COMPONENT 3
OVERALL PROJECT MANAGEMENT

A. SERVICES

The scope of work is to assist the COMELEC in ensuring the successful implementation of the Project.
The project management services component of the 2010 National and Local Elections Automation Project shall include:

1. Project management, including team organization and implementation schedule;
2. Physical site design, preparation and operationalization;
3. Quality control and assurance;
4. Change management, including voter education and training;
5. Risk management and contingency planning
6. Configuration management

The following subsections outline the requirements of COMELEC from the bidders in the preparation of their proposed solutions for the delivery of such services.

1. Project Management



The COMELEC recognizes the diversity of services and technologies that shall be integrated in the implementation of the Project. Corollary, the bidders must demonstrate a clear understanding of the depth and breadth of the scope of work to be integrated and the criteria for evaluating these services and technologies.
Bidders must describe its proposed solution to include:

1. Demonstrable ability in the management of diverse services and technologies



This will require a project management approach with successful large systems integration experience. The various teams participating within the project must be integrated to achieve their outputs in a coordinated and timely fashion. Bidders must describe clearly their approach to systems integration for the successful implementation of the Project.

2. Dedicated and competent project management teams



Project management requires multi-faceted skill and talent, embracing people, processes and organization.

1. Bidders must describe the role of the Project Director, the Technical Coordinator and the Project Team Leaders in various disciplines. The Project Director is required to have authoritative credentials to lead various teams for the various components of the Project. On the other hand, the Team Leaders are required to have the ability to plan and lead managerially and technically in their respective disciplines.
2. The Bidder’s Project Management Team must be able to show their ability to interact with COMELEC leadership and the counterpart COMELEC-PMO team in an atmosphere of learning that is enriching each other’s knowledge and experiences.
3. Bidders must describe the team they are proposing, including the actual number of staff members, the time each staffer will dedicate to the project, and outline of terms of reference for these positions. This team must be provided until the end of the Project.
4. Bidders must provide resumes of its management team nominated for the Project on the basis of which the nominees will be evaluated.

The bidders must describe the project organization to be established during the life of the project and the reporting and working relationships between the project teams and the COMELEC. It is important to describe how they will manage the services to be provided. In this connection, the bidders are required to submit a work plan detailing work materials, procedures, personnel tasks/responsibilities, project plan(s) in MS Project format.

3. Proposed project management processes, tools and techniques



Bidders must describe its project management processes and tools to include the following:

1. Project planning;
2. Task estimation;
3. Work allocation;
4. Progress tracking and monitoring;
5. Reporting internal to the project and reporting to the Commission;
6. Problem resolution; and
7. Change request procedures.
4. A proven or responsive implementation methodology

Bidders must describe the proposed methodology (including implementation, tools and techniques) for progressing from contract award, and through all critical phases of the project. Bidders must also outline stage-wise items of delivery, review, acceptance, persons responsible and other concerns to ensure the quality of the products and services to be delivered.

2. Physical Site Plan, Design and Preparation

The Bidder shall propose a design, plan and schedule for the preparation of the physical site that will house the various equipment in the different sites. The preparation of the site shall include the detailed design and engineering work to be performed by the Bidder for the Project, such as engineering services for the preparation of drawings, maps, specifications, schedules, calculations, documents, estimates and coordination with the engineering efforts of the subcontractor.

The Bidder shall plan and design the installation site layouts in accordance with the Bidder’s standards and prepare the sites according to the technical requirements of the Project, with the approval of the COMELEC.

The proposed technical bid for this component should include a detailed description as to how the following criteria shall be addressed by the Bidder in its bid:

1. Operational efficiency



Operational efficiency shall be concerned with the smooth functioning of installed equipment with provision for redundant power supply, redundant communication links, etc.

2. Adherence to environment and safety standards



This criterion shall be concerned with the provision all required environmental and safety provisions that adhere with published standards.

3. Quality Control and Quality Assurance



The COMELEC will conduct a full project audit at periodic intervals of the progress of the Contractor’s schedule of work and deliverables through the Technical/Functional Team and Audit Team independent of the project. The project audit is designed to ensure that the Project delivers a range of Products, which may be goods and services, of an appropriate quality within time scales and budget. For purposes of evaluation of the bids, the Bidders must describe their standards for such audits including scope, required conduct, demands upon project personnel, demands upon the COMELEC personnel and outputs. However, during the Project’s implementation, the Audit Reports shall be prepared by an independent Audit Team whose members shall be appointed by COMELEC.

The following tasks shall also be required:

1. Develop and implement procedures for the measurement and monitoring of the SLAs for the other components of the Project;
2. Assist in the regular monitoring of SLA compliance for all components;
3. Assist in the conduct of a 3rd party Stress and Security Testing of all systems;
4. Assist in the conduct of a 3rd party code review of the system;
5. Assist in recommending acceptance and payment for the services or outputs, and/or the position of penalties where applicable;
   
   
4. Change Management



The onset of the computerized operation of the envisioned system will call for changes in the process and procedures presently used by the COMELEC. This will affect the functions, relationships, authority and responsibilities of the Commission’s offices. The Commission, therefore, requires the Bidders to describe its proposed change and risk management services detailing the following areas:

1. Change management methodology that should have a conscious bias toward organizational improvements and sustainability measures to effect procedural, structural and attitudinal changes in the organization as a result of this project and the agency’s comprehensive modernization program;


2. Interventions and recommendations proposed must include strategies or measures that will enable the Commission to address the following concerns:
1. Empowerment of the COMELEC personnel in terms of knowledge, attitudes and skills to eventually takeover the functions and thereby enabling them to use the system in managing the electoral process more effectively;
2. Reengineering and simplification of pre-election, election day and post-election procedures while maintaining adequate security and control;
3. Personnel sociological, cultural and psychological change process should appeal to a sense of nationalism among employees, defining and influencing their special role in the democratic/electoral reform process of the country; and
4. Advocacy and communications plans for the change readiness requirements of all stakeholders within and outside the Commission, including candidates, local government units (LGUs), non-government organizations (NGOs), as well as political and public sectors.
3. Voter Education and Information


1. The winning bidder shall provide assistance in the conduct of the information dissemination and education program by commenting on the program or providing reference materials or contacts of other system users.
2. The winning bidder shall design, develop and produce information content ready for print, broadcast (radio and TV) and presentation in audio-visual, Internet and other media forms.
3. The winning bidder shall provide demo units for road shows.
4. The winning bidder shall develop and maintain, in coordination with the COMELEC, a website for this project for voter education purposes and related information dissemination. The proposal shall include the delivery of all requirements, including hardware (servers, firewall, etc.), software (operating system, antivirus, firewall, etc.), services (web development, etc.), technical training and communication link (high-speed Internet connection, etc.), which shall be turned over to the COMELEC after the duration of the project.
4. Policy Recommendations

The bidder shall provide the COMELEC with policy recommendations that the bidder may deem necessary for the efficient operation, administration, management and upgrading of the Commission’s election administration system. These policy recommendations shall clearly explain, in layman’s terms, why management should adopt and enforce these policies, how they impact on the delivery of services, and how they affect the mission and goals of the Commission. For example, some policy recommendations may be made on security procedures, IT staffing and hiring, service contracting, budget allocation, and others.

5. Risk Management and Contingency Planning



This refers to a risk management program that will address security and other related risks (environmental, physical, political, people-related risks, etc.) that the project might encounter in the course of project implementation and more so anticipate the possible risks after the Project.

This shall also include a back-up plan in case of systems failure in any of the Project components.

This shall also include issue and conflict resolution, in terms of providing alternative courses of action, in case of inevitable conflicts among the parties involved in the Project and the mitigation of risk in case there are any.

6. Configuration Management
1. Bidders shall provide a Configuration Management system. Configuration Management provides guidance on developing and maintaining compatibility and consistency of project documentation, products, and support items throughout the project. It is imperative, from the functional baseline to the last product baseline, that both client and project personnel have the same definition of system configurations, configuration items and deliverables throughout the project life cycle.
2. The configuration management process should describe clearly the step-by-step activities, inputs, outputs and process metrics. It also harmonizes other processes such as Requirements Management, Work Breakdown Schedule, and Project Planning and Control.