• Issue date: December 20, 2024
• Closing date and time: January 17, 2025 at 5:00 PM
• Submit to: contracts-contrats@cedec.ca
• Contract period:
  • Delivery of new website (2025 delivery date to be negotiated).
  • Hosting and Maintenance Services (contract date to be determined) with possibility of annual renewal based on performance.

The Community Economic Development and Employability Corporation (CEDEC), based in the Province of Quebec, is requesting proposals to design and build a new website and provide ongoing hosting and maintenance services.

This Request for Proposals (RFP) contains specific details and timelines and should be reviewed carefully prior to submitting a proposal. Incomplete or late proposals will not be considered.

ABOUT CEDEC

CEDEC is the federally designated and financed Official Language Minority Community in Quebec (OLMCQ) organization responsible for economic development, including business, labour market, and employment assistance development. Its mission is to strengthen the contribution of English-speakers and the OLMCQ to growing and developing Quebec’s economy, while leveraging their participation in it to address economic disparities and disadvantages. It specifically seeks to generate tangible economic impacts for English-speakers, businesses, social enterprises, and their communities, as well as the broader Francophone community in which they exist and thrive.

STATEMENT OF PROFESSIONAL SERVICE NEEDS

CEDEC wishes to hire a creative and visionary vendor to provide the following services:

1. Design and build a new website for CEDEC to better reflect our brand and communicate effectively our vision, mission, services, and successes to a diverse audience made up of public, private and civil society stakeholders.
2. Provide webhosting and maintenance services to ensure ongoing functionality and security for one year. Renewal of the contract will depend on the quality of services provided.

Web Design

Despite some evolution, CEDEC’s website (cedec.ca) has largely had the same design for several years. It is time for a refresh that both reflects our brand identity and presents a more engaging and dynamic look and feel for visitors. The new website should include the following elements:

• Corporate information (vision and mission, board of directors, staff, contact information/page, privacy policy page, etc.
• A presentation of our economic development services, and a call to action or engagement.
• A “blog” page that enables to present our activities and highlight our successes using a variety of media.
• A news page.
• A publications page.
• An employment and contracts page.
• A “contact us” feature that allows us to collect contact information for future communications.

Our essential technical requirements for the new website include:

• A site that is fully bilingual (English/French) and contains a landing page that invites visitors to select their preferred language.
• A site that is uncluttered in its design, visually appealing, and makes ease of navigation a priority.
• A site that enables content to be easily modified and updated by CEDEC staff as required.
• A site that is well-integrated with CEDEC’s social media channels (X, Facebook, Instagram and others).
• A site that enables us to share news, stories, and narratives about our work using text, photos, audio, and video.
• A site that is SEO friendly and designed on a stable, reliable, and secure platform that is functional with is both desktop and mobile friendly.

Web Hosting and Maintenance

• Proposals should also include an offer of service for web hosting and ongoing site maintenance. Regular maintenance tasks should include:
  • Performing software updates, including the CMS, plugins, themes and any third-party applications.
  • Delivering security monitoring and updates.
  • Undertaking necessary backups of website files and data to protect against catastrophic loss.
  • Quickly and efficiently addressing any bugs or issues related to website functionality.
  • Monitoring and addressing website performance, including loading times and page speeds.
  • Ensuring mobile browsing functionality and responsiveness.
  • Implementing and maintaining Seach Engine Optimization (SEO).
  • Generating and reporting website analytics to monitor traffic, improve design, and enhance user experience.
  • Assisting CEDEC with site changes and updates necessary to maintain legal compliance.
  • Ensuring ongoing social media integration.

CRITERIA FOR THE EVALUATION OF PROPOSALS

Proposals received through this RFP will be evaluated using the following criteria:

• Expertise in web design, website building, hosting and website maintenance services.
• Mastery of digital communications practice.
• Responsiveness to the design and technical requirements outlined above.
• Experience working with not-for-profit and mission-based organizations.
• A basic understanding of CEDEC’s mission and our business.
• A commitment to “after-sale” client service.
• The ability to work effectively with both French and English content.
• A clear demonstration of the ability to deliver on time and according to client specifications.
• The competitiveness of the quote provided.

PROPOSAL REQUIREMENTS

Proposals responding to this RFP must contain the following elements:

1. A cover letter summarizing your proposal.
2. A professional curriculum vitae or business prospectus demonstrating that you have the experience and qualifications necessary to undertake this contract as per the evaluation criteria noted above.
3. A quote and timeline to design and build a new website, according to the requirements contained in this RFP.
4. A quote for annual fees for web hosting and website maintenance according to the requirements contained in this RFP.
5. Three recent examples of web design work, at least one reflecting the ability to build a bilingual site.
6. Three references from past clients.

Please note that all expenses associated with this work are the responsibility of the contractor and should be reflected in the professional fees quoted.

Proposals must be sent by email to the following address: contracts-contrats@cedec.ca. All proposals must have RFP: Website Design, Hosting and Maintenance Services in the subject line, be complete as per the requirements of this RFP, and received by the closing date (see above).

NEXT STEPS

CEDEC may retain one or more proposals for consideration and conduct follow-up interviews. All candidates that have responded to this RFP will be informed about the status of their proposal after the closing date.

Questions about this RFP are welcomed. All questions should be received no later than January 10, 2025, and should be sent by email to contracts-contrats@cedec.ca. Please use RFP: Website Design, Hosting and Maintenance Services in the subject line of all inquiries.

This Request for Proposals has been prepared by the Community Economic Development and Employability Corporation (CEDEC). CEDEC considers the material in this RFP to be proprietary and confidential. The contents of this RFP must be held in confidence by recipients and used only to prepare a proposal for consideration by CEDEC.