Oregon (HECC) RFP: WTDB Continuous Improvement Committee Assessment 2026 — what small and minority-owned consultants should know

Executive takeaway

Oregon’s Higher Education Coordinating Commission (HECC), through the Office of Workforce Investments, is seeking one contractor for the Workforce and Talent Development Board (WTDB) Continuous Improvement Committee (CIC) Assessment 2026. The opportunity is labeled as a small business and minority-owned set-aside, anticipates a single award, and describes an estimated 12-month term with an estimated cost of $200,000. Travel is not an allowable cost, so your approach should be designed to succeed with virtual engagement and document-based analysis.

What the buyer is trying to do

WTDB positions itself as the statewide body working toward equitable prosperity for all Oregonians by shaping an inclusive, coordinated training and education system responsive to workforce and employer needs. The Continuous Improvement Committee exists to promote transparency through public meetings and to support continuous improvement and mission/vision alignment across a complex ecosystem that includes Local Workforce Development Boards and other partners.

This RFP is essentially asking for an assessment that helps the CIC do its job better: identify barriers, avoid duplication, improve accountability among public workforce partners, and surface best practices that can scale statewide.

What work is implied (bullets)

• Assessment design and execution for the WTDB Continuous Improvement Committee’s needs (verify specific tasks and deliverables in the attachments).
• Stakeholder engagement with workforce, education, training organizations (including local boards) using virtual methods due to the travel restriction.
• Documentation review and synthesis of existing materials to support findings and recommendations (verify required document set in the RFP).
• Findings and recommendations focused on continuous improvement, mission/vision alignment, transparency, and avoiding duplication of services.
• Practical outputs that are usable in a public-meeting environment (e.g., clear summaries, decision-ready materials), as aligned with WTDB’s emphasis on transparency (confirm format requirements in the RFP).

Who should bid / who should pass (bullets)

• Bid if:
  • You are eligible under the stated Small Business, Minority-owned designation for this opportunity.
  • You can deliver a committee-focused assessment that supports governance, accountability, and continuous improvement in a statewide workforce ecosystem.
  • Your team is strong at virtual facilitation, structured interviews/listening sessions, and turning qualitative input into actionable recommendations.
  • You can work within an estimated $200,000 budget and do not need reimbursable travel.
• Pass if:
  • Your methodology depends on on-site visits or significant in-person convenings (travel is not allowable).
  • You cannot support a 12-month engagement cadence (as estimated) or prefer short, fixed-sprint evaluations only.
  • You lack experience working in public-sector, committee-driven environments where deliverables may be used in public meetings.

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

• Proposal submission instructions and format requirements (verify in attachments).
• Proposed approach/methodology for conducting the CIC assessment (verify in attachments).
• Workplan and schedule aligned to an estimated 12-month term (verify in attachments).
• Deliverables list and any required templates (verify in attachments).
• Pricing/cost proposal consistent with an estimated cost of $200,000 and excluding travel costs.
• Evidence of eligibility for the Small Business, Minority-owned designation (verify in attachments).
• Past performance or relevant project examples (verify in attachments).
• Any required certifications, attestations, or contract terms acknowledgement (verify in attachments).

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

The RFP states an estimated cost of $200,000 and disallows travel. Treat that as a strong signal that HECC expects the bulk of costs to be labor for assessment design, facilitation, analysis, and report-out materials.

• Build a level-of-effort budget that maps directly to the assessment phases you propose (discovery, engagement, analysis, draft, final, and any committee presentation support—confirm required phases in the RFP).
• Research comparable HECC/WTDB consulting awards by searching Oregon procurement records and prior OregonBuys opportunities for similar “assessment,” “continuous improvement,” or “program evaluation” work (keep your benchmarking factual and cite sources in your internal notes, not in the proposal unless requested).
• Use the travel prohibition strategically: emphasize virtual convening methods, shared workspaces, and efficient interview scheduling to show you can maximize the assessment within budget.
• Price to clarity: committee-facing work can expand via feedback loops; protect scope with defined deliverables, a review cycle count, and assumptions (as permitted by the RFP—verify in attachments).

Subcontracting / teaming ideas (bullets)

• Pair an evaluation/organizational assessment lead with a specialist in virtual facilitation for public-sector committees.
• Add a subcontractor focused on stakeholder engagement planning across workforce, education, and training organizations to ensure inclusive input gathering (roles and responsibilities should remain clear).
• If allowed, team with a partner skilled in visual summaries and decision-ready materials suitable for public meeting contexts (confirm deliverable expectations in the RFP).
• Consider teaming approaches that strengthen eligibility under the stated Small Business, Minority-owned designation while meeting all solicitation rules (verify in attachments).

Risks & watch-outs (bullets)

• Travel is not an allowable cost; do not include it in your budget and avoid assuming on-site work.
• Scope creep risk: “continuous improvement” assessments can expand into broad organizational consulting. Lock your proposal to defined questions, data sources, and deliverables (as allowed).
• Public meeting dynamics: WTDB emphasizes transparency through public meetings; ensure your process and outputs are defensible and clearly documented.
• Single-award competition: HECC intends to award one contract; differentiation will likely come from method clarity, stakeholder engagement approach, and actionable recommendations (confirm evaluation criteria in the RFP).
• Authority and amendments: HECC notes it may amend the resulting contract for related services/time as it determines necessary; ensure your internal resourcing can handle potential extension discussions.

Related opportunities

• HECC — RFP for Consultant for Comprehensive Program Evaluation (OregonBuys #S-52500-00015043)
• Beaverton School District — Environmental Inspection and Remediation Planning (Solicitation 25-0003)

How to act on this

1. Open the BidPulsar notice and download the full RFP package; confirm deliverables, evaluation criteria, and submission requirements.
2. Draft a virtual-first stakeholder engagement plan that respects the no-travel rule and produces decision-ready materials for CIC use.
3. Build a level-of-effort budget aligned to the estimated $200,000 and clearly state assumptions and review cycles.
4. Submit before the deadline shown on the notice: March 19, 2026 at 3:00 PM Pacific Time.

If you want help shaping a compliant response strategy, tightening scope, or reviewing your draft for evaluator-readability, engage Federal Bid Partners LLC to support your capture and proposal package.