Rebrand_Sacramento_County_Department_of_Transportation_(SacDOT).pdf

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL

94786

REBRAND SACRAMENTO COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF

TRANSPORTATION (SACDOT)

County of Sacramento

9660 Ecology Lane

Sacramento, CA 95827

RELEASE DATE: September 5, 2024

DEADLINE FOR QUESTIONS: September 19, 2024

RESPONSE DEADLINE: September 26, 2024, 2:00 pm

RESPONSES MUST BE SUBMITTED ELECTRONICALLY TO:

https://secure.procurenow.com/portal/saccounty https://secure.procurenow.com/portal/%7bproject.government.code%7d

County of Sacramento

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL

Rebrand Sacramento County Department of Transportation (SacDOT)

1. Summary and Background

2. General Rules

3. Scope of Work

4. Evaluation and Selection

5. Proposal Format and Content

6. Evaluation Phases

7. Vendor Submissions

Attachments:

A - Sample_County_Agreement_for_RFP

B - RFP_ATT_Proprietary_Agreement

Request for Proposal #94786 Title: Rebrand Sacramento County Department of Transportation (SacDOT)

1. Summary and Background

1.1. Summary

The County of Sacramento Department of Transportation ("SacDOT") is soliciting proposals for a marketing firm to develop and implement a comprehensive branding strategy aimed at creating a distinct, strong, and enduring identity for SacDOT.

The mission of this project is to breathe new life into the organization by revitalizing SacDOT’s image through the creation of a cohesive and resilient brand identity that promotes transparency and accountability to our customers and fosters a positive culture for its employees.

A successful branding effort shall include, but not be limited to, the following aspects:

• A brand that puts a strong emphasis on SacDOT's determination to provide a positive culture for our employees and the highest level of customer service to our constituents.

• A brand that that captures the core values, mission and uniqueness of SacDOT but also is consistent with the County of Sacramento.

• An engaged and informed community gained through increased transparency and accountability.

• A unified approach for employees to support overall branding and communications efforts.

The County may work with the awarded consultant on additional, but related, continued services to achieve and maintain the brand identity described above. This may include social media assessment, development and marketing. Submitted proposals shall highlight if these services offered.

1.2. Background

About Sacramento County Department of Transportation

The Sacramento County Department of Transportation (SacDOT) is tasked with the vital responsibility of planning, enhancing, operating, and maintaining a comprehensive transportation system. This system is designed to effectively serve the unincorporated areas, manage regional traffic flow, and support commerce throughout the region. Our dedicated team, comprising of over 250 skilled men and women, work tirelessly to ensure the transportation infrastructure meets the highest standards of safety, efficiency, and reliability. We are committed to providing exceptional service to our customers and the broader community, striving to improve the quality of life for all residents through innovative and sustainable transportation solutions. Our efforts are aimed at fostering regional connectivity, promoting economic growth, and enhancing the overall well-being of the County of Sacramento.

Website: www.sacdot.saccounty.gov

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sacramento-county-department-of-transportation/mycompany/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sacramento-county-department-of-transportation-0b4343243/

1.3. Contact Information

Spencer Ord

Senior Civil Engineer https://www.sacdot.saccounty.gov/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/sacramento-county-department-of-transportation/mycompany/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/sacramento-county-department-of-transportation/mycompany/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/sacramento-county-department-of-transportation-0b4343243/

Email: ords@saccounty.gov

Phone: (916) 876-6601

Department:

Transportation

Department Head:

Ron E. Vicari

Director

1.4. Timeline

Release Project Date September 5, 2024

Question Submission Deadline September 19, 2024, 4:00pm

Proposal Submission Deadline September 26, 2024, 2:00pm mailto:ords@saccounty.gov tel:(916)876-6601

2. General Rules

2.1. Important Instructions for Electronic Submittal

The County is accepting electronic proposal submissions. Proposers shall create a FREE account with

OpenGov Procurement by signing up at Sign Up (opengov.com). Once you have completed account registration, browse back to this page, click on "Draft Response", and follow the instructions to submit your electronic proposal.

2.2. General Rules

2.2.1 Overview

This Request for Proposals ("RFP") is an invitation for Proposers to submit a proposal to the County. This

RFP does not commit the County to award a contract to any Proposer. Submission of a proposal shall neither obligate nor entitle a Proposer to enter into a contract with the County.

2.2.2 Proposal format and content

When submitting a proposal, Proposers must follow the format and contents detailed in Section 5.

Failure to do so will likely prolong the evaluation process and could result in a proposal not being considered.

2.2.3 Proposal submission

Proposals must be received BEFORE 2:00 pm on Thursday, September 26, 2024 electronically via

OpenGov. Failure to submit a proposal on time may be grounds for rejection of the proposal; however, the County reserves the right, in its sole and absolute discretion, to accept proposals after the proposal due date.

2.2.4 Questions and communication

Questions concerning this RFP must be submitted in the project Q&A section in OpenGov Procurement by 4:00 pmon Thursday, September 19, 2024.

Questions received via phone or e-mail to direct points of contact for this RFP will not be considered nor responded to. The County shall respond to questions properly submitted as described above via addenda.

2.2.5 Addenda

The County reserves the right to modify this RFP at any time prior to the proposal due date. The County will modify the RFP only by written addenda. Proposal should be based on this RFP document and any formal written addenda. Proposers should not rely on oral statements. Addenda will be posted in

OpenGov Procurement. It is the responsibility of each prospective Proposer to assure receipt of all addenda.

2.2.6 County's right to withdraw, cancel, suspend and/or modify RFP

The County reserves the right to withdraw, cancel, suspend, and/or modify this RFP for any reason and at any time with no liability to any prospective Proposer for any costs or expenses incurred in connection with the RFP or otherwise.

https://procurement.opengov.com/signup

2.2.7 Proposer's right to edit or cancel proposal

Proposers may edit or cancel their proposal in OpenGov Procurement prior to the due date.

2.2.8 Proposals will not be returned

Upon submission, proposals will not be returned.

2.2.9 Public disclosure of proposal documents

The County will treat all information submitted in a proposal as available for public inspection once negotiations with the selected party have been completed. If copies of proposals are included with

Board materials, the County will make proposals available for public inspection once staff has made a recommendation for award.

If a Proposer believes protected data is included in its proposal, the Proposer shall clearly identify the data and provide the legal basis in support of the asserted classification. Proposer must present such information separately as part of its proposal OR type in bold red letters the term "CONFIDENTIAL" on that specific part or page of the proposal which Proposer believes to be confidential. Classification of data as trade secret data will be determined pursuant to applicable law, and, accordingly, merely labeling data as "trade secret" does not necessarily make the data protected under any applicable law.

In order for the County to assert the confidentiality of any such information in the event a California

Public Record Act request is received, the Proposer must request, execute and submit a County-prepared written agreement to defend and indemnify the County for liability, costs and expenses incurred in asserting such confidentiality as part of the proposal. A copy of that written agreement is attached as Attachment B.

The final determination of whether the County will assert a Proposer's claim of confidentiality shall be at the sole discretion of the County. Any information determined to be non-confidential shall be considered public record. If the County determines that your information does not meet the criteria for confidentiality, you will be notified of the County's intent to release the public record pursuant to any

California Public Records Act request.

The Proposer agrees, as a condition of submitting its proposal, that the County will not, as between the parties, be liable or accountable for any loss or damage, which may result from a breach of confidentiality related to the proposal. The Proposer agrees to indemnity and hold the County, its officials, agents, and employees harmless from all claims arising out of, resulting from, or in any manner attributable to any violation of any provision of the California Public Records Act, including legal fees and disbursements paid or incurred to enforce this provision.

2.2.10 Proposer's costs

The County shall not be responsible for any costs incurred by Proposer in connection with this RFP.

Proposer shall bear all costs associated with proposal preparation, submission, and attendance at interviews, or any other activity associated with this RFP or otherwise.

2.2.11 Proposer's ideas

To the extent permitted by law, the County reserves the right to use any or all ideas, concepts, or other information provided in any proposals. Selection or rejection of the proposal does not affect this right.

2.2.12 Collusion

If the County determines that collusion has occurred among Proposers, none of the proposals of the participants involved in the collusion shall be considered. The County's determination shall be final.

2.2.13 Conflict of interest

The Proposer affirms that to the best of its knowledge the submission of its proposal, or any resulting contract, does not present an actual or perceived conflict of interest. The Proposer agrees that should any actual or perceived conflict of interest become known, it will immediately notify the County and will advise whether it will or will not avoid, mitigate, or neutralize the conflict of interest.

The County may make reasonable efforts to avoid, mitigate, or neutralize a conflict of interest by a

Proposer. To avoid a conflict of interest by a Proposer, the County may utilize methods including disqualifying a Proposer from eligibility for a contract award or cancelling the contract if the conflict is discovered after a contract has been issued. The County may, at its sole and absolute discretion, waive any conflict of interest.

3. Scope of Work

The selected consultant will be responsible for the following:

A. Discovery - Conduct a "deep dive" into SacDOT's current brand makeup to get a comprehensive understanding of the purpose and need for an updated brand identity. This may include, but not be limited to the following:

1. Understand SacDOT's core values and mission statement and our emphasis on a positive culture internally in addition to the highest level of external customer service.

2. Conduct interviews of various groups and/or individuals to further evaluate the need and value of a rebrand.

3. Review County branding guidelines and incorporate the official County brand into the overall scheme.

4. Explore local industry partners including other local agencies to help fine tune what a successful rebrand may look like.

5. Define the target audience.

6. Review research results with staff and various County stakeholders.

B. Brand Development

1. Prepare several brand packages that represent the results of the discovery phase. Brand packages should include but not be limited to logo, color palette, typeface and messaging.

2. Once a direction has been selected by SacDOT, the consultant shall expect multiple iterations of said brand to ultimately achieve approval of the final brand package.

C. Brand Implementation

1. Prepare a Logo Use Guide

2. Prepare templates, letterhead and other useful graphic elements.

3. Define strategies to effectively establish SacDOT's updated brand identity for target audiences as well as identify ongoing strategies for communicating, maintaining, and enhancing the brand's value.

4. Recommend methods to ensure effective implementation by developing processes to track results and measure success with target audiences.

5. Website Redesign to help improve transparency with SacDOT's constituents. The County's

Department of Technology (DTech) is currently working on a County-wide website redesign.

Coordination between DTech and the consultant will be crucial to ensure that SacDOT's website functions within the County's web content management system, while also working to accomplish the goals of the rebrand. The consultant may be asked to develop the following:

a. Organizational highlights

b. Project highlights

c. Employee bio's and recognitions

d. A hiring page with current job openings

e. Links to social media platforms

D. Additional/Optional Services

1. The selected consultant may be asked to provide proposals for additional/optional services that may include but not be limited to media assessment, development, marketing and promotional items. Proposers shall address in their proposal if additional, optional services are available.

2. SacDOT will establish a formal process for any additional/optional services, to include a written request from SacDOT, receipt of a proposal, and written approval to proceed with a

"not to exceed" budget within the agreement.

4. Evaluation and Selection

4.1 Proposal evaluation and recommendation for selection

The County reserves the following rights, to be exercised in the County’s sole and absolute discretion:

A. To determine whether any aspect of a proposal satisfactorily meets the criteria established in this RFP.

B. To seek clarification or additional information from any Proposer.

C. To negotiate, sequentially or simultaneously, pricing and/or terms with any Proposer or vendor.

D. To reject any or all proposals with or without cause.

E. To waive any irregularities or informalities in a proposal.

F. To cancel or amend by addenda this RFP, in part or entirely.

Evaluation of proposals by a selection committee, evaluation panel, County staff, a technical advisory committee, or by another group, individual or entity is advisory only. The County of Sacramento Board of Supervisors or its designee may consider or reject such evaluation(s) for any or all proposals. Such evaluations are for the sole benefit of the County of Sacramento Board of Supervisors or its designee, and as such, they are not binding upon the County, nor may they be relied upon in any way by a

Proposer.

4.2 Evaluation of responsiveness

The County will consider all the material submitted by the Proposer to determine whether the

Proposer’s offer is in compliance with the terms and conditions set forth in this RFP. Proposals that do not comply with the provisions in this RFP may be considered nonresponsive and may be rejected.

4.3 Evaluation of responsibility

To determine whether a Proposer is responsible, the County will consider the Proposer’s general qualifications to perform the requested services in a satisfactory manner; financial responsibility;

integrity; skill; past performance; and ability. Proposals from Proposers considered non-responsible will be rejected.

4.4 Evaluation panel and evaluation criteria

After review of each responsive proposal, the County may award a contract to a successful Proposer based on the evaluation criteria, or it may establish a short list of Proposers for further consideration.

The short list of Proposers may be asked to provide additional information. The short list of Proposers may also be asked to attend an in-person or telephone interview/presentation, as determined by the

County in its sole discretion.

Evaluation criteria shall include the following:

A. Rebrand understanding and approach - 40%

B. Past performance including sample work - 30%

C. Quality, layout and design of the proposal - 20%

D. Qualifications and experience of managers and key staff - 10%

4.5 Interviews

After review of each responsive proposal, the County may award a contract to a successful Proposer based on the evaluation criteria, or it may establish a short list of Proposers for further consideration.

The short list of Proposers may be asked to provide additional information, or an interview/demonstration as determined by the County in its sole discretion.

4.6 Execution of contract

The selected Proposer shall execute an agreement with the County of Sacramento, using the standard consulting agreement (Attachment A). Any requested revisions, deletions, or additions, to the language in the attached sample agreement shall be clearly set forth in the proposal for the County’s consideration.

Before a contract becomes effective between the County and any Proposer, the contract must be reviewed by County Counsel and the contract award must be approved by the County Board of

Supervisors or its designee. If for any reason the County Board of Supervisors or its designee does not ratify and sign the contract then there are no binding obligations whatsoever between the County and the Proposer relative to the proposed contract.

5. Proposal Format and Content

5.1 Cover letter

Proposers must submit a cover letter that includes the following:

A. A statement that the proposal is effective for a period of one hundred eighty (180) days or the date the contract takes effect, whichever is later;

B. A statement confirming that the Proposer has reviewed and agrees to be bound by County of

Sacramento Terms and Conditions (Attachment A) including insurance provisions; or, alternatively, a statement confirming that the Proposer has reviewed and agrees to be bound by

County of Sacramento Terms and Conditions (Attachment A), excluding only those provisions that have been redlined for negotiation purposes and are included in their proposal;

C. A statement that the Proposer does not have an actual or perceived conflict of interest regarding this RFP or in submission of their proposal; or alternatively, a statement explaining any conflict of interest and how to avoid, mitigate or neutralize the conflict;

5.2 Proposal

The format of the proposal is at the discretion of the proposer. The proposal should highlight/showcase the proposer's style and approach. Quality, layout and design of the proposal will be evaluated and scored.

Proposals must contain the following information:

A. A brief profile of the Proposer, including the size, organizational structure and history.

B. A statement of qualifications that includes sample work that demonstrates similar services for other clients, including governmental clients similar in nature and/or size to SacDOT. The sample work could consist of but not be limited to the following:

1. Brand development samples

2. Logo before and after rebrand effort

3. Logo use guide

C. A plan for delivering services consistent with the scope of work in section 3.

D. A minimum of two (2) references for whom the Proposer has provided services similar to those described in this RFP. The County reserves the right to check other references not provided by the Proposer. The following information shall be provided for each reference:

1. client name and address;

2. point of contact (name, telephone number, email) for contractual/administrative matters and technical performance;

3. period of contract performance;

4. description of work performed; and

5. client testimonial, if available

E. Pricing shall be lump sum, broken down by phase/deliverable or in a way that makes it clear to what SacDOT is paying for. The proposal shall also include an hourly rate for tasks that fall outside of the scope of this proposal.

6. Evaluation Phases

No. Evaluation Criteria Scoring Method Weight (Points)

1. Rebrand understanding and approach N/A N/A

2. Past performance including sample work N/A N/A

3. Quality, layout and design of the proposal N/A N/A

4. Qualifications and experience of managers and key staff N/A N/A

7. Vendor Submissions

7.1. Certification of Independent Contractor Status*

"I hereby certify that the Contractor/Consultant firm employs five or more full-time employees. “Full-time”, as defined by the Internal Revenue Service, means persons employed for 20 or more hours per week, and excludes temporary employees whose term of employment will be less than one (1) month.

This certification satisfies the Internal Revenue Service criteria for treatment of the above-named consultant as an independent contractor, not an employee for tax withholding purposes."

☐ Yes, I certify that the firm has five (5) or more full-time employees.

☐ No, I certify that the firm does not have five (5) or more full-time employees, and the firm provides services to the general public. (The County will conduct a tax determination review if this option is selected.)

*Response required

7.2. Contractor Certification of Compliance, part 1*

WHEREAS it is in the best interest of Sacramento County that those entities with whom the County does business demonstrate financial responsibility, integrity and lawfulness, it is inequitable for those entities with whom the County does business to receive County funds while failing to pay court-ordered child, family and spousal support which shifts the support of their dependents onto the public treasury.

Therefore, in order to assist the Sacramento County Department of Child Support Services in its efforts to collect unpaid court-ordered child, family and spousal support orders, the following certification must be provided by all entities with whom the County does business:

Contractor/Consultant hereby certifies that either:

☐ the Contractor/Consultant is a government or non-profit entity (exempt), or

☐ the Contractor/Consultant has no Principals Owners (25% or more) (exempt), or

☐ each Principal Owner (25% or more) does not have any existing child support orders, or

☐ Contractor/Consultants Principal Owners are currently in substantial compliance with any court-ordered child, family and spousal support order, including orders to provide current residence address, employment information, and whether dependent health insurance coverage is available. If not in compliance, Principal Owner has become current or has arranged a payment schedule with the

Department of Child Support Services or the court.

*Response required

7.3. Contractor Certification of Compliance, part 2*

a. Contractor/Consultant has fully complied with all applicable state and federal reporting requirements relating to employment reporting for its employees; and

b. Contractor/Consultant has fully complied with all lawfully served wage and earnings assignment orders and notices of assignment and will continue to maintain compliance.

NOTE: Failure to comply with state and federal reporting requirements regarding a Contractor's employees or failure to implement lawfully served wage and earnings assignment orders or notices of assignment constitutes a default under the contract; and failure to cure the default within 90 days of notice by the County shall be grounds for termination of the contract. Principal Owners can contact the

Sacramento Department of Child Support Services at 1-866-901-3212, by writing to P.O. Box 269112, Sacramento, 95826-9112, or via the Customer Connect website at www.childsup.ca.gov .

☐ Please confirm

*Response required

7.4. Proposal, including cost proposal *

Upload your complete proposal here.

Include your cost proposal for the services specified in the scope of work and an hourly rate sheet for additional optional services.

*Response required

7.5. Confidential sections of proposal (if applicable)

The County will treat all information submitted in a proposal as available for public inspection once the

County has awarded a contract. If you believe that you have a legally justifiable basis under the

California Public Records Act (Government Code section 6250 et. seq.) for protecting the confidentiality of any information contained within your proposal, you must identify any such information, together with the legal basis of your claim in your proposal, and present such information in this section as part of your proposal response package. The final determination of whether the County will assert a proposer's claim of confidentiality shall be at the sole discretion of the County. Click "file upload" below to upload any proposal documents you consider to be confidential documents.

http://www.childsup.ca.gov/