notice-info-tech.docx

NOTICE OF INTENT TO MAKE A NONCOMPETITIVE PURCHASE #112-2609

July 31, 2025

The State of North Dakota intends to make a purchase for which we believe there is no competition. The purpose of this notice is to determine if other sources are available and whether the procurement method is appropriate.

Vendors are permitted to submit bids or proposals for equivalent commodities or services in response to this notice. A party interested in providing these commodities or services is instructed to submit a written response to the Procurement Officer by the response deadline.

PURCHASING AGENCY: Information Technology Department (ITD)

PURCHASE DESCRIPTION:

ITD intends to make a noncompetitive purchase.

To obtain information technology research and advisory services from Info-Tech Research Group Inc. offering these services as a core component of their business. In-scope services include but are not limited to:

A. Access to created and published technology research reports in specific market categories;

B. Subscription-based advisory services regarding IT strategy and planning, Major IT trends in various industries, or various IT topics;

C. Bulletins and summaries of IT industry issues;

D. Training sessions; and E. Question-and-answer-based technology market research consultations.

The services include:

(1) CIO Counselor Membership which also includes:

(1) Concierge Services

(1) Industry /MLE

(1) Onsite Workshop Membership

(1) Online Workshop Membership

(3) Advisory Membership

(20) HIPO Technology Reference Membership

INTENDED SOURCE:

Info-Tech Research Group 3960 Howard Hughes Parkway Suite 500 Las Vegas, NV 89169

PRICE:

The estimated cost is $234,360.79 per year. ITD intends to contract with Info-Tech Research Group Inc. for three (3) years. Training sessions would be a separate cost and on an as needed basis.

Due to changing needs ITD may add subscriptions or services to the contract.

JUSTIFICATION:

Info-Tech Research Group Inc. provides rigorous research processes and proprietary methodologies to provide information about our products and services, enabling ITD to access the trusted insights, guidance, and solutions ITD needs to operate more efficiently, minimize risk, drive results, and achieve a higher level of success. Currently InfoTech and Gartner are the two providers of our information technology research and advisory services.

4201 Normandy Street | Bismarck, ND 58503-1324 | PHONE: 701-328-3190 | ND.gov/ITD

QUESTIONS

A vendor may contact the Procurement Officer to discuss whether its proposed solution meets the requirements. Submit any questions or requests for clarification to the Procurement Officer as soon as possible and before the response deadline.

Brandy Bentley Procurement Officer E-mail: blbentley@nd.gov Telephone: (701) 328-1888 TTY Users call: 7-1-1

RESPONSE FORMAT:

Vendors interested in submitting a response to this notice must provide the following information for consideration:

· Company Information: Provide the name of the firm, address, and website, if available.

· Contact Information: Provide the name of a contact person, telephone number, and email address.

· Specifications: Vendors are instructed to examine the Purchase Description included in this notice. When preparing your response to this notice, provide a point-by-point response to each of the described requirements. Provide detailed specifications demonstrating that the offered solution meets or exceeds the requirements stated in this notice. Provide any available documents and links to information available on the vendor’s website.

· Value-Added: Vendors may provide information about value-added features, functionality, alternatives, and additionally available components or services that are not specifically identified in the purchase description within the notice.

· Cost: Provide detailed cost information, including any applicable shipping and handling. Responses may include pricing for any offered value-added options.

RESPONSE DEADLINE:

Response Deadline: August 7, 2025 at 5:00 PM CT

RESPONSE INSTRUCTION:

ELECTRONIC SUBMISSION REQUIRED: An interested party must electronically submit their response through the State Procurement Office Online system (SPO Online) by the response deadline. This solicitation is posted on SPO Online: https://apps.nd.gov/csd/spo/services/bidder/main.htm. Upload instructions are provided below. Make sure to include your name and e-mail address when uploading responses to SPO Online.

DO NOT WAIT UNTIL THE “LAST MINUTE” TO SUBMIT A RESPONSE. We recommend uploading responses 24 hours prior to the response deadline.

Bidder must begin the electronic submission process well in advance of the response deadline to allow for transmission and resolution of any technical difficulties. Be advised that the STATE is not responsible for a vendors failure to timely submit a response due to any technical difficulties. If you experience any technical difficulties, contact the Procurement Officer listed in this notice or the State Procurement Office at infospo@nd.gov or 701.328.2740.

If documents are in the process of being uploaded when the response deadline occurs, the upload process will stop. The attempted submission will not be uploaded successfully and is ineligible for consideration. The STATE takes no responsibility for electronic submissions that are captured, blocked, filtered, quarantined, or otherwise prevented from uploading by any anti-virus software or other security software.

1. This solicitation is posted on SPO Online at: https://apps.nd.gov/csd/spo/services/bidder/main.htm

2. Select “Recent Solicitations” and find this solicitation. Solicitations are listed by close date.

3. Use “Upload Response” to upload a maximum of five (5), clearly labeled documents before the response deadline.

4. Offerors must upload their response as requested in the response instruction section of this notice.

5. The maximum file size allowed is 50mb per file.

6. There is a 50 character file name limitation for the document being uploaded.

7. There is 75 character limit in the TITLE field within SPO Online.

8. All SPO Online field entries must be alphanumeric. Dashes and underscores are allowed; however, the system does not accept other special characters such as apostrophes, & symbols, or quotation marks, etc.

9. DO NOT submit documents that are embedded (zip files), movies, wmp, encrypted, or mp3 files.

10.The vendor will receive an email confirmation from infospo@nd.gov that the upload response was received including the “File Description” for the uploaded files. Review this email to ensure all files were successfully uploaded. If the vendor does not receive an email confirmation, the upload was not successful, and you will need to upload the files again. If the vendor does not receive an email confirmation after the reattempt, contact the Procurement Officer listed in this notice or the State Procurement Office at infospo@nd.gov or 701.328.2740.

Visit https://www.omb.nd.gov/sites/www/files/documents/doing-business-with-the-state/procurement/spo-electronic-response-external-job-aid.pdf for the SPO Electronic Response Job Aid which describes how to submit an electronic response.

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