Contracts Organizational Staffing Assessment Services

H-GAC is seeking a qualified contractor to perform organizational assessment services to assess the current organizational structure of the Contracts section of the Procurement and Contracts Department to the agency contracting process, identify areas for improvement, and recommend strategies to optimize performance, efficiency, and compliance.

The Houston-Galveston Area Council (H-GAC) is the region-wide voluntary association of 133 local governments and local elected officials in the 13-county Gulf Coast Planning region of Texas. Local elected officials organized H-GAC in 1966 after authorization by State enabling legislation. Its service area is 12,500 square miles and includes more than 7-million residents. H-GAC is governed by a 36-member Board of Directors composed of local elected officials, who serve on the governing bodies of member local governments. All H-GAC programs are carried out under the policy direction of its Board of Directors. H-GAC’s mission is to serve as the instrument of local government cooperation, promoting the region’s orderly development and the safety and welfare of its residents. H-GAC is the regional organization through which local governments consider issues and cooperate in solving area-wide problems. Agency programs emphasize local government concerns, such as transportation, air and water quality, criminal justice, demographic analysis, mapping programs, and intergovernmental purchasing. H-GAC also serves its citizens through workforce development programs, services to the aging and elderly, and small business finance programs.

At the end of 2019, the H-GAC Executive Director began to standardize, at a high level, the agency contracts functions throughout the departments to start the process of streamlining agency contracts functions into the Procurement and Contracts section, in 2023 the section became a Department tasked with establishing a policy and procedure for agency contracting. Note: H-GAC is currently preparing to implement a new contract management system as the current system implemented in 2017 has been deemed inadequate.

Currently, each department in the agency has designated staff responsible for project management in conjunction with contract management functions. H-GAC needs an assessment of the current and proposed staffing plan for the high-level management functions that will sit in the Procurement and Contracts Department.

H-GAC is looking to obtain recommendations to determine adequate staffing levels in the existing agency Procurement and Contracts department that will be needed to streamline the contracting functions for the agency. H-GAC would also be interested in any standardization or process improvements identified as part of the assessment and those areas specifically identified in the Scope of Work.

Objectives

• Evaluate the existing and proposed organizational structure of the Contracts section of the Procurement &Contracts Department.
• Identify strengths and weaknesses within the current and proposed structure.
• Benchmark against industry best practices and standards, such as NIGP and IACCM.
• Develop a roadmap for implementing recommended changes.