Emergency Notice - Cutover and Data Conversion Support

The State of Illinois, through the Chief Procurement Office for General Services and on behalf of the Illinois Office of the Comptroller (IOC), is conducting an emergency procurement for cutover and data conversion support services related to the Statewide Accounting Management System (SAMS) Modernization Project (SMOD). This emergency procurement is justified under the category "To ensure integrity of State records" due to the imminent need for specialized expertise within a compressed project timeline. The required services include expert guidance for cutover planning and execution, oversight of data conversion processes, data mapping, mock conversion validation, and post-conversion data integrity verification. The selected vendor will assign a Cut-over and Data Conversion Lead to serve as an active member of the SMOD project team, applying best practices to support business continuity and stakeholder alignment while providing bi-weekly progress reports to the SMOD Project Manager. The contract period is 90 days with an expected start date of March 12, 2026, and an estimated end date of June 9, 2026. The due date for proposals is June 9, 2026, and evaluation criteria focus on specialized expertise in data conversion methodology and prior partnership experience with similar modernization initiatives.

The State of Illinois has designated Gartner, Inc. as the incumbent vendor for this emergency procurement, selected based on the vendor's prior partnership experience through an expired NASPO master contract and demonstrated specialized expertise in data conversion methodology. The emergency procurement was pursued rather than waiting for a new NASPO participating addendum due to unanticipated delays in addendum completion, and the agency determined that the short-term nature of the purchasing cycle precluded establishing partnerships with Business Enterprise Program certified vendors with verifiable cutover and data conversion experience. The total contract value is $198,000 in actual expenditures, funded through state appropriated funds, with Gartner honoring NASPO pricing for this emergency engagement. The procurement is structured to integrate with the existing SAMS Modernization Project infrastructure and requires the vendor to work directly with the IOC and SMOD project team to ensure seamless data transition and system integrity.