Connecting the Dots: Crafting an ERP RFP that Speaks to Technology, People, and Change

Discover the importance of setting a clear vision for your ERP project and learn how to avoid common pitfalls in traditional RFPs. Gain valuable tips on incorporating change management and user experience into your RFP design to ensure successful implementation and adoption. 

Tune in as we dive into the intricacies of crafting an effective ERP RFP that speaks to technology, people, and change. Join host Megan Seaton and Proposal Coordinator Lexi Webster as they share insights from their experience responding to over 200 RFPs annually and helping clients modernize their systems.

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Transcript

00;00;33;09 - 00;01;08;04
Unknown
Hello everyone, and welcome to the Avero Advisor's live stream, where business development is taking over. This week. I am very excited to have my very own Proposal Coordinator Ms.. Lexie Webster with me today. And we are discussing a what I think is a very engaging topic. At Avero, we sit in a very unique position where we respond to over, I would say, over 200 RFP’s every year, but we also help our clients to craft RFP’s to solicit vendors for an ERP solution.

00;01;08;04 - 00;01;31;08
Unknown
So we're going to talk about how to implement change and people into your RFP design because we think that these projects are more people aligned than really the blinky lights in the technology. So thank you guys for being here. And good morning, Lexie. Thank you for joining me today. Good morning. You're welcome. Glad to be here. Yes. Yes.

00;01;31;08 - 00;01;51;02
Unknown
This is so exciting. Okay. So if you are joining us today, please let us know that you're joining and where you're joining from. And please allow this to be engaging. We love to hear from you guys. We love to answer your questions. We hate just feeling like we're talking to air, right. So please engage with us and let us know where you're joining from today.

00;01;51;10 - 00;02;17;04
Unknown
And if you are a new viewer and you don't know who Avero Advisors is, we are a independent third party consulting firm that works only in the public sector to help modernize, to help governments come up into the 21st century. And we do this through ERP consulting, business process re-engineering and I.T. Strategic planning. But you can find out more.

00;02;17;04 - 00;02;37;20
Unknown
We're on all social media platforms and we do have a YouTube channel, so please make sure you check us out. All right, I've talked enough for the intro. I'm going to let Lexi tell you guys a little bit about herself and her background and where her passion lies in the work that she does for Avero So, Lexi, you have the floor.

00;02;37;22 - 00;03;11;19
Unknown
Well, my name is Lexi Webster, and I am the proposal coordinator, at Avero. So basically Megan and I both kind of pick RFP’s. I handle the whole process of crafting those, responding, and really figuring out what they're asking for and how. There I could be the wrap as a consultant for them. And previously I worked at a development district in southeast Tennessee, and that it was really eye opening because I had previously worked part time at a Avero during graduate school.

00;03;11;21 - 00;03;58;29
Unknown
And, you know, you hear these stories and places are so outdated and things like that. But I mean, that was really getting to see it firsthand, just how inefficient things can be when you don't have the right technology and stuff in place. So that was extremely eye opening. I was a grant administrator there and then I came back to Avero in August this past year and I really have a passion for trying to modernize the technology environment within public sector organizations because, like Megan said, it's not just technology projects, it's people projects, and it will really increase the efficiency of the organization as a whole.

00;03;59;02 - 00;04;21;20
Unknown
Yes. And tell our viewers what your background, what you went to school for. Yeah. So at U.T., I went to school for a master's degree in public policy and administration. Yeah. Yeah. So we're super excited to have Lexi back on the business development side. So you guys are going to be seeing more of her as we go live every week.

00;04;21;20 - 00;04;47;12
Unknown
And then also at a few of the conferences that we are attending, but without further ado, let's jump right into our topic today. So to paint a picture for you guys, creating an RFP document is more than just making a list, right? It's it's really about capturing your vision and your organization's goals and the united vision of its leaders.

00;04;47;19 - 00;05;25;02
Unknown
And so whether you're looking for an ERP consultant or an ERP solution, I think it really just boils down to three key points, which is setting a vision and aligning that vision with your overall goals for your organization. Understanding that change is a huge part of these projects and really just making sure that at the end of the day, you're ensuring success for your overall organization and that you're going to maintain growth and efficiency for both your citizens and your end user.

00;05;25;05 - 00;06;01;17
Unknown
So jump right into it. So my first question in the first segment that we're going to be discussing today is the foundation how that's how to set the foundation for a successful ERP project. So let's see your opinion. What are the most common pitfalls of traditional ERP, RFP ads and you can give your perspective from, you know, someone who is crafting an RFP for a consultant or so Our work in helping our organizations craft for a ERP solution.

00;06;01;19 - 00;06;24;16
Unknown
Yeah. So one of the biggest pitfalls I see is that even if a, you have your scope of work defined, it is not uncommon that it is just like the technology department behind this. And they're the ones who are all informed and know about it. And then, you know, there have been times when we might have won a proposal and we get there and everyone's like, What is this project?

00;06;24;16 - 00;06;51;08
Unknown
What are you all doing? And so I think very commonly that typically the whole organization is not necessarily on board or even understates the importance or what the project is, which can really backfire because you can have the new and shiniest technology. But if your people are not invested in it and realize its value, it's not going to make a difference.

00;06;51;08 - 00;07;23;24
Unknown
They're not going to use it, they're not going to maximize it to use. And it really you know, you just poured hundreds of thousands of dollars into something that's really not used. So I think that change management aspects could not be overstated because you do have to really get stakeholder buy in. And I think that it's something that a lot of organizations struggle with even knowing how to present this to their coworkers and different departments and things like that.

00;07;23;24 - 00;07;43;02
Unknown
So I'm a grow as a consultant, is always happy to even, you know, kind of go through those initial steps with you, even if you're working on putting out an RFP and how to explain that to different departments and stuff so that everybody's on the same page and supporting the project. Yeah, No, I think that's a great point.

00;07;43;02 - 00;08;12;00
Unknown
You know, a lot of times organizations feel like this is a technology project because you are upgrading your technology and sometimes before even, you know, upgrading your ERP solution, you have to make sure that your systems in your infrastructure can handle it. So yes, I.T. needs to be involved, but i.t doesn't understand the day to day government operations from an H.R. standpoint or from a finance standpoint.

00;08;12;02 - 00;08;38;00
Unknown
So really, this is a time to break down those silos. And a lot of times, you know, the different departments don't know what questions to ask their CIO, Right? Siri, by the way, small play on that, but we could go on and on. These are technology projects, but they're they're also an opportunity for you to really revamp how your organization does day to day.

00;08;38;03 - 00;09;10;24
Unknown
Yeah. I also want to, you know, overlooking user experience and adoption. That's a big one. And Lexie kind of touched on it a little bit. A lot of people don't think about change management as being a part of their RFP, but I'm telling you right now it needs to be included in the questions need to be asked within the RFP document to your consultant how how do you expect to implement change?

00;09;11;01 - 00;09;44;13
Unknown
What are you going to do and how are you going to help me with user experience in the adoption of the new system and programs that we're putting in place? Yeah. All right. Question number two Why is starting with a clear vision critical before drafting your RFP? This is an easy one, but we're not, you know, similar to the last question, if you don't have a clear vision and the organization is not on board and I'm not saying you're always going to have 1% stakeholder.

00;09;44;13 - 00;10;20;29
Unknown
Ryan You know, we don't live in an ideal world, but I do think it shouldn't just be one department behind an arm in other departments should be involved and understand the importance of it. But really stating that vision and clearly will help you get the responses you want back and also know where you're headed. It is not uncommon to see RFP that kind of have a little bit of everything peppered in, and it's really hard to tell not only their scope of work, but what are they actually asking for?

00;10;20;29 - 00;10;43;19
Unknown
What are the benefits they want from this project? Because it's kind of all over the place and, you know, you're not going to get great responses back when your vision is not clearly defined because people are not going to know how to respond to that. Yeah, yeah, I agree. We've seen a lot of those RFP out on the street recently where there's multiple things peppered in.

00;10;43;19 - 00;11;02;28
Unknown
You know, we want to overhaul our ERP system, but we also want to talk about how risky we are with our cybersecurity, you know, and we also want to upgrade all of our computers and telephones and everything else. And it's like, okay, what are you trying to do? And it's okay that you're trying to do all those things.

00;11;03;00 - 00;11;29;20
Unknown
And it's very you can do that. But I think you need to take a step back and prioritize those things through an IT strategic plan, which is another plug for a metro. We can help you prioritize what is most important first. But yeah, Lexi, you're right. It's about identifying those outcomes. What are those measurable outcomes that you are looking to achieve through this RFP?

00;11;29;22 - 00;11;49;01
Unknown
What is it that you want? And that has to come from a vision, you know, And we says all the time when you go to build a house, you know, say, Hey, just build me this house. It takes a lot of planning and a lot of effort and it takes a blueprint, right? You need to know how many windows, how many doors, how many bedrooms you want, Right.

00;11;49;01 - 00;12;15;08
Unknown
What colors you want the walls to be, What kind of floors do you want? Same goes with an ERP system. If you don't have those laid out in front of you, there's no way you can, you know, share that vision with vendors and get good responses in return. Yeah. So great answer. Great answer. And how can organizations effectively prioritize their ERP needs in the RFP?

00;12;15;11 - 00;12;58;16
Unknown
And not only like the scope of work, obviously that's like the first thing I look at when I'm looking at our employees and things like that. So that does need to be clear. But also like what this whole session is about today is like painting that overall picture. Like, tell us why this project is happening now. Why is it important, you know, when we don't get that overall picture, there's been times where I saw ERP, RFP out and like for a consultant like us and go back and they've already put in for an ERP solution out like a year ago and obviously that didn't work but failed things like that.

00;12;58;16 - 00;13;27;17
Unknown
So it it's hard to know when you're not provided the background what exactly this is about and why it's happening now. And like you said yesterday, and now we're discussing this and those are questions we ask every time we get to that shortlist presentation. Why is this project happening now? Why or why is it needed? Like, ah, you know, it's it's affecting your day to day processes, things like that.

00;13;27;20 - 00;13;49;29
Unknown
Because just, you know, I don't think organizations just go out and say they're going to spend hundreds and thousands of dollars without thought behind it. But they also need to paint that picture so that you'll get better responses from consultants like us and ERP vendors like Yes, absolutely. What are your issues that you're currently facing as an organization as a whole?

00;13;50;01 - 00;14;18;04
Unknown
Paint that you know, Let us understand that it guides us as vendors to be able to understand where we can be most beneficial to you. And then we're also able to craft our response to tailor to that. Right. And then also, I think an important point to maybe make here is that if you prioritize your needs in the RFP, it differentiates critical features from desired ones.

00;14;18;04 - 00;14;49;08
Unknown
And I'm going to shift gears a little bit and talk about the work that we do with our current clients who are looking for an ERP solution to help them through the needs assessment. We've helped them through their business processes and now those business processes requirements have become their requirements for their ERP. One of the things I wanted to point out is that a lot of times we go in and these end users have not seen what a new system looks like and what it can do for them.

00;14;49;11 - 00;15;11;18
Unknown
And if you're not utilizing a consultant and you're just going out to purchase the software, the software vendor is going to show you all the blinking lights, all the cool features, all the color changes and cool things to get your attention. But if you are not defining the outcomes and what you need from an ERP system, you're not going to know if that ERP system is going to work for you.

00;15;11;20 - 00;15;34;20
Unknown
You have to set that vision and you have to define those outcomes based on what your business processes are. And they're not the same across, they're not the same across the board. And of course, you know, you're going to be seeing all these sales pitches and that's neat and things like that. But if you don't even know what your needs are, how are you going to know if that's going to actually meet your needs?

00;15;34;20 - 00;16;05;07
Unknown
And you've not even figured out what the actual needs and outcomes are that you want out of this. Right. Exactly. And it also prevents scope creep, right? Laying out your vision, defining what your goals are, defining those outcomes, what you're looking to achieve throughout this RFP. By focusing on your strategic objectives, you can avoid limitation to add more to the scope, and you can avoid those change orders which, like the you and I talked a lot about this in our previous life.

00;16;05;10 - 00;16;32;13
Unknown
One of the biggest pet peeves of our for sure and we've touched on, you know, I mean, this this question goes along with all of this. Why is understanding your current processes crucial before selecting an ERP? And I'll just say that a lot of times when we go into organizations, there are duplicate processes across different departments. And what i mean by that is that h.r.

00;16;32;13 - 00;16;57;16
Unknown
Could be doing the same thing that payroll is doing. And because they don't talk to each other, they don't know that they're doing the same process and that is monkey and that it's wasting time, right. And so being able to map out processes across the different departments is crucial because you take that inefficiency out. And so I think, you know, again, it helps us define what you need from your solution.

00;16;57;18 - 00;17;23;11
Unknown
Yes, for sure. And kind of, like you said, touching on the duplication of processes. There are definitely times where two different people in two different departments are in the same process, different ways. And I don't even realize that one may one way may be way more efficient, one may take hours. And it's just the disconnect with the talking and realizing the current processes.

00;17;23;11 - 00;17;47;17
Unknown
So I think it's super important to dive into that and realize areas where they can improve. And because it's probably not uncommon, the areas that they think work fine because that's the way they've always said things are kind of inefficient processes they have and it can really be sped up. Yes. Well, our fearless leader has a question for us to stump us a little bit.

00;17;47;19 - 00;18;22;12
Unknown
No, we appreciate your questions, Avi, But he says, what role do you all play in the creation of the RFP? And shouldn't that be the job of the purchasing department? What are your thoughts? Lexie So yes, technically it's the job of the purchasing department, but. Avera You know, you have done this before. Meghan We are always happy to help craft an RFP, and thanks to that, you will actually get what your overall vision is and what you're asking for.

00;18;22;14 - 00;18;55;29
Unknown
So I do think I think it's smart for organizations to engage with these consultants on the front end. Walk us through that. You really know what you need to be putting in your RFP, especially for a ERP solution. One, for example, if you just go out for an ERP solution and you've not done any of that back work defining your processes, realizing where the inefficiencies are and things like that, I mean, you're probably not going to get solutions that actually work for what you need.

00;18;56;01 - 00;19;21;19
Unknown
So with a consultant like us, if you're working with us before you go out for any ERP solution, we can help make sure that RFP is nailed down exactly what you need. I mean, we even make what's called a requirements traceability matrix and we literally list every single requirement. You want and need and a new system needed and desired, things like that.

00;19;21;21 - 00;19;55;07
Unknown
And then, you know, you hand that to the vendor and it's like, check that off so you can do that. Yeah. It's not just, yeah, we can do all this. You know, it's really like, show us these are our needs. And you have that very well documented when you're working with someone like us. So I think the purchasing department is the most important department in local government organizations only because not only because of that, but because they understand the laws and they keep us out of the news and they keep us out of both situations.

00;19;55;07 - 00;20;23;10
Unknown
So in that aspect, they are great. We lean on them to provide some of the legal things that need to be in an RFP. But I think that's back to those silos, right? And in local government organizations, you know, someone in H.R. may just say, well, procurement. they're just in charge of keeping us out of the news and keeping us out of the out of the courtroom or, you know, they craft out of piece.

00;20;23;11 - 00;20;55;28
Unknown
It's fine. And so I think it goes back to that overall alignment across the board. And how is this particular RFP going to help procurement in the long run? I think I think that vision needs to be shared across all departments. But again, like you said, we work with procurement to really help define that scope, to speak to vendors, because I think sometimes, like I said, the vision is loss and they don't know exactly what the whole organization is looking for or the why behind it.

00;20;56;01 - 00;21;22;21
Unknown
And so I think it goes back to really breaking down those silos and communicating that vision across the department. But great question. AV Thank you for that. Let's see, let's let's skip on down to the people. I was very, very inspired recently with an RFP that was put out on the street. And if we have time today, I am going to share this example with you all.

00;21;22;21 - 00;21;59;09
Unknown
But they actually incorporated in their outcomes the people and the change management, and they wanted to know how we were going to help facilitate the change across their organization, with their people and with their young users. So that's what inspired this topic today. So how does focusing on people and processes change the RFP narrative in your opinion? Lexi Because then at that point it's not just like focusing on technology because like we said, these are not technology projects for people projects.

00;21;59;09 - 00;22;27;04
Unknown
We would say that £1,000,000 and really focusing on the people and the change management aspect really paints that overall picture like we were talking about, of knowing what the industry needs, why they need it now, and why this project is important and what they're expecting from it. And it's it's could be easy to write an RFP that has a very defined scope of work and that makes sense and everything.

00;22;27;04 - 00;22;54;19
Unknown
But if we don't know why this project is important and why it matters to your daily processes or staff, and that's that's a hard gap to bridge. Yeah, absolutely. I mean, it's a human centric approach or should yeah, you know your your end user is the one who is going to, you know, experience the most change but also experience the most benefit.

00;22;54;19 - 00;23;20;06
Unknown
So a lot of times, you know, when you start talking about an ERP system overhaul, it's like, my gosh, some in users are thinking, no, my job is going to go away because I'm the only one that can utilize the spreadsheet. And now a software system is going to do it for us. But oftentimes we see that those people are the ones who voice their opinions first and they want to bring their ideas to the table.

00;23;20;06 - 00;23;52;26
Unknown
And if you allow those in users to come and bring their ideas of where the inefficiencies lie, that's how you look at the people, the people who are going to be utilizing the system. They need to have a voice in this, in this project. And with that, it's I think it strengthens collaboration, you know, bringing people together to voice their opinions of why things may be inefficient or, you know, why things have been done the way they've been done for 30 plus years.

00;23;53;00 - 00;24;24;00
Unknown
Yeah. And and like you said, collaboration, bringing people together not only on a particular project we're helping an entity with, but realizing the silos and how, wow, you know, if we, if we would just work together and talk a little more and let each other know what we're doing and how this all this duplication of effort from learning that can transient, transient multiple projects, you know, not just a technology project all across the board and communication.

00;24;24;00 - 00;24;43;23
Unknown
So that's a great point. Something about communication should be in your RFP. How are you going to communicate with my team and my end users? How often are you going to communicate and what forms of communication do you use? Because I'm telling you right now, emails don't work for everybody, phone calls, Zoom calls, they don't work for everybody.

00;24;43;26 - 00;25;08;12
Unknown
Sometimes you have to get creative and send out newsletters and make videos. So I think it's important to point that out. That's a great point to point that out in your RFP, how is your organization, how is your ERP system, your teams? How are they going to communicate with me and my users? It's a great point. All right.

00;25;08;15 - 00;25;36;05
Unknown
Next question. What technical considerations should your RFP include to ensure future proofing? I mean, you SOPs. Yeah, So that's a good question, especially for an RFP that's like going out for an ERP solution because we live in a world that is rapidly changing and constantly evolving with technology. So you need to have aspects in there like how will this stay updated over time?

00;25;36;05 - 00;26;04;27
Unknown
You know, an organization doesn't want to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on something and it'll be outdated in two years. So you really have to think of you really have to ask the questions to the vendor of how it's staying with the times. UPDATE How regularly do we get updates and things like that Because you don't, you know, you don't want to make a huge investment in something that's going to quickly be outdated.

00;26;05;00 - 00;26;34;04
Unknown
Yes, you want the scalability and flexibility and you also want integration capabilities. You want to know what integrations, how your ERP is going to integrate with other systems throughout the organization, because those are going to be ever changing. And then you want to know what kind of vendor support you're going to have throughout the lifestyle or the lifecycle of your ERP solution.

00;26;34;06 - 00;26;54;18
Unknown
Who do I call if I have an issue you have is that you're not just wanting to buy it off the shelf and then be like, okay, we're done talking to the buyer or Yeah, yeah, yep, nope. This should be an ongoing thing. How do you ensure that your RFP addresses user adoption and training with touched on this briefly?

00;26;54;22 - 00;27;26;03
Unknown
Yeah, but yeah, I think that goes back to the change management aspect and how your organization works. The best way to communicate that with them and things like that. Because the training in user training and user acceptance, all that is so important because if you, if those things are not ironed out and done correctly, you can have this great system you just spend a lot of money on and people don't like it.

00;27;26;06 - 00;27;56;15
Unknown
They don't want to utilize it. And you know, it's just kind of a waste. So I actually like thinking about those training pieces and how your organization works and the best way to conduct and user training with them and how to really get that stakeholder. Brian, is super important because at the end of the day, like you said, they will be the ones using the system, so they need to support it and understand it and realize the benefits it has.

00;27;56;17 - 00;28;22;07
Unknown
Yeah, and I think the biggest piece here is the feedback mechanism. Mechanism implementing channels for open lines of communication and how you respond to things to end users, specifically when they're having an issue and how you're addressing those issues. In what way should an RFP reflect an organization's change management strategy? Yeah, I mean, really, that should be across the board.

00;28;22;07 - 00;28;48;15
Unknown
Your RFP should be really tailored to you. It should not just be a copy and paste job of a scope of work. It should really explain some background, you know, what systems you currently use, how those are working out for you, why you're wanting a new system, the processes, it's system in place carries out and why why this project is needed now.

00;28;48;17 - 00;29;20;14
Unknown
Because obviously there's always a big driver to projects. I don't expect like government agencies starting this up and decide, we're going to invest half a million dollars in this for no reason. So there obviously are those big drivers. But I think communicating that to potential vendors like us and ERP vendors, we'll get better responses and show us, wow, they've really thought about this and understand how like how inefficient things are being and how it could be improved.

00;29;20;16 - 00;29;49;06
Unknown
Yes. And don't be afraid to put specific questions that you would like us to answer in your RFP. Like specifically with change management, what are your what is your change management strategy and how do you manage resistance? Yeah, what is your communication plan and how do you evaluate change? Yeah, right. Don't be scared to list those questions out in your heart for us to specifically address in our response.

00;29;49;06 - 00;30;20;16
Unknown
But I think those are all key things to think about. And the biggest thing here, as Lexie mentioned, is communication, communicating that vision down and making sure that open lines of communication exist throughout the project and what your plans are for communication. Because like I mentioned earlier, sometimes email doesn't work, sometimes Zoom calls don't work. You've got to get creative and you've got to be excited about it comes from the top down.

00;30;20;19 - 00;30;41;03
Unknown
Have Bobby, thank you for joining us. Sorry, I saw a comment pop up and they're just waving, so I thought we had a question. But thank you for joining us today. Let me do this, guys. This is the first time I've ever done this. I'm going to attempt to share my screen. I hope that you guys can see it.

00;30;41;03 - 00;31;03;06
Unknown
If you can't let us know in the comments, because we can't that Lexie can't see that I'm sharing my screen. We tested it earlier, but I'm going to attempt to share my screen. And what I'm sharing is an example of a very clearly defined vision in an RFP. They have defined their scope. They've given us good history, good background.

00;31;03;11 - 00;31;41;12
Unknown
We know what we're walking into when we go to craft our response. So we're quick. I'm going to share that and then we'll wrap up today. And so here we go. All right. Hopefully you guys can can see my screen here. But I just wanted to point out, first of all, this RFP, I'm only sharing three pages, but this RFP was less than 20 pages long, which was great because I think vendors get a little overwhelmed when they see that you're looking at one of 200 pages and it's like, my gosh, I'm not going to get what I need out of here, right?

00;31;41;14 - 00;32;11;06
Unknown
So it was very short, very straight to the point. And Lexie, please provide your thoughts. But, you know, within the purpose, I really like that they are pointing out that they want to embark on a comprehensive assessment of its systems and processes to not only implement technology solutions, but adopt business process improvements and best practices to support the provision of quality government services.

00;32;11;06 - 00;32;37;19
Unknown
That is such a powerful sentence and that really speaks to me. This is not just about a technical technology upgrade. It's about our people and it's about re-envisioning how my county operates. Do you have thoughts, Lexie, on this? Not I mean, similar to what we said, I think that's super important because they're telling us straight forward, they're not just wanting new technology to want new technology.

00;32;37;22 - 00;33;06;26
Unknown
They obviously realize how their business processes are lacking and how they can really improve. And and even a little further down in the strategic work plan, part part C, they tell you all these things that they have extensive use of manual and paper based processes, other systems that don't interface with their primary ERP. So they give you lots of background of why this project is needed.

00;33;06;28 - 00;33;33;11
Unknown
Yes, absolutely. And with just in the first paragraph, I see the ambition of what they're trying. They're utilizing this opportunity to to change to to really implement change that is going to be everlasting right there. The ambition is very clear in the objective. The next thing I want to point out is the background. We love it when you guys provide a background story for us.

00;33;33;13 - 00;33;56;02
Unknown
This is a chance for you guys to story tell about what your city, county quasi government agency is going through currently. Where are the pain points? How many end users are you going to have? How many? How big are you? That's a big one, I think, because there are some vendors that won't go after something because it's too big or too small.

00;33;56;09 - 00;34;24;17
Unknown
So being able to clearly define that here is key and then tell it's like, you know what software you currently use and they talk about and be here. What are your primary software application and then which departments are we going to be working with? Right. Clearly define that. We need to know if we're just working with our finance or if we're if this is a full overhaul.

00;34;24;18 - 00;34;55;04
Unknown
Yeah. Going to have thoughts on that, Lexi on this. Yeah, that's super important because even when I'm crafting responses or if we mention project sponsors and sometimes in an RFP, you can't even tell who the sponsor is, like what department can help? You don't know, honestly. You know, you can always assume i.t will be involved in a at a degree, but to sometimes you don't know beyond that.

00;34;55;06 - 00;35;30;12
Unknown
So I think it's extremely important that light out the departments involved here so we know exactly what that current site discovery would look like. We're dealing with X amount of department x amount of employees. And so I think they made that really clear. And, you know, it didn't leave you wondering who will we be working with? Yes. And the other thing to to elaborate on the primary software applications used when I'm reading this, you know, this software that this customer or county is currently on is from the early 1990s.

00;35;30;15 - 00;35;57;16
Unknown
Right. And so that tells me that this project may be a little bit more involved because they may not have the infrastructure or things in place to really support a cloud based ERP system. And so with that, you know, your pricing change, your pricing changes because is a little bit more involved because we're trying to bring them from the 1990s to the 21st century.

00;35;57;18 - 00;36;20;27
Unknown
The Let's Move we talked about the strategic work plan. This is just what they recognize about their organization as a whole. So this tells me that they've really done some extensive planning and and they're raising their hand and they're saying, hey, this is how we operate day to day. This is where we're clunky and this is where we know we.

00;36;21;00 - 00;36;45;27
Unknown
Let's talk about the scope for a minute. This is what we were going into and this is where our idea for for the live came from today. Talk to me Lexi about the scope and what is so ambitious about this. Just looking at, you know, the evaluation assessment. Yeah, I think it's super important here. They didn't just leave it at assessment or evaluation.

00;36;46;04 - 00;37;08;11
Unknown
They also added business process improvement. And you know, you're not just doing an assessment to see where you are, you're also doing it to see, okay, where are the gaps and how can we improve on those gaps? Because at the end of the day there are outcomes to each of these are these and they're making it very clear that they want their business processes improved.

00;37;08;13 - 00;37;44;13
Unknown
So I think that's super important. You know, it says in the letter that step A down below gain an understanding of the organizational structure, culture and capabilities. And they're wanting you to really understand their organization, the culture and what they're capable of right now and what they could be capable of in the future with different business processes. And so I think they did a super good job on their scope of services and extending a step beyond the basic requirements and really letting you know, like this is going to be a whole culture shift within our organization.

00;37;44;16 - 00;38;16;08
Unknown
Yes, Yes. And I like that they, you know, a lot of times business process, it can mean a lot of different things. So they really define here what it means to them and what they're hoping to achieve from it. And I think that is very clear to me. Yeah. And let's talk about we could probably combined B, C, and D so we can wrap up today, but let's talk about B, C, and D, the procurement, the vendor selection, and then the implementation and project oversight.

00;38;16;11 - 00;38;39;06
Unknown
What are your thoughts on these sections and how they curated their RFP? They did a super good job of breaking it down step by step, letting you know exactly what they wanted and each phase and just looking at the project implementation project oversight section, you can see that last point, point C says assess and support the county and change management.

00;38;39;09 - 00;39;04;08
Unknown
And so, I mean, they have really thought about this and even going back up to the part A, they want this process to be highly inclusive and collaborative, collaborative involving the participation of departments. So it's not siloed. They have really thought about this and got all their departments on board and everyone should know what's happening. And that's important because it needs to be an inclusive process.

00;39;04;08 - 00;39;26;25
Unknown
So you can tell that they've done their homework and realize there is a huge part of change management to a project like this. Yes, absolutely. And then I like that they define their functional areas. And, you know, here are the things that we need you guys to review, and here are the things that need to be brought up into the 21st century.

00;39;26;25 - 00;39;53;19
Unknown
And they list here again, that helps us craft a better response to your RFP. So I'm going to stop sharing and I hope that that worked for everyone. You'll have to let me know if it's super embarrassing, but time, hope a great idea to give you guys a clear example because it's easy for Alexi and I to stand up here and preach because we read thousands of our what feels like in a month's time.

00;39;53;21 - 00;40;20;27
Unknown
But if you do have questions or you do have thoughts regarding our topic today or regarding just what we do in general, please feel free to reach out. You can find us on our YouTube channel, LinkedIn, Facebook, or who else? Members and Instagram, Twitter, all of them to YouTube. Yes We we are easily available. Check out our website and make sure I'm going to share really quick if I can find it.

00;40;20;29 - 00;40;46;25
Unknown
Make sure you sign up for our untangled newsletter. We've done. We've worked really hard on this to make it unique and fun to read, So let me share that with you all and make sure that you engage with that. We release it every Wednesday. So without further ado, thank you, Lexi, for joining me today. I think this is a very engaging and unique topic.

00;40;46;25 - 00;41;02;18
Unknown
Hopefully you guys had some key takeaways and some nuggets that you can take back with you to your organizations, but please feel free to join us next week. We go live every Wednesday at 10 a.m. and we look forward to seeing you there. Thank you. Thanks. Bye guys!