Over the past three years we have been continuously working to develop and implement new systems
and procedures, including:
The following actions have been taken in response to community input:
 Met with members of Gulf Coast Builders Exchange; discussed opportunity for quarterly
construction bid forums. GCBX has not set date yet (was hoping kickoff would be March 2011)
 Began search for e-procure system in 2008 in response to requests from BCC and vendors for a
system that did not require a fee and provided more access to information.
 Began posting Informational Bulletins for construction bids to allow potential bidders to
comment on proposed qualifications prior to advertisement of bid. Procurement provides the
feedback received to the Construction Management Services department so the bid
qualifications may be revised if revision is deemed appropriate, prior to the bid being issued.
 Discussed reducing performance and payment bond requirements with Office of County
Attorney and Risk Management (is on list of topics to discuss at 1st construction bid forum)
 Began using Design-Build and Construction Management methods for vertical construction
 Began requiring oral presentations when total cost of project exceeds $5m (for RPS’s and
RFP’s)
 Procurement Code modification allows bidders/proposers affected by a protest to participate
in protest proceedings (adopted October 2010)
 Community Outreach – Procurement responds to requests from business groups and vendors
by attending meetings and giving presentations (examples: GCBX, Chamber, Local Surveyors
group)
Changes that impact vendors:
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Adopted local preference for bids and RFP’s in February 2009
Evaluation Committee members are required to attend a procedural meeting prior to serving
on an evaluation committee.
Implemented a point system for evaluating responses to RFP’s and RPS’s
Procurement posts all evaluation meetings on the scgov.net calendar, in an effort to ensure
any interested party may attend an evaluation meeting or bid opening.
Developed a responsiveness matrix that is used by Procurement staff. Matrix ensures that
bids and proposals received are reviewed in a consistent manner
2010 Updated Purchase Order format to include General Terms and Conditions and
reformatted information for ease of use
Professional Services
o July 2010 began publishing Professional Service Library forms and documents on
scgov.net, including rotation lists
o July 2009 Began hosting quarterly professional service forums to share information and
respond to questions and concerns
o Procurement recognized in 2008 that the local Professional Services community
(Architects, Engineers, Landscape Architects, Surveyors, Mappers per Section 287.055
Florida Statutes) wanted to see changes and improvements to the way the County was
hiring these firms for continuing services. In response, Procurement staff worked from
2008 onward (implementation is ongoing) to design, develop and implement its
Professional Services Library [LINK] which replaces the County’s prior Continuing Services
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Contracts with a new rotational system for hiring professional services who are selected
through a public advertised solicitation process for participation in the Library.
Conducted surveys prior to development of professional services library, to solicit input
from the local Professional community, and also began holding quarterly forums to
provide updates and solicit continuing input from the local Professional community on the
new system.
Library system assigns projects on a rotational basis to firms deemed qualified and
awarded continuing contracts, with the object of effecting an equitable distribution of
work among qualified firms.
Internal changes:
 Launched and development of internal SharePoint site, which allows all County staff
exportable access to Procurement data including solicitations (bids, RFPs, RPS), annual
agreements (term contracts), exemptions, access to templates………
 Tracking of current and past bids and RFPs advertised and awarded, including solicitation
dates, user department, user department contact person, and other information – data is
exportable and able to be viewed by all County staff; Prior to 2008 only basic solicitation data
was maintained, and it was not viewable remotely.
 Tracking of exemptions using an exemption request form – tracking includes a database of the
exemption form, vendor name, approval date, expiration date, initiating department, and a
brief description of the exemption - data is exportable and able to be viewed by all County
staff; Prior to 2008 forms were requested for sole sources only – not for any other type of
exemption – and were maintained in a paper file with no electronic tracking or reporting
available.
 Require approval of CIO for any exemption requests related to information technology
 Require Grants team member to review solicitations prior to advertisement to ensure grant
requirements are met (local preference, funding, etc).
 October 2010 – Began storing backup documentation for all Purchase Requests in a
SharePoint List. Allows Clerk of Court to easily locate backup documentation when processing
invoices for payment, speeding up process of making payment to vendors
 2010 – Standardized format of paper solicitation files to ensure consistency and ease of
locating documents in response to public records requests
 Updated the Procurement Code in February 2009, July 2009 and October 2010. Each update
required presentations to the Board and public hearings (previous update was 2003)
 Bi-Weekly prioritization meetings are held with Construction Management Services to address
scheduling for construction bids
 Formalized and standardized the Information For Quotes process (for purchases between
$25,001 and $50,000)
 September 2010 – Standardized change order request and approval process
 Summer 2010 Developed COOP plan for Procurement services
 In 2009 Procurement began developing and publishing formal Standard Operating Procedures
(SOPs) in an effort to standardize its processes and to clarify the roles and responsibilities of
Procurement staff and the County staff who work with Procurement on behalf of their
Business Unit. SOPs are revised continuously as circumstances merit. SOPS are in place for
procedures such as the Formal Bid Process, Approving Purchase Requisitions and Purchase
Orders, and Annual Agreements. Our database currently contains 39 adopted Standard
Operating Procedures, all of which are available and accessible to staff Countywide. Prior to
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the development of these SOPs, formal written procedures related to Procurement were not
in place.
Adopted a solicitation worksheet that is used to document internal customer solicitation
requirements and set target dates for advertisements (requires a signature)
November 2010 - Began revamping the Procurement Manual to create a more comprehensive
user-friendly and relevant Manual (minor updates have been made on a routine basis).
Manual is published on SharePoint and on www.scgov.net
July 2010 - Began updating p-card manual, training materials and forms.
Development of standard templates for documents used regularly by Procurement staff and
County staff who work with the Procurement department. Templates are updated regularly
and versions are tracked. Currently our template database contains 168 published templates.
Prior to 2008, the database did not exist and templates were not standardized or tracked.
On our Radar:
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Need for a vendor evaluation system
Drafted “instructions for bidders” with assistance from OCA to assist bidder and proposers in
properly responding to bids and RFP’s (included definitions of “responsiveness” and
“responsibility”
2010 Drafted “Doing Business with Sarasota County” Brochure for distribution to vendors (not
finalized for printing yet – was waiting for launch of eProcure)
2010 Began drafting a process for pre-certifying vendors as “local businesses” (will be rolled
out in conjunction with eProcure)