Report No: Meeting Date:
T~T
13-090a August 28, 2013
Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District
STAFF REPORT TO: FROM: SUBJECT:
AC Transit Board of Directors David J. Armijo, General Manager Contract Award for Call Center Support Services
ACTION ITEM RECOMMENDED ACTION(S):
Consider approving the award of contract 2013-1253, for Call Center Support Services to American Customer Care, pending negotiation of non-monetary provisions as may be necessary. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
The District's travel/trip planning and Customer Relations call center support has been provided by American Customer Care for the past three years. A Request for Proposals was posted in June 2013 to seek qualified proposers to provide similar services. This resulted in seven proposals which were reviewed by a team of AC Transit staff to evaluate their past experience, qualifications and proposed staff. Based upon the technical and cost evaluations, the proposal evaluation team recommends the award of a contract to American Customer Care. BUDGETARY/FISCAL IMPACT:
The total estimated cost for Call Center Support Services for the three-year term is $828,000, or $276,000 annually, an increase of $31,000 annually compared to current contract rates . Funding for services in the FY13-14 operating budget is adequate to cover the proposed cost of the selected provider.
BACKGROUND/RATIONALE:
The District entered into a three-year contract with American Customer Care in September 2010 to provide call center services, for trip/travel planning and for registering customer complaints and comments . The initial contract period of three years expires in September 2013. A-one year option, priced at $261,000, was not exercised by the District. The District issued Request for Proposals 13-1253 in June 2013 for Call Center Support Services. This RFP resulted in seven proposals, received from companies located in Northern California (including Oakland), Iowa, Texas and Louisiana-a greater number and range than the 2010 solicitation, which resulted in only three proposals. The technical proposals included itemized responses to a detailed questionnaire of technical and service-related requirements, along with
Report No. 13-090a Page 2 of 3
the required flat-rate pricing proposal for total services. The proposals were reviewed by a team of AC Transit staff to evaluate the past experience, qualifications, and ability to perform the requirements detailed in the RFP. The services to be provided include: providing travel/trip planning and recording customer feedback during expanded hours--Monday-Friday 6 am - 7 pm (one hour earlier than current), 9 am - 5 pm Saturdays, Sundays and holidays; offering translation services; staffing to achieve service level agreements (e.g., 85% of calls answered within 20 seconds, average response time under 20 seconds) documented programs with demonstrated success in training, quality assessment, performance monitoring, and control of staffturnover. Three potential vendors were determined to be responsible and responsive to this procurement. American Customer Care received the highest overall scores from the evaluation team based on their experience, detailed technical proposal, and competitive pricing. The technical score has three components: 1) technical approach, 2) how well the proposal addressed the RFP requirements and understood the magnititude and importance of the individual tasks, and 3) past performance-relevant experience, success with similar projects, staff resumes, financial stability and industry references. The chart below provides the aggregate scores from the evaluation team for all seven responding vendors, along with the estimated three-year costs. Proposer
Technical Score
Costs Score
Aggregate Score
Estimated Cost Over Three Years
American Customer Care (Dubuque, lA)
990
392
1382
$828,000
Advanced Call Center Technologies (Sacramento, CA) SCI Consulting Group (Fairfield, CA) Oak Hill Technology (Austin, TX) Calls Plus-New Orleans Teleport (Lafayette, LA) Veolia Transportation (Oakland, CA) Call Socket (Oakland, CA)
990
360
1350
$900,360
940
368
1308
$882,000
510
371
881
$873,996
360
450
810
$721,156
410
400
810
$810,997
390
155
544
$2,094,405
The District has received some feedback over the past three years regarding the location of the call center out of our operating area, with staff not necessarily familiar with local geography and landmarks. Over the three-year contract period, provider's staff have enhanced their knowledge in these areas with the volume of customer interactions, training, and resources available to them. At this point, complaints regarding ACC staff's unfamiliarity with local
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landmarks are quite rare. District staff will enhance training materials and utilize the designated two-week implementation/training program, to have contractor's supervisory and lead staff visit our facilities, meet our technical staff, ride our buses, and tour the area, to enable them to personalize service to our customers.
ADVANTAGES/DISADVANTAGES: Advantages- This award will achieve the continuation of a successful program at a competitive price. Disadvantages- While the District has stated a preference for firms with a local presence, the the responses of the two Oakland firms were not competitive in their technical solutions and/or costs.
ALTERNATIVES ANALYSIS: The District has the option to rebid the contract. However, this procurement did solicit a wide range of bidders. With the expiration of the current contract with American Customer Care in September, the District could face a disruption in service should a rebid be considered.
PRIOR RELEVANT BOARD ACTIONS/POLICIES: Staff Report 13-090 March 27, 2013: Recommend Approval to Issue a Request for Proposals for Customer Call Center.
ATTACHMENTS: None. Department Head Approval: Reviewed by:
Prepared
by:
Tom O'Neill, Chief Technology Officer David A. Wolf, General Counsel Lewis G. Clinton, Jr., Chief Financial Officer Thomas Prescott, Chief Performance Officer Victoria Einhaus, Customer Services Manager
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