REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL #

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1 REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL # THE UNIVERSITY OF AKRON IS SEEKING PROPOSALS FOR TIME & LABOR and ABSENCE MANAGEMENT APPLICATION AS PER THE SPECIFICATIONS LISTED HEREIN PROPOSAL DUE DATE: 8/22/2012 9:00 AM LOCAL TIME ISSUED BY: THE UNIVERSITY OF AKRON PURCHASING DEPARTMENT Date: August 3, 2012 Contact: Denise Cool

2 Table of Contents 1.0 GENERAL INFORMATION SITE HISTORY AND DESCRIPTION SCOPE OF PROPOSAL VISION & STRATEGIC DIRECTION FOR NEXT FIVE YEARS TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS FUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS FUNCTIONALITY & DEMONSTRATION REQUIREMENTS BUSINESS PROCESSING STAFFING REQUIREMENTS PROFESSIONAL SERVICES REQUIREMENTS UA QUESTIONS & COMMENTS FINANCIAL VIABILITY PRICING TIMELINE MANDATORY ELEMENTS.. 12 SELECTION CRITERIA..12 KEY ELEMENTS.13 SELECTION PROCESS Extend to Other Groups or Institutions. 16

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4 1.0 GENERAL INFORMATION To be guaranteed the fullest consideration, all proposals should be submitted on or before 9:00 A.M. local time, on August 22, The University prefers that all proposals and supporting documents be submitted electronically through the Public Purchase bidding tool and must be in either Microsoft Word or Adobe PFD format. All questions are to be submitted through the electronic bidding tool which will allow all bidders to see submitted questions and the answers. Questions will not be entertained after August 16, The bidding tool can be located at: Vendor Registration - Bid Board - Additional vendor support is provided via live chat in the upper left corner, support@publicpurchase.com or call If proposal submission is done via U.S. Mail, please use the following address: The University of Akron, Department of Purchasing, Lincoln Building, 2 nd floor, Akron, Ohio If sending via courier, overnight air, hand delivery, etc., please use the following address: The University of Akron, Department of Purchasing, 100 Lincoln Street, Akron, Ohio If submitting hard copy, each Vendor shall submit the following materials to the University at the address provided above: (3) three hard copies of its proposal, and (1) one CD containing searchable, non-password protected files (e.g., accessible Microsoft Word and/or Microsoft Excel files) of its proposal. Each response shall be placed in an envelope or package with the complete name of the Vendor and the RFP number printed on the envelopes or package s address label so that it can be properly identified upon arrival. Responses that do not conform to these specifications may not be considered. The University of Akron may select one, more than one or none of the proposals received. 1.1 SITE HISTORY AND DESCRIPTION The University of Akron is a major public teaching and research institution that offers more than 200 undergraduate majors and areas of study leading to associate and bachelor s degrees. For advanced study, the University provides more than 100 master s degree programs and options, 17 doctoral degree programs and 4 law degrees. Situated in a metropolitan area, the University of Akron has a student enrollment of approximately 29,000 and is the only public university in Ohio with a science and engineering program ranked in the top five nationally by U.S. News & World Report. The University of Akron excels in a variety of areas, including polymer science, dance, law, nursing and global business. 3

5 The University offers courses throughout most of the calendar year. It offers a fall and a spring semester and three summer sessions covering about eleven months of the year. The University employs approximately 4,800 full and part-time faculty and staff. 2.0 SCOPE OF PROPOSAL Request for Proposal: Software for Time and Attendance and Absence Management Applications The University of Akron (UA) currently licenses and runs Oracle s PeopleSoft Human Capital Management (HCM) enterprise application for higher education using Oracle database and middleware technology. The application is run on-premise. Components of the application include Human Resources, Payroll, and Benefits Administration. UA has 2,591 full-time employees, 2,692 part-time employees, 1,334 graduate assistants and 1,225 student workers. Currently, UA is licensed for but does not actively use the Oracle PeopleSoft Time and Labor and Absence Management modules. Additionally, UA is actively evaluating a more current replacement enterprise application to help facilitate streamlining and revamping business processes while concurrently reducing the costs to own and operate the application. Oracle s Fusion Human Capital Management enterprise application is the replacement system being evaluated as part of this process. The Controller s Office and the Department of Talent Development and Human Resources in conjunction with the Division of Information Technology Services is researching software products to better serve The University of Akron s workforce management needs related to time and attendance and absence management processes. UA seeks an enterprise application and solution, which automates and enhances the institution s processes associated with the collection and approval of time and leave information. The solution must also be efficient and flexible to address current and emerging needs, allowing UA to sustain business processes that support the institution s strategic direction. Currently, UA uses a combination of processes to manage the time and attendance and absence management needs for the institution. First, UA has developed a process that scans paper-based time cards filled out by hourly employees, and which were reviewed and approved by their supervisors, and through a custom interface that was developed push this time card data into the Oracle PeopleSoft HCM Payroll Application for processing. Additionally, the Physical Facilities Operations Center (PFOC) currently uses a number of time collection devices they have purchased to automate the collection of time for their hourly employees. This PFOC time card data is pushed into the Oracle PeopleSoft HCM Payroll Application for processing through another custom interface, which has been developed. Finally, UA has a paper-based process to manage the process to submit and approve leave requests from the exempt employees. These forms are used to key in the leave information into spreadsheets maintained by departmental administrators and then sent to the Benefits group, which updates the information in the Oracle PeopleSoft HCM system. The proposed solution is the implementation of a Time and Attendance and Absence Management software application and solution to automate and replace the current time and attendance and 4

6 absence management processes while allowing UA to continue to reasonably utilize the time collection equipment the institution has already made a significant investment in which to purchase and maintain. The solution will also effectively interface into the Oracle PeopleSoft HCM application with the capability to interface into Oracle Fusion HCM when and if UA makes this transition in the future. Selection Committee Organization A selection committee will examine the technical infrastructure to determine if the product is scalable, secure, and easily supportable given resources of The University of Akron. The core committee will be comprised of key members of the Controller s Office and the Department of Talent Development and Human Resources, directors involved in the operations for those departments, and information technology support. Additionally, senior management affected by the operation of this application will make up the selection committee. To achieve this goal will require an application that is easy to use but sufficiently sophisticated to take advantage of the latest technological innovations for participation by all stakeholders. The solution must be integrated with the enterprise human capital management database, have the capability to extract data, and return data for update. In addition to facilitating the selection of a single vendor solution, the selection committee will examine whether it is more efficient for the application to be hosted or run internally. Consideration will be made based on cost and effectiveness of operation. The Purpose of this RFP The University of Akron is searching for an enabling technology to support the complex process used to collect and manage time and leave information for our hourly and exempt employee base. Thus we are seeking comprehensive descriptions of the functions and capabilities from leading providers in this arena so that we can make an informed decision on the application that is the best available for The University of Akron requirements now and in the future. Project Goals and Deliverables The following list details the most critical goals and deliverables the vendor must focus on in creating a solution. Other factors will be considered in addition to this list but these are considered the most important. 1. Implementation of an enterprise solution that addresses critical steps of the time and attendance and absence management cycles: clocking in or entry of time, correction of time or leave data, supervisor review and approval, administration of time and leave rules, calculation of premiums, sick and vacation accrual rollover and administration. 2. Examination and streamlining, where necessary, of business processes related to time and attendance and absence management. 5

7 3. Delivered mobile access for manager s access, review, approval and ability to update time and leave information remotely. Also, to provide employee s access to review their own time and leave information and, where necessary to submit leave data remotely. 4. An enterprise solution, which will support a conversion to a completely paperless operation related to time and leave operations. 5. An enterprise solution, which complies with all governmental laws and regulations and collective bargaining agreements related to time and attendance and leave processes for employees at UA. This includes regulations outlined in the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the Family and Medical Leave Act (FLMA). 6. A cost effective solution, especially with the ever-decreasing State of Ohio support. 2.1 VISION & STRATEGIC DIRECTION FOR NEXT FIVE YEARS Vendor must provide a statement of vision and direction for support of time and attendance and absence management applications over the next five years. This is intended to include strategic plans for new products, product updates, and policy changes that would affect customers. Include all known dates and milestones. UA seeks to create a new model in higher education through its strategic vision, which extends through Goals include student success, global relevance, distinction, collaboration, community and integrated planning. These goals will be achieved by executing strategies such as investment in faculty and staff, enhancement of reputation, enhancing the environment, improving operations, and leveraging technology. State how the proposed solutions can aid The University of Akron in meeting these strategic goals and strategies. 2.2 TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS Vendor must state how their proposed solution meets or exceeds the following requirements: If the proposed solution is for an application running in the SaaS/Hosted, the following requirements must be met: i. It must be owned, delivered, and managed by the vendor. Support for system software, database, upgrades, and development is the responsibility of the Vendor. ii. Performance is the responsibility of the vendor and must meet acceptable standards as determined by UA and negotiated through a Service Level Agreement. iii. Application must be scalable to meet growing demands for expansion of data, real-time access, and ability to increase number of users to the system. iv. Upgrades consisting of new functionality must be delivered in a turned-off state and issued based on a mutually agreed upon schedule. v. Vendor must insure the physical and logical security of the application and data. Security must support a single sign-on solution and integrate to LDAP. Security must be configurable to enable UA to manage and control individual and group access to the application. A demonstration of security configuration and framework will be required. vi. Application must be capable of being available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. vii. The proposal must be SSAE 16 Level II compliant and ISO certified. 6

8 viii. Data centers running proposed application must be located in the United States and provide private physical space, power, and environmental controls. ix. Disaster recovery is the vendor s responsibility. It must be tested no less than twice each year with a recovery point objective of one hour and a recovery time objective of twelve hours. x. All database design, management, and performance is the responsibility of the vendor. xi. Vendor s solution must be able to support the time collection hardware currently used at UA or provide a financially acceptable plan to phase in equipment supported by the vendor If the proposed solution is for the application to be run in-house, the following requirements must be met: i. Provide a business case showing how the offering can be demonstrably cheaper than a SaaS/Hosted solution. ii. Provide a diagram and explanation of hardware/software configuration required to support the proposed application. Include all environment support requirements for compliance and security. iii. State all ongoing technical support requirements for continued operation Application must be accessible over the Internet using commonly available browsers Application must support mobile technology including but not limited to tablets and smartphones. Access to remote devices must be secure Vendor must provide a component/tool for interfacing with other third-party applications. Standard templates should be available for Oracle s PeopleSoft applications. A demonstration of integration capabilities will be required Vendor must provide a job scheduling utility for managing large online jobs or batch processes Proposal must provide for an adequate testing environment to accommodate implementation, upgrades, fixes, training, and problem determination Proposal must include the ability to create robust reporting and data analytics Must have workflow to facilitate electronic routing and authorization Comprehensive security system that controls and reports all access to system facilities and data, including the database, form record and data level Ability to report off transactional history Application must have an archiving strategy and utility Upgrade strategy must be flexible minimizing effort to move changes to production and flexible to make scheduling easy Vendor must have a predictable and standardized method for adopting customer initiated requests for expanding application functionality Solution must be able to support the time collection hardware currently used at UA or provide a financially acceptable plan to phase in equipment supported by the vendor. 2.3 FUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS Vendor must meet the following requirements. All responses should include releases planned through and including the first quarter of 2013 as these may be incorporated into the implementation strategy planned by UA. Later releases will not be incorporated as part of the implementation. Where the technology has is not yet incorporated into the generally available release of the application, vendor must state which release it is planned for and when. If the functionality is planned but not yet associated with a particular release, vendor may state it as such. 7

9 It is the responsibility of the vendor to make clarifications where there is some doubt raised about the ability to deliver a requirement. For example, workarounds and third party solutions are acceptable but must be fully explained. If there are questions about the requirement as stated they should be handled as directed in Section Proposed solution must provide support for the management of rules related to time and leave processing. Highlight how the solution allows for the configuration of the rules. Define what skills and knowledge are necessary for the management of these rules and if training is typically necessary in order to create and maintain these rules Proposed solution must support individual employees with multiple active jobs (accounts) which can include up to twenty (20) of these. This support for multiple jobs must include having employees with multiple supervisors/managers who will separately review and approve the time for the relevant job and which allows for the employee to easily clock in or enter time against each of the separate jobs Proposed solution must provide for the entry of time by an employee as well as the automated collection of time. For the collection of time, the user interface must include a form of web clock, which is browser-based, providing an employee access from a workstation or laptop computer Proposed solution must be able to manage exception-based time reporting Proposed solution must be able to support the use of Compensatory Time for employees providing the management of departmental-level policies regarding its use Proposed solution must be able to provide functionality in support of the regulations outlined in the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the Family and Medical Leave Act (FLMA) Proposed solution must be able to support accrual management for sick, vacation and compensatory time Proposed solution must be able to handle shift differential for full-time staff and temporary parttime employees including student-employees Proposed solution must be able to support Additional Paid Days Off that can be approved at the discretion of the executive leadership and Board of Trustees to the university Proposed solution must be able to support the management of schedules Proposed solution must provide audit capability and be able to identify the location for those entering in time or to restrict the locations those who clocking in time are allowed Proposed solution must provide ability to support management of days that are not accured but may be used when triggered by an event such as a maternity or paternity time after the birth of a child Proposed solution must provide some delivered and ad hoc reporting capability. 2.4 FUNCTIONALITY & DEMONSTRATION REQUIREMENTS UA may require the vendors to make an oral presentation of their solution for their specific Time and Attendance and Absence Management product functionality. If necessary, arrangements for presentation will be made by UA with vendors meeting the qualifications of this RFP and selected as finalists. Presentations will be performed at UA at the vendor s expense. A pre-demonstration meeting will be conducted with UA via conference call to 8

10 enable the vendor to ask questions about UA s current environment to make the demonstration relevant. Formal presentations/demonstrations may be recorded and included as part of the RFP response if UA chooses to do so. The following list of processes must be included in any requested vendor s presentation. It is important that the vendor perform a live demonstration using the actual product being proposed. If it is not possible to use the actual product, the reason must be stated in writing as part of the response to this RFP Time & Attendance: Use of rules within the application with focus on Shift Differential, Overtime or Compensatory Time, Holiday Pay, Additional Paid Days Off (university-provided days off similar to holidays but often announced with short notice), Emergency or Unscheduled Time Worked, Call-In Reporting, Shift Begin and Ending Grace Periods, Management of Time Clocked in Before and After Scheduled Start and Stop times Time & Attendance: Setup and Maintenance of Security within the application with focus on restricting access based on location, management of employees with multiple jobs and supervisors and the setup of supervisory-level backups or delegates Time & Attendance & Absence Management: Setup and use of workflow/approval process Time & Attendance & Absence Management: Setup and maintenance of schedules Time & Attendance & Absence Management: Management of multiple job records for the same employee Time & Attendance: Support for FLSA processing Time & Attendance & Absence Management: Overview of delivered and ad hoc reporting/query capability Absence Management: Use of rules within the application with focus on Accrual Management Absence Management: Demonstration of exception reporting capability Absence Management: Support for FLMA processing. 2.5 BUSINESS PROCESSING The University of Akron expects to analyze its business processes supporting Time and Attendance and Absence Management as a result of this project and determine those that are less than efficient or do not take full advantage of the new technology. This will result in a streamlined set of processes that will improve operations, and provide users of the application with a higher level of service. State how your higher education implementations have gained operational efficiencies by selecting and implementing your product. 2.6 STAFFING REQUIREMENTS Define what staffing The University of Akron will be required to provide during the project in order to support system implementation to the proposed. Advise whether the implementation plan should take place all at once or if a phased approach is more appropriate. Suggest timelines for each approach. 9

11 As part of the Proposal, please include the staffing required for technical support by the Department of Information Technology Services for both SaaS/Hosted and in-house managed configurations as well as the staffing required by each participating business unit. Describe how the solution presented will change staffing sizes and job responsibilities. 2.7 PROFESSIONAL SERVICES REQUIREMENTS State the amount of professional services required implementing the proposed solution and when they will be involved. Provide individuals resumes and include all relevant certifications Provide references from other higher education implementations Describe UA s responsibilities for working with the professional services provided Describe the strategy used to implement the proposal. 2.8 UA QUESTIONS & COMMENTS State the underlying architecture used to operate the application in the SaaS/Hosted When unexpected regulatory changes occur, describe the procedure for making them generally available through the proposed application Describe any archiving process in the proposed solution and ability to return archived data to the production available system Describe how the proposed solution would integrate with the existing PeopleSoft Human Capital Management (HCM) product in production at UA. How would individual identities be managed and identifications of individuals synchronized real-time? If the proposal is for a SaaS/Hosted implementation, what are the Service Level Agreements (SLA s)? How do issues get escalated? What are the downtime procedures? What are the networking requirements UA must meet in order to provide the highest levels of service to business units and employees using the application? What is the process for adding desired functionality needed but not available in the proposed application? How many higher education institutions is your product running at in a production? Is there a target size of institution your product is built to support (small, medium, large)? What is the largest higher education institution where your product is in production? 2.9 FINANCIAL VIABILITY It is critical that the vendor be financially stable and able to support improvements in the product for the future. Provide documentation that will insure UA that vendor is continuing to grow market share for Time and Attendance and Absence Management especially in the higher education market, has a stable financial situation, and will continue to invest in research and product improvements. Financial statements for the past five (5) years may be requested by the University in its evaluation process but do not need to be submitted with your proposal PRICING 10

12 UA is seeking pricing that will cover all aspects of owning, implementing, and operating the Time and Attendance and Absence Management Application for the next five years. It must include all goals and deliverables as detailed in 2.0 Scope of Proposal and subsequent requirements in the paragraphs following. If there are exceptions the proposal will not cover, they must be stated clearly in the response. Responses will become part of the contract for the proposal chosen. State all pricing terms and metrics the proposal will be based on both now and in the future. This includes but is not limited to licensing, subscription fees, maintenance, software upgrades, hardware upgrades, service level changes, licensing metrics changes, future functionality, and penalties. All proposals must be valid for 120 days. Responses to the RFP will become part of the contract. Pricing must include the following: 1. An itemized list of all products being offered in the proposal and specific cost related to that product. Include the basis used to determine licensing cost, maintenance for the period requested above, and any limitations in products use based on cost. Briefly describe each product s purpose. 2. Cost for professional services required to plan, reengineer, implement, and provide post go live support. This includes travel, lodging, and per diem costs. Itemize where possible and state all assumptions. There must be a not to exceed final cost as UA will fund the project once and not be willing to seek additional funding to bring it to completion. 3. All training costs and any additional costs that will be incurred by UA for travel or onsite setup. 4. All costs associated with hosting the application for five (5) years. If the proposal calls for UA to own and manage the application operation, indicate all related costs such as hardware, supporting software, technical support staff, backup/recovery, offsite storage, etc. FORMAL CONTRACT: The selected vendor(s) will be required to execute a formal written contract, mutually acceptable to both parties, upon acceptance of their proposal by the University. Failure to execute a formal agreement in a timely fashion will be cause to cancel any pending award and the University will be permitted to start negotiations with another vendor. CONTRACT EXTENTIONS AND RENEWALS The University of Akron reserves the right to extend any contract entered into as a result of this offering, subject to the mutual agreement of both parties TIMELINE Based on current timelines, a recommendation will be presented to The University of Akron Board of Trustees at the September 2012 meeting. If the project is approved, project work would be expected to start relatively soon after securing project approval and the consummation of a signed contract. 11

13 3.0 MANDATORY ELEMENTS CRITERION Y/N A vendor s performance history is often the best predictor of the success of our project. Please indicate if you or your firm have been relieved, removed or otherwise terminated from a project prior to its completion in the last (3) three years. If so, please provide in-depth details. Application must be provide integrated functionality for both Time and Attendance and Absence Management processes. Vendor solution must include the ability to clock in or enter time through the use of a webclock, correct and approve time, provide exception-based reporting, support accrual management, support all regulatory, and statutory requirements including those outlined in FLSA and FLMA and provide delivered and ad hoc reporting capability. Vendor response must include detailed item-by-item pricing elements as well as any implementation requirements and the roles associated with (1) SaaS/Hosted model and/or (2) an in-house run and managed solution. Selection Criteria The University will select one or multiple vendors, which it believes offers the proposal(s), or parts thereof, which are in the University's best overall interest. The University also reserves the right to accept none of the proposals received. The University will award the contract according to the following criteria and reserves the right to award the contract to a vendor that may not be highest in commissions offered and/or lowest in fees charged. The University views the technical elements contained in the following table as key elements of this project and all proposals will be evaluated against these elements. The scale below (0-5) will be used to rate each proposal on the technical criteria listed in Table 2. DOES NOT MEET 0 POINTS WEAK 1 POINT MODERATE 2 POINTS MEETS 3 POINTS STRONG 4 POINTS GREATLY EXCEEDS 5 POINTS The Evaluation Committee will rank the Proposals by multiplying the score received in each category by its assigned weight and adding all categories together to calculate the Offeror s total score. The University reserves the right to modify the scoring system by adding to or modifying the rating criteria and/or score as responses are reviewed. 12

14 Does Not Meet (0) Proposal does comply substantially with requirements. Weak (1) Response was poor related to meeting the requirements of the element. Moderate (2) - Proposal meets most requirements of the element and weaknesses or deviations from these requirements are minor. Meets (3) Proposal generally meets the requirements (or expectations) of the element. Strong (4) Proposal exceeds the requirements (or expectations) of the element and contains at least one additional feature that is beyond the requirements of the element and that provides a benefit to the University. Greatly Exceeds (5) Proposal significantly exceeds the requirements (or expectations) of the element in ways that provide significant tangible benefits to the University. KEY ELEMENTS CRITERION 1. Ability to provide a time and attendance and absence management application that provides the best opportunity to meet the strategic needs of the institution. 2. Ability to adapt and deliver the latest technology for time and attendance and absence management processes including workflow, mobile, reporting, etc. WEIGHT 3. System architecture, compliance, and security Implementation methodology (including change management) and strategy. This includes reinventing business practices in use, 5 smooth transition and adoption of the new application. 5. Training and documentation RATING (0-5) 6. Vendor s vision, ability to deliver, and financial viability. 2 Offeror s Total Technical Proposal Score LINE SCORE 250 technical points are attainable by scoring 5 ( greatly exceeds ) points, multiplied by corresponding weight, for each of the items in the Key Elements Table. The evaluation committee will rank the Proposals by multiplying the score received in each category by its assigned weight and adding all categories together for the Offeror s total score. The scoring values shown, 0 through 5, are targets for each category. The actual number values awarded may be higher or lower (not lower than 0 or higher than 5) based on the evaluation committee s determination. Once the merits of a Proposal are considered, the Costs/Revenues of that Proposal will be considered. It is within The University s discretion to wait to factor in a Proposal s Cost/Revenue until after any interviews, presentations, demonstrations or discussions. Also, before evaluating the merits of the Proposals, the University may do an initial review of Costs/Revenues to determine if any Proposals 13

15 should be rejected because of excessive cost. The University may consider the excessiveness of any Proposal s cost at any time in the evaluation process. COST/REVENUE POINT CALCULATION The Offeror s Cost/Revenue points are calculated using the following formula: Cost/Revenue Points = (lowest Offeror s Cost/or highest Revenue/Offeror s Cost/or highest Revenue) x 250 possible Cost/or highest Revenue Points. In order to quantify Cost/Revenue as part of the selection process, the above formula intends to assign half (50%) of the selection to Cost/Revenue. The maximum score for Cost/Revenue is 250 points. The lowest price proposal automatically receives 250 points. All other proposals will receive a prorated number of points calculated as: the percentage of the lowest proposal divided by the Offeror s proposal and that percentage multiplied by 250 points yielding the number of points assigned to the Offeror s proposal. For example, if the lowest proposal is for $100,000 and the proposal in question is for $200,000 the total number of points are calculated as follows: $100,000/$200,000 or 50%; 50% of 250 points yields 125 points In an effort to make certain the Costs/Revenues are comparable, the University may require the Offeror to provide additional pricing information if it is necessary to make all responses comparable. For example, if part of the Offeror s response does not include a necessary element of work that is included in other responses, the University may ask the Offeror to provide additional pricing information and terms. TOTAL POINTS The Offeror with the highest point total from all phases of the evaluation will be recommended for the next phase of the evaluation. If the committee finds that one or more Proposals should be given further consideration, the committee may select one or more of the highest scoring Proposals to move to the next phase. The committee may alternatively choose to bypass any or all subsequent phases and make an award based solely on the evaluation phase. COMBINED SCORES Criteria Greatly Exceeds Possible Points Technical Requirements 250 Cost/Revenue 250 Total 500 Offeror s Score 14

16 SELECTION PROCESS If the selection committee feels more information is necessary to make a good business decision, they may determine another phase of evaluation is necessary and will establish a cut off criteria for the lowest scoring proposals that will not meet the business requirements of the University. In the subsequent phase the committee will specify the additional information being asked for of each of the remaining Offerors. The Proposal(s) selected to be considered in the next phase will always be the highest ranking Proposal(s) based on this analysis. The committee may not move a lower ranking Proposal(s) to the next phase unless all Proposals that rank above it are also moved to the next phase, excluding any proposals that the committee disqualifies because of excessive cost or other reasons. Alternatively, if there are to be no more phases because the committee feels they are unnecessary or inappropriate, the highest ranking Proposal will be awarded the Contract. This RFP asks for responses and submissions from Offerors, most of which represent components of the above criteria. While each criterion represents only a part of the total basis for a decision to award the Contract to an Offeror, a failure by an Offeror to make a required submission or meet a mandatory requirement will normally result in a rejection of that Offeror s Proposal. The value assigned above to each criterion is only a value used to determine which Proposal is the most advantageous to the University in relation to the other Proposals that the University received. It is not a basis for determining the importance of meeting any requirement to participate in the Proposal process. If the University does not receive any Proposal that meets all (if any) the mandatory requirements, the University may cancel this RFP. Alternatively, if the University believes it is in the University's interest, the University may evaluate Proposals despite their failure to meet all the mandatory requirements. In doing this, the University may consider one or more of the highest-ranking Proposals. The University may not consider any lower-ranking Proposals unless all Proposals ranked above it are also considered, except as provided below. In any case where no Proposal meets all the mandatory requirements, it may be that an upper ranking Proposal contains a failure to meet a mandatory requirement that the committee believes is critical to the success of the RFP's objectives. If the Offeror(s) of the higher ranking proposal is/are unwilling to amend the proposal to include the mandatory requirement, the committee may reject each Proposal that fails and consider lower ranking Proposals. Before doing so, the committee must notify the Offeror of the situation. If the Offeror cures its failure to meet a critical mandatory requirement, its Proposal will continue to be considered. If the Offeror is unwilling or unable to cure the failure, its Proposal may be rejected. The committee then may continue to consider the other remaining Proposals, including, if the committee so chooses, proposals that ranked lower than the rejected Proposal. Official responses to all questions will be issued in writing by the Department of Purchasing to all Offerors. Any other response received shall be considered unofficial by the University. The University reserves the right to accept or reject all or parts of any proposal received and to waive any informality or technicality in any proposal received. 15

17 4.0 Extended Offer to Other Groups or Institutions The University is also part or a member of several group purchasing organizations and groups still being defined. Several groups to be immediately identified include NEO, IUC, and CUE all located within Ohio and consisting of non-profit organizations. On the Form of Proposal please indicate if you wish to extend your proposal to these groups. Links to the web pages of each group are provided above so you may better understand the structure of the group, size, and mission. Questions concerning these groups may be directed to the Department of Purchasing at The University of Akron. Do you wish to extend your proposal to any of these groups? Yes No 16