CC MEETING: July 22, 2025
DATE: June 30, 2025
TO: Erin Rinehart, City Manager
FROM: Chris Chiancone, Chief Information Officer
Chrystal Davis, Assistant City Manager
Title
Consider Authorizing The City Manager To Reject All Proposals Received For RFP #25-027 Headless CMS-Mobile App Development Project.
Body
BACKGROUND:
On January 10, 2025, the City of Carrollton issued a request for proposal (RFP) #25-027 for a robust and versatile Content Management Solution ("CMS") that acts as a backend-only system ("headless") to manage the creation and deployment of content for mobile applications on any device. Proposed solutions include self-hosting options, compatibility with Azure Resource Groups, and integration with Azure Entra ID for enterprise single-sign on (SSO). Scalability, customizability, in-CMS end-user management capabilities, and real-time content previews are also essential to this solution.
Submissions were due on January 27, 2025, and five (5) proposals were received. After the review and evaluation of the five (5) submissions, City staff requested software demonstrations from the top three (3) ranked vendors. The demonstrations focused on walkthroughs of the proposed solutions, however two of the vendors demonstrated systems that were different than their original proposal and were therefore deemed non-responsive. Staff selected the vendor that met the necessary technical requirements to begin negotiations with but could not come to an agreement on a final contract. These factors led to the decision to recommend rejecting all proposals relevant to RFP #25-027.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS:
Following multiple meetings, and despite adjustments to the scope in pursuit of efficiency and timeliness, negotiations ultimately concluded with no final contract. Staff are exploring different options to purchase the necessary software while continuing development work using free, yet limited alternatives.
IMPACT ON COMMUNITY SUSTAINABILITY:
This project...
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