Request for Proposal
Virtual Recruitment Services for Public Sector Employment Release Date: October 18, 2024
Deadline for Submittal: November 18, 2024, 5:00PM
City of Richmond
Human Resources Department
ABOUT THE CITY OF RICHMOND
The City of Richmond (the “City”) was chartered as a city in 1909 and is located 16 miles northeast of San Francisco, directly across the San Francisco Bay. Richmond’s population is 110,146. The mission of the City is as follows:
The City of Richmond provides services that enhance economic vitality, the environment, and our community's quality of life.
The City provides a full range of municipal services, including police and fire protection; construction and maintenance of rights-of-way, streets, and infrastructure; library services; stormwater and municipal sewer systems; wastewater treatment facility operation; recreational activities; and cultural events.
The City also operates the Richmond Memorial Convention Center and the Port of Richmond.
INTRODUCTION
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he City of Richmond’s Human Resources Department is currently soliciting proposals from qualified firms to develop and implement a comprehensive and strategic marketing and recruitment campaign to fill various vacancies within the City of Richmond. Positions include, but not limited to, general employees, mid-management, executive management, and various public safety personnel, such as Police Officers, Firefighters, professional staffs and other positions as identified by the City’s Human Resources Department.
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his request for proposal (RFP) describes the project, the required scope of services, the selection process, and the minimum information that must be included in the proposal.
Failure to submit information in accordance with the RFP requirements and procedures may be cause for disqualification. The anticipated term of this contract will be for a period of three (3) years up to $360,000.
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endors are required to read and understand all information contained within this entire package. By responding to this RFP, the vendor agrees to read and understand these documents.
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ROJECT BACKGROUND / DESCRIPTION
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he scope of work may include some or all the following milestones:
• Meet with City personnel to understand the recruitment and selection criteria. • Understand existing position qualifications and make recommendations to enhance recruitment candidates.
• Research best practices in recruiting and related marketing efforts for specific targeted employment opportunities.
• Develop multi-media visual marketing material.
• Develop or offer tools to track and measure outcomes. • Strategically identify, negotiate, place and fulfill paid media campaigns. • Create recruitment landing page content.
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he vendor is expected to have access or use a Software as a Service (SaaS) system to manage and track candidate information. The SaaS should be a CRM type system with specific user-based permissions, communication integration (i.e., email, SMS, Chat- Bot), note tracking, customized field for specific tracking, workflow automation. The SaaS should be able to integrate with the current HR application system process.
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n addition, the vendor may be required to provide staffing/resources to enhance and assist the recruitment process. Vendor staff may have access to confidential and sensitive data. As such, vendor’s employee may be subject to a Department of Justice and Criminal History background check (i.e., Livescan)
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espondent cloud data storage and platform and any system used in conjunction with this project must be in full compliance (i.e., Microsoft Azure Government Cloud) with government cloud services guidelines. Documentation and proof of compliance may be required.
PROPOSAL FORMAT GUIDELINES
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e proposal should be concise, well organized, and demonstrate the proposer’s qualifications and experience applicable to the Project.
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he following proposal sections are to be included in the Vendor’s response:
A. Vendor Cover Letter
A cover letter should summarize key elements of the proposal and shall:
• Confirm that all elements of this RFP have been reviewed and understood. • Stipulate that the proposal price will be valid for the duration of the contract. • Identify a single person for contact during the RFP review process; and • Cover letter shall be signed by an authorized official of the company.
B. Background and Project Summary Section
Proposer must demonstrate the qualifications and skills necessary to perform the services described in this RFP in a competent and professional manner.
C. Scope of Services
As outlined in Project Background/Description section of the RFP.
D. Cost Information
Provide a comprehensive fee schedule for all the services the Respondent will provide to the City of Richmond. All cost and pricing data, including documents showing indirect costs and direct labor rates should be included in the proposal.
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roposers will be paid at the same rates set forth in their cost proposal unless further negotiated in writing and agreed to by the City of Richmond.
E. Contractor Assignment of Sub-Contract
The resulting contract shall not be assigned, transferred, or sublet, in whole or in part, without the prior written approval of the City of Richmond’s Human Resources Department. If Offerors intend to subcontract any portion of the resulting contract, they must describe their process for selecting such subcontractor(s) and the quality control measures that the Offeror will employ to ensure that any subcontractor complies with the provisions of Offeror’s contract with the Department.
F. Exceptions to this Request for Proposals
The proposer shall state whether it takes exception(s) to this RFP, including but not limited to the City of Richmond’s Standard Services Agreement – RFP (Attachment 1). If the proposer does take exception(s) to any portion of the RFP or contract, the specific portion to which exception(s) is taken must be identified by section number and explained. Requests for changes or additions to sections of City of Richmond’s Standard Services Agreement must be shown by requesting deletion of specific words and/or by providing new requested contrac t language.
Requests for complete replacement of the City of Richmond’s Standard Services Agreement for another contract will not be granted. Failure to make exceptions to the RFP or Standard Services Agreement within the proposal will be deemed a
waiver of any obj ection. E xceptions will b e considered during the proposal evaluation process.
G. Statement of Impartiality and Disclosure
This proposal shall include a statement declaring that the proposer’s and sub- consultants are not currently, and will not, during the performance of these services, participate in any other similar work involving a third-party with interests currently in c onflict or likely to conflict with City of Richmond’s interests.
Additionally, proposer is required to disclose any pending or active investigations or litigation that may affect the reputation or ability of the proposer to carry out the Project.
H. Sanctuary City Contracting and Investment Ordinance 12 -18NS_2018, and Resolution 86-21 (Disclosure Statement of Limited Liability Companies Form The City of Richmond’s Sanctuary Contracting Ordinance certification requires the City to refrain from doing business with vendors who provide Data Broker or Extreme Vetting services to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Division of the United St ates Department of Homeland Security (“ICE”). In addition, City of Richmond Resolution 86-21 requires disclosure of beneficial and responsible owners of Limited Liabilities Corporation (LLC).
PROCESS FOR SUBMITTING PROPOSALS
Questions Concerning Request for Proposals
Please do not co ntact staff di rectly regarding this Proposal. Electronic P roposals shall be submitted via th e City’s s ecure online bidding s ystem. All r equired sections of the proposal must be submitted via the website. Contractor is solely responsible for “on time” submission of their electronic proposal. The Bid Management System will not accept late proposals and no exceptions sh all be made. Contractors w ill r eceive an e- bid confirmation number with a time stamp from the Bid Management System indicating that their bid was submitted successfully. The City will only receive those proposals that were transmitted successfully.
Proposals must be received no later than November 18, 2024, 5:00 p.m. PST.
All questions must be submitted v ia the electronic BidsOnline system on the Q&A tab no later than October 25, 2024, 5:00pm PST. The City of Richmond reserves the right to waive inconsequential ir regularities. If the City finds it necessar y to issue an addendum, prospective Offerors will receive e-m ail notification of addendum. It is the proposer’s responsibility to periodically check the BidsOnline website www.ci.richmond.ca.us/ bids for any possible Addenda to the RFP that may have been posted.
Any party submitting a proposal shall not contact or lobby any City Council member, City officials, employee (except those specified for contact) or agent regarding the RFP. Any party attempting to influence or c ircumvent the RFP, bid submittal, and review process may have their proposal r ejected for violating this pr ovision of the RFP.
Interested parties may download copies of the above-m entioned proposal by visiting the City's web site, to download RFP, new vendors will be r equired to register.
Once the vendor downloads any doc uments relative to a solicitation, that vendor's name will
appear on the Prospective Bidders list for that project and will receive any addenda or notifications relating to the RFP.
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ubmission of Proposals
Please submit your proposal via the City of Richmond's B idsOnline system. Proposals submitted by facsimile or e-mail are not acceptable and will not be considered.
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he proposal and any required certifications shall be signed by an individual or individuals authorized to execute legal documents on behalf of the proposer.
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roposer is responsible for submitting its entire proposal package with all required submittal documents and any modifications or revisions, to reach the City of Richmond’s office as designated in the RFP by the time specified below. Any proposal, modification, or revision received by the City of Richmond after the exact time specified for receipt of proposals is “late” and will not be considered.The City of Richmond reserves the right to waive inconsequential irregularities.
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ENERAL GUIDELINES
This RFP does not commit the City of Richmond to award a contract, to defray any costs incurred in the preparation of a proposal pursuant to this RFP, or to procure or contract for work. The City of Richmond may reject a proposal without providing the reason(s) underlying the declination. A failure to award a contract to the proposer with the lowest cost proposal shall not constitute a valid cause of action against the City of Richmond.
The City shall not be responsible for work done, even in good faith, prior to final approval of the proposed contract. The City may investigate the qualifications of any respondent under consideration, require confirmation of information furnished by the respondent, and require additional evidence or qualifications to perform the Services described in this RFP.
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he City reserves the right to:
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eject any or all proposals.
2. Issue subsequent Requests for Proposal.
3. Postpone opening for its own convenience.
4. Remedy technical errors in the Request for Proposal process.
5. Negotiate with any, all, or none of the Respondents.
6. Solicit best and final offers from all or some of the Respondents.
7. Select one or more Respondents.
8. Accept other than the lowest proposed fees.
9. Waive informalities and irregularities in proposals.
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ublic Records
All proposals submitted in response to this RFP become the property of the City of Richmond and public records and, as such, may be subject to public review. Documents protected by law from public disclosure will not be disclosed by the City of Richmond if clearly marked with the word "confidential" on each applicable page. Trade secrets may be marked as confidential only to the extent they meet the requirement s of California Government Code section 6254.7. Only information claimed to be a trade secret at t he time of submittal to the City of Richmond and marked as "confidential" will be treated as a trade secret.
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nsurance Requirements
The City of Richmond requires consultants doing business with it to obtain insurance, as shown in RFP Attachment 2. The required insurance certificates must comply with all requirements of the standards as shown and must be provided within fifteen (15) days of issuance of the Notice of Intent to Award and prior to the commencement of any work on the Project.
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usiness Licenses
The successful Contractor and all subcontractors used in the work will be required to hold or to obtain a City of Richmond business license for which the fee will not be waived.
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ompliance with City Ordinances
The contractor and all subcontractors shall comply with the City of Richmond Nondiscrimination Clauses in City Contracts Ordinance ( Richmond Municipal Code (RMC) Chapter 2.28), Business Opportunity Ordinance ( RMC Chapter 2.50), Local Employment Program Ordinance ( RMC Chapter 2.56), Living Wage Ordinance ( R MC Chapter 2.60) and Ordinance Banning the Requirement to Provide Information of Prior Criminal Convictions on all Employment Applications (“Ban the Box”) ( RMC Chapter
2.65), which are incorporated into the Contract Documents by this reference.
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ollusion
By submitting a proposal, each respondent represents and warrants that its proposal is genuine and not false or collusive or made in the interest of, or on behalf of any person not named therein; that the respondent has not directly or indirectly induced or solicited any other person to submit a false proposal, or any other person to refrain from submitting a proposal; and that the respondent has not, in any manner, sought collusion to secure any improper advantage over any other person submitting a proposal.
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ithdrawal of Proposals
A respondent may withdraw their proposal before the expiration of the time for submission of proposals by delivering to the Finance Department a written request for withdrawal signed by, or on behalf of, the respondent.
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wnership of Documents
All reports, studies, information, data, statistics, forms, designs, plans, procedures, systems, and any other materials produced for the Project shall be the sole and exclusive property of the City. No such materials or properties produced in whole or in part for the Project shall be subject to private use, copyrights, or patent rights by Respondent in the United States or in any other country without the express written consent of the City. The City shall have unrestricted authority to publish, disclose (except as may be limited by the provisions of the Public Records Act), distribute, and otherwise use, copyright, or patent, in whole or in part, any such reports, studies, data, statistics, forms or other materials or properties produced for this project.
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ROPOSAL EVALUATION AND SELECTION PROCESS
All proposals shall be reviewed to verify that the Respondent has met the minimum requirements. Proposals that have not complied with requirements, do not meet minimum content and quality standards, or take unacceptable exceptions to the General Terms and
Conditions of the Service Agreement, will be eliminated from further consideration.
Proposals will be reviewed and evaluated by an evaluation committee comprised of City of Richmond personnel.
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he City reserves the right to reject any or all proposals, or to make no award. The City also reserves the right to require modifications follow ‐up with requests for additional information, including, but not limited to, follow‐up interviews. The City may request Best and Final offers based upon improved understanding of the offers or changed scope of service. The City will negotiate with that vendor to determine final pricing, and contract form. Because this proposal is negotiable, all pricing data will r emain confidential until after award is made, and there will be no public opening and reading of Proposals. Overall responsiveness to the RFP is an important factor in the evaluation process.
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endors that meet the minimum qualifications may be invited to a “Phase II” meeting/demonstration for the evaluation committee for further clarification and consideration. The criteria upon which the evaluation of the proposals will be based include, but are not limited to, the following:
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endor Background/Experience - 25%
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roposal/Scope of Work – 50%
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ost – 25%
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election may be made without further discussion, negotiations, or Offeror’s presentations; therefore, Offeror shall offer the most favorable terms in response to this RFP. Offeror must demonstrate an understanding of the scope of service to be provided and the ability to accomplish the tasks set forth. Offeror shall include information that will enable the City to determine the Offeror’s overall qualifications.
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he City reserves the right to request additional information or clarification on any matter included in the proposal response, to enable the City to arrive at the final award decision.