Team to deliver API link to enable SMS messages aimed at Passport customers sent through NOTIFY

Tender description

Summary of the work A team is needed that can iteratively design, build and implement the transfer of digital messages to our customers to NOTIFY. This will consist of 1x PM, 1x Product Owner who is experienced in Scrum, 1x Agile BA and 2x Java Developers. Expected Contract Length Up to 6 months Latest start date Wednesday 31 May 2017 Budget Range We have a projected budget of £100,000 currently, but this is an agile development and this can be reviewed in terms of the benefits deliverable related to costs. Why the Work is Being Done HM Passport Office has an organisational goal to move digital messaging from our existing supplier to NOTIFY plus we are seeking to move as much correspondence from paper over to digital channels as possible. Problem to Be Solved HMPO sends a high volume of messages via SMS today and we want to use a better VFM option (using NOTIFY) for getting these messages to our customers - therefore we need an API link built. Who Are the Users HMPO wants to use NOTIFY to send automated SMS messages to our customers at key points in the Passport application process Work Already Done A discovery phase has been completed generating some user needs. We have the expectation that further investigation into user needs will be completed particulary user needs of passport holders. Discovery documents can be shared with shortlisted suppliers. Existing Team There is a Portfolio Director appointed to head this team. Current Phase Alpha Skills & Experience • Have demonstrable experience of successfully understanding user needs and designing services to support them. • Have demonstrable experience of user centric development and how this is balanced against business and technology considerations. • Have demonstrable experience of successfully integrating systems via APIs, including on-premise and other cloud-based services. • Have demonstrable experience of successfully delivering digital solutions that collect and manage personal and/or sensitive information with appropriate controls and protection. • Have demonstrable experience of successfully working with other suppliers/3rd parties/other partners in the delivery of public sector digital services; • Be able to mobilise the required multi-disciplined team to begin engaging on 27 February 2017. • Have demonstrable experience of successfully assessing Discovery phase outputs and iteratively developing and improving them using Agile methods and practices. Nice to Haves • Have demonstrable experience of delivering digital solutions that meet Level AA of the W3C WCAG 2.0 accessibility standards • Have demonstrable experience of successfully delivering bi-lingual digital solutions. The solution must be available in both Welsh and English • Have demonstrable experience of successfully and collaboratively working, coaching and sharing knowledge with Public Sector client teams, particularly those with limited agile development experience. • Have demonstrable experience of successfully integrating digital solutions with Government platforms, such as Government Gateway, Verify and Notify Work Location Westminster, London Working Arrangments We expect the supplier to be flexible to our needs and within the in-house project team. The supplier will also be working with our in-house DevOps team, business and technical architects and other live projects that can improve the user journey by taking advantage of opportunities for integration. Work is based in London and will involve the supplier being on site for part of the week; suppliers will be responsible for their own travel and expenses. Security Clearance SC clearance would be preferred, but is not is not a pre-requisite. Personnel will be sponsored through the clearance process by HM Passport Office. Additional T&Cs Breakpoints to assess progress and quality will be set at the end of alpha and beta phases. No. of Suppliers to Evaluate 3 Proposal Criteria • Technical solution • Approach and methodology • How the approach or solution meets user needs • How the approach or solution meets the organisation's goal • Estimated timeframes for the work • Value for money Cultural Fit Criteria • Be transparent and collaborative when making decisions • Take responsibility for their work • Can work with clients with low technical expertise Payment Approach Time and materials Evaluation Weighting Technical competence 60% Cultural fit 15% Price 25% Questions from Suppliers 1. Please clarify when HMPO expect the multi-disciplined team to mobilise as one of your essential requirements states: "Be able to mobilise the required multi-disciplined team to begin engaging on 27 February 2017." 19th June is the estimated start date 2. Has an external supplier undertaken the Discovery work and if so who? No external supplier has done so. 3. Do you see this falling inside or outside of IR35? The role is expected to be outside of IR35, however status is assessed on a case-by-case basis. 4. Is the team size required fixed to 5 people as in the description? Your suggested £100,000 budget would last 8 weeks at most, but your projected contract length is 6 months. Are you flexible on delivery timescale or budget? Yes. This will be flexible. 5. Does the project effectively consist of connecting your existing platform to the GOV Notify platform (which has API access available)? Presumably your existing platform interfaces with your current proprietary SMS provider, and the work required is simply migration to a different provider (namely GOV Notify)? Yes, this view is correct. 6. The opportunity stipulates that the team should consist of: " 1x PM, 1x Product Owner, 1x Agile BA and 2x Java Developers." Can you clarify whether PM stands for Product Manager, or Project Manager? PM stands for Project Manager 7. The opportunity stipulates that the team should consist of: " 1x PM, 1x Product Owner, 1x Agile BA and 2x Java Developers." Is this specific blend a hard requirement, or can an alternative blend be offered as part of the proposal? No, this is a hard requirement. 8. There's a mention of requiring 2 Java developers. Does the solution have to be delivered using Java? Yes, this is a must. 9. Dear Sirs We note that the latest start date is the 31st May but the portal requests a response to evidence ability to : "... mobilise the required multi-disciplined team to begin engaging on 27 February 2017." Are you able to revise the question on the portal or post a clarification that we can respond with the 31st May as the target date? 19th June is the estimated start date 10. Is it a requirement that the API is written specifically in Java? Yes, the solution must be written in Java. 11. An essential requirement is listed as being able to mobilise a team by 27 Feb. 2017. Please could you advise the correct date that should be used for this requirement? 19th June is the estimated start date 12. Hello, 1) Can you confirm capabilities of the existing team? 2) Do you require user research for the alpha? Or will you provide this yourself? 3) Given Purdhah, is there a revised start date for this work? 1) The existing team is a Portfolio Director with direction from Bussiness architecture and technical architecture. 2) No. 3). No revised start data. 13. The projected budget is given as 100k. But a team size of 5 ( 1x PM, 1x Product Owner who is experienced in Scrum, 1x Agile BA and 2x Java Developers) over a period of 6 months would mean that this should be significantly higher. Could we please get some clarity on this? This is a projected budget. 14. How will the team implementing this work interact with the team contracted to provide services under DOS procurement ‘Delivery partner for online passport application services.’? (https://www.digitalmarketplace.service.gov.uk/digital-outcomes-and-specialists/opportunities/2400) The will work together and share infrastructure and deliveries. 15. Is the expectation that the £100k budget will cover the full 6 months mentioned in ‘expected contract length’? If so, what team size and roles has this been budgeted on? This is a projected budget. 16. Who is the existing supplier of digital messaging? MMG for text and Amzon SES for email. 17. What systems will the API be expected to integrate with? Gov.uk Notify and internal systems. 18. Was the Discovery phase completed by an external supplier? If so, who was this and is this supplier eligible to apply for this opportunity? No. 19. Can you clarify what is meant in the ‘work already done’ section by ‘it is expected that further research will be done.’ Are you expecting the winning supplier to undertake the further research, or has this work already been undertaken by the current team? The winning supplier will undertake further research. 20. “Breakpoints have been identified at the end of the alpha and beta phases, although this procurement is for alpha stage”- is the expectation that the chosen supplier will carry the project through to Live phase? Or will this work be re-procured at the end of each stage? Yes, the expectation is the supplier will carry the project through to Live. 21. We notice that the team needs to be able to begin engagement from the 27th February 2017 – we assume this date has been moved forward, what is the new expected start date? Is it the 31 May as mentioned earlier in the opportunity? Also, has this project been delayed and what was the cause of the delay? 19th June is the estimated start date 22. Can you please outline the steps and dates in the procurement timetable up to and including supplier award? i.e. proposal or presentation dates? We anticipate the presentations to take place beginning of June and will aim to award suppliers so they are able to start on our estimated start date of 19th June 2017. 23. Are there any early key outputs from the Discovery phase that can be shared? No. 24. Is there a specific supplier that has been involved in this specific project or an associated project who will be able to bid for this opportunity? If so how will HMPO ensure a level playing field? No specific supplier has been involved so far. 25. For clarity, can HMPO confirm the successful supplier is expected to provide the full team highlighted the 'summary of work' section? Specifically - PM, PO, BA, 2 Developers? Yes, this is confirmed. 26. What full-time roles are HMPO expecting to provide to this project? For example, are HMPO expecting to provide a full-time Technical Architect? HMPO will provide an Technical and Business Architect, this will be in their portfolio of projects. 27. We would normally see the Product Owner role to be provided by the customer. Can we ask for HMPO's rationale for asking a Supplier to provide this? No internal resource available. 28. In order for HMPO to compare 'apples for apples' for pricing, how will suppliers be asked to provide the price? At presentation stage, we will ask suppliers to submit a written proposal as well as conducting a presentation where they will have the opportunity to tell HMPO their team's day rate. 29. What phase/s is this procurement for? Alpha/Beta 30. What phase if the budget of £100,000 for? Alpha/Beta 31. Roughly what is the volume of messages sent by HMPO to your users? 35k per day 32. What do HMPO see as the main issues with the current system? No performance or technical issues exist. This is to align our notification platform with GOV.UK. 33. You state that further research needs to be done yet you do not seek a UX/UR specialist as part of the team. Who would be doing the additional UX/UR activities and would they be co-located? Teams dependent on this service will conduct their own user research. 34. What third party software is currently used for comms and is it closely coupled to the HMPO code or is it abstracted through middleware? No third party software used. 35. Is the portfolio director well-versed in Agile methodologies or would he/she expect to take advice from the successful supplier? What role is he/she expected to take? Yes and we do take advice. He/she manages communication to the wider business. 36. Is the goal simply to move SMS messaging from the current solution to NOTIFY with existing volumes, or are volumes expected to increase? If the latter, what volumes are anticipated long-term? No major volume increases predicted. 37. What is the expected duration of the Alpha phase? Less than six months. 38. Has an initial product backlog been produced and will this be shared with shortlisted suppliers? No.