ESBD_511554_1780003368498_RFP_TRS000667_Addendum 1 FINAL.pdf

Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS)

Addendum Number: 1

To

Request for Proposals (“RFP”) SolicitaƟon Name: TRS000667_RFP_CompensaƟon Study & Salary Data

Services SolicitaƟon Number: TRS000667

Purpose: This Addendum is issued to extend the proposal due date, provide answers to questions submitted by Vendors, provide the Pre-proposal conference attendees list, and provide the following documents: VETHUB Subcontracting Plan PowerPoint presentation and PAVES Overview, Registration and Activation PowerPoint presentation.

Issued By:

Carolyn Knowles, Contract Specialist May 28, 2026

NOTE: VENDORS ARE REQUESTED TO ACKNOWLEDGE RECEIPT OF THIS ADDENDUM BY

SIGNING AND DATING BELOW AND INCLUDING THIS COVER PAGE WITH THE SUBMITTED

RESPONSE. RESPONSE MAY BE CONSIDERED NON-RESPONSIVE IF THIS COVER PAGE IS NOT

SIGNED AND RETURNED.

Respondent Signature Date

Solicitation Changes

1. Deadline for submission of Proposals is hereby extended to Monday, June 8, 2026, 3 p.m., Central Time.

Submitted Questions and TRS’ Response

Below is a list of questions submitted during the Question and Answer period and TRS’ response.

# Submitted Question TRS Response

1. How many FTEs are included? There are currently 279 fulltime employees (FTEs) included within the scope of this service.

2. How many unique classifications are included? There are currently 365 unique classifications included within the scope of this service.

3. Does every employee in the IMD have a unique position description which is benchmarked to the market? Or, are there positions that are benchmarked that have multiple incumbents? How many unique positions are actually benchmarked?

During the last engagement, 101 unique positions were identified as benchmark roles. Job descriptions do exist for each employee.

4. Are all benchmarked positions benchmarked solely against positions in public and private-sector pension funds? If not, which position titles are benchmarked across the broader talent market (e.g. administrative assistants, junior analysts, analysts)? Does this vary by geography, e.g. London)?

Positions within the Investment Division are benched to private/public sector investment funds. This RFP includes Investment Attorneys within our Legal & Compliance divisions – for those positions in addition to investment funds we also include broader market data in financial services or insurance.

5. Is TRS a regular subscriber to the McLagan investment professional survey? To what other published compensation data sources does TRS have access?

Yes, TRS participates in AON/Radford McLagan surveys annually. In addition to that survey provider, we also use published data from Mercer, Willis Towers Watson, and a variety of pension-specific survey sources.

6. In the last biennial study to what extent were benchmarks revised? What were the drivers for these revisions?

In general, the positions identified as benchmarks do not change substantially in each cycle. If there are changes, they are typically driven by business changes which create a need for new roles or levels within the division.

7. What have been the challenges you have faced recently with the biennial benchmarking process and outcomes?

None.

8. What is the process for vetting HR proposed and/or Manager requested changes to benchmarks? What’s working/not working with this process?

Current process includes review and discussions with IMD Executive leadership and Organizational Excellence (TRS’ HR division). During the last cycle, additional step was added to include an independent review by the Board’s Compensation Consultant to review the overall process.

9. Please share the Compensation Philosophy Statement for the IMD as well as information regarding your positioning of base pay and total compensation (base + incentive) in the market (i.e. median, 75th % etc.)

Top quartile for base pay of large public pension funds (AUM $40 billion), and for incentive using bottom quartile of private peers.

10. Please confirm that all employees in the IMD are participants in the Performance Pay Plan. If not, which positions included in the RFP are excluded from the plan. Why this exclusion

All employees of IMD are included in addition to specific investment-related legal and compliance roles.

11. What were the drivers for the 2025 changes to the TRICOT Performance Pay Plan?

The TRICOT Performance Pay Plan was updated to ensure language mirrored changes in the IMD Performance Pay Plan that were made in 2024..

12. Please describe the process/metrics for determining the qualitative achievements of a participant in the IMD incentive program. What are the challenges with the current approach?

This is not in scope for this RFP.

13. • How successful has the IMD been in the attraction/engagement/ retention of the talent it requires? How is success evidenced? How does turnover vary by category of employee? Why do employees leave IMD? To what types of positions/employers do exiting employees go? What role have the IMD base salary and incentive plans played in attraction/retention? What other challenges does the IMD face in its efforts to attract, engage, retain talent?

This is not in scope for this RFP.

14. Is the current provider of the services outlined in the RFP eligible to bid on this RFP? Is there any prohibition for this provider to do so?

TRS allows all vendors who are not currently debarred by the State of Texas to bid on its RFPs.

15. While the investment professionals at TRS are exempt from the state’s Position Classification Plan, what, if any, influence/impact does what is happening for state employees have on the base pay levels for IMD employees

TRS operates a compensation system that is independent from the State of Texas State Position Classification Plan.

PRE-PROPOSAL CONFERENCE ATTENDEES LIST

Names of TRS Staff and Vendor Representatives that attended the Pre-Proposal Conference.

TRS Panel Members Procurement & Contracts: Carolyn Knowles, Senior Contract Specialist Procurement & Contracts LaTresa Stroud, Director of Procurement and Contracts Procurement &Contracts Aundre Petty, Lead Contract Specialist

Business Unit Grace Muraida, Contract Manager, Investment

Management Division (IMD) Business Unit Stephen Machicek, Investment Manager, IMD Business Unit Horacio Zambrana, Chief of Talent Management, IMD Business Unit Christine Bailey, Director of Compensation, Organization Excellence

Legal and Compliance James Burshtyn, Assistant General Counsel

Vendor Participants

Maureen Reilly maureen.reilly@aon.com C. Robovsky crobovsky@deloitte.com G. Stoskopf gstoskopf@deloitte.com Christine Nichols CHRISTINE_NICHOLS@AJG.COM Mike Hill mikehill5@deloitte.com Diane Lane dlane@deloitte.com Gaby Davidson gaby.davidson@CBIZ.com Joe Rice jrice@cbiz.com

PAVES

ACCOUNT REGISTRATION AND

ACTIVATION

Overview

TRS External Website

1. Go to https://www.trs.texas.gov/Pages/Homepage.aspx

2. Click “PROCUREMENT” at the top of the page https://www.trs.texas.gov/Pages/Homepage.aspx

TRS External Website

• Click on ‘PAVES’ on the left side

New Supplier Registration

• Click ‘Open the Portal’ to create a supplier account or login if you already have a PAVES account.

• Instructions for navigating PAVES are under “Job Aids for Suppliers” section

Supplier Registration

To register, click on “New Supplier Registration”

Complete Company Information

1. Fill in your company information

2. Click ‘Register’

3. If you receive an email notifying you that your registration has been rejected, it is most likely because your company is already registered in PAVES and you just need to be added as a contact to your company account. If this happens, please reach out to PAVESHelp@trs.texas.gov for assistance. Copy your P&C rep on all emails to PAVES Help.

mailto:PAVESHelp@trs.texas.gov

Completing the Registration

After registering, your PAVES account may not be fully activated unless you are awarded the resulting contract. At that time, you will be sent an email notification asking you to complete your account set-up and complete the following documents:

• W-9 and Direct Deposit Information

• Additional documents required by the state to set up a vendor

How to locate the RFx if you received an email from PAVES notifying you of the Solicitation

• If logged into PAVES, you can locate the RFx by clicking the tile on the left-hand side, “RFP in Progress”

• Or, click the link in the email notification you received from PAVES to access the RFx

• Remember to follow the instructions found in the “How to Submit a Proposal” Job Aid https://www.trs.texas.gov/TRS%20Documents/PAVES-submit-proposal.pdf

How to locate the RFx if you did not receive an email from PAVES or you saw the posting online

After you are logged into PAVES:

• Click the Solicitation tab at the top

• Click on “Show public request for proposals”

• Remember to follow the instructions found in the “How to Submit a Proposal”

Job Aid https://www.trs.texas.gov/TRS%20Documents/PAVES-submit-proposal.pdf

• Click the pencil icon next to the name of the solicitation you wish to participate.

Note: most solicitations will have two Rounds, one will be the Initial Round and one will be the Question Round. To submit a question during the Q&A period, click the pencil icon next to the Round Name that includes ‘Question Round’ in the title. To submit a proposal to the solicitation, click the pencil icon next to the Round Name that includes ‘Initial Round’ in the title. After the due date for a Round passes, that Round will no longer be visible and you will not be able to submit questions (if the Q&A Round) or a proposal (if the Initial Round) to TRS. It is very important that you complete your response in PAVES and click the ‘Submit’ button before the due date and time. If you miss the PAVES deadline, TRS will not accept late proposals through email.

Participate in the RFx

• Once you are in the solicitation, you may be requested to confirm participation by clicking “Participate in RFx”

Acknowledge receipt

• You also may be asked to acknowledge receipt of the solicitation

Confirm intention to bid

• Click ‘WILL BID: our intent is to respond to this RFx’

• Click ‘Submit’

Developing your Proposal

• The Overview tab is where the solicitation documents are located

Developing your Proposal

• The Questionnaire tab is where the Proposal will be completed

• Click on the double arrows next to the Overview tab to expand and view the individual sections.

• Click ‘Access Questionnaire’ or click directly on the individual section to begin

• Follow instructions for each item/question

• When asked to upload a document, the attachment may be submitted in Word

(.docx), PDF, or Excel (.xlsx) formats; however, please note that Word docs in .doc extension are not allowed (convert to a .docx document to upload) and Excel docs in .xls extension are not allowed (convert to a .xlsx document to upload)

Question Round

• Open the Question Round to submit questions to TRS

• Click ‘Question Round’ from the left tab or click ‘Access Questionnaire’

Question Round

• Create a document with your list of questions. Include your company name and solicitation number in the Title of the attachment.

• Upload the document in the space provided under ‘Answer’

• To submit to TRS, click the green ‘Validate & Submit’ button at the top of the page

• Click ‘Submit’ when the message opens asking Do you really want to submit?

Post contract award The remaining slides are only applicable if you are selected for contract award. These slides show how you can manage your contracts, internal team, and deliverables in PAVES, as well as how to create an invoice.

PAVES Tasks This is what it will look like once the account has been activated.

1. There are tabs on the side and tabs at the top to see different items

2. Any action items will be listed under the “Validations” section

Manage Contracts

1. Click “Manage Contracts” under the Contracts tab at the top

2. Click the “pencil” icon to go into the contract record

Manage Contracts – General Information

This tab provides general information about your contract

Manage Contracts - Hierarchy

This tab shows the contract and contract amendments (if any)

Manage Contracts - Team

This tab shows your company contacts for that contract and their e-mail addresses.

Manage Contracts - Subcontractors

If subcontracting, this tab is where you will enter your subcontractors.

Manage Contracts - Deliverables

If your contract requires deliverables, the contract manager will list them here, with due dates associated with them. You and the contract manager will receive notifications when the deliverables are due.

Manage Contracts - Communication

You and the contract manager can communicate back and forth through this tab. This will provide a record of the communication and be used for audit purposes.

HUB Requirements

If subcontracting any portion of the work, the awarded contractor will be required to:

• Submit PAR forms through the system on a monthly basis

• This is required with or without an invoice

• Set up list of subcontractors in the contract module

Invoicing

• Every contract will have a PAVES PO record. There will be a separate PO record associated with each fiscal year (Sept – Aug).

• The PO record is used for invoicing.

• You will receive a notification when the PO record is created by

TRS

PO Record

1. Click “Create Invoice”

Create Invoice

• Fill in Invoice Number

• Include Remit-To Address

• Include Service End Date

• A legal pdf copy of the invoice is required to be uploaded under the ‘Legal Invoice’ section.

• Upload any additional necessary documents under the ‘Attached Files’ section.

Questions

Blender Hill TRS VetHUB Coordinator Blender.Hill@TRS.Texas.Gov

How to complete a VetHUB Subcontracting Plan (HSP)

Overview

The State of Texas’ Veteran Heroes United in Business (VetHUB)

Program is designed to facilitate the growth and development of service-disabled veteran owned businesses

The Texas VetHUB Program is governed by Texas Government Code

(TGC) 2161

TRS is required to follow TGC 2161 per

TGC 825.514

VetHUB requirements are for any contract that is $100,000 or more over the life of the contract (which includes any renewal options) with probable subcontracting opportunities https://comptroller.texas.gov/purchasing/vendor/hub/ https://comptroller.texas.gov/purchasing/vendor/hub/

Guidance for HSP Completion

Who Completes an HSP?

Everyone

Even if you are not subcontracting

Even if you are a VetHUB

Subcontracting?

List all subcontractors on the HSP Form

Including VetHUB and Non-VetHUBs

When do you complete an

HSP?

Submit completed HSP Form with your proposal

If an HSP was not completed with the proposal because TRS determined there were no subcontracting opportunities, but the vendor now has a need to subcontract

The anticipated amount was not believed to exceed $100k, but at renewal the contract value has now exceeded $100k.

VetHUB Subcontracting Plan | Related Links

VetHUB Forms

• Subcontracting Plan Form

• Subcontracting Form | Good Faith Effort

• Subcontracting Opportunity Notification Form

• Subcontracting Plan Progress Assessment Report

Resource Links

• Search for Centralized Master Bidders List (CMBL)

• Comptroller (CPA’s) Purchasing Website https://comptroller.texas.gov/purchasing/vendor/hub/forms.php https://comptroller.texas.gov/purchasing/vendor/hub/forms.php https://comptroller.texas.gov/purchasing/vendor/hub/forms.php https://comptroller.texas.gov/purchasing/vendor/hub/forms.php https://comptroller.texas.gov/purchasing/vendor/hub/forms.php https://comptroller.texas.gov/purchasing/vendor/hub/forms.php https://comptroller.texas.gov/purchasing/vendor/hub/forms.php https://comptroller.texas.gov/purchasing/vendor/hub/forms.php https://mycpa.cpa.state.tx.us/tpasscmblsearch/tpasscmblsearch.do https://mycpa.cpa.state.tx.us/tpasscmblsearch/tpasscmblsearch.do https://comptroller.texas.gov/purchasing/#skip-scroll https://comptroller.texas.gov/purchasing/#skip-scroll

To begin, ask yourself

Are you subcontracting?

No Document that you are self-performing on Pages 1 and 2 of the Subcontracting Plan

Yes

Complete Sections 1, 2, 4, and 5 of the Subcontracting Plan

Solicit at least 2 VetHUBs and attach a copy of each CMBL profile

Attachment B - Solicitation Documentation

Copy of e-mail sent to vendors for each Scope of Work (SOW) Solicited

• By blind coping all the vendors, you can send one e-mail to multiple vendors for each solicited SOW

• Save e-mail so it shows the blind copy recipients

• E-mail should document that vendors had 7 working days to respond

Provide a list of who was solicited for each SOW

• You must solicit at least 2 VetHUB vendors for each SOW solicited

• Provide copy of the VetHUB CMBL profile for each VetHUB solicited

Document who provided a proposal and who didn’t

• Document whether or not the vendors solicited provided a proposal for each

SOW solicited

Award • Provide justification of award for each SOW solicited https://mycpa.cpa.state.tx.us/tpasscmblsearch/tpasscmblsearch.do

Completing the Form

Don’t Forget Complete Section 1 of the Form

Complete Section 2 of the Form

SIGN THE FORM

Reviewing Respondent’s SP Before Proposal Submission

TRS will provide a cursory review of a respondent’s draft SP and supporting documentation prior to proposal submission when submitted in a timely manner.

Contact:

Blender Hill at blender.hill@trs.texas.gov mailto:blender.hill@trs.texas.gov

Continued Monitoring After Award of Contract

Progress Assessment Report (PAR) Form

• Complete a PAR Form and submit with each invoice

• Lists the subcontractors you are paying for that month on the

PAR form

• TRS will reconcile subcontractors listed on the PAR to the subcontractors listed on Subcontracting Plan (SP)

• Payment of the invoice will not be approved until the PAR form is reviewed and approved by the TRS VetHUB Department

• If you have a subcontractor that is listed on the PAR that in not on the SP – TRS will stop payment until resolved

Changes to Subcontracting Plan (SP)

DO

• Use only the subcontractors listed in your approved Subcontracting Plan (SP).

• Submit an SP amendment if you need to add or change a subcontractor.

• Ensure TRS approves the SP amendment before the subcontractor begins any work.

• Provide the same required documentation for each new subcontractor as you did for the original SP.

• Submit amendments as needed—SPs may be amended at any time.

Changes to Subcontracting Plan (SP)

DON’T

• Do not allow a subcontractor to perform work if they are not listed on your approved SP.

• Do not begin subcontractor work before the SP amendment is approved by TRS.

• Do not skip required documentation when submitting an SP amendment.

• Do not risk non-compliance—using an unapproved subcontractor will result in suspended payments until the issue is resolved.