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Page 2 of 5 <br />City of Redwood City 1017 Middlefield Road, Redwood City, CA. 94063 Tel: 650-780-7000 www.redwoodcity.org <br />or other ERP packages. But that does not mean that they cannot overcome these growing pains. GFOA <br />has vast experience working with jurisdictions from across the country facing similar struggles, helping <br />hundreds of jurisdictions identify the root causes of their ERP struggles and making recommendations – <br />whether they be system modifications, process changes, policy changes, or others – to allow jurisdictions <br />to improve system functionality to better meet their operational needs. <br />As a result of this previous work, GFOA is uniquely positioned to help jurisdictions effectively work through <br />these struggles. GFOA is familiar with a multitude of ERP systems, common pitfalls that undermine the <br />effectiveness of ERPs, the nuances of public sector accounting, and the importance of leveraging best <br />practices to maximize the effectiveness of ERPs. As a non-profit, membership organization, GFOA does <br />not do this work for a profit. Rather, GFOA approaches this work with the goal of helping jurisdictions <br />achieve success in financial management. In contrast, for-profit providers working in this space frequently <br />have a financial stake in the systems, meaning they approach the work from a different vantage point. <br />Of note, San Luis Obispo, another city that uses Oracle, engaged the services of GFOA in the years <br />following its implementation to guide it through the process of fine-tuning its system. Moreover, Finance <br />Director, Beth Goldberg, has previous experience working with GFOA in this type of capacity at another <br />city that was struggling following implementation of Tyler Munis. <br />ANALYSIS <br />Per Section 2.66.2 of Chapter 2, Article VII in the City’s Municipal Code, Specialized Professional Services <br />Exempt from Competitive Bidding Process: A contract for highly specialized professional services may be <br />awarded without a competitive bidding process as determined by the City Manager. Due to the unique <br />and specialized nature of the work that GFOA will perform, the City Manager has exercised her authority <br />to approve proceeding with GFOA without a competitive bidding process, and recommends that Council <br />approve and authorize her to execute a services agreement with GFOA in an amount not to exceed <br />$160,000. <br />To conduct the assessment and make recommendations to improve the functionality of Oracle, GFOA’s <br />scope of work will include: <br />Oracle Documentation Review: GFOA will review any project documentation and deliverables produced <br />by either City staff or Oracle/CherryRoad consultants during implementation. The quality of <br />documentation often can be an indicator into the quality decisions made during the configuration. GFOA <br />will also compare project documentation against any RFP documents or contract documents, including <br />GFOA’s previously created project documents, in an attempt to determine how the City arrived at the <br />current state. GFOA also will interview key staff who may have been part of the implementation to get <br />perspective or insight into how or why certain decisions were made. GFOA understands that staff <br />responsible for implementing the system may not be at the City currently. In addition, we realize that its <br />often easier to assess decisions made after the fact as new information comes out. The point of analysis <br />is not to assess blame, but rather that better understand why decisions were made to better position the <br />City for any necessary change. <br />6.A. - Page 2 of 20 <br />7