JISC

Summary

1. This tender invitation invites institutions, individuals or organisations to bid to create an Electronic Document and Records Management Implementation Toolkit (‘the Toolkit’) for the UK Further Education (FE) and Higher Education (HE) sectors.

2. Funding of up to £50,000 (including VAT and expenses) is available for this work. The deadline for proposals is 12 noon on Monday 27^th October. Bidders will be notified of the awarding decision by mid-November 2003. The toolkit should be completed by 30^th June 2004 at the latest.

Background

3. The Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) is a strategic advisory committee working on behalf of the funding bodies for further and higher education (FE and HE) in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. It also works in partnership with the Research Councils. The JISC promotes the innovative application and use of information systems and information technology in FE and HE across the UK by providing vision and leadership and funding the network infrastructure, Information and Communications Technology (ICT) and information services, development projects and high quality materials for education.

4. A key objective for the JISC is keeping the UK at the forefront in the use of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in education. In order to achieve this, the JISC funds projects within further and higher education institutions to trial, pilot, develop or evaluate new technologies and techniques that may be of importance to the sector.

5. As part of its Digital Preservation Focus activities, JISC has already undertaken a number of initiatives aimed at promoting and developing records management within the FE/HE community. In many cases the requirements of new and existing legislation, especially compliance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and Data Protection Act 1998 have fuelled these activities, along with a recognition of the role records management plays as part of the ‘lifecycle’ approach to digital asset management - itself a critical element of any digital preservation strategy.

6. The JISC currently supports the development of institutional records management by:

• raising awareness of records management issues within the community;
• funding innovative studies and the development of tools for use within the community;
• providing access to expertise on records management issues;
• inter-working with other JISC areas, such as the Legal Information Service, JISC InfoNet and external agencies.

7. Click here for full details of all JISC’s activities in relation to the above.

Scope of this Tender

8. The use of ICT is changing the way all organisations function leading to an ever-increasing number of records being created, and needing to be kept electronically. Encouraged by this trend, initiatives such as the UK government’s e-Government Policy Framework and a new generation of commercial electronic document and records management systems (EDRMS) have been developed to meet this demand.

9. Many FE/HE institutions are beginning to consider the relative merits of acquiring and implementing such systems and tools to manage their electronic records. Moreover, now that the central government market has largely been saturated vendors are beginning to look to the education sector as a new potential market. There is therefore a very real need within the community at this time for sources of independent advice on all issues relating to the implementation and use of EDRM systems and tools within the sector.

10. Proposals are therefore invited from institutions, individuals or organisations interested in researching and creating an EDRMS Implementation Toolkit to meet the need indicated above. The objective of this Toolkit will be to provide a step-by-step guide to all stages in the implementation of an EDRMS solution within a college or university, from building a business case through system selection to planning and ultimately implementing the project.

11. At all stages the content of the finished Toolkit should seek to provide generically applicable guidance and advice which will continue to be of use across both the FE and HE sectors, and yet should also seek to provide specific examples and current information wherever it is feasible and useful to do so.

12. The successful bidder is not requested to make specific recommendations regarding commercial products, but where relevant to provide sufficient information to allow the user to come to their own informed decision.

Terms of Reference

13. The objective of the Toolkit is to provide institutional Records Managers and other information professionals with a ‘one-stop shop’ for impartial, detailed and practical advice of use during all stages of a proposed or actual EDRMS implementation that is free from vendor-bias and specific to the needs of the FE/HE sector.

14. It is anticipated that the Toolkit will include, but not necessarily be limited to addressing the following areas:

a) Advisory information and generic assessment criteria aimed at enabling institutions to address the following question in advance of any proposed EDRMS project: ‘Is an EDRMS the right solution for your institution?’ This section should show awareness of and provide links to sources of further information regarding other alternative approaches to an EDRMS which an institution should consider (such as workflow technologies, enterprise software etc) and assess the functionality of an EDRMS in relation to these other technologies.

b) Assessing the role of an EDRMS within an institution’s wider information infrastructure (eg its interaction with an institution’s existing website, intranet, VLE, MLE, email system, institutional repository etc). It is vital that any EDRMS initiative does not occur in a vacuum but is considered as an integral element of the institution’s wider information creation and management environment. This section must encourage users to consider such links and dependencies and provide guidance as to their potential impact on any EDRMS implementation.‘

c) How to choose your system’. A vendor and system selection checklist aimed at guiding institutions towards making an informed and objective decision regarding their chosen supplier and system. This checklist should point users to other independent external quality standards (such as The National Archive’s list of approved systems) as well as indicating other criteria to apply when assessing the various merits of competing systems and examples of pertinent questions to ask vendor sales staff.

d) Building a business case and convincing senior management. This section to include a model business case which can be drawn upon and adapted by users when formulating their own business case. Also to include general advice regarding who to contact when within an institution and what messages to give to varying audiences when trying to generate support for a project prior to a request for funding for an EDRMS project.

e) Undertaking cost-benefit analysis. Specific guidance relating to how to undertake a cost-benefit analysis exercise in the context of building a business case for an EDRMS project. This section should include a generic formulation which can be applied to help institutions calculate the likely Return on Investment of implementing an EDRMS.

f) How to market your project. General advice regarding how to convince a range of users to ‘buy in’ to an EDRMS project using a variety of tailored messages. This section to include sample presentations, ideas for workshops and links to the Electronic Records Management Training Package currently being developed by Northumbria University on behalf of JISC.

g) Project planning. General advice identifying areas requiring consideration by the Project Manager during project planning, including: identifying stages and work-packages, estimating timescales, establishing reporting lines, documenting progress. This section should make the user aware of formal project management standards but also seek to explain the general principles of effective project management which underpin them and which are essential for any successful project.

h) ‘Hints and tips’ - Stage-by-stage guidance indicating the key areas users should be considering during each major stage of an EDRMS implementation. For example ‘planning a successful pilot project’ etc. The guidance should draw users attention to pre-requisites for success, help identify key risk areas and indicate how to reduce them and provide useful practical advice.

15. This toolkit is to be modular and web-based with content which can be downloaded and adapted by the user wherever appropriate. The style should be lively and engaging and allow navigation between sections and content. Examples and templates should be provided wherever possible, as should links to related external sources of relevant information. All content and style should be appropriate for a professional records or information management audience but should not assume an advanced prior knowledge of EDRMS or project management.

Specific Conditions

16. The Toolkit will initially be hosted by the JISC infoNet Service. Successful bidders will be expected to work closely with JISC infoNet staff from the formative stages of the project to ensure that the Toolkit can be integrated into the relevant host website and that it conforms to all appropriate standards, including accessibility.

17. This Invitation to Tender is open to any individual, FE/HE institution or organisation which can demonstrate the required knowledge and expertise. However, it is vital that the Toolkit provides unbiased, vendor-neutral advice if it is to achieve its true potential. It is therefore not considered appropriate for EDRMS vendors to tender for this work. The final decision regarding the eligibility of bidders rests with the evaluation panel whose decision is final. Consortium bids are welcome.

18. For studies and consultancies funded by the JISC, any information gathered during the course of these activities and not already in the public domain is deemed to be the property of HEFCE on behalf of JISC. The information provided in the reports to the JISC, and the rights to all other output, shall become the property of HEFCE on behalf of JISC. The Toolkit will then be made freely available to all users under a non-exclusive perpetual licence.

19. The Toolkit must be completed and available on the specified host website by 30^th June 2004.

Submission of Tenders

20. Proposals should be no longer than 8 pages of A4. Electronic copies (word or rtf) versions should be submitted by 12 noon on Monday 27^th October to: N.Holmes@jisc.ac.uk. A single hard copy with signatures should be sent to arrive by the same time and date to the address below. Late or faxed proposals will not be accepted.

Nike Holmes
JISC Executive,
Northavon House
Coldharbour Lane,
Bristol,
BS16 1QD

21. Proposals should include:

a) Evidence of the contractor’s ability to undertake this project, including:

i) Theoretical expertise and practical experience of implementing EDRM systems, preferably within an FE/HE context;

ii) Experience of working within the FE/HE sector;

iii) Experience of creating training materials;

iv) Relevant technical and design skills for creating online content;

v) Awareness of project management techniques and standards.

b) An outline plan for the proposed Toolkit including examples of content and functionality where appropriate

c) Information about the consultant(s) who will undertake the work and their suitability for the role(s) in the form of brief CVs. Proposals should identify clearly who would respectively manage and undertake the work.

d) Detailed costings for all activities within the scope of the planned role(s) including a statement of day rate/salary to be charged for staff supplied during this project

e) A timetable for the proposed work, including start and end dates; phases etc.

f) A named contact for the proposal and full contact details.

Evaluation of Tenders

22. An evaluation panel will be established with representation from the FE and HE community, JISC committee members and JISC Executive staff. The criteria used to decide the successful tender will include the following (in no particular order):

• demonstration of understanding of the FE/HE sector;
• quality of outline plan;
• demonstration of ability to carry out the work required by the deadline;
• clarity of costs;
• value for money.

23. It is anticipated that a presentation to an evaluation panel will not be required. Bidders will be notified of the evaluation panel’s decision by mid- November 2003.

24. The JISC reserves the right not to select any bids.

Further Information

25. Queries related to the tender document should be addressed to Steve Bailey, JISC Records Manager, tel: 07902 302850.