REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL For WEBSITE DESIGN & DEVELOPMENT

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL

For

WEBSITE DESIGN & DEVELOPMENT

ISSUE: January 4, 2016

DUE DATE: January 22, 2016

at 12PM

CLOSING

LOCATION:

Town of Burlington

200 Spielman Highway

Burlington CT 06013

BID

I.

Overview

The Town of Burlington is seeking to update its website to enhance the user experience, simplify content management, and provide better information and customer service to its community and employees, while meeting high standards for design quality and visual appeal.

Effective websites provide interactive content that keeps users engaged and coming back. Effective websites also must ensure that content sought is easily found and that navigation remains user friendly. The Town would like to decentralize content management to a content managers. Additionally, the Town would like responsive web-design (i.e. the ability for the website to resize itself based on browser size and device type) and utilize Microsoft SharePoint or similar technology for both an external [public] facing site and secure employee-only website.

The Town of Burlington seeks the assistance of a company that can accomplish all of the functionality identified in this RFP. The Town also seeks a company that has the capability of integrating additional features that may be needed in the future.

A. Situational Analysis

The Town of Burlington is seeking to enter into a professional services agreement with a qualified vendor to design and implement a new Town website based on the above strategy. The Town’s website URL is currently www.burlingtonct.us but may seek to transition to a new URL upon the launch of a new website ie: www.burlingtonct.gov. Redirecting from the old URL ma y be required.

The Town is actively seeking a qualified web vendor with extensive municipal experience to replace the existing website. The Town's emphasis is on incorporating extensive content management tools and database driven architecture leveraging Microsoft SharePoint or similar while providing a user- friendly and intuitive site structure and an interface that is both attractive and ADA compliant.

II.

Vendor Qualifications

The intent of this RFP is to enable the Town of Burlington to evaluate vendor experience, qualifications and capabilities for developing and implementing a new Town website. The desired qualifications are outlined below. Prepare your responses to this RFP using the following format. Responders are to submit a written narrative corresponding to each of the numbered items:

1. Introduction

a. Include a brief statement demonstrating your understanding of the work to be performed. Limited to two pages. Identify the designated contact person for all communication regarding this RFP process and include phone and email contact information. Letter shall also include a statement by the respondent accepting all terms, conditions, and

requirements contained in this RFP.

2. Company Profile

a. Company Overview and Summary b. Company History

c. Contact Information

d. Office location(s) (Include business address) e. Demonstrated company financial stability

3. Project Team Roles

a. Name, title, role (e.g., project management, training, design) b. Education, years of experience

4. Municipal Website Design Experience

a. References (minimum three references, including all contact information below) b. Client name

c. Website URL d. Contract duration

e. Client contact person and title f. Phone

g. Email address

5. Any municipal award winning websites designed by vendor (please list city name and website URL)

6. Design portfolio (minimum of three screenshots with URLs)

7. If no previous experience with municipal governments, please explain relevant website experience (please list client URLs)

8. Project Development Approach a. Average timeline

b. Outline all project phases and the Town's role

c. Explain the design process, if not included in the project phases

d. Meets U.S. Federal Government ADA requirements, if not included in the project phases e. Training, if not included in the project phases

f. Post website go live website communication (award entries, annual website review, etc.)

9. Support and Maintenance (describe all available) a. System ownership

b. Ongoing training opportunities

c. Availability of robust self-service documentation and technical support (videos and training manuals, etc.)

d. Continued communication post website go live with consultants and support staff e. How the Town can share ideas, opinions and sign up for beta testing

f. Normal support hours and emergency support hours g. Software updates and site maintenance

h. Software licensing (if any)

i. Redundancy (failover or high availability), backup & disaster recovery options. 10. Integrated Content Management System (CMS) Components and Tools

The CMS listing in the Functionality Table below represents functional categories and is not comprehensive; others may be recommended or added. The Town's new website vendor must be able to provide the desired components shown in the table below:

Functionality Table Component/ Module Name Function Offered by Vendor (Yes/No) Vendor Comment

Access GIS Interface to existing systems and databases Agenda Management Upload, create and manage

agendas Alerts & Emergency

Notification

Alerts posted on website and public notifications sent out through email, text message and social media Archive Center Store agendas, minutes,

newsletters and other documents

Automatic expirations

Expiration dating Blog Comments can be

moderated by Town before being published

Browser Based Administration

Update, delete and create template based web pages Calendar Update/publish calendars

by both department, town- wide

Citizen Sourcing Tool

Encourages citizen idea submission, engaging discussions, voting, etc. Departmental Home Pages Dynamic content leveraging responsive design Directories, Listing for Staff and Businesses

Dynamic content Document Center Upload/download

capability, back-end ability to search within

E-Notifications Electronic subscription, scheduled notifications, SMS subscribers

Component/ Module Name Function Offered by Vendor (Yes/No) Vendor Comment

Event Registration Online

reservation/payment Facility Management Reservations and/or listing Forward To a Friend E-Mail extension

Frequently Asked Questions

Dynamic content Intranet/Extranet User restricted pages Mobile App Optional, not required -

Generic and/or custom Mobile Browsing Website can be accessed

from any mobile platform using responsive web- design

News &

Announcements

Dynamic content News Releases Online publishing Newsletters/E-Zine Subscription and online

publishing

Online Forms Forms/publishing/tracking Online Job Postings

and Application

Optional-Applicants can also create an online profile, fill out application and attach additional documents

Online Payments Secure online transaction by department

Parks & Recreation Activities

Optional-Enroll in classes online, ability to create custom enrollment forms, link to e-payment module with link to their website Photo Center Display community photos

in a central location on website

Printable Pages Print-friendly function Quick Links Links can be placed

directly on the pages Real Estate

Management

Optional- Properties- commercial or residential- can be organized by and searched

Component/ Module Name Function Offered by Vendor (Yes/No) Vendor Comment RFP/RFQ/Bid Posting Dynamic content Rotating Photos/Banners

Dynamic image display RSS Feeds out Registration by

Department

Site Search Internal site search engine, site search log

Site Statistics Analytics and site audit reports Sitemap & Breadcrumbs Dynamic Social Media Interface

Facebook and Twitter feeds

Spotlight Ability to highlight important text on one or more pages Survey/Polling Capability Poll/question/answer tracking Unique Department Home Page

Optional, not required - ability to for departments, associated organizations to have a unique separate design and URL

Video Hosting With live streaming video capabilities

Website Profile Users can pick and choose the information that automatically becomes fed to their profile upon site login

Other

11. Description of Features and Functionality Included with the CMS At minimum include:

a. Description of page creation b. Page content template information

c. Content scheduling and versioning information d. The different back-end user permission levels 12. Project Pricing Estimate/Cost for Services Outlined

Specify amounts of items below:

b. Amount of content migration (entire website or a specific number of pages)

Also, list any optional enhancements and consulting packages with deliverables and associated fees.

13. Hosting and Security (describe all available) a. Possible site hosting

b. Appropriate redundancy and scalability to avoid unexpected outages and to accommodate periodic maintenance, usage growth and sudden usage surges

c.

14. Guarantees/Warranties

List any guarantees or warranties offered the company offers to clients. 15. Conclusion

III. INSTRUCTIONS TO BIDDERS

A. Proposal Inquiries

All inquiries related to this RFP process are to be directed, by email, to the following.

Information obtained from any other source is not official and should not be relied upon. Theodore C. Shafer

First Selectman’s Office [email protected]

B. Submission of Proposals:

Submit 3 hard copies and 1 copy in PDF format of your proposal in a sealed package plainly marked "RFP for Website Design " with the name and address of the Contractor on the outside of the package. Written responses will be accepted at the First Selectman’s Office until

12:00 pm on January 22, 2016 Submit proposals to:

Theodore C. Shafer First Selectman’s Office

200 Spielman Highway Burlington, CT 06013

a) At the date of opening proposals, it will be presumed that each Proposer has made a thorough examination of all information relative to the services to be performed under this contract; is satisfied as to the actual conditions and requirements of the services; and has read and become familiar with the proposal documents.

b) The Town reserves the right to reject proposals for any reason the Town deems advisable and to award a contract to any of the Proposers of service at the sole discretion of the Town. Any item required in this request for proposals that is not included in a respondent’s proposal shall be specifically noted. If there are no specifically noted exclusions in a proposal it will be assumed that the Proposer accepts and understands all of the requirements of this request for proposals. c) Reimbursable Expenses: All pricing submitted by the Proposer shall include any

and all reimbursable expenses.

d) Questions/Inquiries: Any questions or clarifications about this request for proposals should be addressed to Theodore C. Shafer, First Selectman’s Office, Town of Burlington, 200 Spielman Highway, Burlington, Connecticut 06013 at [email protected].

e) All RFP responses will be considered confidential information and will not be available for viewing until a contract award is made.

f) Any proposal must be valid for a period of 120 days from the due date.

g) Vendors who are furnished a copy of this RFP are requested to submit a receipt acknowledgement as soon as possible indicating their intention to participate in the RFP process to ensure timely receipt of potential corrections, cancellation and addenda. Acknowledgements shall be emailed to Theodore C. Shafer, First Selectman, at [email protected] .

h) Respondents shall provide insurance coverage per the attached Insurance Exhibit.

C. RFP Cost

Respondents are responsible for all costs incurred in the development and submission of their information packages. The Town assumes no contractual obligation as a result of the issuance of this RFP, the preparation or submission of information by a Respondent.

D. Prime Respondent Responsibility & Third Party Relationships

The Respondent should clarify its relationships with parties supplying portions of the RFP solution and specify the portions that each party is providing.

E. Taxes

The Town is a qualified tax-exempt institution and as such is not liable for any federal, state, or local excise, sales, use, property or other taxes that Proposer may incur as a result of this agreement. The successful Proposer will be obligated to pay property taxes to the Town with respect to any of the Proposer's taxable personal property, motor vehicles or real estate within Burlington which may be used in conjunction with the performance of this agreement.

F. Indemnification

a) The successful Proposer shall release defend, indemnify and hold harmless the Town of Burlington, their respective boards and commissions, officers, officials, employees, agents, representatives, and servants from any and all suits, claims, losses, damages, costs (including, without limitation, reasonable attorneys' fees), compensation, penalties, fines, liabilities or judgments of any name or nature for injuries or alleged injuries to person (including sickness and death) or to property, or financial losses, sustained or alleged to have been sustained by any person or concern, including officers, agents, servants, employees,

contractors and subcontractors of the Town or the successful Proposer arising or alleged to have arisen out of the negligent, grossly negligent, reckless or

intentional performance or failure to perform any part of this agreement by the Proposer or by anyone acting under the supervision of the Proposer. This indemnity shall not be affected by other portions of this agreement relating to insurance requirements.

b) The successful Proposer shall release, defend, indemnify and hold harmless the Town of Burlington, their respective boards and commissions, officials, officers, employees, agents, representatives, and servants from any and all suits, claims, losses, damages, costs

(including, without limitation, reasonable atto rn eys’ fees ), compensation, penalties, fines, liabilities or judgments that may arise out of the failure of the successful Proposer, its officers, agents, employees, contractors, subcontractors, or anyone directly or indirectly employed by them to comply with any laws, statutes, ordinances, codes, and rules and regulations or the United States of America, the State of Connecticut, the Town of Burlington, or their respective agencies. This indemnity shall not be affected by other portions of the agreement relating to insurance requirements.

G. Compliance with Laws

Proposer shall operate and maintain all properties and perform all of the services required in the RFP in full compliance with all appropriate federal, state and local laws and regulations.

H. Non-Discrimination

The Proposer in performing under this agreement shall not discriminate against any workers, employee or applicant or any member of the public because of race, creed, color, religion, age, sex, marital status, national origin, mental retardation or physical disability, including but not limited to blindness, unless it is shown by Proposer that such disability prevents performance of the work involved, in any manner prohibited by the laws of the United States or the State of Connecticut, nor otherwise commit an unfair employment practice. Proposer will take affirmative action to insure that applicants are employed and that employees are treated during employment without regard to their race, creed, color, religion, age, sex, marital status, national origin mental retardation or physical disability, including but not limited to blindness, unless it is shown by Proposer that such disability prevents performance of the work

involved, in any manner prohibited by the laws of the United States or the State of Connecticut, nor otherwise commit an unfair employment practice. Proposer agrees that this non-discrimination clause will be incorporated in all contracts entered into by it with suppliers of services or materials, contractors and sub- contractors and all labor organizations furnishing skilled, unskilled and craft unions skilled labor or whom may perform any such labor or services in connection with this agreement.

I.

The Town and Proposer expressly agree that this is an agreement for the provision of the specific services herein described; that Proposer is to perform those services for the term set forth herein and pursuant to the provisions of this agreement; that the Proposer(s) are independent contractors, not employees of the Town, for these purposes and as such neither they nor their employees are entitled to any Town employment benefits, including without limitation, life and health insurance, vacation and sick leave, pension rights or workers compensation.

J. Insurance

Respondents shall provide proof of insurance coverage.

K. Public Information & Ownership of Documents

All proposals submitted and information included therein or attached thereto shall become public records upon their delivery to the Town. All documents created by the Proposer during the completion of their contract requirements shall become the property of the Town, including any data bases and information systems that are created.

L. Examination of Documents

Proposers shall thoroughly examine and be familiar with these proposal documents. The failure or omission of any Proposer to examine these documents shall in no way relieve any Proposer of obligations with respect to this Request for Proposals. The submission of a proposal shall be taken as prima facie evidence of compliance with this paragraph. The response and the Request for Proposals shall become part of any agreement by reference.

M. Selection Process and Evaluation Criteria

The responses to this RFP will be evaluated using the following criteria:

a. Responsiveness to RFP requirements

b. Quality and value of the implementation plan and support c. Experience with providing Website Design and Development services d. Company history and client satisfaction and references e. Cost effectiveness

The proposals will be evaluated by an Evaluation Committee

N. Project Schedule

The anticipated project is as follows:

Activity Date

ReleaseRFP Januarv 4, 2016

Proposal Due Date January 22, 2016 - 12:00PM