A Jewel in the Rough:
Articulating Your Vision
for Technology in RFP FormNational Center for Mobility Management
July 16, 2019
Kevin Chambers, Full Path Transit Technology

Types of Technology
Internal-Facing• Scheduling &Dispatch• Asset Tracking

Customer-Facing

In-Vehicle
Technology• One-Call/
One-Click Systems• Web Site
• Booking Portals• Mobile Apps

• CAD/AVL/Tablets• APCs• Cameras• Annunciators• E-FareToday’s Focus:
The Most
Daunting
Procurements• Custom Requirements• Complex workflows• Immature Technology• Rapidly Shifting Landscape• Coordination
The challenges of technology are thechallenges of complex infrastructureWhat’s the Jewel?

• Your mission• Your values• Your strategic plan
• The core motivations driving
your procurement

What’s the Rough?
• The procurement process• Technology

Agencies should bein the driver’s seatLê Minh from Pexels

Identify yoursteps to being
an expert• Have conversations with vendors• Reach out to other agencies• Talk with knowledge aggregators• Attend conferences with a game plan
• Look at adjacent industries• Ask about costs and service at every
opportunity• Consider bringing in a consultant
Expect and plan for this to take timeFraming
MattersPine Watt from Unsplash

Defining theProblem is Key• What’s the underlying need?
• Don’t include a preconceived solution as part ofyour problem• “We don’t have an app”
• Technology is never an end unto itself• Operations tech is a different beast entirely
Know thyself

What’sYourMVP?

Paula Schmidt from Pexels

Start from
yourMinimumViable Product• Know what’s important• Clearly define the core problem you’re working
to solve• Rank ruthlessly• If everyone is special, no one is• The smaller the problem space, the simpler thesolution can be• Use your MVP as an engine for institutional
learning

Complexity
Maintenance“Another flaw in thehuman character is thateverybody wants tobuild and nobody wants
to do maintenance.”—Kurt Vonnegut

What Are theOpportunity
Costs of theTechnology
You Want?

• Technology is limited primarily by our ability to
manage its complexity• Complexity requires love and attention• Everything requires maintenance: the software,
the hardware, and the data
• Establish ownership for each element• One approach: work backward from theresources you’ll have to maintain what youprocureFuture-Proofing

Wes Hicks on UnsplashIndustryTrends• Mobility as a Service (MaaS) as the newparadigm• Platform companies• Modularity & scalability• Internal• External• Service-oriented architectures• SaaS as delivery model• What’s your API?

The RFP –Putting Pen toPaper

Lex Photography from Pexels

General Procurement Resources• Perfecting the Procurement Process,Community Transportation, 2017
• Procurement Resource Center, National RTAP
• WisDOT RFP Procurement Toolkit, October 2017
• Best Practices Procurement & Lessons Learned
Manual, FTA, October 2016
• Know of more? Let me know!

Not sure what
you want?
Use an RFI• Using an RFP to determine how you’re going tosolve your problem is a high-risk venture• Use an RFI to open the floor to suggestions• You get ideas and a market survey in one stroke• Builds relationships with potential vendors

A strong RFP
communicatesclearly• What you wish to purchase• The characteristics and functions you mostvalue, in the order you value them
• What is required versus what is optional• Clear vendor requirements• In the RFP process itself: how to respond• For the final product being purchased: detailed
enough to be testable (use cases)
Resource: CTAA brief on Data Interoperability and Rights

SystemsEngineering
Really nothing tobe afraid ofValidation & testing
becomes a central
organizing principal
when attached topayment. Be specificand as objective aspossible.

Keep your RFP
focused onwhat You want

• Do you want to encourage more responses?
New actors? Smaller players?
• Ask what boilerplate hoops can you strip out• What can be pushed to a later stage?
• Make your priorities clear to your procurement
specialist• Have your scoring criteria reflect what you mostvalue

RFPs as Engines for Learning
ResearchandVendor
Outreach

Request forOfferor Revised Best andDiscussions Proposals Final OfferRFI(s)DesignWrite Cost Release
RFP Estimate RFP

Close
RFP

SelectVendor

Contracting• Information will be provided on your terms• Consistent presentation• Comparable to other proposers• Template Excel file may help

A strong RFP
supports thefinal decision• It will provide clear information on:• Functions• Set-up and training• Ability to tailor the product/reports to your system• Data storage and ownership• Warranties, customer service• SaaS: service level agreements, uptime history• It will enable you to compare costs• Initial purchase• Ongoing maintenance• What you want to purchase may not beavailable• What trade-offs are you willing to make?
• What changes can you make to internal processes?

ProcurementChallenges

Lê Minh from Pexels• Keeping an open mind about possible solutions• Focusing on the functionality you need and cansustain• Other technology upgrades may be required• Creating an Independent Cost Estimate for aunique or cutting edge purchase• Deciding the IT capacity to maintain in-house
versus to the capacity to purchase from vendors

Questions
Kevin Chambers
technologist@nc4mm.org
Thanks toSuzanne O’Neill

Instagram.com/jamie_fenn on Unsplash