TEMP STAFFING IFB QUESTIONS.docx

Mississippi Department of Employment Security Tate Reeves Governor

William J. Ashley, PhD Executive Director

Consolidated Questions and Answers Temporary Staffing Services RFx 3160006789

1. How many positions were used in year 2021, 2022 and 2023? In 2021 we 175 positions filled, 2022 70 positions filled, and 2023 83 positions filled.

2. How many positions are currently used in a single day? Please give rough estimate. Between 70 to 95 positions are used.

3. How many positions will be required per year or throughout the contract term? Depends on Agency needs

4. What types of positions are being sought for the RFP? Mostly Benefit Specialist I

5. How many incumbents are going to be hired from each position. It depends on needs of the agency current needs

6. Is this a new contract or are there any incumbents? Incumbent. If there is an incumbent, could you please let us know the incumbent name and pricing and are the incumbents eligible to submit the proposal again? Professional Staffing. Anyone can submit a proposal.

7. Would it be possible to obtain information about their performance and any areas where the MDES seeks improvement? No.

8. Will you award this contract to the lowest responsive bidders? Please confirm. Lowest bid and company that can provide they can do the work

9. Is this a re-compete RFP? No

10. May we attend the bid opening meeting in-person? Yes

11. How many vendors will be awarded? This is a single award contract

12. How will job requests be shared among multiple awarded vendors? Please see answer to question 12

13. Is there any ranking system for sharing job requests among awarded vendors such as primary bidder, secondary bidder, and then other awarded bidders? Please see answer to question 12

14. Beyond the timely provision of qualified staff, are there any additional performance metrics or key performance indicators that the MDES uses to evaluate staffing vendors? Please see Section 5 – Basis for Award in IFB 2024-03

15. Can you share details from where we can get old RFP details? https://www.ms.gov/dfa/contract_bid_search/Bid?autoloadGrid=False

16. When was the existing contract started? The existing contract started 01/01/2020

17. What is the tentative start date of this engagement? 01/01/25

18. How many awards were made in the Past? There have been 5 awards in the past.

19. What are the current billable hourly rates or percentage mark-up rates? Currently There is currently about a 15% mark-up rate

20. Are hourly rate ranges acceptable? Yes

21. Can we provide hourly rate ranges in the price proposal? Yes

22. How much was spent (dollar value) on this service last year? Laat year MDES spent $2,983,545.32

23. Is there any mandatory subcontracting requirement for this contract? If yes, Is there any specific goal for the subcontracting? No

24. Is there any issue that the agency is currently facing with the incumbents? Questions relative to IFB 2024-03 are reserved for clarification or technical inquiries.

25. How much is intended to be spent (dollar value) once the contract is awarded?

26. What is the anticipated budget for the RFP? An estimated $2.5 million

27. What are the estimated funds that are estimated to be allocated for this contract? An estimated $2.5 million per year

28. Is there a Prevailing/Living wage requirement associated with this project? No

29. Does the MDES prefer working with small or veteran-owned businesses? Questions relative to IFB 2024-03 are reserved for clarification or technical inquiries.

30. Are additional points awarded to firms who are or have Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) partners? Questions relative to IFB 2024-03 are reserved for clarification or technical inquiries.

31. Would you be accepting references from large commercial entities? Yes

32. Is it mandatory to have a State of Mississippi business license to participate? The bidder must be registered to conduct business in the State of Mississippi. If not yet registered, the bidder must clearly indicate it will be registered within seven (7) business days of being offered an award

33. Will the agency be giving any preference to local vendors? Please confirm. Questions relative to IFB 2024-03 are reserved for clarification or technical inquiries.

34. To be responsive, is it mandatory to have physical office in the State of Mississippi? Please confirm. No. The bidder must be registered to conduct business in the State of Mississippi. If not yet registered, the bidder must clearly indicate it will be registered within seven (7) business days of being offered an award

35. Are resumes required at the time of proposal submission? If yes, Do we need to submit the actual resumes for proposed candidates or can we submit the sample resumes? Please see Section 8 – Bid Submission Format and Requirements of IFB 2024-03

36. Would the state department accept experience with the Federal government, specifically with the VA? Yes

37. Can you please provide all the job titles? We mostly hire Employment Specialists I’s, Employment Specialists II’s, Administrative Assistants, and Staff Officer I any other positions are up to the Agency needs.

38. What is the work location of the proposed candidates? Mostly onsite with some potential of travel.

39. Is it entirely onsite work or can it be done remotely to some extent / Does the services need to be delivered onsite or is there a possibility for remote operations and performance? Mostly onsite with some potential of travel.

40. Which is the most filled category? Please share. Please see answer to question 5

41. Can you please provide Job descriptions and qualification for all the categories? Each positions Job description and qualifications by locations and department within MDES but will not be out of the scope of work provided in Section 4 – Scope of Work in IFB 2024-03

42. While the IFB outlines several categories of positions, are any particular skill sets or certifications in high demand or particularly challenging? None are particularly challenging assignments primarily involve filing and general office duties.

43. What would be the estimated hours for all the positions? 8:00 am to 5:00 pm

44. Does the MDES have specific requirements or preferences regarding the background check process? The contractor will be expected to perform both Tier 1 and Tier 2 background checks on temporary staffing employees. The level requested will depend on the position. Tier 1 is for non-sensitive, low risk positions while Tier 2 is considered moderate public trust positions.

45. Please confirm minimum guaranteed hours per week for these positions. The positions are 39 to 40 hours per week

46. What is weekend and holiday shift work rate policy of County such as 1.5-time standard hourly rate? Please confirm. Positions do not require weekend and holiday shifts.

47. Are these long-term scheduled assignments or will the schedule change on a daily or weekly basis for each position? Mostly considered long term assignments.

48. Could you please provide the list of holidays?

49. Are there any mandated Paid Time Off, Vacation, etc.? No

50. Do we have to provide Sample Insurance Certificate with the proposal response? Please confirm. If not already included in its bis submission, Contractor shall submit to Agency within seven (7) days of notification of intent to award.

51. To be responsive, is it mandatory to provide audited financial statements? Please confirm. No. Contractor must be financially stable or solvent. The bid must include copies of the last two (2) years financial statements or financial documentation.

52. Can we provide CA certified financial statements or DUNS and BRAD Street Report? Please confirm. Yes

53. Will bidder be responsible for providing qualified staff and managing payroll of professionals or the Department will manage the projects? Please confirm. Yes, the bidder will be responsible for providing qualified staff and managing payroll. Also Provide itemized invoices at an interval (weekly, bi-weekly, etc.) chosen by the Agency

54. Are electronic signatures accepted? Yes

55. Can you please explain the specific requirements of each of the tiered background checks. The contractor will be expected to perform both Tier 1 and Tier 2 background checks on temporary staffing employees. The level requested will depend on the position. Tier 1 is for non-sensitive, low risk positions while Tier 2 is considered moderate public trust positions.

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