Technology Solutions recommends utilizing professional implementation and support services via cooperative purchasing program contracts (e.g., Texas Department of Information Resources (DIR), U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) and Houston-Galveston Area Council (H-GAC)) for professional services to address the needed resources to implement strategic projects and support critical operations in the applications, infrastructure, and security areas of responsibility.
This request will fully appropriate the Technology Solutions (TS) operational and project budgets making it available for use however, TS will only use what is deemed necessary and manages this budget very closely. Last fiscal year, TS returned $250,000 of budgeted funds which is returned to the TS Fund when not used. These resources address the need for variable and surge skill sets that are either not available on current team or not normally needed at the higher / surged levels. This augmented staffing approach lends the ability to meet various needs flexibly as skills are needed without locking in a skillset that may not be needed post project or operational surge.
These resources will primarily focus on strategic projects like Development Services System Replacement, PD Records Management System Replacement, SalesForce Business Process Modernization and Automation, Utility Billing System Replacement, and the Security Strategic Plan. They will also be used to augment staff for key support roles that require a surge in capacity in a specific area and to supplement recruiting for hard to fill positions.
Over this past two years, Technology Solutions has established the use of staff augmentation contracts that have been successful for the Technology Solutions Department, enabling the City to respond to critical technology project implementations and operational support needs. The ability to leverage variable capacity resources in this manner is critical to meeting the dynamic and changing demands of our projects and customers. This request to use implementation resource services is an extension of our staff augmentation approach, targeted to using variable capacity to address the implementation needs of our Technology Solutions Steering Committee (TSSC) approved strategic projects. This approach does not specify a singular agency but provides flexibility and competition through purchasing programs to leverage additional resources and utilize placement companies specializing in technology professionals. Therefore, Technology Solutions will channel requests through cooperative contracts that function as the consolidation point for a pool of vendors to meet our specific skills on an as-needed basis.
Leveraging implementation resource services in this manner allows the City to evaluate the skills and abilities of highly qualified technologists through a contractual staffing approach. Lastly, if a contracted employee is not performing in accordance with required proficiency, the contractor will provide resource options for the City to select a replacement in a timely manner.
Examples of implementation resource activities may include, but are not limited to:
Technology strategic projects requiring skilled resources for business analysis, data analysis, project management, integration, development, implementation, and post-implementation support activities. Currently, the Technology Solutions team is engaged in over 50 ongoing projects. Based on the current staff capacity and capabilities, implementation resources will be required for the Development Services System Replacement, PD Records Management System Replacement, SalesForce Business Process Modernization and Automation, and the Security Strategic Plan which all require highly skilled and specialized resources.
If the City of Plano does not approve this request for implementation services, the Technology Solutions department will be unable to provide adequate and timely project implementation services across critical strategic projects for the City as approved by the TSSC and needed for the departments.
The City is authorized to purchase from the State Contract list pursuant to Chapter 271 Subchapter D and Federal Contract list pursuant to Chapter 271 Subchapter G of the Texas Local Government Code and by doing so satisfies any State Law requiring local governments to seek competitive bids for items. (City of Plano Internal Contract No. 2024-0033-O)