Request for Quotation (RFQ) – Strategic Communications Consultant (RFP No: IHL_2024_004)

Request for Quotation (RFQ)

Strategic Communications Consultant RFQ

RFP No: IHL_2024_004

Part A: Cover Page

Issuance Date: Monday, Feb 26th, 2024

Closing Date for Questions: Wednesday, February 28th, 2024 at 01:00 PM(East Africa Time)

Submission of Quotations: Wednesday, March 6th, 2024 at 5:00 PM (East Africa Time)

Introduction

inSupply Health is seeking a Strategic Communications Consultant to enhance inSupply’s consistent and strategic communication of our impact in the health and supply chain sector. The consultant will review our previous strategy and co-create and refine our future communications strategy, focusing on conveying the benefits and impact of our work, aligned with our brand identity and our service offerings. This consultancy aims to position inSupply Health as a thought leader in our field, leveraging our project learnings and insights through compelling storytelling and strategic dissemination. We are seeking a dynamic candidate, understands the East African context, is digitally savvy who is a strong listener, can distil complex ideas and results into compelling stories, has a track record of co-creation and who is adept at systematizing processes. The candidate will help catalyze inSupply Health to embed strong communications systems and habits as part of the organizational culture.

Please submit your most competitive quote in accordance with the instructions to offerors and terms of reference. Any award issued as a result of this RFQ will be subject to all instructions, terms of reference/ specifications, certifications, terms and conditions, and funder-required clauses. This RFQ document includes the following parts:

PART A: Cover Page

PART B: Instructions

PART C: Service Specifications & Requirements

PART D: Quotation Form

PART E: Certifications

Attachment A: Standard General Terms & Conditions

inSupply Health is committed to the highest standards of ethics and integrity in procurement. inSupply has zero tolerance for fraud and strictly prohibits bribes, kickbacks, gratuities, and any other gifts-in-kind or in monetary form. inSupply also strictly prohibits collusion (bid rigging) between subcontractors/subgrantees and between subcontractors/subcontractors/subgrantees and inSupply staff. inSupply selects subcontractors on merit and will only engage subcontractors who demonstrate strong business ethics. Subcontractors/subgrantees must not participate in bid-rigging or attempt to offer any fee, commission, gift, gratuity, or any compensation in-kind or in monetary form to inSupply employees. Subcontractors/subgrantees who do so will be disqualified from doing business with inSupply. Additionally, inSupply has a conflict of interest policy that requires staff to disclose when there is a potential conflict of interest due to the staff member’s relationship with a subcontractor/subgrantee, and if necessary, to refrain from participation in a procurement involving that vendor. If at any time your organization has concerns that an employee has violated inSupply policy, you may submit a report via our ethics Code of Conduct Helpline at: www.jsi.ethicspoint.com.

Part B: Instructions

Definitions:

Sub-Contractor/Vendor/Consultant: The individual awarded the services requested under the RFQ in the form of a subcontract/purchase order.

Buyer**:** inSupply Health Limited

Submission Deadline.

Quotations must be received no later than 5:00 pm East African Time on Wednesday, March 6th, 2024 to the following email: [email protected]

Please reference “RFP No: IHL_2024_004, ” in the subject line of your email submission or questions. Quotations received after the submission deadline will be marked late. inSupply Health reserves the right not to consider quotations received after the submission deadline.

Questions:

All questions and requests for clarification regarding this RFQ must be submitted in writing by Wednesday , Feb 28th, 2024; 1:00 pm Local time to [email protected]. Questions received after this date may not be considered.

Quotation Requirements:

1. General/Technical Requirements:
   1. Completed and signed Quotation form and Statement of Compliance as stated in Part D. The offeror may use their own quotation format but must provide all information as required in this Quotation Form and this Section.
   2. Proposed activities should comply with the minimum technical specifications and requirements as stated in Part C.
   3. Submit appropriate documentation as evidence of your capacity for this service.
   4. Availability: 3-4 months
   5. The quotation shall be accompanied by all required Certifications in Part E, signed by the consultant
2. Cost Information Requirements: Please adopt a unit price quote model inclusive of relevant taxes and levies in Kenya Shillings (Kes).
3. Required Skills & Competencies:

• Past experience in developing communication strategies and plans for small to medium size organizations.
• Demonstrated strategy and workplace experience with global health projects and in sub-Saharan Africa.
• A proven ability to understand and dissect complex technical content and pull out important insights for dissemination (technical background preferred).
• A proven ability to convene a team and draw ideas/information.
• Ability to co-create content and facilitate brainstorming sessions.
• Ability to come up with strategic vision, design systems, and processes.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Specific expertise in developing communication materials and content that can be used for various purposes.
• Ability to develop digital graphics and assets, content based on data, and use various digital and social media platforms.
• Meticulous attention to detail and conscientiousness.
• Be self-managing of their own time and results, and manage information and resources effectively.
• Strong technology skills and knowledge of Google Suites.
• Fluent in English and Swahili.

1. Award

inSupply intends to issue a subcontract to the consultant who best meets the criteria specified in this RFQ and is determined to be responsible and eligible sub-contractors to provide the required service.

1. Evaluation and Selection Criteria

Quotations will be preliminary reviewed for basic responsiveness and completeness. The quotations must be submitted on time and meet all requirements as stated in Section D above. Quotations not meeting these requirements may not receive further consideration.

inSupply will evaluate responsive quotations on a “best value” basis, considering a variety of factors including but not limited to qualifications, skills, proven past experience successfully providing similar services to organizations similar to inSupply as described above. and past performance.

Proposals will be evaluated first to ensure that they meet all mandatory requirements and are responsive. To be determined responsive, a proposal must include all documentation as listed in section 2. Proposals that fail to meet these requirements will receive no further consideration. A non-responsive proposal to any element may be eliminated from consideration.

Responsive proposals will be evaluated and ranked by a committee on a technical basis. Those proposals that are considered to be technically acceptable shall then be evaluated in terms of cost.

1. Terms of Award

This document is a request for quotations only, and in no way obligates inSupply or its donor to make any award. Please be advised that under a fixed-price contract, the work must be completed within the specified total price. Any expenses incurred in excess of the agreed-upon amount in the sub-contract will be the responsibility of the sub-contractor and not that of inSupply or its donor. Therefore, the offeror is duly advised to provide its most competitive and realistic quote to cover all foreseeable expenses related to providing the requested service.

All deliverables produced under the future sub-contract shall be considered the property of inSupply. inSupply may choose to award a PO/subcontract to more than one offeror for specific parts of the activities in the RFQ.

1. Proposal Validity

The Offeror’s technical and cost quotes must remain valid for not less than 120 calendar days after the deadline specified above. Proposals must be signed by an official authorized to bind the offeror to its provisions.

1. Payment Terms

inSupply payment cycle is net 30 days upon receipt of deliverables, goods/services, inspection, and acceptance of goods/services as in compliance with the terms of the award and receipt of vendor invoice. Full cooperation with inSupply in meeting the terms and conditions of payment will be given the highest consideration.

1. Financial Responsibility

Consultants include in the capabilities statement that they have the financial viability and resources to complete the proposed activities within the period of performance and under the terms of payment outlined below. inSupply reserves the right to request and review the most current projects handled by the consultant.

1. Language

The proposal, as well as correspondence and related documents, should be in English.

1. Source/Nationality

All goods and services offered in response to this RFQ must meet the source and nationality requirements set forth in the United States Code of Federal Regulations, 22 CFR 228. Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Laos, Libya, North Korea, and Syria are prohibited source countries and no goods can be produced or sourced from those countries. The authorized geographic code for this RFQ is 935, meaning goods can be sourced from any country except prohibited source countries.

1. Negotiations

The offeror’s most competitive quote is requested. It is anticipated that any award issued will be made solely on the basis of an offeror’s proposal. However, inSupply reserves the right to request responses to additional technical, management, and cost questions which would help in negotiating and awarding a PO/sub-contract. inSupply also reserves the right to conduct negotiations on technical, management, or cost issues prior to the award of a PO/sub-contract. In the event that an agreement cannot be reached with an offeror inSupply will enter into negotiations with alternate offerors for the purpose of awarding a PO/subcontract without any obligation to previously considered offerors.

1. Rejection of the proposal

inSupply reserves the right to reject any and all proposals received, or to negotiate separately with any and all competing offerors, without explanation.

1. Incurring costs

inSupply is not liable for any cost incurred by offerors during the preparation, submission, or negotiation of an award for this RFQ. The costs are solely the responsibility of the offeror.

1. Modifications

inSupply reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to modify the request, to alter the selection process, to modify or amend the specifications and scope of work specified in this RFQ.

1. Cancellation

inSupply may cancel this RFQ without any cost or obligation at any time until issuance of the award.

Part C: Service Specifications & Requirements.

Assignment Objectives

1. Co-create and Finalize Communications Strategy:
2. Collaborate with inSupply Health’s leadership, management and communications teams to review and refine the communications strategy.
3. Ensure the strategy incorporates key messaging for the inSupply Health brand and its main service offerings (the communications strategy must be connected with the new business strategy).
4. Identify and plan for the use of a diverse range of channels and media for effective message delivery.
5. Work with other consultants and consultant firms as relevant to align and guide project communication based on the inSupply communication strategy.
6. Develop an Action Plan for Strategy Execution:
7. Create a detailed action plan for the inSupply team to execute the communications strategy.
8. Help identify processes for the regular translation of complex project results into meaningful insights and stories and dissemination of project learnings and insights.
9. Establish metrics and KPIs to measure the effectiveness of the communications strategy and its impact on positioning inSupply as a thought leader.
10. Storytelling and Content Creation (to solidify 2b, help inSupply develop content for 4 main projects) :
11. Develop internal mechanisms for effective communication, focusing on storytelling to highlight inSupply’s impact and insights.
12. Extract and synthesize important insights from technical content created by inSupply staff or through interviews.
13. Produce 4 high-quality, dissemination-ready contents that aligns with inSupply’s branding and communications goals.

Scope of Work

1. Strategy Development and Finalization:
2. Conduct workshops and meetings with inSupply Health stakeholders to gather input and align on strategic communications objectives.
3. Analyze current communications assets and efforts and identify gaps or areas for enhancement.
4. Finalize a comprehensive communications strategy document, including strategic information processes, key messages, target audiences, channels, and media selection.
5. Action Plan and Process Identification:
6. Develop a step-by-step action plan with timelines and interdependencies for implementing the communications strategy.
7. Advise on the establishment of processes for the systematic dissemination of insights and learnings. Work with the team to document this process.
8. Provide recommendations for tools and technologies to support the strategy’s execution and monitoring. Establish specific metrics and KPIs.
9. Content Creation and Storytelling (following the strategy and action plan):
10. Identify stories and insights from 4 main projects (one story/insight per project or as guided) that showcase inSupply’s impact and expertise. Use the stories and insights to create high-impact, quality, engaging content (can be visual web stories, reports, case studies, infographics, social media campaigns, newsletters, and articles ready for publication and dissemination).
11. Ensure all content is consistent with inSupply’s branding and communicates the intended messages effectively to the target audience.

Deliverables

• A finalized communications strategy document, inclusive of key messaging, audience targeting, channel and media plans.
• An action plan for the execution of the communications strategy, including process guidelines for dissemination of stories insights.
• Four high-quality, ready-to-publish content pieces based on 4 main projects.

Timeline

The scope of work outlined above is expected to be completed within 3-4 months, starting from the date of contract signing.

Reporting

The Strategic Communications Consultant will report to the CEO at inSupply Health or her designate and will work closely with various team members across the organization.

Part D: Quotation Form.

PART D : Quotation Form (Kes)

Offeror’s Name and address:

______________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

Phone: ______________________________ E-mail: _________________________________

Please note:

1. Prices are to be stated in Kenya Shillings currency (Kes).
2. In case of discrepancy between unit price and total, the unit price shall prevail.

Item No.

Activity Description

Unit Cost

Quantity

Price [DAP or specify quoted Incoterm]

Lead Time

(Days)

Unit Price

Total Price

Strategy Development and Finalization:

Action Plan and Process Identification:

Content Creation and Storytelling

Subtotal (exclusive of all taxes)

Taxes

TOTAL

Validity of Quote: _______ calendar days from deadline

Availability:_____________________

The offeror agrees to furnish any or all items upon which prices are offered at the price specified herein, delivered at the designated points, within the time specified in the schedule and in accordance with the terms of this solicitation.

Authorized Signature: __________________________ Date: _________________________

Part E: Certification Regarding Debarment, Suspension, or Proposed Debarment

By signing and submitting this certification, the offeror certified that neither it nor any of its Principals are ( ) are not ( ) presently debarred, suspended, proposed for debarment, or otherwise declared ineligible from participation in this transaction by any Federal department or agency.

Company Name: _______________________________________

Signatures: _______________________________________

Signatory Name: _______________________________________

Signatory Title: _______________________________________

Date: _______________________________________

How to apply

Submission Deadline.

Quotations must be received no later than 5:00 pm East African Time on Wednesday, March 6th, 2024 to the following email: [email protected]

Please reference “RFP No: IHL_2024_004, ” in the subject line of your email submission or questions. Quotations received after the submission deadline will be marked late. inSupply Health reserves the right not to consider quotations received after the submission deadline.

Questions:

All questions and requests for clarification regarding this RFQ must be submitted in writing by Wednesday , Feb 28th, 2024; 1:00 pm Local time to [email protected]. Questions received after this date may not be considered.