Team Cyquent Responses.pdf

Request for Information. BPM053906 Team Cyquent’s Questions to Maryland Department of Labor - Maryland Workforce Exchange (MWE)

SaaS

Maryland Workforce Exchange (MWE) SaaS for the Maryland Department of Labor

General Questions

1. Response Scope Clarification

• Vendors should respond to both Section 3 (Potential Scope of Services) and

Section 4 (Requested Information). Section 7 references Section 3 as context, but formal response prompts and required information are captured in Section 4.

2. Future Procurement Intent

• MD Labor anticipates a subsequent procurement process following this RFI.

The specific vehicle (RFP, TORFP, or other) and release timeline are under internal review and will be communicated in future procurement notices.

3. Reference Materials

• Yes. Vendors may include case studies or project references from other state workforce, labor exchange, or case management implementations as part of the response.

4. Presentation Scheduling Clarification o Presentation details will be updated and clarified in the RFI.

Cloud Hosting and Infrastructure

5. Cloud Hosting Preference

• MD Labor does not have a specific hosting platform preference. Vendors may propose a FedRAMP-compliant environment (AWS GovCloud, Azure GovCloud, GCP, or vendor-managed) that meets federal and state security requirements.

6. SaaS Deployment Model

• The State is open to multi-tenant, single-tenant, or hybrid SaaS solutions.

Vendor proposals should describe the deployment model and associated security, performance, and customization considerations.

7. Data Residency Requirements

• All data must be hosted within U.S. boundaries. Maryland requires that PII and workforce data remain under U.S. jurisdiction; no international hosting is permitted.

Existing System Landscape and Integration

8. Existing Technical Stack

• The current MWE is vendor-hosted and SaaS-delivered. It includes Front-End, Back-End, Database, Hosting, Integration with UI and Interview vendors, Reporting, Security, and Test/Development environments. Specific

SaaS programming languages and platform details are proprietary to the current vendor.

9. Integration Documentation

• Documentation for current integrations (UI, Unemployment Insurance, Interview Skills vendor) will be available to prospective vendors during subsequent procurement phases.

10. Integration Middleware

• No separate middleware platform is currently in use. Integration is handled within the vendor-provided SaaS solution.

11. Data Warehouse / ETL Tools

• Legacy data is managed in SQL databases and backups; no enterprise ETL tool is mandated. Vendors may propose ETL/data warehouse approaches compatible with reporting and analytics needs.

12. Reporting and Analytics Tools

• Current tools include SQL-based reports and Power BI integration. Vendors should support USDOL federal reporting (Titles I, III, ETPL, Apprenticeship) and standard case management and executive reports.

13. Enterprise Document Management

• No enterprise document management system is currently mandated. Any document storage solution proposed by the vendor should support standard file formats (PDF, DOCX, TIFF) and secure storage.

14. Identity Provider (IdP)

• Single Sign-On is currently provided via integration with MD BEACON. Vendors should describe IdP integration options, including SAML, OAuth, or OIDC.

15. E-Signature Tool

• No specific e-signature tool is mandated. Vendors may propose solutions compatible with standard electronic signature platforms.

16. Productivity Suite Integration

• Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace are utilized by Maryland State Government.

17. Master Data Management (MDM)

• MD stores backup files and shares system data with the MLDS data warehouse.

18. Eligibility Systems

• Integration with the MD BEACON unemployment system is required.

SaaS

Data Migration and Legacy Transition

19. Scope of Data Migration

• Migration will include full historical data from the current MWE system, subject to relevance and compliance requirements.

20. Document Migration

• Document migration is required. Data formats will include PDF, DOCX, and TIFF.

21. Parallel Operations

• A parallel run may be conducted to validate data integrity and system performance prior to full cutover.

22. Implementation Approach Preference

• Maryland expects the vendor to deliver a fully built SaaS solution ready for deployment as a comprehensive integrated system.

Functional Capabilities and Enhancements

23. Multilingual Support

• English and Spanish are required. Other languages may be provided via tools such as Google Translate.

24. Social Media Integration

• The current vendor provides social media posting on multiple platforms.

25. Case Management Enhancements

• AI-assisted recommendations (e.g., candidate-job matching) are encouraged as optional enhancements.

26. AI/ML Capabilities

• Vendors may propose predictive analytics, skill gap analysis, labor market forecasting, or resume parsing features.

27. Mobile Accessibility

• Section 508 compliance is the minimum standard.

28. Mobile App

• The current vendor provides both a responsive web interface and a mobile app. The mobile app supports registration, job search, LMI, and event sign-up for job seekers.

SaaS

29. External User Authentication

• Vendor proposals should describe authentication options. Current authentication is handled within the SaaS solution.

30. External System Integrations

• Integrations include the UI system, LMI database, and external interview vendor.

Non-Functional and Operational Questions

31. Expected User Base

• Primary users include staff, employers, job seekers, and training providers. FY 2024 data provides approximate volumes (RFI Section 2.2.3).

32. Performance Expectations

• The system must provide fast, accurate, and responsive run times.

33. Help Desk Scope

• MD Labor will provide Level 1 support. The vendor will support Levels 2 and 3 and full support for any critical reported issues.

34. Security and Compliance Frameworks

• Systems must adhere to federal and state security standards. Vendor will be provided MD DoIT security standards.

35. Audit and Logging Requirements

• Audit trails and logging must support compliance reporting for all USDOL/WIOA programs, including security events, data access, and administrative actions.

Documentation and Reference Material

36. System Interface Specifications

• API specifications will be provided under NDA during subsequent procurement phases.

37. Data Standards and Models

• Vendors should adopt WIOA Data Element Specifications, JSON/XML-based APIs, and any State-defined workforce data models.

38. User Volumes & Transaction History

• FY 2024 volumes are provided in RFI Section 2.2.3.

SaaS

Future Vision and Roadmap

39. Scalability Expectations

• Maryland may expand to include other partners, but no expansion is anticipated at this time.

40. Continuous Improvement

• A continuous improvement cycle (e.g., quarterly releases, feature sprints) is desired post go-live, leveraging vendor-provided enhancements and staff-requested improvements.

41. Data Sharing and Open APIs

• Yes. Data sharing agreements exist with local partners and other state agencies, such as the MLDS data warehouse.