Third Party Call Center RFP

Long Beach Utilities is requesting proposals for third-party call center services to support customer service calls related to utility customer arrearage assistance, with proposals due January 23, 2023 at 12:00 p.m. Pacific Time and a mandatory pre-proposal meeting on January 10, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. The selected vendor must be based onshore in the United States, and in-person attendance at the mandatory pre-proposal meeting is required with no exceptions — proposals from non-attendees will be returned unopened.

The scope encompasses inbound and outbound calls for approximately 12,000 to 15,000 calls per month Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Pacific Standard Time, supporting water, gas, sewer, and refuse billing inquiries with focus on payment arrangements and high-bill complaints. The vendor must establish a centralized call center facility (not work-from-home) staffed with a minimum of 11 full-time agents and 2 lead-level agents capable of handling both English and Spanish language calls (approximately 90% English, 10% Spanish). The vendor must provide its own hardware and integrate with Long Beach Utilities' existing Oracle CC&B v2.7 and Cisco telecommunications systems. Call recordings must be maintained for the contract duration, and quality assurance requires 2–3 call reviews per week per agent with quarterly performance evaluations. Weekly reports are standard; daily reports available upon request.

The initial contract term is six months from Notice to Proceed, with two optional six-month extension periods by mutual agreement. The contract start date is late March 2023 following a 2–3 week training period. No incumbent provider exists; Long Beach Utilities has not disclosed a projected budget or previous spending data. Vendors may propose fixed price, hourly, or alternative fee structures, with training time invoiceable separately or absorbed by the vendor.

Evaluation weighs proposer and staff expertise (20 points), past performance (20 points), work methodology (35 points), and cost reasonableness (25 points). MBE/WBE status receives preferential consideration. Vendors must demonstrate minimum five years of consecutive recent experience in third-party call center services. Questions are due January 16, 2023 at 10:00 a.m., with responses posted January 17 at 3:00 p.m. The anticipated award date is early February 2023.