State of Nebraska Procurement Presented to: Veterans in Business Forum Lincoln, NE - June 7, 2013 Omaha, NE – June 13, 2013

2 State Purchasing Bureau (402) Bo Botelho Materiel Administrator & AS General Counsel Brenda Pape State Procurement Manager Rita Kucera State Procurement Supervisor Kate Severin State Procurement Supervisor

◦ Standardized, open and fair process ◦ Performance-based contracting methods ◦ Standardized method of selection ◦ Assures a fair assessment of qualifications and capabilities for project completion ◦ Accountable, efficient reporting method of expenditures for those services ◦ Transparent 3

 Based on generally accepted principles for government procurement, including: ◦ Competition: To get best pricing ◦ Protect: The State’s and Taxpayer’s interests ◦ Fairness: To provide a level playing field for all vendors ◦ Transparency: Provides a record of the bid process, evaluation and award ◦ Standardization: To provide a uniform method in obtaining large volume of goods and services ◦ Ethics: Quality, integrity, impartiality 4

 Read entire bid/proposal.  Review submittal for accuracy and completeness.  Submit a timely bid (one minute late, bid may be rejected).  Submit a signed bid package complete with all the mandatory forms.  Price the bid competitively.  Demonstrate responsiveness and responsibility.  Submit questions for clarification. NOTE: Inquiries generally are required in writing.  If applicable, attend pre-bid and/or post award conferences.  Bid exceptions may disqualify bidder. 5

“Must” / “Will” / “Shall” – mandatory requirement “Should” / “May” – recommended condition 6

 Communicate with state agency and buyer  Register with the State – Review state information and website  Respond to RFP or ITB  Don’t “assume,” clarify!  Solicit clarifications prior to bid opening  Understand “must,” “shall,” and “should” requirements  Use Q & A periods  Use the pricing provided, use the units requested! 7

 Vendors owe the State: ◦ The courtesy of reading the entire solicitation document ◦ Don’t wait – tell the State as soon as you discover issues with the specifications ◦ Ask questions during the solicitation process; not in your proposal ◦ Not discussing the solicitation with anyone other than the procurement officer 8

 Vendors owe the State: ◦ A good faith offer to sell ◦ A clear, comprehensive offer ◦ A definitive price ◦ An unqualified offer 9

 Follow instructions.  Adhere to critical deadlines.  Offer to meet the requirements of the RFP.  Focus on the Scope of Work, Specifications, Proposal Instructions, and Bidding Schedule/Price Proposal.  Organize your proposal response as required, specifically looking to the Proposal Instructions section of the RFP for guidance.  Write clear, definitive statements.  Use an overview of the proposed solution both for the substance and business portions of the response to focus the evaluators.  Be thorough, but concise.  Be careful that maintenance, support and license agreements don’t conflict with terms of the solicitation.  Do not expect evaluators to interpret your proposal. It’s your job to be clear; not theirs to interpret what you mean. 10

Vendors never, ever… ◦ Take exception to or re-write the requirements of the solicitation. If you wish, offer to meet the specifications and then offer alternative solutions. ◦ Qualify your proposal response. ◦ Overlook or refuse to submit critical information requested. ◦ Unless expressly requested, don’t mention your cost; we don’t care – what is my price? ◦ Alter the pricing units. ◦ Include canned product literature that may contradict the RFP’s requirements. ◦ Alter the bidding schedule. 11

 Posted on State Purchasing Bureau website – ◦ ◦ Lists Invitations to Bid for commodity one-time purchases and commodity contracts; and ◦ Requests for Proposals for service contracts  Become a registered vendor by completing Vendor Application – ◦ found at: ◦ Randomly chosen vendors (up to 20 vendors) will receive a letter announcing the solicitations and directing them to the website for more information. ◦ NOTE: It is not required that a vendor be registered with State Purchasing to do business with the State of Nebraska, although if a company is not on our mailing list they may not receive all information regarding bid opportunities.  Publication of Public Notice – ◦ Bid opportunities for services may be advertised in the Lincoln Journal Star, the Omaha World Herald, or both. 12

 Posted on State Building Division Website - ◦ ◦ Contact information and how to obtain a bid package is listed under Job Purchase Info  Non-Profit Organizations – Organizations receive notice of construction bid opportunities and are available to their members ◦ Lincoln Builders Bureau - ◦ Omaha Builders Exchange -  Publication of Public Notice – ◦ bid opportunities are advertised in a local area newspaper 13

Questions 14