ESPO replacement website - catalogue and frameworks

Tender description

Summary of the work ESPO require both their www.espo.org (framework, content and registration) and www.espocatalogue.org (catalogue) websites to be amalgamated onto one new website. It requires a Magento platform for the catalogue and a CMS platform for the content and frameworks, with seamless integration. Expected Contract Length 2 years with the possibility for all compliant extensions Latest start date Monday 14 January 2019 Budget Range £250,000 - £350,000 Why the Work is Being Done ESPO’s web presence is currently provided via two specific URL’s, www.espo.org (framework site) and www.espocatalogue.org (catalogue site). Having two websites is a source of confusion to customers. They frequently find themselves on the wrong site and this carries an inherent risk of loss of business. Customers would benefit from this being combined into a single website consisting of both areas of functionality. The e-commerce functionality on www.espocatalogue.org is dated, hard to navigate and delivers a poor customer experience. The new solution will need to integrate with third party systems e.g. our existing ERP software (System21) for product and account data. Problem to Be Solved ESPO require both current websites to be migrated into one new website that is easy to use, adds additional functionality and allows ESPO to compete effectively in the market. Phase 1 - to commence in January 2019. To include: - Scoping - 4-6 weeks - Discovery - 4-6 weeks Supplier to review ESPO's requirements and provide a project plan and implementation plan to ESPO at the end of this phase. Phase 2 - timescales to be determined by agency To include: - Design - Development - QA - UAT Launch - end of October 2019. Who Are the Users 2017 ESPO had 869,305 sessions to the site. 2017 ESPO had 458,436 users to the site. ESPO have over 25,000 skus. New customers need to register for catalogue and/or framework accounts. Framework customers need to view and download documents. Punch out system needs to be integrated into the migration. Punch out is a B2B integration that allows orders one to occur in a paperless manner for procurement through a buyer purchase application. 70% of customers are new who visit the site on a daily basis. The agency needs to demonstrate understanding on effective approaches to managing customer streams. Early Market Engagement Some work has been undertaken by internal stakeholders and it has been concluded that a Magento platform is required as an eCommerce solution. Although the preferred viewpoint for the framework and brand sites is Magneto CMS, ESPO are open to other solutions if appropriate. 2017 ESPO had 869,305 sessions to the site (504,431 from catalogue and 364,874 from ESPO .org). 2017 ESPO had 458,436 users to the site (260,823 users on ESPO catalogue site and 197,613 users on .org site). We require an intelligent punch out solution, we should be able to showcase different catalogues to our customers, we also should be able to show frameworks and online forms to be archived online. Other outstanding issues have been identified as: • Increased customer usage and purchase frequency • Improved backend efficiency • Improved search engine visibility bringing more customers • Improved SEO and findability by search engines • Modern Design in line with current Brand • Improved User Experience • Improved Web Accessibility • Improve Navigation / Structure - allowing for more products to been shown and showcased • Supporting GDPR - and all of it implications for making data secure. Work Already Done A full requirements document has been drafted through consultation with internal stakeholders from across the organisation, however this includes some areas for further discussion to agree a final solution which will form part of the scoping phase. No development work has taken place however it is worth noting: - Product and account data is based on integration with our ERP solution System 21 - Our current catalogue website has integration with customer finance systems (e.g. using punch-out functionality) which need to be retained and future proofed Existing Team Please be mindful we have a small digital team and therefore are accounting on an agency to provide a strong UX/CX/Development provision. The supplier will be required to work with ESPO's Catalogue, Framework and Communications teams, as well as IT for integration with our ERP solution. Further work may also be required with Marketing Services, Finance, Procurement, and administration staff. Training will also be required, although this may be extended to include strategic employees from across the organisation. Work will also be required with the incumbent supplier, ERP provider and potentially customer finance system provider(s) to ensure a smooth transition. Current Phase Discovery Skills & Experience • Please note that the following Essential skills and experience will all be marked as Yes = Pass No=Fail • Are you a migration agency? Yes/No • Please confirm that your organisation provides Magento development (B2C, B2B, complete system customisation) Yes/No • Please confirm that your organisation provides Magento integration with any third-party system (regardless of the abbreviation attached to it - ERP, POS, CRM, PIM, CMS, WMS etc.) Yes/No • Please confirm that your organisation provides Magento 2.x powered mobile application development (iOS and Android) Yes/No • Please confirm that your organisation provides Magento Order Management development and roll-out Yes/No • Please confirm that your organisation provides Magento Business Intelligence roll-out and analysis Yes/No • Please confirm that your organisation provides eCommerce consultation and strategy Yes/No • Please confirm that your organisation provides User experience + visual design Yes/No • Please confirm that your organisation provides User research + user testing Yes/No • Does your organisation have appropriate digital resource in Specialists in migration of ecommerce platforms Yes/No • Does your organisation have appropriate digital resource in Client Services (Account Managers, Project Managers, Solution Specialists) Yes/No • Does your organisation have appropriate digital resource in Development specialists Yes/No • Does your organisation have appropriate digital resource in Magento/PHP specialists (focusing on: backend, bespoke, integrations) Yes/No • Does your organisation have appropriate digital resource in Magento front-end developers (focusing on: theming, Javascript, PWA) Yes/No • Does your organisation have appropriate digital resource in Design (focusing on: UX, visual, user research/testing) Yes/No • Does your organisation have appropriate digital resource in Marketing (digital marketing, email, copywriting,) Yes/No Nice to Haves • Please note the following are also Essential skills and Experience and will be marked as Pass/Fail • Please provide an example and supporting case study of an organisation that you have provided the required migration services for • Please provide an example of a migration contract that you have delivered • Please outline your end-to-end design process providing details of what processes you follow, starting at the first kick off meeting through to QA testing and what tools you use • What do you believe sets your design service apart from your competition? • Please provide an example of a Magento based website that you have developed and maintained • What do you believe sets your eCommerce development capabilities and service apart from your competition? • What does the project team look like? Details of all individuals’ roles and responsibilities included in the project team must be provided. • What level of support services do you provide? Your response must include proactive support across all fronts (discovery/strategy/support) with a particular focus on how critical issues are communicated to ESPO • What processes do you have in place to ensure disaster recovery? Work Location All work is expected to be completed at the suppliers place of work unless input is required by ESPO, in which event meetings will usually take place at the following address: ESPO Barnsdale Way Grove Park Enderby Leicester LE19 1ES Working Arrangments The supplier must work effectively with ESPO's teams to ensure that all solutions are fit for purpose and as intended in the specification. Any expenses are required to be in line with Leicestershire County Council's expenses policy. The supplier must be on site as and when required by each project team. Other methods of communication can be agreed as appropriate, such as conference calling, or online tools for example Jira, Confluence, Asana or Trello. Security Clearance No specific security clearance is required for this project. No. of Suppliers to Evaluate 10 Proposal Criteria • Developing Magento platform websites • Developing OpenSource CMS platform websites • Integration with ERP systems • Integration with other systems • Project delivery - timescales and budget • Management of hosting provider • Post launch support and requirements • USP's • Website development process • Web design and UX process • Security and compliance • Integration of Magento and CMS solutions • Other criteria that ESPO deems applicable Cultural Fit Criteria • Work as a team with our organisation and other suppliers • Take responsibility for their work • Can work with clients with low technical expertise • Be transparent and collaborative when making decisions • Can work well with third parties (such as design agencies etc) Payment Approach Capped time and materials Evaluation Weighting Technical competence 65% Cultural fit 5% Price 30% Questions from Suppliers 1. Do you realise that you have asked for 28 essential/nice-to-have skills, which is 2,800 words per supplier (much higher than normal)? Say you get 10-20 applicants which need to reviewed by say 3 people internally, this will take a significant amount of internal resource just to shortlist. Then you are shortlisting to 10 (again much higher than normal), in which all 10 suppliers supply proposals. Reviewing 10 supplier's proposals and choosing a supplier would be very time consuming. Are you aware this will put off suppliers going for this project? Please note that there are a total of 25 questions that require a response. Of these, 16 require a Yes or No response only and 9 of these require a full response. We do not feel that this will be too onerous for bidders to complete within the allotted time. 2. Are you aware that you can only submit via DOS if you can meet all of the Essential skills and experience, so you will get a yes by default submitted by all parties. ESPO understands the process for shortlisting suppliers. Suppliers should only respond yes if they can meet the specified requirement. This will be tested further at the next stage. 3. Your Nice-to-have skills and experience questions will require more than the 100 word allocation we are given on DOS to be of any real value to you. Please provide as comprehensive a response as you are able to within the word count. ESPO will accept bullet pointed answers to these questions. 4. Is it possible to share the outputs of the internal technical review that suggested Magento? This information will not be shared with bidders at this stage. 5. Please can you confirm if there in an incumbent for the previous website builds for www.espo.org (framework site) and www.espocatalogue.org (catalogue site) and if they will be bidding for this work. ESPO are not able to confirm the intentions of any other organisations. 6. If the incumbent will be bidding, please can you confirm if you have been satisfied with the work they have previously carried out? It is not appropriate for ESPO to comment on the performance of its incumbent supplier. 7. Is there any connection between the Frameworks downloadable documents and the catalogue of products? Ie is there any products within the Frameworks downloadable documents? At the moment, there are no products held within the framework downloadable document. 8. Is there a specific migration accreditation you are looking for or are you just looking for experience in migrating from the appropriate platforms? ESPO are not looking for any particular migration accreditation. 9. Can you please confirm the actual Punchout product currently used? The punchout product currently used is a bespoke Infor development. 10. Can you please confirm that System21 is the product owned by Infor? ESPO can confirm that System21 is owned by Infor. 11. Do you have any native app (iOS/Android) requirements or will all requirements be met by a fully responsive web solution (RWS)? Initially, ESPO would require an RWS solution, however ESPO may require the development of an app at a later date. 12. Can you confirm the expectations on Disaster recovery? Is it specifically related to this website platform? Or do you need it any broader than this? The disaster recovery requirements relate specifically to this website platform.