RFI 24.25-61 AEBEA 3-6-25.pdf

RFI#24/25-61 1 of 14 Florida Department of Revenue

State of Florida Department of Revenue Request for Information

Automated Employee Benefits Election Assistant

RFI# 24/25-61

1. INTRODUCTION

This is a Request for Information (RFI) as defined in Section 287.012(22), Florida Statutes (F.S.), for informational and planning purposes only. This RFI is issued by the State of Florida, Department of Revenue (Department), to solicit information regarding the products and services described herein.

The Department is seeking information from vendors who can provide a vendor or third-party hosted, cloud-based, automated solution to help employees select insurance, retirement, and/or other employer-provided benefits optimized for their personal circumstances.

All interested vendors and implementation partners are invited to participate by submitting a written response to the RFI in accordance with Section 8 (RFI Submission).

2. BACKGROUND

The Department has approximately 5,000 employees located throughout Florida and the United States. The Department is comprised of five program areas: Executive Direction and Support Services, Child Support, General Tax Administration, Property Tax Oversight, and Information Services with employment opportunities ranging from entry-level to senior management positions.

The Department’s business operations support traditional in-office work, fully remote work, and hybrid work models.

There is a vast array of benefits available to Department employees through their employment with the State of Florida. These benefits include, but are not limited to, group health insurance, life insurance, retirement (pension and investment plans), paid holidays, paid vacation and sick leave, training and professional development, and employee assistance programs. These benefits significantly increase an employee’s total compensation package; however, many employees are unaware of the benefits available to them, how to access those benefits, which benefits they automatically receive versus those they must select, and which benefits may be most beneficial to them based on their life circumstances.

Department personnel can only offer general information regarding employee benefits; for specific situations, employees are directed to contact the benefit provider and/or the Florida Department of Management Services (DMS).

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This RFI is seeking vendors who can provide a solution that can educate current and potential employees about the various benefits available to them as state employees and help them make informed decisions when choosing their state health, life, retirement, and other benefits based on their unique personal circumstances and needs such as age, health status, marital status, children versus no children, and so on. Any solution may leverage AI-based technology, such as an intelligent, interactive chat tool to facilitate the employee’s decision-making process. The goal is to assist Department employees in their benefits selection process, reduce employee time researching and selecting benefits, reduce time spent by Department personnel answering questions associated with benefits, and improve recruitment and retention of employees.

3. PURPOSE OF AN RFI

3.1 Rule

Per Rule 60A-1.042, Florida Administrative Code (F.A.C.), agencies are authorized to use a Request For Information (RFI) for research to determine any or all of the following:

• whether to competitively procure particular commodities or contractual services;

• which solicitation process to use for a particular need;

• or general, special, or technical specifications to be included in a solicitation.

An RFI is not a solicitation. An agency issuing an RFI is not required to utilize any information gathered from the RFI, nor is a vendor who responds to an RFI excluded from participating in any resulting solicitation.

Agencies must use the Vendor Information Portal (VIP) for issuing an RFI. A vendor does not need to be registered in MyFloridaMarketPlace (MFMP) in order to respond to an RFI but must be registered to be awarded a contract based on a solicitation. See Rule 60A-1.033, F.A.C., for MFMP vendor registration.

3.2 Constraints

This RFI is being released strictly for the purpose of gaining knowledge of services available on the market for the provision of these services, related services, and desirable options.

This RFI should not be construed as an intent, commitment, or promise to acquire or purchase the proposed services presented by vendors.

The Department will not be obligated to any vendor as a result of this RFI. The Department is not obligated for any costs incurred by vendors in the preparation of their response to this RFI.

The Department will not pay for any information herein requested nor be liable for any costs incurred by the vendor.

From the responses to this RFI, the Department will review all options related to the services specified, related services, and desired options.

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4. QUALFICATIONS

There are no qualifications for vendors to respond to this RFI. Should a formal solicitation be released after analysis of product availability in the marketplace, there will be qualifications required for any vendor to be awarded a contract, including:

(i) Vendors must be registered with the State of Florida, Department of Management Services, through the MyFloridaMarketPlace e-procurement system.

(ii) Vendors must be registered with the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Corporations, to do business in Florida.

5. OBJECTIVE

The Department’s objective with this RFI is to determine if there are vendors who can provide a vendor or third-party hosted, cloud-based, automated solution to assist Department employees to select insurance, retirement, and other available State of Florida employee benefits optimized for their personal circumstances.

The preferred system would include, but not necessarily be limited to, the following features:

A user-friendly interface that is intuitive and easy to navigate.

An interactive chatbot or other tool that understands the various benefits available to State of Florida employees and can guide Department employees to the benefits options best suited for their personal circumstances.

Compatible with multiple internet browsers.

Accessible via smartphone or other mobile device.

24-7 technical support.

Compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act and the accessibility standards set forth in Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act.

Security measures to protect and secure confidential information exempt from disclosure pursuant to Chapter 119, Florida Statutes; personal information enumerated in section 501.171, F.S.; and/or any data that is restricted from public disclosure based on federal or state laws and regulations.

6. VENDOR QUESTIONS/INQUIRIES

Written questions/inquiries concerning this RFI will only be accepted if submitted in writing via email to the Department’s Procurement Officer identified in Section 8 (RFI Submission) and if received on or before the date and time specified in Section 7 (Calendar of Events).

Interested parties shall examine the Department’s requirements to determine if they are clearly stated. The Department also wishes to determine if any requirements are restrictive to competition. The party claiming that there is a restrictive requirement should identify and describe the difficulty in meeting the Department’s requirement.

Responses to all questions received will be made available, in writing, and posted on the Vendor Information Portal on or about the anticipated date referenced in the Calendar of Events.

https://www.section508.gov/manage/laws-and-policies/ http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0100-0199/0119/0119.html http://www.leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=&URL=0500-0599/0501/Sections/0501.171.html http://www.leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=&URL=0500-0599/0501/Sections/0501.171.html

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7. CALENDAR OF EVENTS

Listed below are the important actions and the dates and times by which the actions must be taken or completed. If the Department finds it necessary to change any of these dates/times, it will be accomplished by addendum and posted on the VIP. All listed times are local time in Tallahassee, Florida.

DATE TIME ACTION

Thursday, 3/6/25 Release of RFI on VIP.

Friday, 3/14/25 12:00 PM Vendor written questions and inquiries due (no later than).

Tuesday, 3/18/25 Anticipated date that written responses to vendor questions and inquiries will be posted to the VIP (on or about).

Monday, 3/31/25 3:00 PM Vendor response due date (no later than).

8. RFI SUBMISSION

Utilize the System Requirements and General Questions Matrix in Attachment 1 to submit your response. Documentation supporting responses to the services requested in this RFI may be added to the response.

Provide the Cost Methodology Information listed in Attachment 2.

You may provide suggestions for other functionality and provide input as it relates to the Department’s anticipated needs in Attachment 3 - Additional Information – Industry Trends, Innovations, Products, Services, or Best Practices.

Vendors should submit their responses to the RFI, along with any additional documentation, via email to:

Ed Valla, Procurement Officer Florida Department of Revenue Phone: (850) 717-7567 Email: edwin.valla@floridarevenue.com

Include “RFI # 24/25-61, Automated Employee Benefits Election Assistant” in the subject line of the email.

Vendors may submit a separate redacted copy of their response if the response includes proprietary information. Please review Section 10.1 (Proprietary Information) for requirements and submission information.

9. DEMONSTRATIONS

The Department reserves the right to request product demonstrations from vendors submitting a response to this RFI. If demonstrations are requested, they will be scheduled directly with the vendors. Those respondents providing demonstrations will be required to demonstrate how their solution meets the mandatory requirements.

mailto:edwin.valla@floridarevenue.com

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10. DISCLAIMERS

10.1. Proprietary Information

Due regard will be given for the protection of proprietary information contained in all submissions received; however, respondents should be aware that all materials associated with the RFI are subject to the state’s open records law, Chapter 119, Florida Statutes.

If a vendor or implementation partner considers any portion of the answers, supporting documents, data or records submitted in response to this RFI to be confidential, proprietary, trade secret or otherwise not subject to disclosure pursuant to Chapter 119, F.S., the Florida Constitution or other authority, such information shall be clearly marked as “CONFIDENTIAL.”

The vendor or implementation partner must simultaneously provide the Department with a separate, redacted copy of its response. The redacted response shall:

(i) Be provided in an electronic format (preferably PDF).

(ii) Briefly describe, in writing, the grounds for claiming each exemption from public records law, including the specific statutory citation for such exemption.

(iii) Only exclude, obliterate, or redact those exact portions which are claimed confidential, proprietary, trade secret, or otherwise exempt.

The non-redacted response will be distributed, as determined necessary and appropriate by the Department, for the purposes of evaluation.

An entire page or paragraph in which such information appears should not be marked confidential unless the entire page or paragraph consists of such confidential information.

Vendors are to indicate where confidential information begins and ends.

Vendor and implementation partners shall protect, defend, and indemnify the State for any and all claims arising from or relating to the vendor’s determination that the redacted portions of its RFI are confidential, proprietary, trade secret, or otherwise not subject to disclosure.

If the vendor fails to submit a redacted copy of its response to the RFI, vendor agrees that the Department is authorized to produce the entire set of documents, data or records submitted by the vendor in answer to a public records request for these records.

Copyrighted material will be accepted as part of the RFI only if accompanied by a waiver that will allow the Department to make paper and electronic copies necessary for the use of Department staff, agents, and public record requests.

10.2. RFI – Planning Purposes Only

The Department is requesting submissions in response to this RFI for informational and planning purposes only and is not obligated in any way to use any of the information received.

This RFI process is intended to help the Department research a variety of available services so the Department may determine the best strategy. Submissions received in response to this RFI will be used to determine whether a formal solicitation should be issued. The Department reserves the right to use the information gathered through the RFI process to develop a scope

RFI#24/25-61 6 of 14 Florida Department of Revenue of services which may be incorporated into a solicitation using a statutorily approved method of procurement.

Responses to an RFI are not offers and shall not be accepted by the Department to form a binding contract. Further, the Department is not seeking proposals at this time and will not accept unsolicited proposals. Responding to this RFI will not enhance any respondent’s chances of receiving future work from the State. Similarly, not responding to this RFI will not be a detriment to any respondent when competing for future work. This RFI should not be considered an opportunity to market to the Department or to any entity of the State of Florida.

Respondents are solely responsible for all expenses associated with responding to this RFI.

All RFI submissions become the property of the State of Florida. The Department may contact individual respondents for clarification of information contained in the submission.

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ATTACHMENT 1

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS AND GENERAL QUESTIONS MATRIX

RFI# 24/25-61

I. System Requirements Matrix

Respondents to this RFI shall utilize the table below to indicate if their solution can or cannot meet the specific requirements listed by marking with an “X” in the appropriate box. Note that requirements in BOLD text are mandatory. A copy of this table in a Microsoft Excel format is attached to this RFI.

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS MATRIX

General Requirements

# Requirement Can meet

Cannot meet

1. Vendor or third-party hosted, cloud-based system.

2. Ability to accommodate up to 5,000 users.

Implementation/Project Management Requirements

# Requirement Can meet

Cannot meet

1. Assignment of a dedicated project manager to oversee implementation.

System Technical Requirements

Requirement

Can meet with current configuration

Can meet with custom programing

Cannot meet

1. Single sign-on to the system with Department network credentials.

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System Functional Requirements with current configuration

Can meet with custom programing

Cannot meet

1. Interactive chatbot or other tool that will learn the various benefits available to State of Florida employees and guide Department employees to the benefits options best suited for their personal circumstances.

2. Ability to pilot solution to a limited number of users to confirm functionality and acceptance by the Department.

3. Allow customizable, controllable, updates to changes in benefits.

4. Ability to track and provide reports on employee usage and trends on benefits recommendations.

5. Ability to download information to different analytic applications such as Tableau.

6. Provide standardized and customizable communications for confirmation of selected benefits.

7. Multi-channel access: Support for accessing the application via web browsers, mobile devices, and collaboration tools (e.g., MS Teams).

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System Non-Functional Requirements with current configuration

Can meet with custom programing

Cannot meet

1. Vendor provides system training for end-users and system administrators.

2. Vendor provides a Service Level Agreement guaranteeing at least 99% system availability.

3. Vendor provides ongoing maintenance of, and updates to, the solution.

4. Vendor provides 24/7/365 technical support/helpdesk services.

SYSTEM ADMINISTRATOR/ADMINISTRATIVE REQUIREMENTS

with current configuration

Can meet with custom programing

Cannot meet

1. Allows for multiple system administrators.

2. Provides the Administrator the ability to add and delete users.

3. Provides the Administrator the ability to assign user roles.

SYSTEM SECURITY AND COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENTS

with current configuration

Can meet with custom programing

Cannot meet

1. Includes security measures to protect and secure information exempt from disclosure pursuant to Chapter 119, Florida Statutes.

2. Meets the requirements set forth in the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 2008 and Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act.

OTHER REQUIREMENTS

with current configuration

Can meet with custom programing

Cannot meet

1. Marketing/communications templates or tools for in-house use to promote the system http://www.leg.state.fl.us/STATUTES/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0100-0199/0119/0119ContentsIndex.html&StatuteYear=2024&Title=%2D%3E2024%2D%3EChapter%20119 http://www.leg.state.fl.us/STATUTES/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0100-0199/0119/0119ContentsIndex.html&StatuteYear=2024&Title=%2D%3E2024%2D%3EChapter%20119 https://www.section508.gov/manage/laws-and-policies/

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II. General Questions Matrix

Respondents to this RFI shall utilize the table below to answer the Department’s questions. A copy of this table in a Microsoft Excel format is attached to this RFI.

DEPARTMENT QUESTIONS MATRIX

Vendor Profile Questions # Department Question Vendor Response

1. Provide a brief description of your company including legal name, main office location and address, and years in operation.

2. What is the name, title, address, phone number, and email address of the primary contact person for this RFI?

3. What is the company’s experience in providing hosted, cloud-based, automated employee benefits election assistant solutions for large companies, organizations, or agencies with more than 1,000 positions filled annually?

4. List any industry awards/recognition received, the awarding party, and the date received. Also include any vendor certifications and/or professional associations or organizations.

5. Is the company a reseller or primary developer of the automated employee benefits election assistant system?

6. Are the requested services available via an approved State of Florida Term Contract, Alternate Contract Source, GSA MAS Agreement, or other cooperative purchasing contract? If so, please provide contract number and additional information.

System Technical Questions

# Department Question Vendor Response

1. What other applications can be integrated into the automated employee benefits election assistant system?

System Functional Questions

1. How are the following managed through the system or by the vendor: integration with approved benefits (or benefit providers); benefit selection with corresponding pay deduction; over-selection/allocation of benefits?

2. How many benefit categories does the system allow?

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3. How does a selected benefit proceed through the approval workflow in the system? (Similar to Q1)

4. What standard dashboards are available in the system?

5. What standard communications are available in the system? For example: final, approved, benefit selection.

6. How does the system maintain and display information regarding benefit selection and approval?

7. What are the different user roles (or permissions) available in the application?

8. What types of reporting and data analytics capabilities does the application have?

9. What capability does the system have to download information to other applications?

System Non-Functional Questions

1. What other applications can be integrated into the automated employee benefits election assistant solution/application?

System Administrative Questions

1. How many system administrators can be included in the system?

2. What type of training is provided to end users and system administrators?

3. What Service Level Agreement is provided to ensure system availability and technical support?

System Security and Compliance Questions

1. What are the company’s policies and procedures for data safeguarding and information security?

2.

How does the company’s application meet the requirements set forth in the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 2008 and Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act?

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Other Questions

1. Are there any additional features that the application provides that have not yet been addressed in other questions or the System Requirements Matrix?

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ATTACHMENT 2

COST METHODOLOGY INFORMATION

1. Please provide cost methodology for fees. Do not provide actual cost or pricing information.

a. Describe cost structure for a hosted, cloud-based, Automated Employee Benefits Election Assistant solution (for example, flat-rate subscription or other available options.).

b. Describe what services and/or features are included with each plan or package if service features and/or options are tiered.

c. If you have provided similar products and/or services to other organizations with the same or similar requirements as specified in this RFI, please provide the cost for those products and/or services.

2. What additional information and/or features should the Department consider when evaluating costs related to a hosted, cloud-based, automated employee benefits election assistant system and implementation?

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ATTACHMENT 3

Additional Information – Industry Trends, Innovations, Products, Services, or Best Practices

Provide information on any industry trends, innovations, services, best practices, or suggestions for other functionality that you feel may be of interest to the Department in meeting its stated objectives.