Winning Business with City Agencies Spotlight: Austin

Transcription

1 Winning Business with City Agencies Spotlight: Austin Start Time: 11am PT / 2pm ET Streaming Audio: Have your headphones or computer speakers ready Dial-in for Audio: Phone number: (562) Access Code: Please mute your phone. 1

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3 Our Presenters Irv Alpert Executive Vice President, Business Founder Onvia, Inc. With over 25 years in the public sector and 14 years experience guiding Onvia, Irv knows how to win business with the government At Onvia, Irv trains enterprise customers on how to successfully sell to the government. He helps companies understand the procurement process at all levels of government, navigate the fragmented and diverse state & local market, develop a long-range planning strategy and get in front of trends before they happen. For more than 14 years Onvia (NASDAQ: ONVI) has been delivering the data and tools companies rely on to succeed in the government contracting market. Onvia tracks and reports the spending of tens of thousands of federal, state and local government agencies, giving companies a single source for conducting business with government iaplert@onvia.com 3

4 Our Presenters James J. Baker Author & Marketing Consultant James J. Baker is a noted speaker, author, consultant, and strategist on the public sector technology marketplace. He has spent the bulk of his career in Washington DC consulting for technology companies that sell to government, such as CA Technologies, Microsoft, Adobe, Hewlett Packard, VMware, McAfee, Intel, Verizon, Unisys and Salesforce. The Public Sector Technology Exchange (PSTE), founded by James Baker, is an independent forum designed to discuss the technologybusiness issues impacting the government, citizens and vendor community. PSTE events are sponsored by industry with participation from both government and industry. Each PSTE seminar will discuss key issues such as cloud, security, telecom, consolidation, modernization and other areas of information technology policy, management, and industry best practices

5 With Onvia Support From Paul Irby Market Analyst Kelsey Voss Moderator 5

6 Agenda Procurement Challenges and Trends Strategies for Winning Case Study in Executing a Plan Questions and Answers 6

7 Procurement Challenges and Trends 7

8 Challenges: Procurement Process Pressures City agencies encounter challenges from: Loss of experienced staff: Silver Tsunami & high turnover Budgets: Entitlements & pension funding Process: Prolonged sourcing procedures (e.g. sealed bids), complexity of procurement laws, & general inflexibility In much of the local public marketplace there s a move towards more efficient procurement processes. 8

9 Spotlight: City of Austin Why Austin, TX? Well-managed & multiaward winner for city management Mid-sized city with strong technology orientation Efficient procurement adopted at city, county & state levels An in-depth investigation into one city agency reveals how procurement changes affect the contracting environment. 9

10 Trend: Less Formal Bidding 10.0% 5.0% Annual Growth in Key Austin Metrics ( ) 0.0% -5.0% Budget - General Fund ($M) Budget - Total ($B) City Employees (FTEs) Prop Tax rate cents per $100 Published bids & RFPs -10.0% -15.0% Source: Onvia national procurement database, City of Austin budget documents 10

11 Trend: Non-Traditional Awards Average Annual Spending Per Contract for Austin Multi- Year (3+ Yr) Contracts 18.0% Co-op Share of Total Austin Awards $550, % $500, % $450, % $400,000 $350,000 $300, % 8.0% 6.0% 4.0% $250, Average Annual Linear (Average Annual) 2.0% Co-op Share Linear (Co-op Share) +$115,000 Increase in Austin average annual spending per contract for multi-year (3+ yr) contracts +5.5% Rise in share co-op awards Since 2011 Source: Onvia national procurement database, City of Austin budget documents 11

12 Trend: Move Toward Efficiency $160,000 Size of Typical Award for Cities (Median) 8.0% Multi-Year (3+) Share of Contracts $140, % $120, % $100, % $80, % $60, % $40, % Co-op Share of Awards 2.3% 2.1% 1.9% 1.7% +$115, % 1.3% 1.1% 0.9% Consolidation Cooperative purchasing Multi-year contracts 12

13 Trend: New Procurement Models Traditional vs new contracting models Traditional: Competitive but relatively simple New: More opportunity but added complexity Bundling of contracts IDIQ/term contracts Multi-vendor awards Co-ops 3rd party brokers Job order contracts Piggy backing Preferred/approved vendor lists 13

14 Strategies for Winning 14

15 Strategy: Get Smart To win city agency contracts you need to know: The vendors with active contracts Award values and product/service pricing The procurement model of your target agency Who influences and controls the purchase Advance intelligence gives you the ability to discuss needs with agency decision makers and the advantage over your competitors. 15

16 Strategy: Research City Contracts Online 16

17 Strategy: Use Onvia for Intelligence Current Austin contracts in Onvia s platform 17

18 Strategy: Use Onvia for Details Purchase order and line item details in Onvia s platform 18

19 Strategy: Expand Your Horizons The increase into alternate procurement activity requires a new procurement strategy. To win more opportunities you need to find and research: Bundling and cooperative purchasing activity The incumbent and other competitors Informal bids and sole source custom/specialty work Specific details on your target market & industry Key agency buyers and decision makers Agency purchase orders and line items Multi-year contracts: Expiration dates, amounts, extensions It s a more challenging environment but with more opportunities. Onvia can help you get strategic and present the right opportunities you need to win. 19

20 Case Study in Executing a Plan Creating a Run Rate of Deals Leveraging Research to Impact Your Bottom Line 20

21 Case Study: Austin Making the case for Austin: Austin's fiscal year begins October 1, > Strong procurement activity in the spring and summer Chase Austin s funded projects Make sure an announced procurement is funded and you can track it back to the budget PIR Monitor Austin s web and social presence Understand Austin s vertical funding vs. budget funding Understand your target customer by reviewing all budget data. 21

22 Case Study: Austin Online 22

23 Case Study: Technology Technology is important to Austin: The word technology is mentioned 266 times in the budget. Austin has received many awards for technical excellence in its technology systems and platforms Austin intends to continue to be seen as global leader in technology by hosting world class events like SXSW Austin is increasing IT staff to deliver on their goals Austin s budget proposed smart, value-added investments in the city s technology equipment and infrastructure. 23

24 Case Study: Dept. of Information Technology Focus Area Business Intelligence Citizen Engagement Communications Management What this does for the City of Austin? Identify, analyze, transform and present information using business intelligence tools and techniques to support decision making. Engage and conduct political, social and financial business using websites, social networks and online payment systems to provide access, information and commerce Provide radio, telephones, video conferencing and wireless technologies to deliver voice, video and data information to staff and residents. Financial Management Provide enterprise tools to gather, analyze, manage and communicate financial decisions. Geospatial Information Management Information Management IT Infrastructure Manage, analyze and report location data for use by staff and residents. Collect and manage information from many sources and to distribute that information to audiences. Establish, operate and maintain IT hardware, software, networks, service desks and security systems to provide data and information to staff and residents. Mobile Operations Manage and perform information technology functions using mobile devices. Public Safety Deliver business and technology management services to support code compliance, court, EMS, fire, homeland security, emergency management and police services. 24

25 Case Study: Review the Organization 25

26 Case Study: City of Austin in Onvia View comprehensive lists with procurement history, active term contracts, project previews and vendors who do business with this agency. Understand the agency s buying cycle. 26

27 Case Study: Communications & Technology 27

28 Case Study: City of Austin in Onvia Export lists of the agency decision makers and buyers. 28

29 Case Study: Budget for Technology Communications and technology management plans: $29M in new appropriations $21.9M in spending Large focus on IT infrastructure and critical replacement projects Upgrade AMANDA case management system Expand city s business intelligence software Implement enterprise extract transform load tools Install RFID at Libraries Audio and visual upgrades for emergency operations Understand your target customer by reviewing raw budget data. 29

30 Case Study: Begin Your Run Rate Your Focus Department or Business Unit Core Mission / Political Mandates Your Actions Insert the name of the organization you want to sell to. List all important facts about this organization. What verticals will you sell as well as market to? What is their vision and focus? Is there any activity going on in Austin right now that requires government executives to implement a specific action in their organizations. Is the mandate funded or unfunded? Investment Describe budget investment you are interested in pursuing (i.e. RFID tags in Libraries / Cloud) Your Unique Selling Proposition (USP) Amount Is There a Planned RFP? Vehicle How do you help Austin achieve goal? What is the ROI of doing business with your firm? Do you need marketing s help? Remember the goal of all marketing is to generate leads and awareness. What is the total for the BLI? How much of total funded will be for your firm? How much is new funding? Use Onvia to look up any RFP associated with the budget item. Are you really qualified to bid or do you need a partner. Is there 3-6 months to market to the City before the procurement goes into a black out period. Does Austin have a contract vehicle in place or a preferred way to buy this item? What is the easiest way for Austin to purchase your products? Incumbent Is this a new procurement or is there an incumbent in place? Who else may be bidding? Call & Marcom / Pan Look at the org chart and determine a call plan. Determine marketing plan that aligns with BD, proposal, capture and sales efforts. ROI equals number of lead / cost of event. 30

31 Example: RFP for the City of Austin

32 Example: Contract with the City of Austin

33 Cold Calling and Cold Why the Government is not returning your requests to meet? This is James Baker, I am calling to discuss (create news headline statement with ROI built in). Our firm has solved this technical challenge for many commercial and government firms. I am going to send you an agenda for a 15 minute phone call. Kindly respond back to me via phone or with an appropriate time to meet. I will follow up with your administrative executive to confirm. Thank you for your service to the Great City of Austin. I look forward to speaking with you soon. 33

34 Cold Calling and Cold Why the Government is not returning your requests to meet? Dear Sir: Per my voice mail message, I am requesting a 15 minute meeting with you to discuss (insert budget line item or challenge you want to fix-make sure to put ROI in first sentence). Below is a proposed agenda for our call: Introductions Why we can (help fix / improve / better service) ROI (Be very specific) Case Study (Give additional data in 1 sentence) Remember baby boomers access data different other generations Value to organization Discussions / Next steps Kindly get back to me with any additions or deletions to the agenda as well as any other of your colleagues that should join our call. I may be reached at or james@jamesjbaker.com. 34

35 Final Thoughts: Austin and City Agencies Austin represents the broader trend in city government Be strategic: Identify the right opportunities and have a plan to win Consider cooperative purchases and longer term contracts Network and build key relationships with agency contacts Understand new procurement models and the move towards more efficient processes 35

36 Winning Business with City Agencies Spotlight: Austin Questions You can also use the chat feature on the webinar screen to submit questions for Irv and Jimmy. 36

37 Our Presenters Irv Alpert Executive Vice President, Business Founder Onvia, Inc. Onvia specializes in providing business intelligence solutions to vendors to grow their government business, helping them get ahead of the bid and RFP process. Visit for more information on Onvia

38 Our Presenters James J. Baker Author & Marketing Consultant Baker s book: How to Win Business from the Government - A tactical guide on how you can win business in the Federal IT Marketplace is available here: Special Offer Order a copy of Baker s book by April 15, Jimmy the receipt and he will meet with your team to discuss your marketing and sales strategy for the public sector. The book is also available in paperback or ebook on Amazon james@jamesjbaker.com PSTE Leadership Forums: 38

39 More Valuable Resources from Onvia Download Onvia s latest content on current and future state & local procurement trends: Onvia s 3 Trends Shaping State & Local Contracting Growth in 2015: Onvia Government Contractors Survey Results: Selling into the B2G Market in 2015: Onvia s State & Local Procurement Snapshots: For more on the latest government contracting tips and trends: White Papers Blog Articles 39