DWA-Questions & Answers on Implementation RFP
Below are questions and answers about the San Diego City Schools RFP for implementation and system integration of the DWA Human Resources and Financial systems.
| Q # | Question | Sec# | Pg # | Para # | Response | Submitter |
| 1 | What are the proposed Peoplesoft services responsibilities (especially as it relates to training, consulting, and project management responsibilities (if any)? | I | 4 | A | PeopleSoft will be responsible for delivering functional and technical training to the core project team. The SI should include in their cost proposal for required services the cost to develop end-user training documentation, curriculum, and tool/process for maintenance of documentation. Under optional services, the SI should include the cost to perform end user training. | IBM |
| 2 | Contract negotiation period begins before Proposer evaluation/selection ends. Please clarify. | I | 5 | D | In order to meet tight deadlines, contract negotiations with selected SI's will be done in parallel. | IBM |
| 3 | Does the District intend to award multiple contracts? If so, is there an idea of how this might be split up? | I | 14 | CC | The district will not be awarding multiple system integration contracts for the PeopleSoft implementation. | IBM |
| 4 | Weekly status meetings are required. Are formal project status reports also required weekly? | I | 17 | KK | Formal project status reports are considered part of the weekly status reporting. | IBM |
| 5 | Have you defined the desired milestones/deliverables to be part of the payment schedule? Or is that open? | I | 18 | KK | The payment schedule and associated milestones are negotiable depending on the SI's implementation methodology and other factors. | IBM |
| 6 | Is the data in Table 2 currently being tracked in the Student Information System? What kind of data is being tracked, besides student name and the activity? | II | 22 | D | The student information system being selected and implemented tracks all relevant student data. There will be some interfaces between the PeopleSoft system and the Student Information System. | IBM |
| 7 | In order to guarantee system response time of two seconds or less, 98 percent of the time and system availability of 99.9 percent, can you provide an analysis of current technical infrastructure/architecture, including statistics of past performance? | II | 25 | B | The entire district infrastructure is undergoing an upgrade. Existing performance statistics are not the best criteria for basing a forward looking estimate. The District is acquiring hardware architecture requirements through PeopleSoft. We are looking for the System Integrator to provide a similar analysis to ensure that we have appropriate infrastructure to support adequate performance for PeopleSoft. | IBM |
| 8 | What is the estimated timing of purchasing the PeopleSoft software application? What is the estimated timing of having the PeopleSoft Software installed and certified on the development environment? | I | 25 | D | The estimated timeline for the installation of PeopleSoft is the end of October 2002. | IBM |
| 9 | Is historical data to be converted into PeopleSoft and viewed there, or converted and archived, or does the District require the ability to access this data in their legacy system? | II | 26 | D | The SI will not be asked to write any applications to access data in the legacy environment. The District does expect the SI to assist with the movement of historical data to PeopleSoft and the Enterprise Warehouse. | IBM |
| 10 | Of the proposed 1500 Purchasing transaction users, what percentage are professional buyers (as opposed to more casual requisitioners)? | II | 26 | D | Approximately 30 users are professional buyers. The rest of the users will be processing requisition requests or performing other Purchasing related inquiries. | IBM |
| 11 | When will the Quality Assurance (QA) RFP be issued and will there be a similar QA requirement and RFP for the Student Information System Implementation? | II | 27 | E | Not relevant to this RFP. | IBM |
| 12 | What is the proposed PeopleSoft training schedule/plan and the type and amount of training resources being procured by the district directly from PeopleSoft? Is the District just purchasing training credits for public classes, or are they also purchasing customized end-user training development and delivery? | II | 28 | E | PeopleSoft will be responsible for delivering functional and technical training to the core project team. The SI should include in their cost proposal for required services the cost to develop end-user training documentation, curriculum, and tool/process for maintenance of documentation. Under optional services, the SI should include the cost to perform end user training. | IBM |
| 13 | When will the Quality Assurance (QA) RFP be issued and will there be a similar QA requirement and RFP for the Student Information System Implementation? | II | 28 | E | Not relevant to this RFP. | IBM |
| 14 | "PeopleSoft is responsible for training of the District Project Team and End-User Trainers," is there a limit on the number of team members and end-users to be trained by PeopleSoft? Will they be trained on all the modules - HRMS, FMS and Enterprise Portals? What training is PeopleSoft doing vs. the integrator. | II | 28 | E | PeopleSoft will be responsible for delivering functional and technical training to the core project team. The SI should include in their cost proposal for required services the cost to develop end-user training documentation, curriculum, and tool/process for maintenance of documentation. Under optional services, the SI should include the cost to perform end user training. | IBM |
| 15 | Does the district have an issue tracking tool in place? If so, what is it? | III | 30 | A.1.2.2 | The district has a Microsoft Access based issue tracking tool in place. We expect the SI to have a tool for issue tracking incorporated into their methodology. Existing issues / decisions may be ported to the SI's tool upon commencement of implementation. | IBM |
| 16 | What is the Microsoft Office version levels specified by the District? | III | 31 | A.1.2.3.a | Microsoft Office 2000 is the current standard. Some users are still running older versions, but a migration is underway. | IBM |
| 17 | Can the "workbooks" be electronic? | III | 31 | A.1.2.3.I | Workbooks and other documents may be electronic, unless otherwise specified as deliverables which must be produced in the contract. | IBM |
| 18 | Do User Manuals need to be kept up do date? How frequently do they need to be revised? | III | 37 | C | The training manuals will need to be frequently updated by the District as the business processes change. | IBM |
| 19 | We assume "Change Management" in this section refers to technical change management as opposed to organizational change management? Please clarify. | III | 37 | A.1.7 | This requirement relates to organizational change management. | IBM |
| 20 | Can you clarify this further? | II | 38 | 6b | The System Integrator will be responsible for providing the district with system (infrastructure) requirements necessary to support the implementation. | IBM |
| 21 | Since the Contractor shall work with the PeopleSoft vendor in the customization of training manuals, who will be responsible for this task? | III | 39 | 8 | The System Integrator will be responsible for the update of training materials | IBM |
| 22 | What PeopleSoft End-User training and support materials are currently owned by the District? | III | 39 | 8d | The District does not currently own any PeopleSoft training and support materials. Negotiations for these items are in process as part of the software contract negotiation with PeopleSoft. | IBM |
| 23 | Will PeopleSoft or the integrator customize the training materials? Who will be providing the training? Will this be a train-the-trainer approach? | III | 39 | A.8.d | PeopleSoft will be responsible for delivering functional and technical training to the core project team. The SI should include in their cost proposal for required services the cost to develop end-user training documentation, curriculum, and tool/process for maintenance of documentation. Under optional services, the SI should include the cost to perform end user training. | IBM |
| 24 | Is higher education experience included? | V | 49 | 5.5 | Higher Education experience may be considered as one of several evaluation criteria. | IBM |
| 25 | Is PeopleSoft being guaranteed a 15% footprint with any selected integrator? | IV | 50 | 6.8 | The District is interested in having PeopleSoft involved throughout the implementation, including participation in 'go-live' assessments. PeopleSoft, however, is not guaranteed 15 percent of the implementation services contract. | IBM |
| 26 | Are there any restrictions or initiatives that could impact the timing of Go-lives and other project milestones? Are there any periods or months the district wants us to work around in scheduling Go-Lives? | IV | 52 | C.1.1 | The PeopleSoft implementation is a very high priority within the district. Although there are some dates more favorable for a go-live, there are no dates an SI needs to plan around. | IBM |
| 27 | What other projects or initiatives going on at the District will potentially impact the PeopleSoft Implementation project or compete for resources during the same timeframe? | IV | 52 | C.1.1 | The PeopleSoft implementation will not be impacted by resource conflicts during the same time frame. | IBM |
| 28 | What experiences has the District had using a train-the-trainer delivery approach to any similar end-user training endeavors? | IV | 53 | 8 | The District has a training staff in place. There are plans in process to substantially increase the District's training capabilities. | IBM |
| 29 | What experiences has the District had using non-traditional (web-based training, eLearning) delivery methods for end-user training? | IV | 53 | 8 | The District has limited experience with non-traditional (web-based, e-learning) delivery methods, but an increased internal training capability is in development. | IBM |
| 30 | What training development and delivery tools does the District typically use? | IV | 53 | 8 | The District has traditional training materials, and several state of the art classrooms currently available for end user training. | IBM |
| 31 | Is the District interested in the ability to track end-user training information (scores, sessions attended), and the ability to run reports on that information? | IV | 53 | 8 | The District will be implementing the PeopleSoft Training Administration module, and will be tracking internally delivered training. | IBM |
| 32 | What are the District's plans for maintaining and upgrading training materials in the post go-live environment? | IV | 53 | 8 | There are plans in process to substantially increase the District's training capabilities. The District expects the SI to assist with the development of training materials specifically related to the configuration and use of PeopleSoft at the District. | IBM |
| 33 | What will the district be contributing in terms of staffing for the project (numbers of SME's, skills)? Or What is the desired level of district staffing/involvement by business process and skill area? | IV | 53 | C.1.3.6 | There will be a full time Project Director, a full time Project Manager, a full time HR Manager, a full time Financial Manager, 4 additional full time SME's (2 functional, 2 technical) for HR, and 4 additional full time SME's (2 functional, 2 technical) for Finance (12 total full time). Additional resources will be available to the project team as required. This project is a high priority within the District. | IBM |
| 34 | Is this organizational change management? Or technical change management? | IV | 54 | C.1.7 | This requirement relates to organizational change management. | IBM |
| 35 | What is the desired amount of post go-live support? (timing and activities) | III | 57 | 11 | A minimum of 6 weeks post go-live support is anticipated. This should not include the entire implementation staff, but key personnel to assist the District through major milestones (period closes, key report generation, etc). As such, the post go-live support may involve non-contiguous assistance. | IBM |
| 36 | Need more detailed information on each one of these to be able to accurately estimate level of effort required. | B | 92 | Table 4 - Existing Applications - is provided to list all systems in use to help SI's identify the types of business processes currently used by the District. Table 5a - Lists systems expected to remain in place after the implementation. If at all possible, these systems will be replaced by PeopleSoft functionality. | IBM | |
| 37 | Not clear which of the current applications listed are in scope and are expected to be replaced by PeopleSoft. Need more information on these systems. | C | 92 | An Addendum to the RFP was published 8/16/02 providing a high level implementation plan. | IBM | |
| 38 | Does the District have any preference or Business Need as to the order in which their current applications are migrated to PeopleSoft? | C | 97 | The core HR and Financial PeopleSoft modules will be implemented first. Additional modules and functionality may be implemented as part of future phase operations. An Addendum to the RFP was published 8/16/02 providing a high level implementation plan. | IBM | |
| 39 | Current SDUSD Applications Environment - For those applications maintained externally by a Vendor, what level of involvement are they to have (SLA etc…)? | C | 97 | The SI will not be responsible for any SLA's for applications maintained by an outside vendor. | IBM | |
| 40 | It would be helpful to know more about these interfaces - type of data and frequency. | E | 101 | Table 5b | The interfaces in Table 5b are mainly reports and text files extracted to meet regulatory requirements. It is expected that these extracts will be available from the PeopleSoft tables directly or the Enterprise Warehouse | IBM |
| 41 | Need more detailed information on each one of these (both internal and external) to be able to accurately estimate level of effort required. | E | 108 | Data Conversion. The District has significant data cleansing efforts in process. The District expects the selected SI to provide expert knowledge of PeopleSoft table structures and data elements. Estimates for interfaces and data conversion may be refined during contact negotiations with down-selected prospects. | IBM | |
| 42 | Are these tables one's for archive and conversion OR archive only? If for conversion, then is this a complete list? | F | 113 | The District provided as complete a profile as possible for all data tables currently in use. There are data cleansing and pre-conversion activities in process. | IBM | |
| 43 | Archive & Conversion Requirements - Would want to know how many tables we would be converting, size of these tables, data integrity, data cleansing (since the data is coming from multiple systems, how tight is the data). Does the district have plans on using a tool like CONVOY? | F | 113 | The District does not plan on using Convoy, but there is a significant effort currently underway (3-4 full time technical resources) to accomplish data cleansing prior to the start of the implementation. | IBM | |
| 44 | Does SDUSD intend to implement PeopleSoft Workflow? If so, for which business processes? | 2 | The District intends to implement Workflow for a limited number of PeopleSoft processes. The District expects the SI to provide knowledge transfer and training documentation to District team members for implementing additional workflow processes in the future. | KPMG | ||
| 45 | What types of manual calculation being performed? | 23 | As stated in the software RFP, there are numerous manual calculations performed throughout the HR, Payroll, and Financial systems. It is expected that most of these manual calculations will be replaced by PeopleSoft functionality. | KPMG | ||
| 46 | Does current SDUSD hardware meet baseline PeopleSoft recommendations? | 24 | The entire district infrastructure is undergoing an upgrade. Existing performance statistics are not the best criteria for basing a forward looking estimate. The District is acquiring hardware architecture requirements through PeopleSoft. We are looking for the System Integrator to provide a similar analysis to ensure that we have appropriate infrastructure to support adequate performance for PeopleSoft. | KPMG | ||
| 47 | Does SDUSD use existing hardware, operating system, and database software, or plan to look at the best of breed? | 24 | The District will be using SQL Server 2000 as the database. The operating system will be Windows 2000. The District hardware infrastructure is currently in the process of an upgrade. | KPMG | ||
| 48 | Does SDUSD plan to maintain legacy systems? Will there be any upstream and downstream feeds to other systems that will still exist post go-live? | 24 | There are some legacy systems that will remain in place. It is expected that the majority of business systems will be replaced by PeopleSoft. Some ancillary systems (Badges, fingerprinting) will remain in place. | KPMG | ||
| 49 | What is SDUSD's definition of system response time? | 24 | Section 6.6 on page 50 of the RFP states: "Response time is defined as the time elapsed between depressing the “Enter” key and the appearance of data requested or the next screen during data entry tasks and direct or indexed inquiries." | KPMG | ||
| 50 | For system maintenance, does SDUSD plan to meet 99.9% for 24 hours/7days or the working hours? Are we allowing down time for batch processing and system maintenance activities? | 25 | System availability of 99.9% refers to scheduled availability. Scheduled downtime includes, but is not limited to, hardware maintenance, software maintenance, and batch activities that require the online system to be down. | KPMG | ||
| 51 | For purge archived strategy, do users need to access to archived data 99.9% of time as well? | 25 | Archived data will not need to have the same access as converted "live" data. | KPMG | ||
| 52 | How much of historical data needs to be converted? How many years of historical data SDUSD need to convert? | 26 | Generally, SDUSD will keep 5 years of data in history prior to purging to archive. However, some data retention requirements are regulated by ed code. | KPMG | ||
| 53 | How many of the system users access more than one application? Do system users access both HRMS and Financial systems? | 26 | Some users access multiple applications most users profiled in the RFP access more than just one application. Several users will require access to both HR and Financial systems. | KPMG | ||
| 54 | Does SDUSD have specific time constraints for this implementation that we should be aware of? | 27 | The core HR and Financial PeopleSoft modules will be implemented first. Additional modules and functionality may be implemented as part of future phase operations. An Addendum to the RFP was published 8/16/02 providing a high level implementation plan. There are no specific date requirements which must be worked around within the planned time frames. | KPMG | ||
| 55 | What are the roles, responsibilities and resources for SDUSD application support staff? | 32 | There is a full time team assigned to the implementation. During the implementation, existing support staff will be involved to accomplish knowledge transfer to enable District staff to provide most PeopleSoft support after go-live. | KPMG | ||
| 56 | How will the most recent administrative directive impact the project? Will overtime for SDUSD team members allowed/approved? | 32 | There will be a budget for the planned hours of full time District personnel assigned to this project. | KPMG | ||
| 57 | We would like to confirm Modification #15 in Appendix B. SDUSD has mentioned PeopleSoft's eProcurement and inventory module to be implemented. Would this interface be necessary, since eProcurement and inventory are already integrated? | 88 | It is not anticipated that any additional interfaces between PeopleSoft eProcurement and Inventory will need to be created. | KPMG | ||
| 58 | For Modification #17 and 18, will SDUSD still continue the use of TOO-LOO system to maintain text book data? | 88 | Yes, these systems will remain in place. | KPMG | ||
| 59 | For Modification #21, will SDUSD be purchasing a third-party POS system? | 89 | It is likely that a third party POS system will be acquired. | KPMG | ||
| 60 | Are there any existing systems that SDUSD must retain (from Appendix C: Current SDUSD Applications Environment list)? | 91 | Table 4 - Existing Applications - is provided to list all systems in use to help SI's identify the types of business processes currently used by the District. Table 5a - Lists systems expected to remain in place after the implementation. If at all possible, these systems will be replaced by PeopleSoft functionality. | KPMG | ||
| 61 | Are printer requirements sufficient? | N/A | The District is in the process of a hardware and infrastructure analysis. | KPMG | ||
| ASSUMPTIONS TO BE CLARIFIED/CONFIRMED: #62-74 | ||||||
| 62 | PeopleSoft Environment will be physical three-tier. Recommend that each of the PeopleSoft Environment, has it's own physical three tier architecture. This will allow each environment to meet the pre-requisite of 99.9 uptime. The PeopleSoft environments can utilize and share development and QA hardware for fail-over and system performance. Hardware should also be replicated for disaster recovery needs. | Confirmed. The testing and deployment of 3-tier and n-tier environments will be part of the implementation scope. | KPMG | |||
| 63 | Third Party Batch Scheduler (Autosys, Control-M) for report\process scheduling is for daily, weekly and monthly processing. | The delivered scheduling tools in PeopleSoft will be used for scheduling batch jobs. | KPMG | |||
| 64 | Client will provide\purchase any Performance\Monitoring Software for systems. | Confirmed | KPMG | |||
| 65 | Users are all local to San Diego location. | Most users are local to San Diego. After implementation, it is expected that users will be able to access the system through the web using appropriate security. | KPMG | |||
| 66 | SDUSD will provide technical support and development resources for future Help Desk Support. | Confirmed | KPMG | |||
| 67 | Hardware to support multiple PeopleSoft HRMS, Financials, and Portal environments includes: Production;QA; Test; Development; Demo\Vanilla; Patch\Baseline | Confirmed. The SI and the District will determine the necessary environments to support the implementation. | KPMG | |||
| 68 | There is analysis of reporting needs and requirements (SQR, Nvision, and Crystal) | A mapping of AS-IS requirements is in process. The SI will be expected to assist the district in determining existing matches in PeopleSoft. | KPMG | |||
| 69 | PeopleSoft Supported\Recommended Web Servers WebSphere or Web logic will be implemented. | Confirmed | KPMG | |||
| 70 | San Diego Unified Schools will provide dedicated technical project resources: Database Administrator resource; PeopleSoft Administrator resource; Hardware\Network resource | Confirmed | KPMG | |||
| 71 | SDUSD technical resources will obtain KPMG\PeopleSoft-recommended training courses to gain a stronger understanding of applications. | The SI will be expected to augment the PeopleSoft training taken by the District staff. | KPMG | |||
| 72 | SDUSD will help design a timeline that outlines requirements and recommendations for legacy system migrations. | Confirmed | KPMG | |||
| 73 | KPMG and SDUSD will decide upon a Quality Assurance process. | SDUSD will decide on a Quality Assurance Vendor. The System Integrator will provide the district with their QA processes as part of their methodology. The district reserves the option to determine appropriate QA processes for the project. | KPMG | |||
| 74 | SDUSD will provide a Citrix environment for PeopleSoft Two-Tier remote access for duration of project. | Appropriate 2-tier access will be available. Citrix may or may not be the solution. The testing and deployment of 3-tier and n-tier environments will be part of the implementation scope. | KPMG | |||
| 75 | In RFP section "KK - Other Obligations," (pg 17) and "Operating Environment and Infrastructure - Minimum Performance Standards" (pg 24) the District indicates that the implementation service provider is to provide performance guarantees for system availability, response time, and capacity. The District indicates that these matters will be negotiated as terms in the final contract for services. Please explain the rationale for the District to ask the provider of integration services to guarantee performance standards that are wholly within the scope of the software vendor's product (i.e., PeopleSoft). | System availability, response time, and capacity are functions of a combination of the software and system hardware configuration, which is the responsibility of the systems integration vendor. | PwC | |||
| 76 | Section "KK - Other Obligations: Warranty," (pg 17) requires the Proposer to be responsible for all cost of parts, labor field service and pick up and delivery related to repairs or corrections during the warranty period. Since the Proposer's role will be limited to assisting the District to configure and implement the PeopleSoft software, we assume that the Proposer's warranty obligations will be limited to issues that result from problems with the configuration and implementation efforts and not the application software or other software or hardware. Will the District clarify the Proposer's intended role during the warranty? | The Proposer's role regarding the warranty is related to workmanship included in the scope of services identified in RFP-#P23-21-12. | PwC | |||
| 77 | In RFP section "W - Contract Security," (pg 13) the District requests that the successful Proposer furnish a bond in the amount of 50 percent of the contract price as security for payment of persons performing "labor and furnishing materials in connection with the contract." Is this bond required if a Proposer will not be acquiring "labor" or "materials" in performance of the contract but may subcontract less than 50% of the professional services to other technology services providers. | Yes, this bond is required of the proposer eventhough the proposer will be subcontracting less than 50%. The proposer is ultimately and fully responsible for completing the project. | PwC | |||
| 78 | In RFP section "Rules of Preparation - Section M: Proposers Interested in More than One Proposal" (pg. 10) the District indicates that "No person, firm, or corporation shall be allowed to make, or file, or be interested in more than one proposal for the same work unless special conditions indicate otherwise." Does this exclude the subcontract option to PeopleSoft for 15% of consulting services? | Yes, this excludes the subcontracting option to PeopleSoft for 15 percent of the consulting services. | PwC | |||
| 79 | Question 6.8 in RFP section "Proposers Response - Section 6.0: Contractor Relation Information" (pg 50) the District asks if we are willing to subcontract to PeopleSoft (PS) for 15% of consulting services. Does the Proposer need to identify PeopleSoft consulting roles and responsibilities in their proposal response and related cost for services? Is it expected that the Proposer would enter into discussions with PS prior to the proposal submission? If so, do we assume that this arrangement would not violate Section M: Proposers Interested in More than One Proposal in the RFP Rules of Preparation? | The Proposer is not required to identify PeopleSoft consulting roles and responsibilities in their proposal response and related cost for services. Additionally, the Proposer is not expected to enter into discussions with PeopleSoft prior to the proposal submission. These proposal considerations will be addressed during contract negotiations. | PwC | |||
| 80 | In RFP section "1.3.3 Contractor Project Staff" (pg 35)" item "H" indicates that the contractor shall provide an on-site Training Expert with a minimum of five years of training experience and two years of training experience on large systems integration project experience. In RFP "Section E - Project Partners" the District states that PeopleSoft will be responsible for training the District Project Team and End-User Trainers. Please clarify and/or delineate the training activities that PeopleSoft will be responsible for managing/delivering and what is expected from the integration service provider? | PeopleSoft will be responsible for delivering functional and technical training to the core project team. The SI should include in their cost proposal for required services the cost to develop end-user training documentation, curriculum, and tool/process for maintenance of documentation. Under optional services, the SI should include the cost to perform end user training. | PwC | |||
| 81 | The RFP refers to System Operation and Maintenance Planning. Will the District operate and maintain the application after "go-live"? Please clarify the scope of maintenance and support after "go-live" and responsibility of the integrator? | The District will operate and maintain the system after go-live. The District will be sending technical resources to PeopleSoft training, and expecting the SI to provide hands-on knowledge transfer training related to System Administration to District technical resources. Post go-live, the SI will be expected to provide support through major milestones (period close, etc). | PwC | |||
| 82 | Does the District have its own Data Center equipped to house the hardware for PeopleSoft and related systems for the development and production environments? | The District has a data center which is undergoing an upgrade. The hardware required to support the PeopleSoft implementation will be housed at the District. Hardware architecture requirements are being acquired through PeopleSoft. The District is looking for the System Integrator to provide a similar analysis to ensure that we have appropriate infrastructure to support adequate performance for PeopleSoft. | PwC | |||
| 83 | The RFP provides a list of proposed software customizations. Please describe the extent to which a comprehensive "Fit/Gap Analysis" was performed during the software selection. Are these customizations deemed as mandatory requirements? Is there a possibility that some of the customizations can be mitigated through process re-design? | Based on feedback from PeopleSoft, these are the anticipated modifications required to implement the necessary business functions at the District. The District expects and encourages the SI to assist in avoiding modifications wherever possible. The only limitation to such re-designs are legal and ed code requirements. | PwC | |||
| 84 | RFP Appendix F provides a list of current volumes of data. Does the District have a strategy to archive historical data and only convert a subset of the historical data? How much historical data must be converted into PeopleSoft for each legacy system? | Generally, SDUSD will keep 5 years of data in history prior to purging to archive. However, some data retention requirements are regulated by ed code. | PwC | |||
| 85 | In reference to data conversion, the RFP states, "The Proposer should describe the approach to processing historical data from electronic storage." (p.26). Will the District please clarify/define what they mean by "processing." | In the context of access to historical data, processing means running reports and inquiries. | PwC | |||
| 86 | In RFP section "Technical Requirements - Section 5.0: Disaster Recovery" the District indicates that the contractor shall provide means for "safe redundant storage." Who pays for the cost of "safe redundant storage"? Does the District pay for hot-site services and hardware for failover and back up, etc? | During implementation, the SI is responsible for providing copies of backup code and database for use by the District in its disaster recovery process. | PwC | |||
| 87 | In RFP Appendix G under Voucher Processing, the District states, "The scanning system has 3 indexes and reads a bar code for indexing. Archived documents must be accessible for at least 5 years" (p.119). Does "processing" mean the same thing as "accessing?" Will the District please clarify and/or further define this requirement. | In the context of access to historical data, processing means running reports and inquiries. | PwC | |||
| 88 | To what extent does the District expect that the embedded workflow in PeopleSoft will be used as delivered? | The District intends to implement Workflow for a limited number of PeopleSoft processes. The District expects the SI to provide knowledge transfer and training documentation to District team members for implementing additional workflow processes in the future. | PwC | |||
| 89 | In section IV Proposer Response subsection C.1.8 System Architecture (pg 54), it states that the Proposer shall provide a recommended system architecture. Please explain the rationale for recommending the system architecture when a similar question was asked in RFP 12-107-12 - Instructions to Proposer (RFP for the HR, Financial and SIS System). | The systems integration vendor will be responsible for recommending the hardware required for the successful implementation of PeopleSoft Financial Management, Human Resources Management, and Enterprise Portal applications for the District. | PwC | |||
| 90 | It appears that most of the District's application systems currently run on SQLServer database (RFP Appendix C, pp. 91-93). Has the District chosen a DBMS for the PeopleSoft implementation? | PeopleSoft will be implemented on Microsoft SQL Server 2000. | PwC | |||
| 91 | How many different benefit plans does the District offer? | 3 medical, 3 dental, vision, life, 3 voluntary life ins, & voluntary flexible spending account | Deloitte | |||
| 92 | How many unions are there is the District? | 6 negotiation groups | Deloitte | |||
| 93 | Will the District be changing its Chart of Accounts? | Yes, the district is in process of converting to the Standard Accounting Code Structure (SACS). | Deloitte | |||
| 94 | Has the implementation budget been determined? If so, what is the amount of the budget? Has it been approved? | No. | Deloitte | |||
| 95 | Who are the members of the evaluation team? | No response to be provided. | Deloitte | |||
| 96 | Who is the project sponsor? | The project is being sponsored at the highest executive levels within the District. | Deloitte | |||
| 97 | Who is the District's Project Manager, what is their background? | The District has hired a Project manager with extensive PeopleSoft implementation experience. | Deloitte | |||
| 98 | How many times per month is Payroll processed? | 1 monthly, 1 hourly, 4 specials | Deloitte | |||
| 99 | What is the District's anticipated staffing for the project (i.e. number of FTEs by position)? | There will be a full time Project Director, a full time Project Manager, a full time HR Manager, a full time Financial Manager, 4 additional full time SME's (2 functional, 2 technical) for HR, and 4 additional full time SME's (2 functional, 2 technical) for Finance. Additional resources will be available to the project team as required. This project is a high priority within the District. | Deloitte | |||
| 100 | How many Business Entities does the District intend to implement? | One. However, the District will want to generate financial documents by school site, and roll these up to the district level. | Deloitte | |||
| 101 | Are there any GASB-34 reporting requirements? | Yes, the district is in the process of restructuring accounts to meet SACS standards. GASB-34 reporting requirements will be part of the COA re-design. | Deloitte | |||
| 102 | Are there any HIPAA requirements? | Yes | Deloitte | |||
| 103 | Is there an anticipated time frame for implementation of each module and the project overall? | The core HR and Financial PeopleSoft modules will be implemented first. Additional modules and functionality may be implemented as part of future phase operations. An Addendum to the RFP was published 8/16/02 providing a high level implementation plan. | Deloitte | |||
| 104 | Does the District currently administer base benefits or are benefits administered by a third party? | A third party administrator is used for medical benefits. | Maximus | |||
| 105 | How many unions? | 6 negotiation groups | Maximus | |||
| 106 | How does the District handle open enrollment? When is Open Enrollment? | Annual OE is held in November, effective January 1st of the following calendar year. Employees change online via VEBA ( hard copy to district) or directly with district office. | Maximus | |||
| 107 | What is the structure of the District's Benefits Department? Is it centralized? | Manager, supervisor and 4 technicians located in district administrative office | Maximus | |||
| 108 | Clarification - e-Benefits (Benefit Administration allows for employee changes via this self service component) is not in scope? | Self service will be implemented. | Maximus | |||
| 109 | Clarification regarding RFP Section M: Proposers Interested in More than One Proposal - Certified PeopleSoft Services Partners are required to provide participation of an average of 20% of their total services contracts to PeopleSoft's Professional Services organization. Will the conditions in Section M be waived for PeopleSoft Professional Services so they may participate on more than one proposal? | The Proposer is not expected to enter into discussions with PeopleSoft prior to the proposal submission. These proposal considerations will be addressed during contract negotiations. | Maximus | |||
| 110 | In regards to the System Response Time/Online Storage/ Availability Performance Standards - the District is responsible for purchasing hardware required for the ERP implementation (per pager 25 of RFP). This means they control a major component of that factors into the performance standards. | The District will be purchasing hardware based on the recommendation of the systems integration vendor. | Maximus | |||
| 111 | RFP states that complete in-bound and out-bound integration/interfaces between all applications is required in the solution proposed (page 26). However, only a preliminary list is provided in Appendix E. How does the District propose to handle unidentified integration/interfaces in a fixed price proposal? | The reason the list is preliminary is that it may be possible to have PeopleSoft functionality replace some of the anticipated interfaces. The District requires the SI to make a reasoned estimate of interface requirements. Estimates for interfaces and data conversion may be refined during contact negotiations with down selected prospects. | Maximus | |||
| 112 | Clarification: PeopleSoft will be providing End User Training services including training plan development, training curriculum development, customization of training manuals, customization of instructor guides, development of training database, train the trainer sessions and course delivery. | PeopleSoft will be responsible for delivering functional and technical training to the core project team. The SI should include in their cost proposal for required services the cost to develop end-user training documentation, curriculum, and tool/process for maintenance of documentation. Under optional services, the SI should include the cost to perform end user training. | Maximus | |||
| 113 | PeopleSoft's Users Conference is the week of August 26. Since most certified partners for PeopleSoft will be attending this annual conference, we request an extension. | No. | Maximus | |||
| 114 | From the Sample Agreement can you please further explain the term "Industrial Insurance"? | See RFP Addendum #4 | Maximus | |||
| 115 | Is it the Districts intent to implement all of the modules purchased in a 'Big Bang' or would you be opened to 'Phased Approach'? For purposes of clarification: Big Bang is described as simultaneous HRMS, Financial and Portal Implementations; Phase Approach is defined as, replace the Core Financials/ HRMS and implement some Portal as Phase I, then more in Phase II and possibly a Phase III | I | 2 | The core HR and Financial PeopleSoft modules will be implemented first. Additional modules and functionality may be implemented as part of future phase operations. An Addendum to the RFP was published 8/16/02 providing a high level implementation plan. | PeopleSoft | |
| 116 | District has asked for a Fixed bid; Normally a Fixed bid includes Fixed Scope, Fixed Price and Fixed Timeline, yet this section of the proposal describes the hours to be 'unlimited'. How does the District define 'Unlimited' hours versus a Fixed Bid. | I | 16 | The District defines 'unlimited' project hours as the hours required to successfully complete the project within the fixed price. | PeopleSoft | |
| 117 | You list a business process of Associated Student Body with a key activity of Student Activities Tracking. Are you planning to support this process with the new HR/Financials application? | II | 22 | Table 2 | Yes, the ASB should be a separate sub ledger representing each school. | PeopleSoft |
| 118 | Is it the District expectation to Implement PeopleSoft and replace all of the Major and Minor Systems, described as 50 Financials and about 25 HRMS? Would the District entertain a Phased approach to replacing these Major and Minor Systems, such as replace all or part of the Major systems in Phase I, the Minor Systems in Phase II. | II | 23 | The core HR and Financial PeopleSoft modules will be implemented first. Additional modules and functionality will be implemented as part of future phase operations. An Addendum to the RFP was published 8/16/02 providing a high level implementation plan. | PeopleSoft | |
| 119 | What is the Districts basis of these performance standards? | II | 25 | These are standards required post-implementation. | PeopleSoft | |
| 120 | Can the District outline the current performance response times with the Major and Minor Systems? | II | 25 | The entire district infrastructure is undergoing an upgrade. Existing performance statistics are not the best criteria for basing a forward looking estimate. | PeopleSoft | |
| 121 | The services requested are for implementation not system operational support. What was the purpose of the District requiring specific system operation performance levels? | II | 25 | The system integration vendor will be responsible for recommending the hardware required for the successful implementation of PeopleSoft Financial Management, Human Resources Management, and Enterprise Portal applications for the District. | PeopleSoft | |
| 122 | The District has provided a preliminary list of system interfaces, can the District provide a comprehensive list of the Interfaces to the Proposers? | II | 26 | The reason the list is preliminary is that it may be possible to have PeopleSoft functionality replace some of the anticipated interfaces. The District requires the SI to make a reasoned estimate of interface requirements. Estimates for interfaces and data conversion may be refined during contact negotiations with down-selected prospects. | PeopleSoft | |
| 123 | District states vendor will modify and implement the PeopleSoft HR and Financial Systems. Does the District require all the modifications listed in the RFP (pages 85-89) by their initial go live or are these anticipated modifications. | 27 | Based on feedback from PeopleSoft, these are the anticipated modifications required to implement the necessary business functions at the District. | PeopleSoft | ||
| 124 | a. Is the requirement to use the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. (IEEE) Standards only or are other industry standards acceptable? | 31 | Other industry standards, comparable to IEEE, are acceptable to the District. | PeopleSoft | ||
| 125 | Project Staffing, page 32 & 33 a. What is the status of the District Project Team? b. What is the expected size and specific roles and functions of the project team? c. Is the Project Director and Project Manager 100% assigned to this project? d. Approximately how many SME's do you anticipate assigning and what level of commitment (i.e. 50%)? e. Does the District intend to assign any technical resources (i.e. developers, DBA, network engineers)? If so what roles, level of commitment, etc.? | There will be a full time Project Director, a full time Project Manager, a full time HR Manager, a full time Financial Manager, 4 additional full time SME's (2 functional, 2 technical) for HR, and 4 additional full time SME's (2 functional, 2 technical) for Finance. Additional resources will be available to the project team as required. This project is a high priority within the District. | PeopleSoft | |||
| 126 | a. Please explain the reference to SEI Risk Management Principles. | 36 | Refer to www.sei.edu for more information regarding SEI Risk Management taxonomy. | PeopleSoft | ||
| 127 | What BPR does the District include in this Proposal? i.e. BPR for the New System? Which could constitute On line Help? | 37 | The District anticipates significant re-engineering to be required to existing District business processes. The systems integration vendor should outline the BPR activities they plan to include within the fixed price proposal. | PeopleSoft | ||
| 128 | Is the training expert expected to be onsite only through the development of the training strategy or is it preferred that the expert be involved thru project duration. | 55 | The training expert will be expected to be involved as much as required to properly design, manage, and deploy the training plan proposed by the SI. | PeopleSoft | ||
| 129 | Does the District anticipate involving their Project Team in the delivery of training to the end user community? If so, could you specify the level of involvement you would expect from the Project Team? | 55 | PeopleSoft will be responsible for delivering functional and technical training to the core project team. The SI should include in their cost proposal for required services the cost to develop end-user training documentation, curriculum, and tool/process for maintenance of documentation. Under optional services, the SI should include the cost to perform end user training. | PeopleSoft | ||
| 130 | Could the District provide more specifics as the functionality desired in Human Resources ( e.g. competency management, salaries, staffing and recruitment, etc.) | 2 | Table 4 in Appendix C was included to list existing functionality at the District. In addition to the functions listed, the District will be implementing Training Administration and Competency Management. | PeopleSoft | ||
| 131 | Does the District desire to commitment control in HR, Budgeting, and Purchasing? | Yes, commitment control will be implemented | PeopleSoft | |||
| 132 | HRMS v8.3 is listed, but v8.4 is due to be released 4th quarter of 2002 - are there any plans to go with that version instead? | The District will be implementing HR 8.3 unless there is a compelling reason to go with the newest release. | CSC | |||
| 133 | Financial modules were all listed using the Education & Government but not listed under the HRMS modules, are you not planning on using the Education & Government HR modules? | The District will be implementing Education and Government functionality where required to support business operations. | CSC | |||
| 134 | Leave Admin & Position Management were discussed in different sections of the document but not listed under the Human Resource Management, Section A, page 2. Please clarify your planned usage | An approved requirement in the proposal as a component of Human Resource Management. | CSC | |||
| 135 | Time Entry is discussed in several places and a system called SEMS is listed for a certain type of teacher but then in the overview it discusses the manual process of time collection, are there any plans to purchase a Time Collection system? | PeopleSoft Time and Attendance will be implemented. The SEMS system is specific to the management of substitute teacher scheduling and time recording. | CSC | |||
| 136 | History to be converted - assumption that Appendix F is the quantity of the history - it also stated that the proposer should state history strategy - is the history data needed through on-line panel inquiry or reporting only? | Historical data will need to be accessed via reports and inquiries only. | CSC | |||
| 137 | Will District PM and SME's be full-time, dedicated to project? Please clarify their involvement | There will be a full time Project Director, a full time Project Manager, a full time HR Manager, a full time Financial Manager, 4 additional full time SME's (2 functional, 2 technical) for HR, and 4 additional full time SME's (2 functional, 2 technical) for Finance. Additional resources will be available to the project team as required. This project is a high priority within the District. | CSC | |||
| 138 | Section II - Background & System Overview, pg 28 has PeopleSoft being responsible for Training of District team and End-User trainers, but Section IV - Proposer Response Section 8 has proposer responsible for end user training. Are the trainers to supplement the proposer's training team? Are the District team members to be part of the training team, assuming desk-top procedures are part of the proposal? Please clarify. | PeopleSoft will be responsible for delivering functional and technical training to the core project team. The SI should include in their cost proposal for required services the cost to develop end-user training documentation, curriculum, and tool/process for maintenance of documentation. Under optional services, the SI should include the cost to perform end user training. | CSC | |||
| 139 | Appendix B #3 - Badge system interfaces, is this feed required back into PeopleSoft with Badge number and information? | Yes - The district is considering this option in a later phase | CSC | |||
| 140 | Appendix B #4 - Was PeopleSoft Licensing / Certification reviewed and determined incapable? It seems for this line item they are saying something new must be created, but later on it refers to using the licensing / certification. Please clarify. | Based on discussions during the software demonstrations, it was determined that additional fields may need to be tracked within PeopleSoft HR to meet the District's requirements. As with all these modifications, the District is interested in reviewing any suggestions that will avoid modifying PeopleSoft. | CSC | |||
| 141 | Appendix B #7 - Implies Workflow is to be used but it was not seen listed anywhere? Please clarify. | The District intends to implement Workflow for a limited number of PeopleSoft processes. The District expects the SI to provide knowledge transfer and training documentation to District team members for implementing additional workflow processes in the future. | CSC | |||
| 142 | Has Benefits Billing been considered? They talk of sending payment slips but no mention of utilizing the actual PeopleSoft module? Please clarify | Peoplesoft benefits billing module will be used | CSC | |||
| 143 | Will OE remain continue to be managed by VEBA - if yes, could this become an electronic update? Was there any consideration to doing away with VEBA? | Electronic transmission will be used when determined to be a better business practice. VEBA is our current benefits administrator. | CSC | |||
| 144 | 13. eRecruit is listed but I read where SearchSoft is being implemented - are the plans for SearchSoft to feed into PeopleSoft, if yes it is not listed in Appendix E - please clarify | The recruitment module will be further evaluated. Classified applicant tracking will be used. If SearchSoft is continued for certificated applicant tracking it will be necessary to interface this with Peoplesoft. | CSC | |||
| 145 | Appendix E - The interfaces are listed out that deal with Benefits information but not actual Carrier files listed, are they to be added as an integration point? | Yes. The District will want the PeopleSoft HR system to interface with the benefits carriers. It is the District's understanding that much of this interface is available out of the box with the Enterprise Portal. | CSC | |||
| 146 | No mention of EDI processing was included. Is there any EDI or "pseudo" EDI processing of journals, payment vouchers, etc? | There is no anticipated EDI requirement for standard PeopleSoft function processing. | CSC | |||
| 147 | Is the chart of accounts already standardized across the various locations and / or will there be chart of accounts redesign required as part of the project? | Standardization will need to happen. | CSC | |||
| 148 | What is the quality of the conversion data for each of the master files? If data cleanup is required will the client take ownership of these activities? | The District has significant data cleansing efforts in process. Estimates for data conversion may be refined during contact negotiations with down-selected prospects. | CSC | |||
| 149 | No mention of eProcurement, any plans to implement this module? | Yes. The district will eventually want to integrate the current eProcurement agreement with Office Depot into the PeopleSoft eProcurement module and Financial modules. | CSC | |||
| 150 | Any plans to outsource the bank reconciliation process? | No. | CSC | |||
| 151 | Will the Client Project Director and Project Manager attend the Steering Committee meetings? | Yes. | Ciber | |||
| 152 | Do you have a preference which modules are implemented first HR or Financial? | The core HR and Financial PeopleSoft modules will be implemented first. Additional modules and functionality will be implemented as part of future phase operations. An Addendum to the RFP was published 8/16/02 providing a high level implementation plan. | Ciber | |||
| 153 | What percentage of the data listed in Appendix F do you want converted? Do you need data converted with all its detail? | Generally, SDUSD will keep 5 years of data in history prior to purging to archive. However, some data retention requirements are regulated by ed code. | Ciber | |||
| 154 | What are the current methods that Purchase Orders are sent to vendors? Do you anticipate using different methods with PeopleSoft? | Procurement - Purchase orders are currently printed. The printed copies are mailed and in some cases faxed to vendors. The District would like to be able to transmit purchase orders electronically from PeopleSoft. | Ciber | |||
| 155 | Section 1.2.3 discusses the retention of Work Papers. Does this retention need to be a hardcopy document or can it be an electronic copy? | Workbooks and other documents may be electronic, unless otherwise specified as deliverables which must be produced in the contract. | Ciber | |||
| 156 | Will your subject matter experts (SME) be assigned 100% to the project? Will you assign an SME for each PeopleSoft module? | There will be a full time Project Director, a full time Project Manager, a full time HR Manager, a full time Financial Manager, 4 additional full time SME's (2 functional, 2 technical) for HR, and 4 additional full time SME's (2 functional, 2 technical) for Finance. Additional resources will be available to the project team as required. This project is a high priority within the District. | Ciber | |||
| 157 | What is your anticipated time frame for this implementation? | The core HR and Financial PeopleSoft modules will be implemented first. Additional modules and functionality may be implemented as part of future phase operations. An Addendum to the RFP was published 8/16/02 providing a high level implementation plan. | Ciber | |||
| 158 | Will Accounts Payable and the Food Service Accounts Payable share vendor masters and other setup tables? | Yes | Ciber | |||
| 159 | Will vendor invoices be processed centrally or will each campus enter their own? | Centrally | Ciber | |||
| 160 | Approximately how many blanket purchases orders do you maintain? | There are several hundred blanket purchase orders maintained by the district at any one time. | Ciber | |||
| 161 | Do you create new blanket purchase orders each year or do they carry over from year to year? | Yes, Procurement creates new blanket purchase orders each year to coincide with the annual budgets. | Ciber | |||
| 162 | Will all purchasing be done in PeopleSoft? | Definitely, all procurement and contracting functions will be done in PeopleSoft. | Ciber | |||
| 163 | Will your technical resources maintain the PeopleSoft databases by applying the required patches and fixes? | Yes. The District will be sending technical resources to PeopleSoft training, and expecting the SI to provide hands-on knowledge transfer training related to System Administration to District technical resources. | Ciber | |||
| 164 | Will your technical resources be involved in the programming of customizations and interfaces? | Yes, the district technical resources will be involved in all customizations and interfaces. | Ciber | |||
| 165 | Do you anticipate maintaining budgets for either expenses or projects within PeopleSoft for longer that one year into the future? | Yes, longer than one year. | Ciber | |||
| 166 | Will you continue to utilize the current IBM AFP printing architecture? | The SI only needs to be concerned with printing requirements related to PeopleSoft applications. | Ciber | |||
| 167 | How long will the legacy system be maintained after go live? | Only those systems necessary to interface to PeopleSoft will be maintained after go live. | Ciber | |||
| 168 |