Sample Request For Qualifications (RFQ)
Version 1.0
The following sample Request for Qualifications (RFQ) is provided by Local History Services at the Minnesota Historical Society. Please note that the project described here is for a larger web site and is for example only and should not be reused verbatim but it can be a starting point and many elements can be used or removed to fit the scale and scope of your project.
Acme Historical Society
P.O. BOX 111
100 Main Street
Acme, MN 55555
(555) 555-5555
July 31, 2012
SUBJECT: Acme Historical Society Request for Qualifications (RFQ) Website Design
To Whom It May Concern:
The Acme Historical Society is seeking to update its website to enhance the user experience, simplify content management, and provide better information and customer service to its residents and businesses, while meeting high standards for design quality and visual appeal.
Each proposal shall specify each and every item as set forth in the attached the Request for Qualifications (RFQ). Any and all exceptions must be clearly stated in the proposal. Failure to set forth any item in the specifications without taking exception may be grounds for rejection. The Acme Historical Society reserves the right to reject all responses and to waive any informality.
The deadline for RFQ responses is Tuesday, August 22, 2012, at 4:00 p.m. Submit a PDF by email to or a hard copy of the RFQ response to the Acme Historical Society. All hard copy responses must be addressed to the attention of Pat Smith, Director and marked on the outside:
Acme Historical Society, Website Design & Development RFQ
Attn: Pat Smith, Director
P.O. Box 111
100 Main Street
Acme, MN 55555
The Organization will not consider responses received after the specified time and date. An amendment is considered a new statement of qualifications and will not be accepted after the specified time and date.
If you need additional information, then please feel free to contact me.
Sincerely,
Pat Smith
Director
ACME HISTORICAL SOCIETY
REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS
WEBSITE DESIGN
Acme Historical Society
100 Main Street
P.O. Box 111
Acme, MN 55555
(555) 555-5555
CONTENTS
OVERVIEW 2
SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS 2
BACKGROUND 3
VENDOR QUALIFICATIONS 3
DELIVERABLES 5
OTHER SUBMITTAL REQUIREMENTS 5
EVALUATION CRITERIA 5
SELECTION PROCESS 6
Overview
The Acme Historical Society is seeking to update its website to enhance the user experience, simplify content management, and provide better information and customer service to its members and users, while meeting high standards for design quality and visual appeal.
Effective websites provide dynamic content that keeps users engaged and coming back. Effective websites also must ensure that content sought is easy to find and that navigation remains user friendly. In Ione, the management of online content is decentralized to some extent, with the assistance of a contract webmaster. The Organization would like to fully decentralize content management to multiple content managers in each Organizational committee under the oversight of the Director.
The Acme Historical Society seeks the assistance of a company that can accomplish all of the functionality identified in this RFQ but has the flexibility of providing this functionality over time, if needed due to budgetary constraints. The Organization also seeks a company that has the capability of integrating additional features that may be needed in the future.
Situational Analysis
The Acme Historical Society is seeking to enter into a professional services agreement with a qualified vendor to design and implement a new Organization website based on the above strategy. The Organization's website URL is currently acmehistoricalsociety.angelfire.com but the Organization would like to transition to www.acmehistoricalsociety.org upon the launch of a new website.
The Organization’s website provides a significant amount of site content in a static format. This information, as well as the more static content information, is submitted by various committees’ volunteers to the Director and to our independent web contractor for posting.
The Organization is actively seeking a qualified web vendor to replace the existing website. The Organization's emphasis is on incorporating extensive content management tools and database driven architecture while providing a user-friendly and intuitive site structure and an interface that is both attractive and ADA compliant.
Background
The Organization is located in Acme County, Minnesota. The Acme County Historical Society was incorporated as a non-profit in 1951. It has a twelve-member board and a part time director. The board members of the Organization are elected at-large. They serve staggered two-year terms. The Board meets on the first Tuesday of each month.
The Acme County Historical Society’s main building houses the organization’s research and heritage center, the permanent collections, and offices. In addition to a permanent artifact collection, the historical society features a library, research center with archival and biographical data, photograph archives, map collection, oral history collection, and manuscript archives.
The vendor’s principal contact with the Organization will be Pat Smith, Director. The Acme Historical Society is located at 100 Main Street, Acme, Minnesota 55555. The telephone number is (555) 555-5555. Email is .
Vendor Qualifications
The intent of this RFQ is to enable the Acme County Historical Society to evaluate vendor experience, qualifications and capabilities for developing and implementing a new Organization website. The desired qualifications are outlined below. Responders are to submit a written narrative corresponding to each of the numbered items:
A. Municipal Website Design Experience
1. Historical Society clients in Minnesota (please list city name and website URL)
2. Other Minnesota clients (please list city name and website URL)
3. If no previous history organization experience, please explain relevant non-profit website experience (please list other non-profit clients/URLs)
4. References (minimum three references, including all contact information below)
a. Client Name
b. Client Contact Person
c. Phone and Fax
d. Client Address
e. Website Address
B. Company Profile
1. Number of years in business
2. Office location(s) (Include business address)
3. Demonstrated company financial stability
C. Team Members/Roles (list all personnel to be assigned to this project)
1. Name, title, role (e.g., project management, programming, graphics)
2. List connection to Acme County Historical Society board or director, if any
D. Vendor Service Capabilities (Describe all available)
1. Web development
2. Software tools (e.g., Content Management System or modules)
3. Site maintenance
4. Site hosting
5. Client training
6. Availability of robust self-service documentation and technical support
7. Appropriate redundancy and scalability to avoid unexpected outages and to accommodate periodic maintenance, usage growth and sudden usage surges
8. Meets U.S. Federal Government ADA requirements
9. 24 x 7 support
10. Security for both Organization staff and users
11. Adoption of current website content when available
12. Other
E. Integrated Content Management System (CMS) Components and Tools
The CMS listing below represents functional categories and is not comprehensive; others may be recommended or added. The Organization's new website vendor must be able to provide the desired components shown. Possible budgetary constraints may require the project be implemented in phases.
Component/Module Name / Function / Offered by Vendor(Indicate Yes/No)
1 / Browser Based Administration / Update, Delete and Create Template – Based Web Pages
2 / Calendar / Event listings
3 / Home Pages / Dynamic Content
4 / Directories, Listings / Dynamic Content
5 / Exhibit gallery / Dynamic Content
6 / Site Index
7 / Video/Audio Hosting
8 / Social Media Interface / Facebook and Twitter Feeds
9 / Event Registration / Online Reservation/Payment
10 / Forward to a Friend / E-mail Extension
11 / Frequently Asked Questions / Dynamic Content
12 / FTP Capable / Upload/Download Capability
13 / Page view Tracking / Analytics
14 / Store/e-Cart / Dynamic Content/Secure Transactions
15 / Multi-Lingual Support / Dynamic Content
16 / News & Announcements / Dynamic Content
17 / News Releases / Online Publishing
18 / Newsletter/E-Zine / Subscription and Online Publishing
19 / Online Forms / Forms/Publishing/Tracking
20 / Online Donations / Secure Online Transactions
21 / Printable Pages / Print-Friendly Functions
23 / Rotating Photos/Banner Ads / Dynamic Image Display
24 / RSS Feeds out
25 / Site Search / Internal Site Search Engine
26 / Special Event/Facility Rental / Secure Online Registration
27 / Survey/Polling Capabilities / Poll/Question/Answer Tracking
28 / Other
F. Vendor/Client Contract Performance (Please provide two examples that include all of the following):
1. Client name and description of services provided
2. Contract amount
3. Contract duration
4. Project outcome
Deliverables
This section identifies the deliverables associated with this RFQ:
1. Under Vendor Qualifications section, complete and return items A-F.
2. Include a project approach summary for building a municipal website, including a possible phasing plan.
3. Include a sample project schedule for building a website.
4. Include pricing range/cost for services outlined.
Other Submittal Requirements
The deadline for RFQ responses is Tuesday, April 12, 2011, at 4:00 p.m. Submit a PDF by email to or a hard copy of the RFQ response to the Acme Historical Society. All hard copy responses must be addressed to the attention of Pat Smith, Director and marked on the outside: “Acme Historical Society, Website Design & Development RFQ.”
Submittals that are not received on or before the specified deadline will not be accepted (no exceptions). The Organization reserves the right to request follow-up information or clarification from vendors in consideration.
The Acme County Historical reserves the right to reject any or all submittals, to compare the relative merits of the respective responses, and to choose a vendor, which in the opinion of the Organization, will best serve the interests of the Acme County Historical.
Each response to this RFQ is at the sole cost and expense of each proposing vendor and with the express understanding that no claims against the Acme County Historical for reimbursement will be accepted.
Evaluation Criteria
Responses to this RFQ will help the Acme County Historical identify the most qualified web vendor and will be indicative of the level of the firm's commitment. The Organization will evaluate the qualifications, references, overall fit with the Acme County Historical, as well as the pricing range/cost to determine the most qualified web vendor.
Selection Process
The selection process will involve the following phases:
· Phase One: A review team will evaluate vendor submittals. The initial review will determine conformance to submission requirements and whether responses meet minimum criteria established. Review will include the vendor's acceptance of RFQ terms and completeness of submissions.
· Phase Two: Interview of most qualified applicants, if necessary.
· Phase Three: Review team will check references given.
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