Opportunity snapshot: WTDB Continuous Improvement Committee Assessment 2026 (OregonBuys #S-52500-00016064)

Executive takeaway

The Higher Education Coordinating Commission (HECC), through the Office of Workforce Investments, plans to award one contract for a Continuous Improvement Committee (CIC) assessment supporting the Oregon Workforce and Talent Development Board (WTDB). The solicitation states an estimated 12-month term and an estimated cost of $200,000, with travel not allowable. If your team can deliver structured assessment and continuous-improvement support without onsite travel billing, this is a focused consulting play.

What the buyer is trying to do

WTDB describes its mission as empowering Oregon’s workforce and employers by shaping an inclusive, coordinated training and education system. The WTDB emphasizes statewide coordination, accountability among public workforce partners, transparency through public meetings, and continuous improvement.

Through this RFP, HECC/WTDB’s Continuous Improvement Committee is seeking help to assess and strengthen continuous improvement and mission/vision alignment—within the context of WTDB’s role partnering with organizations including Local Workforce Development Boards (LWDBs), advising state leadership, and reducing duplication of services.

What work is implied (bullets)

• Conduct an assessment for WTDB’s Continuous Improvement Committee (CIC) (verify specific deliverables and methodology requirements in the full RFP/attachments).
• Support continuous improvement and mission/vision alignment activities for WTDB.
• Operate within HECC procurement constraints, including no allowable travel expenses.
• Coordinate communications through the solicitation’s single point of contact process (follow instructions in the RFP).

Who should bid / who should pass (bullets)

• Bid if:
  • You provide public-sector consulting focused on governance, program assessment, continuous improvement, and accountability.
  • You can work effectively with multi-stakeholder workforce/education ecosystems (WTDB references partners such as LWDBs).
  • You can deliver primarily via remote/virtual engagement given that travel expenses are not allowable.
• Pass if:
  • Your delivery model relies on onsite facilitation with reimbursable travel.
  • You require a large multi-year horizon; this is described as an estimated 12-month term (with potential amendments for related services/time at HECC’s discretion).
  • You cannot support an “intermediate procurement” approach under Oregon Laws 2025, Chapter 384 (confirm compliance implications in the RFP).

Response package checklist (bullets; if unknown say “verify in attachments”)

• Signed/required solicitation forms (verify in attachments).
• Technical narrative describing your assessment approach for the CIC (verify required format and page limits in attachments).
• Work plan and timeline aligned to the stated estimated 12-month term (verify milestones/deliverables in attachments).
• Pricing/cost proposal consistent with the RFP’s cost rules, including no travel expenses (verify cost template in attachments).
• Evidence of relevant past performance in similar continuous improvement / committee or governance assessment work (verify reference requirements in attachments).
• Any required certifications or representations tied to the procurement and set-aside (verify in attachments).

Pricing & strategy notes (how to research pricing; do not invent pricing numbers)

The solicitation provides an estimated cost of $200,000 and prohibits travel expenses as allowable cost. Use that as a forcing function for a lean, remote-forward delivery model.

• Anchor your level of effort to the 12-month estimated term and propose a phased approach (e.g., discovery/assessment, findings, and continuous improvement support), but only include phases that are supported by the RFP details (verify in attachments).
• De-risk cost realism by clearly stating what is included in the fixed price or NTE structure you propose (verify allowed pricing structure in the RFP).
• Research comparables by reviewing other OregonBuys consulting assessments and governance/continuous improvement engagements on BidPulsar, focusing on contracts near the stated budget and with similar constraints (e.g., limited or non-reimbursable travel).
• Be explicit about “no travel” compliance: describe how you will conduct interviews, workshops, and validation virtually and what tools you will use (only if permitted/asked for in the solicitation instructions).

Subcontracting / teaming ideas (bullets)

• Team a lead assessment firm with a niche workforce-systems SME to map findings to WTDB’s stated mission areas (coordination, accountability, transparency, and avoiding duplication).
• Add a facilitation partner for remote public-meeting-friendly engagement formats, aligned to WTDB’s transparency emphasis.
• If the set-aside is material to evaluation, consider teaming with qualifying small and/or minority-owned firms (confirm the role of the stated set-aside in evaluation and eligibility requirements in the RFP).

Risks & watch-outs (bullets)

• Travel costs not allowable: proposals that assume reimbursable onsite travel may be noncompliant or uncompetitive.
• One award only: the buyer intends to award one contract—expect a competitive downselect and write to differentiation.
• Procurement authority constraints: HECC cites an intermediate procurement authority; verify any special submission or compliance requirements in the full RFP.
• Scope clarity: the notice excerpt is high level; confirm required deliverables, meeting cadence, and reporting format in the full document (pages referenced in the excerpt indicate a longer RFP).
• Amendment possibility: HECC reserves the right to amend for related services/time—avoid overcommitting fixed resourcing assumptions without clear change control language (verify contract terms in attachments).

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How to act on this

1. Open the posting and download the full RFP to confirm deliverables, evaluation criteria, and required forms.
2. Build a compliance matrix that includes the no travel allowable constraint and any intermediate procurement requirements.
3. Draft a remote-first engagement plan for interviews, analysis, and findings validation aligned to WTDB’s continuous improvement focus.
4. Finalize pricing within the stated estimated cost envelope and submit ahead of the closing date.

If you want a fast compliance check and a bid/no-bid recommendation based strictly on the full RFP package, hand it to Federal Bid Partners LLC for a structured review and response plan.