Managed Information Technology Services
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Managed Information Technology Services Request For Proposal Information Technology Management Services Costa Mesa Sanitary District Presented on Thursday, May 27th, 2021 Acorn Technology Services 1960 Chicago Ave, Ste E9 Riverside, CA 92507 951.784.3500 (office) 951.320.7066 (fax) www.acorntechservices.com May 27, 2021 Costa Mesa Sanitary District 290 Paularino Avenue Costa Mesa, CA 92626 RE: RFP for Information Technology Management Services for Costa Mesa Sanitary District Dear District Staff, Acorn Technology Services is pleased to submit the following proposal in response to the Request for Proposal for Information Technology Management Services for Costa Mesa Sanitary District, due May 27th, 2021. It is the hope and intent of the Acorn team that the reader of this proposal gains a more informed understanding of who we are and what we do. Additionally, it is our desire that Acorn’s commitment to the customer and our aspiration to be a true IT partner is exemplified throughout our proposal and our references. In this regard, several City leaders of existing customers previously wrote letters of recommendation illustrating this point and are included in our proposal as attachments. As we have done many times in the past and on current projects, we seek balanced solutions for our clients, bringing significant experience and flexibility to our projects. Acorn is confident that we have the experience, resources, and infrastructure necessary to deliver outstanding service that will meet or exceed the District's short-term requirements and long-term IT objectives. Acorn’s proposal is valid for 60-days from this submittal and Acorn is prepared and staffed to begin work immediately on the Scope of Services. Thank you for the opportunity to compete for the District’s business and I look forward to working with you in our joint efforts to provide the Costa Mesa Sanitary District with the quality Initial Assessment and ongoing Managed IT Services that it seeks. Sincerely, Mickey McGuire Chief Executive Officer 1960 Chicago Ave, Ste E9 Riverside, CA 92507 951.784.3500 main 951.320.7066 fax [email protected] 2) DESCRIPTION OF FIRM Acorn Technology Services was originally founded in 2000, and is located in the Riverside Business Technology Park in Riverside, California. For 20 years, Acorn maintained and operated two of its own data centers; provided wireless communication networks to Southern California businesses; designed, built, and maintained IT networks for entities ranging from just a few employees to more than one thousand employees. Acorn’s customers cross into 17 states, Canada, and Germany. We proudly serve municipalities, libraries, and other local government agencies in Southern California, including agencies with a responsibility to public safety with police departments and fire departments. Our team of 50+ members has the depth and breadth of extensive experience in providing Information Technology Services, including but not limited to: General IT assessments, IT risk assessments, strategic planning, project management, Managed IT Services; desktop support, server and network administration; systems design and implementation; disaster recovery; vulnerability scans, critical systems monitoring, system documentation, software and equipment vendor management, and maintenance with 24 x 7 x 365 technical support. Using our experience from onboarding and supporting the IT needs for our other municipality and service distracts, such as the City of Monrovia, City of South Pasadena, the City of Covina, Rubidoux Community Services District and Alpine Users Water Association, along with the City of La Quinta, the City of Calimesa, and the City of Huntington Beach, our team will be able to effectively meet the needs of the Costa Mesa Sanitary District. Acorn’s profile described throughout this proposal will demonstrate Acorn’s core competencies, how those are well-suited to meet the needs of the District, and how our success in developing and maintaining long-term relationships are illustrative of our values. This plan lays out the proposed processes and services that Acorn believes will meet the District’s technical objectives as described within the RFP. Currently, Acorn does not intend to use any consultants for this project. In the event that something unknown or untoward occurs, and requires the use of consultants, Acorn would ensure they are properly vetted and approved by the District. QUALIFICATIONS OF ASSIGNED PERSONNEL The Costa Mesa Sanitary District Project Team will be headed by Matthew Fuller as Project Manager, Araceli Nava as Account Manager, both of whom will serve as the main points of contact for the District. Acorn finds value in developing a project team that is headed by two persons, the Project Manager acting as the technical lead and the Account Manager acting as the business lead. This strategic approach allows the technical team to perform the assessment, and the business leadership team is intimately involved in the development of the overall IT strategy. Matthew and Araceli will ensure that the work Acorn does is in alignment with the District’s needs and expectations throughout the onboarding, documentation, and transition to helpdesk support. Matthew has managed an assortment of projects in both the private and public sector, with recent experience in project management for a variety of municipal organizations. Any resources assigned to the project during the onboarding process will report to Matthew. Throughout the onboarding, the project team will be available to meet with department heads and District leaders to gather the necessary information required to perform the scope of this RFP. COSTA MESA SANITARY DISTRICT PROPOSAL – INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT Page 1 of 45 Matthew Fuller is part of Acorn’s project management team and has experience in leading both large and small projects for municipalities, for-profit, and nonprofit organizations. His experience with public municipalities involves leading groups of technicians to assess existing technology solutions, working closely with District management to determine existing pain-points, identifying areas of improvement, analyzing risks, and developing recommendations to address clients’ needs. Matthew leverages Acorn’s pool of talent to create solutions to the identified problems and works with the assigned Account Manager to ensure they are properly aligned with the District’s goals and objectives. Working with District management and staff allows Acorn to make decisions that are focused on meeting the District’s desired technology objectives, including but not limited to the implementation of cloud services, improved network security, enhanced mobile computing, and GIS systems. Recent projects that Matthew has untaken include the assessment and onboarding of the City of Calimesa, Alhambra Civic Center Library, and large scale deployments for both the City of Monrovia, Monrovia Police Department, City of South Pasadena and South Pasadena Police Department. Araceli Nava will act as the Account Manager for the Costa Mesa Sanitary District. Acorn finds that having a dedicated primary point of contact that focuses on the business aspect of our services is valuable to customers. Araceli works with leadership of municipality clients on a weekly basis, monitoring issues, projects, and long-term planning. Some of her clients include the City of South Pasadena, Alhambra Civic Center Library, and many other for-profit and nonprofit entities. A key aspect of Araceli’s work with clients includes working with finance departments to assist in developing annual technology budgets for 3rd party services, staffing, hardware replacement schedules, and software licensing. Since the Account Manager is a part of Acorn’s business team, Araceli will also be involved in developing the IT Strategic plan, involving financial analysis and suggestion of municipality-specific hardware and software to maximize financial efficiency. These measures ensure that technology is utilized to increase business value and improve the IT service offering to both District staff as well as the community. As an Account Manager, Araceli has vast knowledge of her customers, allowing her to assist the Acorn team in providing timely and efficient support. In addition, any future requests for change can be channeled through the Account Manager who will guide the request through Acorn’s process to ensure the client’s needs are being addressed in a timely manner and fit the scope of the project parameters. Should a non-technical “customer service” issue arise, the Account Manager is there to assist. The Account Manager assigned to the District will gather an intimate knowledge of existing infrastructure, and work with the rest of the Acorn team to implement best practice solutions. The Account Manager will also keep in ongoing contact with District leadership and other department heads to address needs, attend meetings, recommend software upgrades, discuss security and disaster recovery solutions, budgetary planning, and utilize the results of the Application Portfolio assessment to suggest municipality-specific hardware and software solutions to improve the District’s performance. During the assessment, Matthew Fuller will support Araceli Nava and assist in Account Manager efforts for the Costa Mesa Sanitary District. Acorn finds that having multiple dedicated points of contact are valuable to customers. Acorn plans to have an on-site technician to support the District, for