Grants management software

Coastal Carolina University, through the State of South Carolina's Fiscal Accountability Authority, Division of Procurement Services, is seeking a comprehensive hosted grants management software system for its Office of Sponsored Programs and Research Services. The procurement aims to acquire a solution that supports the entire grant lifecycle, including proposal development, routing, submission management, award creation and management, reporting, customizable dashboards, and system administration. The Request for Proposal (RFP), issued on December 13, 2018, requires vendors to provide a system with specific technical capabilities such as seamless integration with Ellucian Datatel (Colleague) ERP system, SAML ADFS single sign-on authentication, 99 percent uptime, ADA 508 compliance, GDPR compliance, and robust security controls. Proposal submissions were due on February 13, 2019, at 11:00 a.m., with vendors required to submit both technical and price proposals. The evaluation process will be conducted in two phases, with Phase I scoring technical capability (55 points), experience (25 points), and price (20 points), followed by Phase II demonstrations for qualified offerors (25 points). The estimated contract term is five years, beginning April 8, 2019, and ending April 7, 2024, with one initial year and four optional one-year renewal periods.

The RFP does not explicitly mention specific set-aside designations or restrictions on responding organizations. Vendors are required to demonstrate substantial experience, with technical proposals mandating references from at least three university or college clients. The software must integrate with existing Ellucian Datatel systems and human resources platforms without requiring custom scripts from the university. Potential contractors must provide comprehensive implementation services, including licensing, training, integration, and customization for the first year, followed by maintenance support for subsequent years. While specific budget ranges are not detailed in the documents, vendors must provide line-item pricing for implementation and ongoing maintenance. The procurement requires rigorous security assessments, including a detailed Security Provider Assessment Questionnaire that evaluates information security practices, encryption standards, disaster recovery plans, and third-party security certifications such as ISO/IEC 27001 or AICPA SOC 2 compliance. The contract will be awarded to the highest-ranked responsive and responsible offeror based on the comprehensive evaluation criteria.