INFORMAL SOLICITATION
Minnesota Department of Transportation (Mn/DOT)
Internal Control Environment and Financial Change Management Process Development

This document is available in alternative formats for persons with disabilities by calling Melissa McGinnis, Contract Administrator at 651-366-4644 or for persons who are hearing or speech impaired by calling the Minnesota Relay Service at 1-800-627-3529.

Mn/DOT Not Obligated To Complete Project

The issuance of this informal solicitation does not obligate Mn/DOT to award a Contract or complete the project and Mn/DOT reserves the right to cancel the solicitation if it is considered to be in its best interest.

Project Overview

Mn/DOT requests responses for the development of an internal control and financial change management process as they relate to the department’s upcoming conversion to a new suite of accounting and financial tools. Assistance will be needed to (1) recommend best practices to be observed during the system conversion; and (2) monitor and resolve issues related to meeting control environment requirements during and after the conversion (e.g. by recommending processes and protocols to ensure that effective internal controls are implemented if problems are encountered during the system conversion).

SWIFT Project Background

On July 1, 2011, Mn/DOT (and all other Minnesota state agencies) will “go live” on a new suite of procurement, accounting, and financial tools. The new system has been given the acronym “SWIFT” (for StateWide Integrated Financial Tools). SWIFT utilizes a customized version of the PeopleSoft platform. Further SWIFT project background information is available at: The State of Minnesota’s goals for the SWIFT Project are to:

  • have a web-based accounting and procurement system
  • obtain better vendor pricing through e-procurement
  • expand functionality to meet the state’s changing business needs
  • improve reporting

Internal Control Requirements

Under Minnesota Statute 16A.057, “the head of each executive agency is responsible for designing, implementing and maintaining an effective internal control system”. The control environment is one of five components that are interrelated and vital to an effective internal control system. It is the foundation for all other components of internal control. The control environment sets the tone of the organization, influencing the control consciousness of its people. It provides discipline and structure as well as the climate that influences the quality of internal control. A favorable control environment requires that top management communicate the importance of internal controls to staff at all levels. Top management’s attitude toward internal controls sets the standard for the entire entity since even the best policies and procedures cannot overcome the force of indifference or a poor example.

PeopleSoft Enterprise Modules

The following modules are included in the SWIFT project scope. The functional scope does not necessarily include all of the functionality available within each module.

  • Financials
  • Settlements
  • Purchasing
  • Inventory
  • eSupplier Connection
  • eProcurement
  • Strategic Sourcing
  • Supplier Contract Management
  • Catalog Management
  • Project Costing
  • Contracts
  • Grants
  • User Productivity Kit (training)
  • Portal
  • Performance Management Warehouse

Project Goal

The goal of this project is to guide and document Mn/DOT’s design for organization, process and procedures that monitor and resolve control environment issues related to or arising from the implementation of SWIFT. This will involve work both before and after the “go-live” date.

Desired Skills

Mn/DOT desires a project team that has the following skills:

  • Senior level financial management expertise demonstrated by 15 plus years of progressive operation, accounting, audit and leadership demonstrated in large complex organizations.
  • Extensive experience in business process redesign, change management, project management, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) implementations and systems integrations.
  • Demonstrated success leading within decentralized organization environments.
  • Exceptional problem solving leadership capabilities to guide mitigation action implementation plans.
  • A proven consulting track record that includes: service delivery, client relationship management and exceptional internal and external communications.

Scope of Work and Deliverables

The Selected Responder will:

  1. Develop and document an internal control and change management structure and protocols as it relates to SWIFT implementation. These structures and protocols must be designed to facilitate issue identification, develop resolution action plans and provide for time-sensitive service level commitments. This work will include, but is not limited to:
  1. CreatingSWIFT financial “change management” teams to address and resolve SWIFT-related issues and to support critical end-to-end business transactions in the post-go live environment.
  2. Creating and documentingSWIFT financial change management processes and protocols to administer Mn/DOT user roles and security additions, deletions and changes.
  1. Develop and document processes and procedures to support the internal control and SWIFT financial change management teams. This will include but is not limited to:
  1. Defining team member roles and responsibilities
  2. Creating transaction aging reports and performance metrics
  3. Issue identification, logging, prioritization, escalation and mitigation/resolution protocol
  4. Daily and weekly status reporting to Mn/DOT’s Chief Financial Officer.
  1. Providing Additional Advice and Support Services as directed by the Mn/DOT Project Manager to deal with internal control and financial change management issues that arise during the transition to SWIFT, such as by creating work-around protocols until issues can be addressed and solved by the SWIFT project.

Responders are encouraged to propose additional tasks or activities if they will substantially improve the results of the project. These items should be separated from the required items on the cost proposal.

Response Content

The following will be considered minimum contents of the response and must be submitted in the order listed:

  1. Responder’s company name, business address, the contact person’s name, telephone number, fax number and email address (as available).

2. A statement of the objectives, goals and tasks to show or demonstrate the responder's view of the nature of the Contract.

3. A description of the deliverables to be provided by the responder.

4.An outline of the responder's background and experience with examples of similar work done and a list of personnel who will conduct the project, detailing their training and work experience, demonstrate how your team meets the Desired Skills Section on Page 2 of this Informal Solicitation. No change in personnel assigned to the project will be permitted without the written approval of Mn/DOT’s Project Manager.

5.A detailed work plan that will identify the major tasks to be accomplished and be used as a scheduling and management tool, as well as the basis for invoicing. The work plan must present the respondent’s approach, task breakdown, deliverable due dates and personnel working on the project and the hours assigned to each individual to reach the project results.

6.Identification of the level of Mn/DOT’s participation in the project.

7.The forms and documents required under any other section of this Informal Solicitation.

8.Provide in a separate envelope, one copy of the cost proposal, clearly mark on the outside "Cost Proposal", along with the responder’s official business name and mailing address. For purposes of completing the cost proposal, Mn/DOT does not make regular payments based upon the passage of time; it only pays for services performed or work delivered after it is accomplished. Terms of the proposal as stated must be valid for the length of the project. If proposing a cost plus approach, use the responder's current Mn/DOT audited overhead rate. If proposing an hourly rate, unit rate or lump sum, include a breakdown (labor, overhead, profit & expenses) showing how the rate was derived. If proposing a cost plus fixed fee (profit) budget, Responder’s Overhead Rate must not exceed 160%. The responder must utilize their current Mn/DOT approved Overhead rate, not to exceed 160%. For the purposes of this Cost Proposal, Responders should utilize a fixed fee (profit) of 10%. Actual fixed fee (profit) will be determined/calculated by Mn/DOT upon selection. The responder must include a total project cost along with the following:

  • A breakout of the hours by task for each employee.
  • Identification of anticipated direct expenses.
  • Identification of any assumption made while developing this cost proposal.
  • Identification of any cost information related to additional services or tasks, include this in the cost proposal but identify it as additional costs and not make it part of the total project cost.

The responder must have the cost proposal signed in ink by authorized member of the firm. The responder must not include any cost information within the body of the informal solicitation technical proposal response.

Responders must limit their proposal to 10pages, not including the cover letter and the required forms. Excess pages will not be reviewed and evaluated.

Questions

Prospective responders who have any questions regarding this informal solicitation must submit questions by e-mail onlyto:

Melissa McGinnis, Contract Administrator

All questions and answers will be posted on Mn/DOT’s Consultant Services Web Page at under the P/T Notices section. All prospective responders will be responsible for checking the web page for any addendums to this Informal Solicitation and any questions that have been answered. Please note that questions will be posted verbatim as submitted.

Questions regarding this Informal Solicitation must be received by Mn/DOT no later than 2:00 p.m.Central StandardTime on December 16, 2010.

Mn/DOT anticipates posting answers to such questions no later than 2:00 p.m.Central Standard Time on December 21, 2010.

No other department personnel are authorized to discuss the solicitation with anyone, including responders, before the submission deadline. Contact regarding this solicitation with any personnel not listed above may result in disqualification.

Delivery of Responses

All responses must be sent to:

Minnesota Department of Transportation

Melissa McGinnis, Contract Administrator

395 John Ireland Boulevard

Consultant Services Section, Mail Stop 680

St. Paul, Minnesota 55155

All responses must be received no later 2:00 p.m. CentralStandard Time onDecember 28, 2010.Please note that Mn/DOT Offices have implemented new security measures. These new procedures do not allow non-Mn/DOT employees to have access to the elevators or the stairs. You should plan enough time and follow these instructions for drop-off:

  • Enter through the Rice Street side of the Central Office building (1st Floor).
  • Once you enter through the doors, you should walk straight ahead to the Information Desk.
  • Proposals are accepted at the Information Desk only. The receptionist will call the Contract Administrator to come

down and to time stamp the proposal.

Late responses will not be considered. Fax and e-mail responses will not be considered. All costs incurred in responding to this solicitation will be borne by the responder.

Mn/DOT has estimated that the cost of this contract should not exceed $50,000.00.

Response Submittal

Submit 7copies of the response to the address above. Responses are to be sealed in a mailing envelope or package with the responder’s name and address clearly written on the outside. Each copy of the response must be signed, in ink, by an authorized member of the firm.

Submit one copy of the Cost Proposal. This information should be placed in a separate envelope clearly marked on the outside “Cost Proposal” with the responder’s name. For purposes of completing the cost proposal, Mn/DOT does not make regular payments based upon the passage of time, it only pays for services performed or work delivered after it is accomplished. Terms of the cost proposal as stated must be valid for the length of the project. If proposing an hourly rate, unit rate or lump sum, include a breakdown (labor, overhead, profit & expenses) showing how the rate was derived. An authorized representative must sign the copy of the cost proposal, in ink.

Response Evaluation

Representatives of Mn/DOT will evaluate all responses received by the deadline. In some instances, an interview may be part of the evaluation process.A 100-point scale will be used to create the final evaluation recommendation. The factors and weighting on which responses will be judged are:

1.Work plan5%

2.Qualifications/experience of personnel working on the project40%

and the extent to which the meet or exceed the Desired Skills

3.Expressed understanding of project objectives10%

4.Qualifications/experience of company5%

5.Cost Detail30%

6.Extent to which services will be performed within the U.S.*10%

*Note: Responders must complete the “Location of Service Disclosure and Certification Form” and submit it as part of the response.

Responses will be evaluated on a “best value” basis with 70% qualifications and 30% cost considerations. The cost proposal will not be opened by the review committee until after the qualifications points are awarded.

The selected responder will be required to submit acceptable evidence of compliance with workers' compensation insurance coverage requirements prior to execution of the contract. The selected responder will be required to comply with Mn/DOT audit standards.

Disposition of Responses

All materials submitted in response to this informal solicitation will become property of Mn/DOT and will become public record after the evaluation process is completed.

Mn/DOT will not consider the prices submitted by the responder to be proprietary or trade secret materials.

Conflicts of Interest

Responders must provide a list of all entities with which it has relationships that create, or appear to create, a conflict of interest with the work that in contemplated in the Information Solicitation. This list should indicate the mane of the entity, the relationship and a discussion of the conflict. Responders must complete the attached “Conflict of Interest Checklist and Disclosure Form” and submit it as part of the response.

Organizational Conflicts of Interest

The responder warrants that, to the best of its knowledge and belief, and except as otherwise disclosed, there are no relevant facts or circumstances, which could give rise to organizational conflicts of interest. An organizational conflict of interest exists when, because of existing or planned activities or because of relationships with other persons, a vendor is unable or potentially unable to render impartial assistance or advice to Mn/DOT, or the vendor’s objectivity in performing the Contract work is or might be otherwise impaired, or the vendor has an unfair competitive advantage. The responder agrees that, if after award, an organizational conflict of interest is discovered, an immediate and full disclosure in writing must be made to the Assistant Director of the Department of Administration’s Materials Management Division which must include a description of the action which the selected responder has taken or proposes to take to avoid or mitigate such conflicts. If an organization conflict of interest is determined to exist, Mn/DOT may, at its discretion, cancel the Contract. In the event the responder was aware of an organizational conflict of interest prior to the award of the Contract and did not disclose the conflict to the contracting officer, Mn/DOT may terminate the contract for default. The provisions of this clause must be included in all subcontracts for work to be performed similar to the service provided by the prime contractor, and the terms “contract,” “contractor,” and “contracting officer” modified appropriately to preserve the State’s rights. RESPONDERS MUST DISCLOSE THEIR INVOLVEMENT, IF ANY, WORKING ON THE STATE OF MINNESOTA’S SWIFT PROJECT.

IT Accessibility Standards

Responses to this solicitation must comply with the Minnesota IT Accessibility Standards effective September 1, 2010, which entails, in part, the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 (Level AA) and Section 508 Subparts A-D which can be viewed at:

Veteran-Owned Preference

In accordance with Minnesota Statutes §§16C.16 (subd. 6a) and 16C.19, eligible certified veteran-owned small businesses will receive a 6 percent preference in the evaluation of their proposal.

To be eligible for the preference, a business must have its “principal place of business” in Minnesota and must be certified by the U.S. Dept of Veterans Affairs as either a veteran-owned small business or a service-disabled veteran-owned small business. To claim the preference, the proposer must complete the “Veteran-Owned Business Preference” form and submit it with its proposal. Only eligible, certified, veteran-owned/service disabled small businesses that provide the required documentation, per the form, will be given the preference.

Eligible veteran-owned and eligible service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses must be currently certified by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs prior to the solicitation opening date and time to receive the preference.

Information regarding certification by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs may be found at

Immigration Status Certification

By order of the Governor (Executive Order 08-01), if any response to a solicitation is, or could be, in excess of $50,000.00, the successful responder (and any subcontractors) MUST certify compliance with the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.) and certify use of the E-Verify system established by the Department of Homeland Security. Responders must complete the attached Immigration Status Certification Form and submit it as part of the proposal.

Early Retirement Incentive Reemployment Prohibition

Laws of Minnesota 2010, Chapter 337, Subdivision 5, provided an early retirement incentive to some State of Minnesota employees. The law provides that an individual who received an early retirement incentive payment may not be hired as a consultant by any agency or entity that participates in the State Employee Group Insurance Program for a period of three years after termination of service. By submitting a proposal under this RFP, the responder certifies that it will not utilize any former state employee in the performance of a contract who received an retirement incentive payment under Laws of Minnesota 2010, Chapter 337, unless three years have passed from the date of the employee’s separation from state service.

Insurance Requirements