Innovation Lab: Data Science managed service team

Tender description

Why the Work is Being Done The Department for International Trade (DIT) requires a specialised data science team to deliver innovation projects drawing upon data science tools and techniques in order to inform internal trade policy development. There is an existing Data Science function within DIT. The existing teams provide support to existing business units, however there are some projects that need further development and cannot be supported by the current teams. Problem to Be Solved There are a range of problems to be solved, including: - Automated processing of existing free trade agreements & machine learning models applied to global trade flows - Run short proofs of concept alongside more systematic development of tools or techniques that show promise, with a view to operationalize as soon as viable. There are further problems that will need to be solved as part of this Contract, but they will be defined through subsequent Statements of Work throughout the lifetime of the Contract. Who Are the Users The users will vary but will, for the most part, be internal staff at DIT. Early Market Engagement Work Already Done There is an existing data science function within within the Department, working on short sprints to deliver data science outputs across the Department. Existing Team DDaT Data Science team: - 1x Product Manager - 1x Delivery Manager - 5x Data Scientists Current Phase Live Work Location Windsor House, 50 Victoria Street, SW1H 0TL Working Arrangments The team will be based at the DIT office in Windsor House. Remote working may be allowed 1 day per week. Security Clearance All staff should have minimum BPSS level security clearance in place before work is started. Developers and any other roles requiring database access should have SC level security clearance before work is started. Additional T&Cs Skills & Experience Demonstrate experience using natural language processing, including sentiment analysis, topic modelling and named entity recognition Demonstrate skills and proficiency in using the core machine learning techniques. E.g. regression, k-means, etc. Demonstrate experience telling engaging stories with data by using effective data visualisation tools and techniques Demonstrate expertise around deep learning & neural networks. Demonstrate experience working with highly unstructured data and make it fit for use in data science projects. Demonstrate ability to understand economic theories and concepts and to translate them into Data Science models, then translating the results back into conclusions that economic policy makers can understand Nice to Haves Demonstrate experience in the planning and delivery of user-centred, agile projects, following the Government Service Standards and Technology Code of Practice Demonstrate experience working as a strategic supplier for another organisation to deliver long-term data science projects Demonstrate international trade (or related field) domain expertise Demonstrate experience working with the AWS platform No. of Suppliers to Evaluate 3 Proposal Criteria Demonstration of real innovation in the application of data science techniques to solve real world problems, i.e. going beyond standard tools and technologies Describe your team set-up for this contract (including roles and experience) and how you would adapt the team to changing priorities Describe how you will ensure knowledge transfer to DIT staff will take place after each project Describe how you will use data science to help deliver innovation in DIT, and how this reflects the unique circumstances of DIT Identify any risks and dependencies that you foresee for this project, and offer approaches to manage them Detail your estimated time frames and delivery plan for the first SOW (a draft will be issued to shortlisted suppliers) Detail what your potential Discovery report would look like for projects, and how you will ensure the outputs can be used for any potential Alpha phase Detail how you will ensure user needs are understood and met in the development and delivery of the service Cultural Fit Criteria Demonstrate your ability to integrate and work alongside existing Data Science & development teams Demonstrate how you will communicate effectively across all levels of DIT Demonstrate your ability to deliver in an open, collaborate, agile way according to the principles outlined in the Government Service Design Manual Demonstrate how you will build capability within the existing data science team Payment Approach Time and materials Assessment Method Evaluation Weighting Technical competence 70% Cultural fit 10% Price 20% Questions from Suppliers Budget range total contract value of £1.75m - £2m for the 2-year length. each sow will have a budget allocated to it and the agreed cost of each sow must be agreed by dit before the work commences.