Question - costhebuyline-wpengine.netdna-ssl.comcosthebuyline-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/... · Web viewThe current CBO/CCS budgeting system uses MS Word

City of Seattle Request for Proposal CBO 4280Addendum

Update: 2/14/18

The following is additional information regarding Request for Proposal #CBO-4280 titled CBO & CCS Budget System released on 1/22/2018. The due date and time is February 27 th , 2018 @ 4 PM (Pacific) . This addendum includes both questions from prospective bidders and the City’s answers and revisions to the RFP. This addendum is hereby made part of the RFP and therefore, the information contained herein shall be taken into consideration when preparing and submitting a proposal.

Item #

Date Received

Date Answered

Vendor’s Question City’s Answer ITB Revisions

1 1/24/18 2/8/18

Do you have a proposed budget for this solution?

The City has approved $700,000 for the budget system replacement project to date, which will fund both internal and external work. Once a proposal has been secured, a supplemental budget request will be presented to the Mayor and City Council.

2 2/8/18Do you have a preference for solutions that are on-premise or cloud or does the City not have a preference?

The City does not have a preference, but is interested in cost-competitive solutions.

3 2/8/18

If the company has been around for over 5 years selling a variety of solutions to governments, but not necessarily budget creation solutions, can the company's bid still be considered for this proposal?

The software/system being proposed must have 5 years of maturity.The implementation team proposed must have 5yrs experience implementing budgeting systems. The City does not have a minimum qualification related to the number of years a company has been selling budget creation solutions.

4 2/8/18

Approximately how many accounts do you have in your Chart of Accounts and how many levels or segments do you have within your Chart of Accounts?

The CBO and CCS currently roll up information from the Citywide general ledger. Specifically to CBO and CCS, there are approximately 40 general ledger accounts used in the budget process. There are currently no levels to those accounts, however a hierarchy would be a functionality desired in a new system.Attached is a file containing GL accounts and roll-ups.

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5 1/26/18 2/8/18

The contract attached to the RFP has a few comments stating updates are needed, including insurance corrections, numbering updates, and an update to sections 1 and 7.1. Would the City please confirm an updated version will be provided to vendors to support an compliant proposal response.

Please see the embedded document to the right.

6 2/8/18

The City states an on premise proposal will have hardware and City resources (fully loaded) costs added to the bid. Would the City share the anticipated City fully loaded costs that will be used to calculate total cost that will be scored?

No, the City will be unable to share loaded costs at this time. This is because of the variables in responses and other unknown conditions.

7 2/8/18Please confirm implementation pricing should cover services for Phase 1, 2, and 3.

Yes, implementation pricing should cover services for Phase 1, 2 and 3.

8 2/8/18Does the City anticipate publishing the Five Year Capital plan from the system in Phase 3?

The City publishes a 6-year Capital Plan. This will be considered part of Phase 3.

9 2/8/18

How many reports are anticipated for Phase 1 and subsequent phases? What budget documents will be published as a result of completing Phase 1?

Two reports that will be needed as part of Phase 1 are the proposed and adopted budgets, as well as the Council budget change documents.

Additional reports will need to be defined as part of the requirements definition. Currently, information is downloaded and pivot table reports are created for most needs. Future reports could/would be used for briefings with decision makers, analysis, quality control, and other needs.

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10 2/8/18

What is the City’s enterprise reporting solution and is it licensed for all data sources? If so, does the City use the enterprise reporting solution today to support the CBO and CCS reporting needs?

The City's enterprise reporting solution is Microsoft SQL Reporting Services. The current CBO/CCS budgeting system uses MS Word and Excel.

11 2/8/18

While the City has not indicated a strong preference between SaaS and client-hosted, can you share how many SaaS systems of the similar size and complexity are used by CBO and CCS?

The SaaS systems currently used by CBO and CCS are SharePoint Online and Office365.

12 2/8/18

Is the current budget system SaaS or client-hosted? How many operations staff are required to support the current system?

The current budget system is client based. Currently, there are 1-2 IT developers supporting the applications, on an as needed basis. CBO has one staff spending part of their time as system administrator, and CCS has two staff and one part-time employee spending part of their time as system administrators.

13 2/8/18How many total system users will there be from CBO and CCS respectively?

There are currently approximately 30 CBO and 53 potential Council system users.

14 2/8/18

MIN QUAL Question 1 – “the company must have five years of experience”. Can you clarify what this exactly means? What about implementation partners?

The question refers to two different Minimum Qualifications.Min Qual 1: The software/system being proposed must have 5 years of maturity.Min Qual 2: The implementation team proposed must have 5yrs experience implementing budgeting systems. The expectation is that the team included in the proposal will be the team performing the services for the City.

15 2/8/18 How many resources do you anticipate applying to this program from the City side?

An IT project manager and an IT business analyst will be assigned for the duration of the project. CBO staff will be available to spend a percentage of their time on the project. Other business SMEs

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will be available as needed. Additional IT resources (network, DBA, security, enterprise architect, QA) will be available as needed.

16 2/8/18Scope of work - what level of business process documentation do you currently have?

The City will provide business process documentation in Addendum #2, which will be published by 2/16/2018.

17 2/8/18

If prime needs to be the software vendor – will Seattle only get a single response for each software vendor?

No, the City does not require a single response for each software vendor. The City will accept multiple combinations of prime vendor and sub-consultant(s).

18 2/8/18Would you accept a re-seller agreement?

Yes, the City will accept a re-seller agreement, but there is still opportunity for negotiation.

19 2/8/18If a consulting firm partners with a vendor, who will be the prime contract holder?

It is up to the respondents to determine their prime/sub relationships.

20 2/8/18

Would you accept Oracle’s schedule C?

Yes, the City will accept Oracle's Schedule C but expects that the proposer will incorporate details into the pricing schedule attachment, and not just reference "Schedule C."

21 2/8/18

In the case of Cloud Software – would you be looking for a prime contractor if they are not the software provider to hold the subscription?

The City would hold the subscription – we would maintain the license for our own personnel for the software.

22 2/8/18

Minimum Requirements – Will City of Seattle contract separately or allow separate contracting with certified vendors or vendors working with the software vendors?

We would have a prime contract with a single vendor. If there are other agreements (software, or licensing) they would be derivatives of this agreement.

23 2/8/18

What percentage of time is the staff consolidating the data vs. analyzing it, using it?

The percentages are difficult to quantify as they vary across roles and functions. One of the key goals of a new system is to spend less time manually reconciling, validating, and verifying data but instead, spend more time analyzing data.

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24 2/8/18

Can you talk generally about your biggest pain points of the 2 systems: Access? Reporting?

Some of the biggest pain points include: lack of ad hoc reporting, not user friendly and is often a struggle for staff to navigate, issues with system stability (slow, crashes). The technology is out dated, and one system would be more efficient.

25 2/8/18

Do you still want the system live January 2019? How does CBO envision balance of business process, change, and the system being live within that timeline?

Yes, the implementation date is still 1/31/2019. The City is looking to the respondents to help define the strategy used to achieve that goal. Some business process change and improvement is expected, but not all process changes can or should be complete by 1/31/2019.

26 2/1/18 2/14/18Has the City viewed demonstrations from vendors prior to the release of the RFP? If so, which ones?

CBO staff were offered and viewed high-level presentations from Questica and OpenGov.

27 2/8/18

Has a budget been set for this project? If so, how much?

The City has approved $700,000 for the budget system replacement project to date, which will fund both internal and external work. Once a proposal has been secured, a supplemental budget request will be presented to the Mayor and City Council.

28 2/14/18

What does ‘Performance Management’ mean to the City?

Performance Management means the ability to define, measure, track and hold agencies accountable to pre-defined goals. Often these goals are represented by performance measures - quantitative proxies for these goals - which are in turn defined, measured and tracked.

29 2/8/18

Does the City currently have a Communication Plan in place, or is it looking to work with the vendor in order to create one?

The City will work with the vendor to create a Communications Plan.

30 2/14/18 Does the City currently have a Business Process Improvement Methodology in place, or it is looking to

The City is looking to work with the vendor to identify any areas in the current processes that can benefit from business

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work with the vendor in order to create one?

process improvement.

31 2/14/18

In the Functional Requirements Response document, Req# 26, “Ability to set up budgeting business rules and calculations at a department level…” What sort of “budgeting business rules” is the City referring to?

This is so if the budget solution were taken up by City departments, their own budget business process rules could be accommodated. Example - CBO will have different approval processes than departments, and Departments could produce their budget not from an incremental approach.

32 2/14/18

In the Functional Requirements Response document, Req# 42, when the City makes reference to ‘budget request templates,’ is it referring to budget entry forms? Do departments use different forms to make requests, or is there a standardized form for such requests?

Please refer to the recently posted supporting documents (answer #69), which includes examples of both the data submittals forms, and also the Budget Issue Paper, which is the current primary method for b2/14/18udget requests.

33 2/14/18

In the Functional Requirements Response document, Req# 69, would the City be able to provide an example of an ‘organizational strategy communication?’

Rather than an example, we can provide an explanation: an organizational strategy communication in this case is a summary of the relevant organization's approach to meeting (or remedying) performance under a given measure. It is likely to take the form of a short written statement.

34 2/14/18

In the Functional Requirements Response document, Req# 76, what does the City mean by ‘clarify fully loaded costs of positions’ in budget requests?

Currently it is difficult to know what costs have been included when a position is budgeted. Additional information could include costs broken out into additional accounts, one-time and ongoing costs broken out clearly, justification of the salary point used, etc.

35 2/14/18

In the Functional Requirements Response document, Req# 89, “Ability for authorized business users to configure business rules…’ What business rules is the City referring to?

These are business rules like transfers have to net out, certain fields need to be completed based on what transaction is being used, etc.

36 2/14/18 In the Functional Requirements The City is open to a solution that posts

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Response document, Req# 90, “Ability to publish results to a content management system or web publishing software.” What results is the City looking to publish?

some (or all needed) budget information through a content management system or web publishing software. Currently, all budget book materials and data sites are developed manually, then uploaded to the website or web services. Example - data needed for open data sites could potentially be created as a report in the budget system and ready for upload to the open data site.

37 2/14/18

When budgeting, is the Capital budget distinctly separate from the Operating budgets, or is the Capital budget included as line items on the Approved Operating budget? How does the City currently report on Capital vs. Operating?

Currently the legal appropriated budget (single year) for both operating/capital and the CIP are distinctly separate items. The CIP is a six-year capital plan and does not appear as a line item underneath the Operating Budget. The desire is to integrate the two systems but still produce the two distinct products.

38 2/8/18

Does the City have a preference between SaaS (annual subscription to use the software) vs. Hosted (City owns the system, but it’s hosted by the vendor) vs. On-Premise (City owns the system, and it’s installed on the City’s server)?

The City does not have a preference, but is interested in cost-competitive solutions.

39Is the City evaluating price based on a 3, 5, 7, 10 year Total Cost of Ownership?

The City will be evaluating the price based on the 7-year contract total cost.

40 2/14/18

Is the City looking for a solution that will publish the City’s budget book, or does the City already have a system in place which would leverage the new budgeting system in order to produce a budget book?

The City could continue its budget book production process with a new solution. Improvement or inclusion of a publishing solution is not required, but are open to inclusion is a solution.

41 2/14/18 Are Departmental Allocations needed?For example, some Departments (Cost Centers) allocate all of their expenses to other Departments or Cost Centers

We don't have enough information/experience to answer this question. This is currently a manual process.

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in the budgeting process. These are often referred to as Internal Service Providers or ISPs. A common example of an ISP can be the Information Technology (IT) department. ISP budgets are developed in detail just like any other department, and then their expenses are allocated out to other budget elements – other departments. Is this type of departmental allocations needed?

42 2/14/18

Would all 60 active and 180 defined users require access to all modules? If not, please provide a breakdown between: o Operating Budgeting o Capital Budgeting o Position Budgetingo Performance Management

There are currently approximately 30 CBO and 53 potential Council system users. All CBO users would likely need Operating, Position and Performance access, with half the CBO users needing Capital. CCS users we could expect around 30 users of the Operating, Position and Performance access, and around 10 using the Capital. This is all an estimate, as this could change once the system is developed.

43 2/14/18

Do department Managers (or the equivalent) manage all budgeting data for each position’s costs (salary, wages, benefits, etc.) within their department? Or alternatively, is the salary & benefit budgeting done by a smaller group (maybe within Finance or HR) on behalf of the departmental users? If the latter, how many individuals (users) would need access to the salary and benefit data for all City staff?

CBO does not have the information to provide an answer.

44 2/14/18 How many employees does the CBO budget for?

The City doesn't currently budget to employees/FTEs. However, there are currently around 12,000 employees in the

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City.

45 2/14/18

During the implementation process, how many years of historical data does the City wish to convert from the existing solution into the new solution?

The previous year's budget data will need to be converted (2019 adopted budget). Additional previous years' data would be preferred but not required. See attached data information (Iteration Detail Download).

46 2/14/18

Please specify the number of people to be trained initially for budgeting.

Training will equal the number of users. There are currently approximately 30 CBO and 53 potential Council system users. The CBO and CCS have not yet determined the number of people that will need to be trained for Phase 1 implementation.

47 2/14/18Does the City have a preference between onsite vs. remote training?

The City prefers onsite training but is open to proposals for remote training options.

48 2/14/18

Would the City be able to provide an example of the GL account hierarchies

Please see the attached document.

49 2/14/18

Can you provide an overview of your general organizational structure – as it relates to budgeting?For example, below is a common organization structure: 10 Divisions 50 Departments 200 Cost Centers (budgeting done at this level, then rolled up) Can you describe your organizational structure in this manner?

The structure used to develop the budget last year had: 56 Departments or Funds (treated as Departments); 247 Budget Control Levels under them; and 554 Budget Programs under the BCLs.

50 2/14/18 In the Functional Requirements Response document, Req# 63, how does the City apply weights to measures, and what does the City mean by ‘composite measures?’

Weights will be determined externally and assigned on a manual entry basis. A composite measure is one that arithmetically weights and combines multiple performance measures. For

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example, one might be interested in a single "quality index" of widgets being produced, which combined metrics of customer complaint numbers, proportion of characteristics within manufacturing tolerances, etc.

51 2/8/18

When does the City wish to have the project begin?

The project will begin as soon as the contract has been executed with the selected vendor, which is currently scheduled to occur during the first week of May.

52 2/14/18

In the Functional Requirements Response document, Req# 51, ‘Ability to calculate CIP project variance report with milestones.’ Would the City be able provide examples of what it refers to as ‘Milestones.’

What constitutes a "Milestones" is still being evaluated but as an example, a life of a project goes through various stages from initial conception to closeout. Some milestones along the way could be moving from 30% design to 90% design, moving from design phase to construction phase, etc. There are other possible milestones.

53 2/14/18

In the Functional Requirements Response document, Req# 52 ‘Ability to identify baseline budget indicators, total project cost and whether the project was baselined.’ Would the City be able provide examples of what it refers to as ‘baselines’ and ‘baseline budget indicators.’

We would like the ability to track current project budget estimates (at the total project cost level, which means all out years as well) to a previously established project budget baseline. Baseline refers to an original project costs based on some planning milestone such as when a project reaches 30% design. It is useful to have a static field where we can enter a Total Project Cost, and this field that gets locked, or frozen, once a project is baselined. It would be called "Original Baseline" or something of that nature. The goal is to be able to track the differences between a current (current budget period) Total Project Cost estimate, to the Total Project Cost estimate at original baseline.

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54 2/2/18 2/14/18 Under the following section on page 10 states the following5. MINIMUM QUALIFICTIONS:

5.6 Proposer is the Software Manufacturer or a Certified/Authorized Reseller of the proposed software/system.The Proposer, if other than the manufacturer, shall submit with the proposal a current, dated, and signed authorization from the manufacturer that the Proposer is an authorized distributor, dealer or service representative and is authorized to sell the manufacturer's products. Failure to comply with this requirement may result in bid rejection. This includes the certification to license the product and offer in-house service, maintenance, technical training assistance, and warranty services, including sale of available spare parts and replacement units if applicable.

Question: A software vendor has an existing contract with the city to procure software directly but wishes to utilize a System Implementer(s) to respond to the RFP who are not resellers. Would it be acceptable for the City of Seattle to accept a proposal from a System Implementer(s) who is not a reseller but utilize pricing

Yes, the City will accept pricing based on a current City contract that is not anticipated to expire within the implementation phase, but expects that the proposer will incorporate details into the pricing schedule attachment, and not just reference the contract.

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provided by software vendor and not be rejected or be perceived as a negative?

55 2/8/18Will the City of Seattle (“The City”) provide a project manager to support our Project manager?

Yes, the City will provide a project manager to support the vendor's project manager.

56 2/8/18

Does The City have dedicated Planning and integration Subject Matter Experts (“SME”) to work alongside the implementation team?

An IT project manager and an IT business analyst will be assigned for the duration of the project. CBO staff will be available to spend a percentage of their time on the project. Other business SMEs will be available as needed. Additional IT resources (network, DBA, security, enterprise architect, QA) will be available as needed.

57 2/14/18Please describe your desired services support model for the duration of all three phases of the project

The proposed support model for the duration of all three phases is left to the discretion of the proposer.

58 2/14/18

Do you require a conference room pilot to visualize design elements of the application?

The City expects to be able to view design elements in a Dev or Test environment as the project progresses and as design elements are developed.

59 2/14/18 Please provide volumes for the following application design elements:

1. # of Natural Accounts2. # of Entities or Cost Centers/Departments3. Years for Data – History + budget4. Typical # of budget versions5. # of employees or Positions for position planning6. # of Capital Projects7. # of reports to support The City’s budget book8. # of integrations to support the following:

a. Financial Data

1. CBO currently uses about 40 accounts that are roll-ups of all accounts in the accounting system.

2. Cost centers/entities are not currently used by CBO in the budget system. The budget has 56 departments/funds.

3. CBO currently holds two prior years, but would like a solution to be able to hold additional years of budget history, or some other solution to review budget history.

4. CBO currently only runs and produces

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b. Headcount/Position Datac. Capital Data

one total version of the budget, with many adjustments being declined or approved all the way to final decisions made in the middle of August.

5. There are around 12,000 employees in the City.

6. There are approximately 700 Master projects in the CIP

7. CBO currently uses one budget book report for the majority of the sections of the budget book, but would be open to ways to automate the front and back sections including redesigning the format and content of the budget book.

8.a. The existing budgeting system does not interface directly with PeopleSoft or ADP. The City does not have a design in mind for what the future interface(s) will look like. The City is looking to the implementation vendor to help identify where and how budget data can interface or “interact” with PeopleSoft, ADP (or future payroll system) and HRIS. Although a seamless interface between the new budgeting system and PeopleSoft, ADP or HRIS is of interest, it is not required. The solution can take the form of any user-friendly form of data exchange.It is a requirement that data from the new budgeting system can, at a minimum, be extracted or exported to be used in whatever data flow that is designed.

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8.b. The existing budgeting system does not interface directly with PeopleSoft or ADP. The City does not have a design in mind for what the future interface(s) will look like. The City is looking to the implementation vendor to help identify where and how budget data can interface or “interact” with PeopleSoft, ADP (or future payroll system) and HRIS. Although a seamless interface between the new budgeting system and PeopleSoft, ADP or HRIS is of interest, it is not required. The solution can take the form of any user-friendly form of data exchange.It is a requirement that data from the new budgeting system can, at a minimum, be extracted or exported to be used in whatever data flow that is designed.

8.c. The existing budgeting system does not interface directly with PeopleSoft or ADP. The City does not have a design in mind for what the future interface(s) will look like. The City is looking to the implementation vendor to help identify where and how budget data can interface or “interact” with PeopleSoft, ADP (or future payroll system) and HRIS. Although a seamless interface between the new budgeting system and PeopleSoft, ADP or HRIS is of interest, it is not required. The solution can take the form of any user-friendly form of data exchange.It is a requirement that data from the new budgeting system can, at a minimum, be extracted or exported to be used in

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whatever data flow that is designed.

60 2/14/18

Is The City’s forecast at the same level as budget data?

Revenues in the budget system are not captured at the same level as budget data. Please refer to the recently posted supporting documents, but the fields are Department, Fund, Accounting Code, Revenue Code, and Revenue Name. This is an area CBO would like improved, to better align budget changes that also have revenue impacts.

61 2/14/18

Please describe all allocation methodologies required for the system in detail.

CBO currently does all allocation work manually outside of the system, then does incremental transactions as a mass adjustment in the budget system. This is an area for potential process improvement, but manual solutions could work ongoing.

62 2/14/18

How many unique forms/reports are used for data input by the end users

Data mainly goes into the budget systems through uploads, but there are also pages where budget data can be entered manually.

63 2/14/18 Can offshore resources be utilized by the vendor for implementation?

The City will consider utilization of offshore resources for implementation.

64 2/8/18

What is the anticipated kick off date for this project?

The project will begin as soon as the contract has been executed with the selected vendor, which is currently scheduled to occur during the first week of May.

65 2/14/18How many users and approval levels support the publishing of the budget book?

CBO has around 30 users and all of them are involved in production.

66 2/14/18

Since final RFP questions are due on 2/9 – by what date will the City issue answers to final questions submitted. Bidders will need sufficient time to consider the City’s answers prior to the due date.

2/14/18

67 2/8/18 Will the City grant an extended due At this time, the City is not planning to

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date of the RFP? extend the RFP due date.

68 2/7/18 2/8/18Would the City consider extending the submission due date by at least one week?

At this time, the City is not planning to extend the RFP due date.

69 N/A 2/9/18

In order to provide proposers more information, the City is providing CBIS – Example Data and Reports, CBO Technical Budget Instructions, Example Dept Budget Submittals, REM – Example Data and Reports, 2108 budget instruction memo, 2018 Budget Submittal Instructions, City Budget Process Diagram, and Executive Budget Submission Information in the embedded Zip file.

70 2/8/18 2/14/18

On the pre-proposal call it was mentioned that process improvement items were not necessarily due for the 1/31/18 go live. Can you confirm that statement?

Some business process change and improvement is expected, but not all process changes can or should be complete by 1/31/2019.

71 2/14/18

As part of the project, is shortening the budget cycle a requirement or a potential benefit from process improvement?

Potential benefit from process improvement.

72 2/14/18

Do you require multiple versions of the data each phase of the budget process? IE. Is there a requirement/expectation to have multiple versions of the phase one high level goals?

A little unclear on the question, but if it refers to having different scenarios within a phase - like having different scenarios based on different levels of expected funding, it is not required. This is not required in the solution, but is a feature the City might be able to use.

73 2/14/18

As part of budget instructions that are provided during the process, are there maximum adjustment tolerances provided? For example, an account budget cannot be increased by more that x% or X$.

CBO does not issue a limit or set percentage thresholds. Departments submit all budget changes in a memo to CBO in April, which is where CBO can/does begin to limit the number of requests expected in June.

74 2/14/18 Do you require the ability to No, because the City budgets

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automatically approve budget segments if they are within a certain tolerance?

incrementally we approve all changes to a department's budget. This answer could possibly change if/when the City moves to a different form of budgeting.

75 2/14/18

In phase one, how is the initial baseline created? Is it a roll-over of the previous year, previous year plus adjustment, based on previous year actual, generated from top down or combination?

The initial baseline, or Baseline Start, is either the Adopted Budget from the previous year if it's a biennial budget year, or the Endorsed Budget if it's a mid-biennial budget year. This year we are building the 2019-2020 budget, so we will used the 2018 Adopted Budget for Baseline Start. Next year we will build the 2020 budget using the 2020 Endorsed Budget.

76 2/14/18

Do you require the ability to attach supporting documents or enter supporting detail at a data point?

This is not required but is a highly prioritized feature. CBO is open to where the attachment makes sense, either at a data point or somewhere else in the system the is user friendly.

77 2/14/18

RFP mentions forecast data as part of the solution and updates to that data. Will the application be required to store multiple versions of forecast data to track changes?

It is not required, and there isn't a current business process that would support the need for this. If a solution uses that tool, CBO would be open to process improvement around how the forecasts are budgeted.

78 2/14/18

Scope of Work lists “Report design specifications and development. Can you provide a count of reports and or electronic copies of each?

Two reports that will be needed as part of Phase 1 are the proposed and adopted budgets, as well as the Council budget change documents.Additional reports will need to be defined as part of the requirements definition. Currently, information is downloaded and pivot table reports are created for most needs. Future reports could/would be used for briefings with decision makers, analysis, quality control, and other needs.

79 2/14/18 Phase 5 is monitoring with the ability to make adjustments to the approved

The adopted budget is locked at a point in time, and that is what is published in

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budget. We assume that the approved budget is locked down and that adjustments are entered against a subsequent version of the approved budget. Is this correct? And who has the ability to make adjustments and do they require an approval process in the budget system?

the budget book. Once the City gets into the adopted budget year, changes are made by the Executive and Council primarily through the supplemental budget process.

80 2/14/18

Beside PeopleSoft financials and ADP payroll, are there any other fixed system integrations required?

There are no required fixed system integrations. The City does not have a design in mind for what the future interface(s) will look like. The City is looking to the implementation vendor to help identify where and how budget data can interface or “interact” with PeopleSoft, ADP (or future payroll system) and HRIS. Although a seamless interface between the new budgeting system and PeopleSoft, ADP or HRIS is of interest, it is not required. The solution can take the form of any user-friendly form of data exchange.It is a requirement that data from the new budgeting system can, at a minimum, be extracted or exported to be used in whatever data flow that is designed.

81 2/14/18

Since final RFP questions are due on 2/9, would the City of Seattle please extend the RFP Due Date by at least 5 business days? This modest extension would allow bidders sufficient time to consider and incorporate the City’s responses to RFP questions while adjusting key internal reviews & production schedules accordingly.

The City is not considering an extension in the due date at this time.

82 2/9/18 2/14/18 If budget book publishing is needed, CBO has 30 users that would all need

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how many users will require access to the budget book publishing tool?

access. If it's determined in the solution offered that there should be department users with access generally, then those users might also need access to the budget book publishing tool.

83 2/14/18

If budget book publishing is needed, is the City looking for the vendor to do most of the of work in order to produce the book vs. will City staff do most of the heavy lifting, or will the effort be shared?

CBO does not need the publishing included in the solution, it does need the reports needed to produce the budget book. CBO currently uses a canned budget book report for all Department/Fund sections of the budget book, then does some manual sections for the front and back of the book, and produces the whole document in house using Adobe Acrobat.

84 2/14/18

If budget book publishing is needed, is the City looking for the system to replicate the current design/layout of the budget book, or is the City open to changing design/layout?

The City is open to reformatting and changing how the budget book is laid out and content.

85 2/14/18

3. Background, Phase SectionsWhat budget documents will be published as a result of completing Phase 1?

"Reports expected as a part of Phase One are reports generated by REM and CBIS. The reports currently used are in the supporting documents provided. The City expects the solution offered to replace these reports, or offer the information needed in a different format, and identify where the solution can offer reports to help reduce manual report needs.

86 2/14/18 15.3 Proposal Format, 9. Functional Requirements Response (Worksheet)Requirements 6, 26 and 42 reference other departments accessing the system directly, yet the RFP indicates rolling out the system for departmental use is optional and would not be a part of either Phase 1, 2, or 3.

Please refer to the answer for question #69, where supporting documentation has been attached."

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Will the City please provide clarification on how it envisions departmental users other than the CBO and CCS utilizing the system as a result of completing Phases 1, 2 and 3?

87 2/14/18

15.3 Proposal Format, 9. Functional Requirements Response (Worksheet)Requirement 49 references, “Ability to interface with mapping software.”Will the City please provide more details regarding Functional Requirement 49? What is the mapping software? What level of interfacing is required?

The RFP covers the budgeting process specifically as it relates to the CBO and CCS. Language in in the Requirement 6 does confuse the intent of the RFP, which is not requiring department users in the solution. The solution may consider department users to input budget information, templates could be used to upload, or some other method of getting department budget data into the budget system. If the solution offered includes department users, that information should be included.

88 2/14/18

Regarding Requirement #80 on the Functional Requirements spreadsheet, to whom are the reports expected to be distributed to , and in what format? Excel, PDF, etc.?

Reports expected as a part of Phase One are reports generated by REM and CBIS. The reports currently used are in the supporting documents provided. The City expects the solution offered to replace these reports, or offer the information needed in a different format, and identify where the solution can offer reports to help reduce manual report needs.Please refer to the answer for question #69, where supporting documentation has been attached.

89 2/14/18 At what level of detail of the Chart of Accounts is the budget created at? i.e. specify level of detail budgeted at for the following hierarchies: Accounts, Funds, Funding Source, Projects, Programs, Grants, Departments, Agency etc.? (Note: this may be different than the Chart of Account

Can show current structure, and indicate desire to budget at lower level of detail but not yet determined. See attached file for the hierarchy.

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provided in the addendum.)

90 2/14/18

Does the City envision creating standardized budgeting methodology for all departments? Please elaborate on any budget areas that are significantly different between departments.

At this time the City is only focusing on the budgeting process for the CBO and CCS departments.

91 2/14/18

Functional Requirement #12 – How many types of central rates and rate adjustments would be required? How many and what types of allocations are expected to be needed?

The City does not have enough information at this time to respond.

92 2/14/18

Can the City provide a list of all expected inbound and outbound data flows and integrations it expects to be needed pertaining to each phase? Can the City elaborate on the type of data coming from and going to each system?

The existing budgeting system does not interface directly with PeopleSoft or ADP. The City does not have a design in mind for what the future interface(s) will look like. The City is looking to the implementation vendor to help identify where and how budget data can interface or “interact” with PeopleSoft, ADP (or future payroll system) and HRIS. Although a seamless interface between the new budgeting system and PeopleSoft, ADP or HRIS is of interest, it is not required. The solution can take the form of any user-friendly form of data exchange.

It is a requirement that data from the new budgeting system can, at a minimum, be extracted or exported to be used in whatever data flow that is designed.

93 2/14/18 What is the mapping software that is referenced in Functional Requirement # 49? Or is this requirement just confirming the ability to perform mapping ability?

Ideally, the mapping data could come from dotMaps (SDOT system ROW mgmt system). DotMaps is an off the shelf application and incorporates some City modifications. The transportation

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department's dotMaps application could provide project location information which could be incorporated into the CIP. Project location information can be a specific location or address or could be a point to point in the case of road or sewer line work. We are looking for some level of data interaction between systems - this may or may not be a direct interface.

94 2/14/18

What Extract Transform Load (ETL) and Business Intelligence (BI) tools does the City currently own or is evaluating for future usage that may be leveraged with this project, if any?

In order to fully answer the question, the City would need to have more information about the proposed solution.

Below is the list of ETL and BI tools currently used by the City and considered to be part of its target architecture:BI Tools: • Power BI, • SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS), • Tableau; ETL tools: • Microsoft SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)

2/14/18

Will the City entertain a time and materials fee structure if it better aligns with a suggested methodology for the project?

Pricing submittals for this RFP should not use a time and materials fee structure. Please propose the pricing structure as outlined in the RFP.

95 2/14/18 1. PeopleSoft 9.2 to / from interfacesa. Which modules within the City Finance System (PeopleSoft 9.2) is required? General Ledger, Commitment Control, for example.

b. Does the City use Commitment Control (KK) within PeopleSoft?

1.a. The City does not have a design in mind for what the future interface(s) will look like. The City is looking to the implementation vendor to help identify where and how budget data can interface or “interact” with PeopleSoft, ADP (or future payroll system) and HRIS. Although a seamless interface between the new budgeting system and

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c. What is the current process implemented by the City to interface with PeopleSoft by other non-budget systems?

d. What data is to be sent from the new Budget system to PeopleSoft and to what module(s)?

e. What metadata/data is required to be extracted from PeopleSoft?

f. What metadata/data is required to be loaded to PeopleSoft?

PeopleSoft, ADP or HRIS is of interest, it is not required. The solution can take the form of any user-friendly form of data exchange.It is a requirement that data from the new budgeting system can, at a minimum, be extracted or exported to be used in whatever data flow that is designed.

1.b. Yes, the city uses PeopleSoft Commitment Control.

1.c. The PeopleSoft implementation supports read-only database connections for extracting data from the PeopleSoft database.Budget journals are imported using the PeopleSoft Budget Journal Load process (KK_JRNL_IMP). Other journals are imported using the PeopleSoft file journal import. Other transactional data is imported into PeopleSoft using web services or PeopleSoft Excel to Component Interface utilities.

1.d. See answer for 1.a.

1.e. See answer for 1.a.

1.f. See answer for 1.a.96 2/14/18 2. General Ledger Chart Fields

a. What is the structure of the current PeopleSoft General Ledger Chart Fields? Example: Fund, Account, Cost Center, Project, Program, etc

Chart of Accounts definedThe City defines its Chart of Accounts by the ChartFields used to capture financial transactions in PeopleSoft 9.2, its central financial system. These are the ChartFields that are used in PeopleSoft 9.2:

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• General Ledger ChartFields• GENERAL LEDGER BUSINESS UNIT (GLBU)• AFFILIATE• FUND• FUND AFFILIATE• ORG• ACCOUNT• FUNDING SOURCE (ChartField 1)• REPORTING CODE (ChartField 2)• BARS FUNCTION (ChartField 3)• PROGRAM• STATISTIC CODE• SCENARIO• Project Costing ChartFields• PROJECT COSTING BUSINESS UNIT (PCBU)• PROJECT• ACTIVITY• SOURCE TYPE• CATEGORY• SUBCATEGORY

97 2/14/18 3. ADP to/from Interfaces. a. What is the current interface between ADP Payroll and current on-premise systems?b. What metadata/data is required to be extracted from ADP?c. What metadata/data is required to be loaded to ADP?

The existing budgeting system does not interface directly with PeopleSoft or ADP. The City does not have a design in mind for what the future interface(s) will look like. The City is looking to the implementation vendor to help identify where and how budget data can interface or “interact” with PeopleSoft, ADP (or future payroll system) and HRIS. Although a seamless interface between the new budgeting system and PeopleSoft, ADP or HRIS is of interest, it is not required. The solution can take the form of any user-friendly form of data exchange.

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98 2/14/18

4. Interfaces to/from new budget system a. During the RFP proposed implementation phases, is it expected that the new Budget system interface with the legacy budgeting systems being replaced.? For example, after Phase 1 is implemented replacing REM & CBIS, would the new budgeting system need to interface with ODS and CIP? Or would the City want the new system to have interfaces developed as they will be after phase 3?

Yes there will be some level of interface needed between ODS and CIP. This does not need to be true system-to-system interface, since it will only be needed for one year. A data transfer process, or something else, would be sufficient.

99 2/14/18

5. Data Mapping and Conversion a. Which legacy systems require data mapping or conversion of data?b. How many years of data would require data conversion? Is this a one-time conversion or would require continued mapping and conversation after the three implementation phases are complete?

The previous year's budget data will need to be converted (2019 adopted budget). Additional previous years' data would be preferred but not required. See posted data information (Iteration Detail Download).

100 2/14/18 6. New Budget System - Number of Users. a. How many users in CBO will require access to the new Budget system?b. How many users in CSS will require access to the new Budget system?c. How many City Department users will require access to the new Budget system?

There are currently approximately 30 CBO and 53 potential Council system users. It is not expected departments will be using the system initially, but open to that as a part of a solution. No additional users are anticipated at this time, however there might be user needs within IT to support the system ongoing, and there eventually could be users in the

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d. Are there other City users who will require access to the new Budget system?

Mayor's Office.

101 2/14/18

7. Supplemental Budgets a. In the RFPCBO4280-1.docx, the City states "The Proposed Solution will be used to develop, evaluate, and approve all CBO & CCS budgets, including operating budgets, capital project budgets, and supplemental budgets with integrated performance management. i. If integration for supplemental budgets and performance management is required, should they not be implemented in the same phase?b. Req. #28 - Budget Development & Preparation High Ability to develop and submit current-year supplemental budget adjustment at the project/account level across multiple appropriation units. i. This is the only functional requirement in the RFPCBO4280-1.xlsx document related to the supplemental budget. Are there other requirements related to the supplemental budget?

a.i.) the primary focus of phase 1 is to replace our REM & CBIS budgeting applications in order to develop the 2020 budget during 2019. Changes to the budget via supplementals won't occur until 2020 which is why it isn't part of phase 1.

b.i.) supplemental changes made to the budget should be similar in nature to the operational process used in developing the annual budget, i.e.; department requests, decision process flow, etc. a different set of outputs may be necessary depending on what is developed in phase 1.

102 2/14/18

8. Training. a. How many users need to be trained on using the new budget system?

Training will equal the number of users. There are currently approximately 30 CBO and 53 potential Council system users.

103 2/14/18Questions from Functional Requirements Seattle, City of RFPCBO4280-1.xlsx

1.a. Yes, the City is looking to capture this information easier in the system and process.

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1. Req. #1 – Ability to provide an automated way to capture budget request justifications and assumptions on existing manual budget forms.a. The requirement to provide an "automated way" indicates an interface requirement to load budget request justifications and assumptions for existing budget requests. Is this correct or is the City really just wanting a means to maintain/input justification and assumptions into a budget form for a budget request?

104 2/14/18 2. Req. #28 - Budget Development & Preparation High Ability to develop and submit current-year supplemental budget adjustment at the project/account level across multiple appropriation units.

a. Is the supplemental amount only a net increase or decrease value from the adopted budget or a new annual amount? Example: Adopted Annual amount is 500,000, to increase the annual amount to 515,000 would the supplemental budget show 15,000 as an increase or would it show 515,000?

b. Is supplemental budgeting performed for position budgeting?

c. Is supplemental budgeting performed for capital budgeting and how would this also require re-budgeting of the six-year capital plan?

2.a. Net increase or decrease. There are budget transfers within and between departments but that still equates to net increases or decreases. We would like to have a way to group these so that we can see that they are budget neutral.

2.b. The City does not currently do position budgeting, so it is not done in the supplemental budgets. When position budgeting is underway in Phase 3, the City would include supplemental budgets in that work.

2.c. Yes, the expectation would be that changes made via supplemental ordinances to capital projects in the current year would also impact the six-year capital plan for that project

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105 2/14/18

3. Req. #32 – Ability to interface/import/include grants data into the budgeting process.

a. What is the data source for grants data?

b. How many years of grants data will need to be imported?

c. Is there any requirement to export grants budget data back to the same data source?

3.a. Currently it is via department input. The new financial system contains a grants module where data interaction between the budget system could prove beneficial, but this isn't a required interface.

3.b. Likely two years to coincide with our biennial budget

3.c. There is not a requirement to export grants data back to the data source

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4. Req. #40 – Perform analysis of existing CIP Projects for status and emerging budget issues. Existing CIP Projects can be identified as existing and reviewed by single project ID, organizational levels, programs, geographical areas.

a. Will existing CIP project actual data be sourced from PeopleSoft once the old budget systems are retired? If yes, what modules?

Yes, data will be sourced from the PeopleSoft Project Cost module but the existing CIP system does not interface directly with PeopleSoft. The City does not have a design in mind for what the future interface(s) will look like. The City is looking to the implementation vendor to help identify where and how budget data can interface or “interact” with PeopleSoft. Although a seamless interface between the new budgeting system and PeopleSoft is of interest, it is not required. The solution can take the form of any user-friendly form of data exchange.


107 2/14/18 5. Req. #41 - The ability to perform incremental budgets to existing capital projects.

5.a. Project. Fund. Rev Source. Budgeted REM Account. For six out years, plus current year.

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a. What level of detail are incremental budget updates performed to existing capital projects?

b. How often are incremental budget updates to existing capital projects performed?

c. Is the incremental budget update data required to be identifiable separately from the adopted budget data or does the update just become part if the amended budget as a whole?

5.b. Often throughout the year (at least for legislated supplemental changes, but ideally for all non legislated transfers as well).

5.c. The incremental changes should be separately identifiable.

108 2/14/18

6. Req. #46 – Ability to manage and track capital budgets for an initiative or program.

a. What is the difference between an initiative and a program? Are they related in some why, like multiple programs belong to an initiative?

Program can either refer to a defined Budget Program, which is under a Budget Summary Level in a Department, or it can refer to a department-defined program, which is a body of work below a Budget Program. Initiative generally refers to a body of work across Budget Summary Levels and Departments. However, departments also use the term initiative within their departments. An example is the Race and Social Justice Initiative, which is runs across City operations and is a lens for reviewing budget proposals.

109 2/14/18 7. Req. #49 – Ability to interface with mapping software.

a. What information will need to be provided to the mapping software and how frequently will this interfacing be performed?

Ideally, the mapping data could come from DOTMaps (SDOT system ROW mgmt system). DOTMaps is an off the shelf application and incorporates some City modifications. The transportation department's DOTMaps application could provide project location information which could be incorporated into the CIP. Project location information can be a specific location or address or could be a

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point to point in the case of road or sewer line work. We are looking for some level of data interaction between systems - this may or may not be a direct interface.

110 2/14/18

8. Req. #59 – Ability to view prior years' performance as comparables – both prior year actual expenditures and prior year targets.

a. Will performance measure comparable expenditure data (actual) be captured and stored in the PeopleSoft 9.2 Financial system for all years to be loaded into the new budget system?

b. Will this performance measure data from PeopleSoft Financials include goals, objectives, measures, and weight of each measure? If not, where will this information be sourced from once the old budget system components are retired?

8.a. Where uniformly allocated to projects, expenditure data associated with performance goals will be stored in PeopleSoft 9.2. Activity data will be drawn from separate systems.

8.b. Performance data is not currently stored within the old budget system. It is likely that activity data associated with performance will be stored in a Microsoft SQL server data warehouse.

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9. Req. #85 – Ability to generate reports identifying budget transaction and transaction number.

a. If the proposed software is not a transaction-based system, would the ability to audit system changes by date, time, user, old value, new value satisfy the requirement?

Difficult to answer without more information, but the City would be open to ways of tracking changes other than a transaction-based system.

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Documents

Question - costhebuyline-wpengine.netdna-ssl.comcosthebuyline-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/... · Web viewThe current CBO/CCS budgeting system uses MS Word