Pay Equity Expert Services

On this page

• Attestation of assurance
• Activity requirement
• Fairness monitoring engagement and observations
• Reference documents
• Addendum to the final report

Attestation of assurance

The fairness monitor (FM) hereby provides the unqualified assurance statement below concerning the Pay Equity Expert Services (PEES) procurement process up to and including the conclusion of the second request for proposals (RFP) evaluation phase.

It is our professional opinion that the process we observed or monitored was carried out in a fair, open and transparent manner.

Original signed by:

Activity requirement

BDO was engaged on July 13, 2023, as an FM to observe the competitive procurement process for the PEES issued by Public Works and Government Services Canada, on behalf of Treasury Board Secretariat of Canada (TBS) under the solicitation WS4099368018. BDO is an independent third party with respect to this activity.

This report covers the activities of the FM, from the date of our engagement continuing through the conclusion of the second RFP evaluation phase on August 6, 2024.

TBS requires the services of a contractor to provide pay equity and job evaluation services using a tool and/or methodology for each of its pay equity committees (PEC) in the Core Public Administration (CPA) and Royal Canadian Mountain Police (RCMP) which is required by new legislation. The contractor will customize or configure its methodology/tool, and provide services related to their use including:

• support
• training
• education
• quality assurance

The contractor must also provide advice and support at different points in the development of a pay equity plan for each PEC in the CPA and for the 1 PEC for the RCMP. This is a complex, sensitive, multi-stakeholder requirement where external stakeholders (union bargaining agents) will be forming PECs with TBS representatives, who will jointly serve as end clients together.

We reviewed all the information provided and observed or monitored all relevant activities. This report includes:

• our attestation of assurance
• a summary of the scope and objectives of our assignment
• relevant observations from the activities undertaken

Fairness monitoring engagement and observations

In accordance with the terms of our engagement, we:

• familiarized ourselves with the relevant documents
• observed the bid solicitation activities
• identified fairness—related matters to the contracting authority (CA)
• ensured that responses and actions were reasonable and appropriate

During these observations, we identified fairness-related matters and reported these concerns to the CA.

Additionally, we monitored and evaluated the responses and actions taken by the CA to confirm that they were reasonable and appropriate.

In this section

• Industry engagement phase
• Request for proposals phase
• Bid evaluation
• Second request for proposals phase
• Second request for proposals bid evaluation

Industry engagement phase

The purpose of the request for information (RFI) was to share information with interested industry participants and obtain feedback on the PEES. The information gathered from industry assists in the clarifications to some elements of the PEES and anticipated procurement phase.

During the RFI phase, the FM observed several key activities. The CA provided all relevant drafts and final documents pertaining to the RFI solicitation for review by the FM before their official posting on CanadaBuys on August 11, 2023. The solicitation process concluded when the RFI closed on August 31, 2023, during which time all submission guidelines and instructions for industry engagement were communicated.

In preparation for the industry engagement sessions, the FM conducted a review of the proposed consultation process. This included evaluating all pre-dissemination communications. Additionally, the CA supplied all session materials in advance, allowing the FM to review them before they were presented to the interested industry participants.

The FM was present to observe the first vendor's demonstrations, which took place with 2 sessions on October 4, 2023, and 1 session on October 5, 2023. The second vendor's demonstrations were similarly observed, with 2 sessions held on November 7, 2023, and 1 on November 9, 2023.

The RFI phase culminated in the transition to the next stage with the publication of the RFP on December 21, 2023.

The process was conducted in accordance with the requirements of the RFI. We discussed fairness considerations with the CA, and all were addressed. No fairness-related concerns were raised.

Request for proposals phase

The CA provided all draft and final RFP documents to the FM for review prior to their publication on CanadaBuys on December 21, 2023. During the bid period, any clarification questions raised, and their respective answers were communicated through a series of amendments, all of which were reviewed by the FM before being published.

In total, 5 amendments were issued, addressing each clarification question posed during the bid period. By the close of the solicitation on January 26, 2024, 3 responses had been received. However, 1 of these was rejected due to its late submission.

Bid evaluation

Under the phased bid compliance process (PBCP), the financial submissions were examined by the CA. The CA determined that the financial offers of 2 bidders met all required criteria, allowing them to proceed to phase 2 of the evaluation process.

The RFP evaluation materials were reviewed by the FM prior to the bid evaluation committee's kick-off meeting held on February 12, 2024. Subsequently, the FM attended in the consensus evaluation meeting on March 22, 2024, which focused on assessing the mandatory and rated technical requirements of the 2 offers submitted. Neither offer met the mandatory criteria established in phase 2 of the PBCP. Consequently, a compliance assessment report (CAR) was issued to each bidder, highlighting the deficiencies identified.

The responses to the CAR were evaluated but ultimately deemed non-compliant. The FM was present at a follow-up meeting on April 19, 2024, to discuss these findings. On May 7, 2024, the CA communicated to the bidders that none of the proposals met the mandatory and rated technical requirements, and as a result, no contracts would be awarded, and no debriefings would be offered.

Second request for proposals phase

The CA informed the FM that a second RFP would be published. The CA provided all draft and final RFP documents to the FM for review prior to their publication on CanadaBuys on May 28, 2024. During the bid period, any clarification questions raised, and their respective answers were communicated through a series of amendments, all of which were reviewed by the FM.

Amendments were issued to address each clarification question posed during the bid period. By the close of the solicitation on June 25, 2024, 4 offers had been received.

Second request for proposals bid evaluation

Under the PBCP, the financial submissions were examined by the CA. The CA determined that only 1 offer was complete, while 3 offers lacked the necessary documentation. Following FM review, the CARs were sent to the bidders to highlight the deficiencies in their submissions. After receiving the required complementary information from the bidders on July 3, 2024, the CA confirmed that all 3 offers were now complete, allowing them to proceed to phase 2 of the evaluation process.

The RFP evaluation materials were reviewed by the FM prior to the bid evaluation committee's consensus meeting. The FM then observed the consensus evaluation meeting held on July 15, 2024, which focused on assessing the mandatory and rated technical requirements of the 4 submitted offers. CARs were issued to 3 bidders, highlighting the deficiencies identified. These CARs were evaluated during the consensus meeting held on August 6, 2024, and all were deemed compliant. On September 4, 2024, following the FM review, the CA informed the successful bidder and sent regret letters to the unsuccessful bidders.

The FM's requests for clarifications were addressed by the CA. An evaluation plan was established and followed. Evaluation team members were confirmed before responses were received. Additionally, all submissions were logged and recorded.

Regular discussions regarding fairness considerations were held between the FM and the CA. The process complied with the requirements outlined in the RFP.

Reference documents

Documents related to solicitation WS4099368018 are available through the project office.

Addendum to the final report

October 25, 2024

Addendum to the final report dated September 18, 2024 for the PEES procurement process.

This addendum covers the period following the conclusion of the evaluation phase including contract award and debriefings.

Contract award, communications, and debriefings

One contract was awarded on September 3, 2024. Along with the notification of award, regret letters were sent to the 3 unsuccessful bidders, explaining the results of the evaluation. Two debriefings were requested by 2 of the unsuccessful bidders and held on September 19 and 25, 2024, via conference calls. The FM reviewed all correspondence and observed the meetings with the bidders. The process conducted conformed to the requirements of the RFP. All bidders were treated fairly.

Attestation of assurance

The FM hereby provides the unqualified assurance statement below concerning the PEES procurement process up to and including contract award and debriefings.

It is our professional opinion that the process we observed or monitored was carried out in a fair, open and transparent manner.

Original signed by: