Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Procurement RFP topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Oversight committee updates RFP timeline, warns weak agency participation could strain consortium if Axon not selected
Summary
Staff told the DuPage PRMS oversight committee the RFP for a new records-management solution is on schedule, but officials said low agency participation in evaluation teams and strong interest in Axon among agencies could threaten consortium cohesion depending on the outcome.
Committee staff reported progress on the PRMS RFP and warned that low agency participation and vendor preferences could affect the consortium that shares records across DuPage County.
Don, the PRMS project manager, told the oversight committee that a draft request for proposals is nearly complete and will go to the steering committee for review before release. “We expect the RFP to be out on the street toward June, with a 6- to 8-week window for proposals,” Don said, and he added the schedule puts the evaluation and demo cycle into mid- to late August, with a project completion target around the end of the year.
Staff emphasized the need to assemble an evaluation team composed of front-line PRMS users, not just chiefs or managers. Don said, “It’s important to have the people on that committee who are gonna be using this,” explaining that users who input and retrieve data must evaluate vendor demos and score proposals.
Committee staff said they reached out to all 31 participating agencies to request volunteers for the evaluation process and “received no responses,” creating a potential bottleneck. A staff speaker told the committee the evaluation team should include six or seven users to move the procurement forward.
Staff also raised a strategic risk: several agencies have expressed interest in Axon, and panelists warned that if the RFP selects a different vendor, some agencies might leave the consortium. One staff member said, “The RFP creates a potential risk…if Axon’s not selected by the RFP, there may be issues with…keeping the consortium together,” and recommended the oversight committee consider contingency planning now rather than reacting later.
Oversight committee members reiterated that the steering committee will recommend a solution and the oversight committee must approve any final selection. Several committee members said some agencies may choose to remain in or leave the consortium based on the chosen product, and that the ability to share data across agencies — the consortium’s core function — is the most important outcome regardless of vendor.
The steering committee will circulate the draft RFP to committee members for comment and begin assembling an evaluation team; chair Berlin and others agreed to reach out to agency chiefs and the sheriff’s office to solicit user participation. The committee set an August budget presentation date and will continue to monitor RFP progress.
No formal procurement decision was made at the meeting; staff described timelines, participation needs, and potential risks and were asked to return with the RFP and evaluation plan for committee review.
