20260807 Lightcast sole source justification.docx

This is a sole source justification memorandum issued by the City of Philadelphia's Office of Chief Administrative Officer dated August 7, 2026, addressing the procurement of services from Lightcast (Economic Modeling LLC, formerly known as Burning Glass). The memorandum justifies the selection of Lightcast as a sole source provider for economic labor force data and intelligence services that will support the City College for Municipal Employment (CCME) and Workforce Development initiatives in Philadelphia.

Lightcast provides comprehensive labor market intelligence by aggregating data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, LinkedIn, and other job board sources to deliver current information on high-priority occupations within Philadelphia County and the Southeast Pennsylvania region. The service is already utilized by key regional stakeholders including PhilaWorks, the Chamber of Commerce, Pennsylvania's Center for Workforce Information & Analysis, and the Federal Reserve of Philadelphia, and serves as the data source for industry research reports conducted by Pew/Brookings regarding Philadelphia growth opportunities. The City's justification emphasizes that CCME and Workforce Development require access to the identical data service and source used by the regional workforce ecosystem to ensure alignment, consistency, and current information across all coordinating entities. The related contract opportunity indicates this will be awarded as a micro purchase to the lowest responsive and responsible bidder on a line-item basis at the City's discretion, with the requirement that all items be quoted for bid eligibility.