Attachment_12_Method_of_Approach_ALTS.pdf

Request for Proposal Solicitation No. BPM005633

Foreign Language Interpretation and Translation Services

Arizona Department of Administration

State Procurement Office 100 N 15th Avenue Phoenix, AZ 85007

Attachment 12 Method of Approach

The offeror is cautioned that it is the offeror's sole responsibility to submit information related to the evaluation categories and that the State of Arizona is under no obligation to solicit such information if it is not included with the offeror's proposal.

Failure of the offeror to submit such information may cause an adverse impact on the evaluation of the Offeror's proposal.

It is strongly discouraged for you to copy the Scope of Work in lieu of providing unique responses below.

OFFER MAY BE DETERMINED AS NON-RESPONSIVE IF ALL QUESTIONS ARE NOT ANSWERED FULLY.

Question 1: Method of Approach

Provide a written narrative response that describes how you will provide the Specific Requirements as listed in the Scope of Work. The language of the narrative should be straightforward and limited to facts, solutions to problems, and plans of proposed action. The response shall at minimum describe and provide a response for each of the following bullet points listed below:

a. How do you plan to provide the service?

b. What are your processes for providing these services?

Offeror Response:

Plan for services: ALTS will utilize its 14 years of experience to provide timely and professional interpretation and translation services. We have appropriate and experienced staff and contractors, as well as systems, policies and procedures in place to immediately begin providing services upon contract award.

ALTS works with 23 certified and/or qualified (non-certified) interpretation and translation contractors who can provide this service in 21 core languages. All interpretation and translation contractors are eligible to work in the US and follow all required standards for each type of service, such as following the National Standards of Practice for Interpreters in Health Care.

ALTS met all requirements under our prior contract with the State of Arizona, including responding to requests within two business days, having the capability to receive documents via email or delivery, working with clients to ensure their needs are met, and most importantly, increasing access to vital services for those requiring translation to help them fully understand each situation, whether it’s healthcare, legal, behavioral health, or other. ALTS staff and contractors represent diverse populations and often share the same culture with the people who are receiving translation services or have been recent immigrants themselves so have an understanding of the challenges of this population.

Processes: ALTS has existing staff and consultants who are currently providing translation and interpretation. Staff receive and review phone calls and emails requesting services and respond to the requestor within two business days to obtain any needed additional details and schedule the service. Staff then coordinate with the contractors to schedule them to provide either translation or interpretation for the requestor. If any questions or concerns arise as part of the translation or interpretation ALTS staff quickly respond to address any issues, answer questions, and if needed, obtain another contractor. If a cancellation occurs or the interpreter is not able to make the appointment, ALTS staff work rapidly to replace them to ensure no interruption in services occurs. ALTS currently has 23 contractors so is able to easily accommodate these types of situations.

Question 2:

Provision of Services: Provide a narrative description outlining the methods/techniques your organization uses in the provision of services applicable for various types of

Interpreting/translating settings. Address the following sections as applicable:

Foreign Language Interpretation and Translation Services

Arizona Department of Administration

State Procurement Office

a. On-Site Interpretation: Provide a detailed outline (with timeframes) of the scheduling process for requested interpretation services.

ALTS offers this service for a wide variety of situations. Staff receive and review phone calls and emails requesting services and respond to the requestor within two business days to obtain any needed additional details and schedule the service. Staff then coordinate with the contractors to schedule the translation. All modes of interpretation are available including long consecutive, consecutive, sequential/short consecutive, sight translation, and simultaneous interpreting, all provided by qualified and/or certified interpreters. Services are typically performed Monday through Friday, between 7:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. but weekend, out of service hours, and holiday service is available as well.

Due to ALTS extensive experience and large number of available contractors and languages, we can quickly accommodate most requests. Once scheduled, the contracted language specialist arrives on the site, at least 15 minutes early, and at all times is professional and confidential. After the appointment is concluded, the language specialist records the start time of the appointment and the end time of the appointment and collects signature from the provider if necessary.

In-person, on-site interpretation provides an important service and ALTS takes this very seriously.

We ensure top quality and appropriate translation is provided by matching our clients with the correct dialect of the region they are from; a service not provided by most other providers. We are also able to accommodate if the client prefers to work with a specific gender, especially important for health care and other sensitive services.

b. Over-the-Phone Interpretation and Video Remote Interpreting: Provide a flowchart and timeline of the call process up to connection with an interpreter. Offeror shall include the average time for each stage.

ALTS staff rapidly respond to requests for over the phone and/or video remote interpreting, with a turnaround of 24 hours or less. ALTS has a toll-free telephone system to receive and route calls to the appropriate interpreter that is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, including holidays.

ALTS also has high-speed Internet and videoconferencing technology to provide seamless over the phone and video remote interpretation.

c. Court/Legal On-Site Interpretation Services: Provide a detailed outline (with timeframes) of the scheduling process for requested interpretation services.

ALTS has provided many court room and legal on-site interpretation services and follows the same process for scheduling as for general on-site services as listed in (a) above. All contractors utilized for this service are confirmed to not have any criminal records, have knowledge and experience with legal systems, are adept at simultaneous interpretation, have a broad legal and court-related vocabulary, and the ability to accurately translate without any additions, omissions, or any misleading factors. ALTS works with many attorneys and they have all been very happy with our translation services.

d. Document Translation: Explain the type of computer systems and software (if any) your firm uses in the language translation process, and why it is utilized. If your company does not utilize computer systems and/or software, explain why and the process that is currently in place.

Describe the editing, proof reading, and publishing process.

ALTS utilizes contractors with appropriate certifications and experience to translate both personal and business documents, including manuals, legal documents, notices and similar. Contractors

Foreign Language Interpretation and Translation Services

Arizona Department of Administration

State Procurement Office that provide document translation use Microsoft software and their own hardware and the majority are certified for the language they are translating. ALTS Supervisor proficient in that language will proofread, review and send a draft of the document to the client for approval, and conduct a final review. At least two linguist specialists review every document prior to publishing. Standard translations are completed within 14 days as required. Please see attachment 16 and 17 for additional information.

e. Voiceover Translation Services: Explain the type of computer systems and software (if any) your firm uses in the language translation process, and why it is utilized. If your company does not utilize computer systems and/or software, explain why and the process that is currently in place.

Describe the editing, proof reading, and publishing process.

ALTS is not offering voiceover translation services.

Question 3:

Personnel:

a. Explain the methodology used to test and hire Qualified (Non-Certified) and Certified interpreters/translators. Describe any skill assessment your firm performs. Describe how your firm determines proficiency at the time of hiring or subcontracting. Also describe the education and experience requirements for Qualified (Non-Certified) interpreters/translators.

ALTS requires three references for each subcontractor, and conducts an interview and background check, including a skill assessment that tests that assess both interpretation and translation ability. We verify that all certifications are current and meet State standards or that qualifications meet specified standards. ALTS will ensure all subcontractors utilized for this contract are onboarded into the State of Arizona Vendor Network, and meet the State specifications as outlined in the Scope of Work section 3.0.

b. Describe your firm’s process for determining appropriate personnel for specific assignments. Explain how you ensure cultural sensitivity when making assignments.

ALTS ensures top quality and appropriate translation is provided by carefully matching translators, including those who use the correct dialect of the region for those needing translation, a service not provided by most other providers. We are also able to accommodate if the client prefers to work with a specific gender, especially important for health care and other sensitive services. Finally, ALTS staff and consultants represent diverse ethnicities and cultures, and every effort is made to match the translator from the same culture with those requesting services.

Cultural sensitivity is extremely important to ALTS and we have a deep understanding of this need.

ALTS was founded by a former refugee. Most of our staff and consultants are originally from a country outside of the US and represent a variety of cultures. As mentioned, every effort is made to match the culture of the person needing translation with the translator.

Question 4:

Problem Resolution: Describe the methodology used for problem resolution. Illustrate how your organization tracks responsiveness and end-user satisfaction in a quantifiable manner to ensure quality customer service.

ALTS is proud to say we have had very few problems during the past 14 years in scheduling and providing interpretation and/or translation services. Because we work with so many contractors our agency is able to quickly respond if there is a scheduling conflict, or if the originally scheduled interpreter is unable to make

Foreign Language Interpretation and Translation Services

Arizona Department of Administration

State Procurement Office the appointment (for example, due to illness). The many clients that use our services again and again is a testament to the quality of our services.

All clients receive a link to a satisfaction survey after services have been provided. The survey asks whether the services met their needs and if they were happy with the services provided. A sample of clients (approximately 5% of the total) receive a phone call from ALTS staff who have an in-depth discussion with the client regarding the services, what ALTS can do to improve, and any other feedback the client has about the interpretation and/or translation services received.