Responding to Bid SLPI Interviewer Rater.docx

Guidance: Responding to a Bid (Formerly Known as Request for Response, RFR or Solicitation) Posted by MCDHH on COMMBUYS With Specific Information About MCDHH's Bid for RFR 08-05-MCD: Interviewer/Raters for Sign Language Proficiency Interview (SLPI) Assessment Instrument – Multiple Positions

COMMBUYS is the official procurement, purchasing, and electronic marketing system of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. All Executive Branch agencies, including the Massachusetts Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (MCDHH), are required to use COMMBUYS to post all procurements with a total multi-year value of $10,000 or greater in order "to promote transparency, increase competition, and achieve best value for Massachusetts taxpayers" (words of Operational Services Division, the agency that oversees and administers the COMMBUYS system).

The process of responding to a bid involves three steps:

1. Review the bid - this step will let you answer the question, "Am I interested in and qualified for this contracting opportunity?"

2. Register as a vendor on COMMBUYS - this step will make you eligible for the next step, responding to the bid online (electronically), the only way bids are now accepted

3. Respond to the bid - this step, when completed, will result in your submitting a bid (response) to MCDHH's contracting opportunity that will then be evaluated by MCDHH

Step 1 - Review the Bid

Go to the COMMBUYS web site, www.commbuys.com/bso

Click on Contract & Bid Search, about two-thirds down the page

You will be taken to a page called "Advanced Search" and given a choice of "Bids" or "Contracts/Blankets." Click on the radio button next to "Bids."

This will bring you to a form. On the right side of the form is a drop-down box for "Purchaser." Select "Shulman, Jane Sokol." Two lines below that, on the left side, is a drop-down box for "Organization." Select "1067 - Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing." Click on the gray rectangle Find It.

The page will refresh. You will still see the "Advanced Search" form on the top of the page. Scroll down until you see a list of bids. Look ONLY at the bids with Bid Numbers on the left column starting with the letters BD. Find the bid you are interested in.

[The BD number of the Bid Interviewer/Raters for Sign Language Proficiency Interview (SLPI) Assessment Instrument – Multiple Positions is

BD-15-1067-MCD01-MCD01-00000004124]

Click on that BD number.

You will be taken to a page called " "Bid Solicitation" and then the bid number. About halfway down the page on the left you will see the words in bold "File Attachments." To the right of "File Attachments" will be a link to one or more files, including an RFR. This is the solicitation document. It contains a description of the contracting opportunity, vendor/bidder qualifications, details on what a complete application contains, and how MCDHH will evaluate applications.

Click on the RFR and any other files of interest to download it/them. Review the RFR and any other files. If you are interested in applying, continue to Steps 2 and 3 of this Guidance document.

Step 2 - Register As A Vendor on COMMBUYS

Operational Services Division and COMMBUYS require that responses to all bids, including those posted by MCDHH, are made online through the COMMBUYS system. In order for bidders (individuals or businesses) to do so, they must register as vendors on the COMMBUYS system. This is a "once-and-done" process; in other words, once you register on COMMBUYS you do not have to do so again no matter how many other Commonwealth bids you apply for or how many other contracts you seek to join.

Registration does require a little patience as well as a broadband internet connection. OSD offers a variety of informational resources to help. A captioned video based on a PowerPoint presentation may be found at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mWMLx4UgHtQ&list=PL247E2162C4B2F10A&index=2. A more conventional Job Aid, featuring screen shots with explanatory text, is here:

http://www.mass.gov/anf/docs/osd/commbuys/vendor-registration.pdf

COMMBUYS relies on a system of commodity codes based on the United Nations Standard Products and Services Code (UNSPSC). When signing up as a new vendor you will be asked for a UNSPSC commodity code.

[The UNSPSC to use when registering as a vendor to apply for a SLPI Interviewer / Rater is 86-13-00, Specialized Educational Services]

Individuals needing assistance with the COMMBUYS vendor registration process are encouraged to contact the COMMBUYS Help Desk by e-mail to commbuys@state.ma.us or 1-888-627-8283 (voice).

Step 3 - Respond to the Bid

Go to the COMMBUYS web site, www.commbuys.com/bso

Using the COMMBUYS Vendor ID and Password you created in Step 2, log on

Following the sequence in Step 1, go to the bid you are interested in The URL (web link) for the SLPI Interviewer/Rater:

https://www.commbuys.com/bso/seller/bidDetail.sdo?bidId=BD-15-1067-MCD01-MCD01-00000004124&destination=detail

You will be taken to a page titled, "Acknowledge Receipt and View Solicitation." Click on the rectangle marked YES

You are now at the "Bid Solicitation / Header Information" page. Go to the bottom of the page. Click on the box marked Bid Q&A. This page contains questions, if any, that other bidders or potential bidders have asked and MCDHH's answers. The information here can be useful if you have questions while reading the bid (RFR document) and want to know if they have been asked already. It also gives you a place to ask MCDHH your own questions.

Also on the "Bid Solicitation / Header Information" page is a link to the bid (RFR, Request for Response, or solicitation) itself. It is a little beyond halfway down the page, to the right of the bold words "File Attachments." Click on the link to download the bid (RFR, Request for Response, or solicitation) so you will have a copy.

The name of the bid (RFR, Request for Response, or solicitation) for the SLPI Interviewer / Rater bid is :

RFR 08-05-MCD SLPI Interviewers / Raters Multiple Positions, Rolling Admission

At the bottom of the "Bid Solicitation / Header Information" page is a rectangle, "Create Quote." Click on it.

You are taken to a page called "New Quote." Fill in the box called "Info Contact" with your name, address, and contact information. Click Save & Continue at the bottom of the page.

On the series of light blue boxes under the Quote QT 1067... bar, click on the box labeled Terms & Conditions. Notice the question, "Do you accept the terms & conditions of the bid?" Click on the radio button closest to the word YES. Click Save & Continue at the bottom of the page.

Now is the time to log off COMMBUYS and prepare your response to the bid based on the information contained in the bid document. Click the red X on the right side of the screen to end your COMMBUYS session.

You should read and be familiar with the content of the entire document

RFR 08-05-MCD SLPI Interviewers / Raters Multiple Positions, Rolling Admission

Key components are:

Information about the Position Qualifications (total of 7 and one optional) How to Apply / Contents of the Application Files The Evaluation Methodology (Scoring)

When you have prepared your bid response and any other files (documents) you wish to submit to MCDHH, log onto COMMBUYS the same way you did previously. Your HOME SCREEN will say "Welcome Back" and your name. Underneath that there will be a line of functions: News; Vendor Communication; Bids; PO; and so forth. The next one is QUOTE and there should be a number in parentheses next to QUOTE. That number represents the number of bid responses you are working on. Click on QUOTE. A line will open up underneath QUOTE. Click on WORKING to identify the quote (bid response) you were working on.

COMMBUYS will ask you to acknowledge that the quote (bid response) has not been completed. Click the box YES.

Click on ATTACHMENTS and then upload, one by one, your bid (RFR, Request for Response, or solicitation) response/application documents. Click ADD FILE after attaching each file, and then SAVE & EXIT.

Click on SUMMARY to review your quote (bid response). Make any changes necessary. If you are satisfied, click SUBMIT QUOTE to send the quote (bid response) to MCDHH.

What Happens Next

MCDHH will acknowledge your quote (bid response) when received through the COMMBUYS system.

MCDHH will contact you again when your quote (bid response) has been evaluated to inform you of its status and whether a contract will be awarded.

COMMBUYS/RESPONDING TO BID TRANS TO WORK 2015.DOCX Page 3 of 3