirements, and ability to timely manage expected necessary changes to the HRIS. Please indicate what variables impact the timeline and each variable’s impact to the timeline. For any elements that would need to be built or customized to meet the listed elements, please describe and include the timeline for each.
Section V: References: A minimum of at least three (3) business references from prior engagements of similar size and scope of the services requested by OSPS. Please list the most significant engagements performed in the last three (3) years that are similar to the engagement listed in this RFP. Reference checks will be conducted for each finalist.
Section VII: Company Organization and Diversity Questionnaire (Attachment B)
Section IX: Price Proposal (completed budget template, Attachment C)
Section X: Vendor Bid Certification Form (Attachment D)

OSPS will evaluate the proposals and may make one or more awards. The selected vendor must be able to execute the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts’ (AOIC) Standard Vendor Agreement for Goods and Services (Attachment E) and fulfill all required services. If subcontractors are engaged, the vendor must include a complete list of all subcontractors intended to be used, their address, and a description of the work each subcontractor will be performing.

The OSPS anticipates executing a multi-year term with the initial contract, (i.e., minimum of 5 years), with the OSPS’ option to renew the contract for an additional period (i.e., 5 years). The contract is expected to be a fixed price contract for the Software as a Service (SaaS) (hosting and licensing) and support services for the entire term of the contract. The price proposal must detail all additional costs (including hourly rates) anticipated to fully implement and maintain the HRIS, and any graduated costs for the SaaS services that may occur over time.

To provide all potential bidders the same information, OSPS will post answers to all questions submitted in writing. OSPS asks that all questions be submitted to pretrialservices@illinoiscourts.gov no later than, October 6, 2024, at 5:00 P.M. CST. A list of all questions and answers will be posted on the Illinois Court’s website on or before October 18, 2024.

This RFP is neither a contract nor meant to serve as a contract and does not create any obligation on the Office to affirmatively engage with any particular bidder or applicant. It is anticipated that one or more of the proposals submitted in response to this RFP may be selected as the basis for negotiation of a contract with the vendor. Such a contract is presently contemplated to contain, at a minimum, the terms of the proposal submitted, as finally negotiated and approved by OSPS. OSPS reserves the right to negotiate additions, deletions or modifications to the terms of proposals submitted.

The Office’s Standard Vendor Agreement for Goods and Services can be found as Attachment E. The selected vendor must be willing to use the Office’s Standard Vendor Agreement. Given the nature of the HRIS system and the confidential information stored with the HRIS system, the selected vendor will most likely be identified as a “Service Organization”. The selected vendor must be willing to obtain and submit annual Service Organization Control (SOC) reports for the duration of the contract. Requirements for Service Organizations can be found in Section 1B of the Standard Vendor Agreement in Attachment E.

The Office reserves the right to award to the bidder that has the best overall proposal(s) within the OSPS’s timelines and to issue supplemental solicitations as warranted.

KEY DATES

September 13, 2024 - Request for Proposal issued
October 6, 2024 - All questions due no later than 5:00 P.M. CST and submitted via email to pretrialservices@illinoiscourts.gov
October 18, 2024 - Answers to all vendor questions released
November 10, 2024 - Proposal submission deadline no later than 5:00 P.M. CST via email to pretrialservices@illinoiscourts.gov

SCOPE OF WORK

The HRIS desired by OSPS under this RFP will support all of OSPS’ human resources needs. The system must be fully capable of providing employee information management, timekeeping, and payroll functions. It is highly desired that the system be innovative and supportive of the efficient use of OSPS employees’ time.

The description below provides an overview of mandatory basic processes as well as more desired elements:

System Description

OSPS requires a vendor with substantial experience with a complex project such as this. The HRIS will be a vendor hosted software as a service solution (SaaS solution). The system shall be a commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) system which, if required, can be modified by the vendor to meet the agency’s requirements. The vendor will need to identify the scope and parameters for customizations before implementation and after the system’s “go-live” date. The vendor will work with OSPS to identify, develop, test, and implement all changes to the HRIS prior to implementation. The system shall be operational 24/7 and include backup procedures and disaster recovery services. The HRIS will include separate test and production systems.

The HRIS shall:

Securely Record and Retain Employee Data
Recruitment and Onboarding
Employee Portal
Leave Tracking
Position Control – grade and ranges, vacant positions
Ability to Download Data Reports
Ability to track and record time in accordance with OSPS’ established compensation and leave policies.
Security and Data Integrity

The system must be browser based and use standard internet security protocols. It must support all modern browsers and must use a robust and highly secure database platform such as be fully capable of operating with an Oracle, Microsoft, or IBM. It must have the ability to integrate directly with other systems, using API’s or other secure connections. The vendor is to be knowledgeable and experienced in implementing integrations with other systems. The integration is to be based on national industry standards, security standards, and encryption practices.

The HRIS is to include a perpetual use license agreement for an unlimited number of users for the Illinois Judicial Branch staff, partners, and OSPS users. Transaction response times must be acceptable. Typical transactions should on average take no longer than 1-2 seconds; complex queries may require 2-4 seconds. Because the HRIS system contains highly confidential information, the SaaS service (test and production) should be CJIS compliant.

The HRIS shall be expandable to accommodate additional users, employees, departments, agencies, new applications, and new functional requirements. The SaaS infrastructure and HRIS is to have acceptable system resources and storage capacity to function and store records as needed by OSPS, including the ability to meet all storage needs and initially handle up to 500 concurrent users. As well, the infrastructure is to grow with the needs and usage of OSPS for all technical resources.

The HRIS system must include end-to-end encryption for connections from OSPS computers and mobile devices to the SaaS and encryption of data in both the Stage and Production database environments. The HRIS is to implement security procedures and an infrastructure which protects confidential data in transit and at rest. The system must provide role-based security access rights by program area and jurisdiction. Permissions should be set by user roles with assigned levels of access, viewing, data entry, editing and auditing. Permissions should include a security matrix that defines access to screens, functions, and data (types of caseloads) for specific user groups. Security roles and systems prevent non-authorized users from accessing, viewing, downloading, and/or exporting data or reports. The HRIS should provide user auditing, including tracking the date, time, and login of any person who adds, edits, or deletes data, documents, or metadata.

The HRIS partner is expected to provide technical support and resolve issues in a timely manner and communicate with users to ensure support issues are received, progress is being made, and resolutions implemented and confirmed. OSPS will require a service level agreement with the selected HRIS partner identifying responsibilities and graduated service level incidents and response expectations for outages, including relief and financial penalties.

The HRIS partner should describe change management procedures indicating how customized workflows and enhancements to the HRIS to meet OSPS’ needs initially and ongoing will be met. Within the Attachment C, Budget Template, the bidder shall include a description of how additional costs for enhancements are assessed.

Confidentiality requirements will be required that govern the HRIS’ support services access to the OSPS application and data. Service Organization Control (SOC) reviews are required on an annual basis. All information gathered, generated, or compiled during this project and throughout the term of a contract with the selected vendor is considered highly confidential, for exclusive use by the Office, and is not to be reproduced or disseminated.

Integration

The software must integrate with the AOIC/OSPS, Illinois Comptroller’s Office, and other existing data platforms, with the ability to push and pull data into the HRIS and provide support for all existing external interfaces. It must have the capability for direct interfacing with the system using secure Application Programming Interfaces (API) for imports and export of information. The API may be provided by other partners, but is it expected that the HRIS vendor is able to implement such APIs in a timely manner as directed by OSPS.

System Requirements

Bidders must complete Attachment F - “OSPS Pretrial HRIS System Requirements” to provide the required information for the Scope of Work and must complete all items in each worksheet. For each element, bidders must fill in column E "Vendor Response" with one of the choices below. If the bidder wishes to provide any explanatory details, they should be included in column F “Vendor Comments”. The following answer key should be used when responding to the elements in column E:

3. This feature is supported in the current version of the proposed solution.
2. The feature is not supported in the current version of the proposed solution, but the feature is currently in development or testing is planned for the next release of the proposed solution within 3-6 months. Include and note anticipated release date.
1. The feature is not supported in the current version of the proposed solution, but the proposer plans to support the requirement in the proposed solution or as part of this procurement within 1 year. Include and note anticipated release date.
0. The feature is not supported, and the proposer has no plan to support it.

Note: Bidders must answer each element with only one of the above keys. Any element that is answered in any other way will be treated as a negative/non- response.

EVALUATION OF BIDS

The Office will review all bids and make awards based on the comprehensiveness of the solution across several criteria including but not limited to the following:

The number of mandatory requirements the vendor can fulfill, how the vendor will fulfill the requirements and the vendor’s explanation contained within the Bid Narrative.
Identification of which desired elements the vendor can fulfill and the explanation of how the vendor will fulfill the desired element.
An estimated timeline for the completion of the requested services.
A description of the most significant engagements performed in the last three years that are similar to the engagement listed in this RFP.
Diversity of the Vendor.
Explanation of whether any services will be subcontracted to a third party.
Cost.

QUESTIONS RECEIVED

How many Office of Statewide Pretrial Services (OSPS) employees is the Human Resources Information System (HRIS) intended to support?

OSPS currently has 313 employees and the HRIS system is intended to support approximately 350 employees. OSPS is a newly formed organization and expects to see continued growth for the next five years. The HRIS system should be able to support up to 600 employees to accommodate potential growth.

Does the OSPS HRIS require the system to provide payroll functionality?

Payroll functionality is highly desired. Please see “Business Process or Function - Payroll Processing” requirements in Attachment F “OSPS Pretrial HRIS System Requirements” for specifically requested payroll processes and functions evaluated by priority level.

There was mention of integration needed for additional systems. What other systems are currently in place that need integration?

OSPS intends for the HRIS system to replace its current timekeeping application. OSPS desires the ability to migrate existing timekeeping records as well as personnel records into the HRIS system. An integration with Illinois Comptroller for payroll would be ideal.

When is the OSPS’ estimated timeline of picking a vendor, starting implementation, and going live?

The HRIS RFP submission deadline is November 10, 2024, no later than 5:00 P.M. CST via email to pretrialservices@illinoiscourts.gov. Following this deadline, OSPS will review and evaluate the bids. Additionally, vendors who have submitted responsive proposals may be asked to provide a 90-minute live software demonstration and implementation to the evaluation committee.

After evaluating the proposals, OSPS may make an award and the vendor must be able to execute the AOIC Standard Vendor Agreement and fulfill all required services. As set forth in the State of Interest, OSPS may accept the RFP any time during the 90 days following the deadline for submission.

OSPS anticipates executing a multi-year term with the initial contract (i.e. minimum of 5 years) as well as the option for the OSPS to renew the contract for an additional period (i.e. 5 years).

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