Request for Proposals – Employee Classification and Compensation Study

Millcreek 1330 E Chambers Avenue Millcreek, UT 84106

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

Employee Classification and Compensation Study due October 05, 2026, at 4:00 p.m. local time

1. INTRODUCTION

Millcreek City ("Millcreek or the City") is seeking proposals from qualified consulting firms to conduct a comprehensive city-wide employee classification and compensation survey. This survey will encompass all full-time and part-time benefited City positions.

1.1. Intent. Millcreek City desires to attract and retain qualified workers by offering a competitive and rewarding compensation package. To meet that objective, Millcreek is requesting proposals from qualified consulting firms knowledgeable in public sector compensation structures.

The goal of this survey is to ensure competitive, equitable, and consistent compensation across the City’s workforce. The survey is expected to be completed on or before February 1, 2027.

See Exhibit “A” for a proposed project schedule.

2. BACKGROUND FOR PROJECT

Millcreek is a municipality located in Salt Lake County, Utah, serving a population of approximately 65,000 residents. The City provides a variety of municipal services through a workforce consisting of approximately 62 full-time and/or appointed employees with approximately 48 part-time employees with approximately 90 unique job descriptions.

The City maintains established job descriptions, and salary ranges for each position. While individual positions have been reviewed periodically, a comprehensive city-wide analysis has not been conducted since Millcreek’s incorporation on December 28, 2016.

The City is seeking an independent, comprehensive review to evaluate the overall effectiveness and competitiveness of its current classification and compensation system. The goal of this survey is to ensure competitive, equitable, and consistent compensation across the City’s workforce.

The City desires a compensation system that:

Attracts and retains a highly qualified and motivated workforce capable of meeting

Millcreek’s current and future needs.

Achieves external competitiveness by providing a total compensation package (wages and benefits) that is competitive, market driven, and based on reliable survey data of comparable public and private sector employers.

Ensures internal equity and consistent classification practices by grouping positions with comparable levels of responsibility, required qualifications, working conditions, and organizational impact into a logical classification structure.

Establishes a clear, consistent, and defensible rationale for the City’s pay structure that is transparent and easy for employees to understand and management to administer.

Outlines procedures to equip management to effectively administer the compensation system for inflation and as new positions are added to the City’s staff.

Defines logical career progression within job families and provides for recognizable and meaningful compensation growth for employees.

Addresses salary compression and other equity concerns.

Complies with applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations.

Is fiscally responsible and utilizes a multi-year implementation plan, if necessary.

3. SCOPE OF SERVICES

Exhibit “A” identifies the Scope of Services and outlines the required tasks and deliverables.

Consultants may recommend modifications or additional services that would improve the study or its outcomes. Preference may be given to firms with recent experience conducting classification and compensation studies for Utah municipalities or comparable local government organizations.

4. PROPOSAL CONTENT AND SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

To be considered, Proposals should not exceed twenty pages and must be emailed to purchasing@millcreekut.gov by the specified deadline.

Proposals should be clear, concise, and provide sufficient information for the City to evaluate the consultant's qualifications, methodology, and ability to successfully complete the project.

Proposals should be organized as follows:

The Proposal must be organized in the following sections:

4.1. Introductory Letter: Proposals shall include a one-page cover letter signed by an individual with the authority to bind the firm contractually. This letter should introduce the firm, express its interest in the project, and affirm that the proposal is valid for a minimum of ninety days.

The introductory letter should include an e-mail address for the firm’s primary contact and should be addressed to:

Lisa Dudley, HR/Finance Director Millcreek City Hall 1330 East Chambers Avenue, Millcreek, UT 84106

4.2. Firm Experience and Qualifications: Provide a brief history of the firm, its size, ownership structure, organizational chart, and the location of the office from where the work will be performed.

Detail the firm's specific experience conducting public sector classification and compensation studies for local governments, particularly for municipalities.

The Consultant shall provide complete resumes for the proposed Project Manager and all key personnel who will be assigned to this project, detailing their specific roles and relevant experience in public sector compensation. The City expects the personnel identified in the proposal to remain substantially involved throughout the project.

Exhibit “A” defines what qualifications the City is looking for in a consulting firm to conduct this study.

4.3. Project Approach and Workplan:

1. Provide a detailed narrative describing the Consultant’s understanding of the project’s objectives and its proposed methodology for accomplishing each task outlined in the Scope of Services.

2. Describe in detail, the Consultant's proposed methodology for completing the scope of work, including classification analysis; selection of comparable employers; market matching methodology; compensation data collection and analysis; total compensation analysis;

internal equity and compression analysis; employee and management involvement;

development of recommendations; and quality-control procedures. Identify any information or participation required from City staff.

3. Include a clear timeline, showing key tasks, milestones, meetings, draft deliverables, and anticipated completion date. Identify the earliest date the consultant could begin to work following contract execution.

4. Identify the allocation staff to each phase of the project.

5. Provide a sample of a final report from a previous, similar municipal study.

4.4. Fee Proposal: In a separate file attached to the same email as the proposal, provide a detailed, all-inclusive fee proposal.

Provide a detailed, not-to-exceed cost for completing the entire scope of work. The fee proposal should identify total project cost; cost by major project phase or deliverable; hourly rates for key personnel; travel or other reimbursable expenses, if any; optional services and associated costs;

and any assumptions affecting the proposed cost. The proposal must state a firm, “not-to-exceed” total project cost.

4.5. References: Provide at least three references from municipalities or comparable public-sector organizations for which the consultant has completed similar work. Include the organization, contact person and title, current phone number, email address, project description, and completion date. The City may contact such references and do its own investigations, which, depending on the investigation, may result in disqualification based on the City’s sole and absolute discretion.

5. IDENTIFICATION OF ANTICIPATED POTENTIAL PROBLEMS

Proposals should identify and describe any potential problems regarding the Scope of Work.

Proposals should also Identify any additional services, recommendations, or considerations the consultant believes would improve the project or provide additional value to the City.

6. EVALUATION CRITERIA AND SCORING

An Evaluation Committee (the “Committee”) of at least three individual(s) will evaluate the Proposals. Each evaluation criterion has been given a weight based on its relative value. The criteria and assigned weights are as follows:

20% - Firm and Project Team Qualifications: Demonstrated success with similar public sector projects, and qualifications of assigned personnel.

30% - Thoughtfulness and Quality of the Proposed Approach / Work Plan: Clarity, innovation, and completeness of the proposed methodology; clear understanding of the City’s objectives; and a logical, realistic work plan and schedule.

30% - Reasonableness and Clarity of the Fee Proposal: Competitiveness, clarity, and overall value of the proposed cost relative to the scope of services requested. Points assigned to each fee proposal will be based on the lowest fee. The Proposal with the lowest proposed fee will receive 100% of the price points. All other Proposals will receive a portion of the total fee points based on the following formula:

Possible fee points x (lowest proposed fee/proposed fee).

20% - Past Performance and Client References: Feedback received from pervious public sector clients on project management, quality of work, adherence to schedule and budget, and overall satisfaction. References are a mandatory minimum requirement, and the City may do its investigation; the results of the investigation, at any time during the solicitation process, may result in disqualification at the City’s sole and absolute discretion.

7. SELECTION

The criteria listed in Section 6 will be used to evaluate the Proposals. In addition, the City may conduct discussions with the Proposers who are being considered for selection for the award.

One or more Proposers may be invited to participate in an interview; however, the Evaluation Committee reserves the right to modify the interview criteria. If such a modification occurs, each Proposer being interviewed will be notified at least twenty-four (24) hours before the interview.

8. GENERAL INFORMATION

Response to this Request is at the Proposer’s sole risk and expense.

The City reserves the right to reject any and all Responses. The City reserves the right to amend, modify, or waive any requirement outlined in this Request. All Proposers must comply with applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations.

Millcreek reserves the right to interview a short list of the most qualified firms before making a final selection.

The City also reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to:

Modify or cancel this RFP at any time;

Reject any or all proposals;

Waive any informalities or irregularities in the proposals received;

Request clarification or additional information from any proposer;

Negotiate modifications to a proposal;

Verify information and references provided by proposers; and Award a contract to the proposer determined to provide the best overall value to the City.

Except for written responses provided by the contact person described below, the City has not authorized anyone to make any representations regarding the subject matter of this Request. All requests for clarification or additional information regarding this Request must be submitted in writing to the contact person described below, no later than September 28, 2026, at 5:00 p.m.

The contact person will endeavor to respond to such requests for clarification or additional information. If the contact person deems, in his or her sole and absolute discretion, that such a response is of general applicability, the response, if any, will be posted on the City’s website at Millcreekut.gov (such posting constitutes a written response).

Respondents are encouraged to review the City’s website frequently. The City anticipates selecting one of the responding Proposers, but there is no guarantee that any responding Proposer will be selected. Responses will be placed in the public domain and become public records subject to examination and review by any interested parties by the Government Record Access Management Act (Utah Code Ann. § 63G-2-101, et seq.). All materials submitted in response to this Request will become the property of the City and will be managed by the Government Record Access Management Act.

9. TERMS OF CONTRACT

The successful Proposer will be required to contract with the City to provide the Services described herein. If the selected Proposer and the City Attorney cannot negotiate an acceptable agreement, then another Proposer(s) will be selected by the Mayor, or designee, and negotiation will continue with such other Proposer(s) until an acceptable agreement is completed.

10. CONTACT PERSON

Questions regarding this RFP shall be submitted in writing to:

Lisa Dudley, HR/Finance Director Email: ldudley@millcreekut.gov

Questions must be received no later than September 21, 2026, at 5:00 PM. Responses to material questions or clarifications may be issued through a written addendum and made available to all prospective proposers by September 25, 2026.

Proposals must be received no later than October 05, 2026, at 5:00 PM. Late proposals will not be accepted. Proposals shall be submitted electronically to purchasing@millcreekut.gov with the title of this RFP as the subject line, “Employee Classification and Compensation Study.”

The successful proposer will be required to enter into a contract acceptable to the City and comply with applicable insurance, licensing, and legal requirements. Issuance of this RFP does not obligate the City to award a contract or reimburse any proposer for costs incurred in responding to this RFP.

For American with Disabilities Act (ADA) accommodation, contact our ADA Coordinator at 801- 214-2751 or adainfo@millcreekut.gov.

MILLCREEK CITY, UTAH

FY2027 – Millcreek City RFP – Employee Classification and Compensation Study Exhibit “A”

EXHIBIT “A”

DETAILED SCOPE OF SERVICES - PROJECT APPROACH AND WORK PLAN

The following Scope of Services outlines the required tasks and deliverables. Consultants may recommend modifications or additional services that would improve the study or its outcomes.

Phase I: Project Initiation and Orientation

1. Kick-off and Planning: The Consultant will conduct a project kick-off meeting, either virtually or in-person, with the City’s HR Staff to confirm project goals, refine the work plan, methodology, communication protocols, and establish key milestones in the overall project schedule.

2. Document Review: The Consultant will conduct a thorough review of all relevant City documents, including but not limited to, organizational charts, existing job descriptions, current FLSA classifications, existing salary schedules, compensation policies and practices, and other information necessary to understand the City's existing classification and compensation structure. The Consultant should advise the City on any additional documentation that may be needed.

3. Communication Plan: In collaboration with the City’s HR Staff, the Consultant will develop a comprehensive communication plan. The Communication Plan will outline how and when information will be shared with the City’s Executive Team, City Council, and Employees to ensure the project’s purpose and progress are understood, while fostering transparency and buy-in.

Phase II: Classification and Job Analysis

1. Classification Review: the Consultant will analyze all applicable positions. This analysis will form the basis for grouping positions into a logical classification structure that will establish clear job families and career ladders, where appropriate. Positions, rather than the incumbent, will be evaluated based on responsibilities, complexity, decision-making authority, required qualifications, supervisory responsibilities, and other relevant factors rather than job title alone.

2. Methodology: The Consultant will provide written rationale for recommended classification of each position, using objective evaluation methodology (e.g., a point-factor system) and identify opportunities to improve consistency in classification, terminology, and structure.

3. Proper FLSA Classification: A critical component of this phase is a thorough review of all positions to determine proper status as either exempt or non-exempt under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The Consultant must provide clear justification for each FLSA exempt determination.

4. Job Families: The Consultant will evaluate internal relationships among positions and job families, including career progression between entry, journey, senior, supervisory, management, and executive-level classifications where applicable.

5. Succession Planning: The Consultant will identify subordinate positions in each department that are naturally suited for succession planning.

The City has recently reviewed and updated a number of job descriptions and does not anticipate a complete rewrite of all job descriptions; however, the consultant should identify material classification or job description concerns and recommend revisions where appropriate. The Consultant should identify similar but separate job descriptions that could be streamlined into one job description.

Phase III: Market Survey and Benefits Analysis

1. Compensation Philosophy as Basis: The Consultant will use the City Council’s compensation philosophy as the basis for the development of the play plan.

2. Market Identification: In Collaboration with the City’s Human Resources Staff, and subject to final approval by the City, the Consultant will identify a list of appropriate comparable organizations for a market study. Comparable organizations will be selected on relevant factors, which may include population and community characteristics; organizational size and structure; services provided; geographic labor market; recruitment competition; cost of labor; similarity of positions and responsibilities; and other relevant public- or private-sector competitors.

3. Social Security Participation: Millcreek, like many local governments, is Social Security exempt. The Consultant shall identify which of the comparable government agencies are Social Security exempt and which participate in Social Security. This distinction is vital when comparing retirement benefits.

MARKET COMENSATION SURVEY AND ANALYSIS

1. The Consultant shall design and conduct a comprehensive survey of compensation and benefits for a robust set of benchmark positions;

2. The Survey shall match positions based primarily on actual duties, responsibilities, organizational level, scope, and minimum qualifications rather than job title alone;

3. The Survey must collect data not only on salary ranges (minimum, midpoint, and maximum) but also on total compensation. This includes key benefits such as retirement, health and dental insurance, H.S.A. contributions, paid leave policies, etc.;

4. The Survey shall also address educational opportunities, specialty or incentive pay, longevity and/or other significant employer-provided compensation or benefits (e.g., car allowance, cell phone allowance, etc.);

5. The Consultant will analyze the collected market data and present a clear, easily understandable report comparing the City’s current compensation package to the market.

6. The Consultant shall identify significant differences between the City's total compensation package and the relevant market and explain how those differences should be considered when evaluating base salary competitiveness.

7. The Consultant shall document the methodology and rationale used to establish appropriate market matches.

PAY PLAN DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION

1. The Consultant shall conduct a thorough internal equity (identifying any inadvertent discrimination in pay) and salary compression analysis to identify and recommend solutions for any existing pay inequities or compression issues throughout the entire workforce.

2. The Consultant will recommend clear and consistent policies for administering the new pay plan, including guidelines for setting starting pay for new hires (no experience vs. years of prior experience), handling promotional pay increases, and managing employee movement through the assigned salary grade.

3. The Consultant shall recommend solutions for retaining productive employees who have reached the maximum on their assigned pay grade.

4. The Consultant shall develop and propose a salary structure(s) that includes:

a) Appropriate market positioning in accordance with the Council’s compensation philosophy;

b) Pay grades (minimum, midpoint, and maximum) for each job description;

c) Placement of classifications within salary grades;

d) Appropriate range of widths between minimum and maximum pay;

e) Relationships between job families and classification levels;

f) New-hire salary placement;

g) Employee progression within salary ranges;

h) Promotions, reclassifications, transfers, and other employee movement;

i) Treatment of employees whose compensation falls below or above recommended ranges;

j) Cost of Living Adjustments and other salary structure maintenance; and

k) Outline administrative tasks to maintain the new pay plan.

5. The Consultant shall identify positions or compensation issues that should receive priority consideration.

6. The Consultant shall provide recommendations for maintaining internal equity and market competitiveness following implementation.

DELIVERABLES

The Consultant shall deliver:

1. A comprehensive final report that summarizes the project methodology, all findings, and detailed recommendations.

2. Any recommend changes to current job descriptions as necessary.

3. The recommended classification plan and salary structure.

4. A written procedural manual, for City Staff use, for the administration and ongoing maintenance of the new classification and compensation system.

5. All raw survey data collected from the comparable organizations.

PRESENTATIONS AND TRAINING

The Consultant will present the final report and all recommendations to the City’s Executive Management Team and will deliver a formal presentation to the City Council.

The Consultant will provide comprehensive training for the City’s Human Resources Staff on how to effectively administer and maintain the new classification and compensation system.

FIRM QUALIFICATIONS

The City seeks a consultant or consulting firm with demonstrated expertise in public-sector classification and compensation. Proposals should demonstrate:

1. Experience conducting comprehensive classification and compensation studies for municipalities or other comparable public-sector organizations;

2. Knowledge of municipal organizational structures and public-sector compensation practices;

3. Experience conducting labor market and total compensation analyses;

4. Experience evaluating internal equity and salary compression;

5. Knowledge of applicable federal and state employment and compensation requirements;

6. Experience developing practical and fiscally responsible implementation strategies;

7. Ability to clearly communicate complex compensation concepts to employees, management, elected officials, and other stakeholders; and

8. Demonstrated ability to complete projects of similar scope within established timelines.

9. Preference may be given to firms with recent experience conducting classification and compensation studies for Utah municipalities or comparable local government organizations.

PROPOSED PROJECT SCHEDULE:

RFP Issued 09/17/26

Deadline for Questions 09/28/26

City Response to Questions/Addendum 10/05/26

Proposals Due 10/15/26

Proposal Evaluation 10/19/26 – 10/25/26

Consultant Interviews, if necessary 10/28/26 – 10/30/26

Notice of Intent to Award 11/05/26

Contract Approval 11/12/26

Anticipated Project Start 11/15/26

Desired Project Completion 02/01//27

The City reserves the right to modify this schedule as necessary.