Pre-Advertisement Notice for Background & Recruitment File Management System

The City of Atlanta, on behalf of the Atlanta Police Department and Atlanta Fire Rescue Department, is conducting a Competitive Sealed Bidding process to procure a secure, cloud-based Background & Recruitment Electronic File Management System (EFMS), with a pre-solicitation conference to be noticed and Phase 1 qualification submissions due October 5, 2026. The procurement follows a two-phase structure: Phase 1 Pass/Fail Qualification and System Demonstration, followed by Phase 2 Invitation for Bid. No set-aside or preference program is identified.

Offerors must demonstrate a minimum of three years of relevant experience providing, implementing, and supporting electronic recruitment, applicant tracking, background investigation, or file management software systems. Evidence of at least three comparable project implementations within the past five years is required, with at least one completed for a public-sector, law-enforcement, public-safety, fire/rescue, or similarly regulated organization. Phase 1 qualification is pass/fail; only qualified offerors advance to the mandatory system demonstration, which is also pass/fail and assesses capability to perform critical functions including candidate intake and profile management, end-to-end application processing, electronic document upload and management, configurable workflows, background investigation processing, multi-user access controls, self-service portal functionality, search and filtering, dashboard and reporting, automated notifications, and capacity to support 15,000 to 20,000 APD applicants and 500 to 1,000 AFRD applicants annually.

The EFMS must be cloud-based with comprehensive document management supporting multiple file formats, real-time record accessibility, user security roles for sensitive applicant data protection, and integration with Outlook/Exchange for schedule management. Technical support during normal business hours is required; 24/7 emergency support is optional. The anticipated project timeline spans 90 to 180 days from contract execution across five phases: requirements gathering and system design (2–4 weeks), system configuration and development (6–8 weeks), testing and user acceptance (4 weeks), training and go-live (2 weeks), and post-implementation support.

Phase 2 cost sheet requires itemized pricing across seven categories (Software Licenses/SaaS Subscription, Implementation and Configuration, Data Migration, Integrations/API, Training, Maintenance and Technical Support, Other Required Costs) for Year 1, Year 2, Year 3, and two optional renewal years. Insurance requirements include Network Security and Privacy Policy coverage of $5 million, Professional Liability of $2 million per occurrence with three-year Extended Reporting Provision, and Commercial General Liability of $1 million per occurrence ($2 million aggregate).