November 17, 2017 ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY ADDENDUM 3 RFP 331801 Digital Integrated Enrollment Support for Students Please note the following answers to questions that were asked prior to the deadline for inquiries date of 11/15/17 at 3:00 P.M., MST. 1. How can prospective students track their progress and milestones within the current application process? (1.3) Enrollment coaches and students can access student tasks within My ASU. This checklist details outstanding student application activities and what steps should be taken to resolve the tasks and complete the application process. There are not always checklist items available for graduate applicants. There is also a progress bar on the admissions application that updates as each page is completed and if applicable, remembers where the prospective student left off. 2. At which stage does "student progress" begin (i.e. when they start an application at a later stage?) (1.3) For students, progress begins at the point the student first accesses the digital experience and answers pre-admission qualification questions. ASU would like to start the student progress beginning at the RFI. 3. Clarify which information a prospective student would see that an enrollment coach would not be able to see via their administrative login. (2.2 & 2.3) There is no student information that should not be shared with the enrollment coach except for login credentials. 4. Clarify which Single Sign On platform will be used by enrollment coaches. (2.3) Currently there are two SSO options available for internal users, CAS and SAML SSO. CAS provides a pure authentication of users, just returning a ticket if a user can login via Kerberos or not. SAML SSO provides authorization by providing information about a user after they authenticate. 5. If possible, provide use case(s) for how the solution would need to integrate with ASU's master data management (MDM) and identity management systems. (11.5) The system leverages the existing information to more accurately and effectively engage with the student. There are two use cases associated with this: 1. Call to a planned (but not yet delivered) MDM API 2. Reliance upon nightly MDM batch jobs to perform cleanup within Salesforce For identity management (IdM) system integration, our ASU systems would authenticate/identify users within the digital experience. ASU will be the Identity Provider (IdP) for the internal users of the system. These are the SSO options (outside of internal users) in order of precedence: 1. Web Auth (ASU Custom Protocol - superior) 2. Central Authentication Service (CAS)
3. Shibboleth server implementing Security Assertion Markup Language (SAML) protocol 4. Custom SSO (OAuth - ASU Google Account) 5. Active Directory Federation Services (ADFS) 6. Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) 6. If possible, provide use case(s) for how the solution would need to integrate with ASU's data warehouse. (11.6) Solution would integrate with the ASU Enterprise Data Warehouse (EDW) by providing read access to pertinent databases and structured schemas. The EDW would then schedule Extract, Transform, and Load (ETL) to extract data from source systems at a regular cadence (nightly) and load into prepared tables in the warehouse. Other options for ETL are available to the EDW; it is expected that the solution provider will present its preferred method for providing pertinent system, activity, and descriptive data to the EDW on a regular cadence for the University s various purposes. 7. If possible, provide use case(s) for how the solution would need to integrate with ASU's Me3. (11.8) Part of the digital experience is program exploration. me3 is a visual game which helps high school and college students explore potential careers and degree pairings using the game. The game currently uses ONET career categories and a RIASEC model. Solutions could include a simple linkage to the game, the game being played within the digital experience, or some other method of integration. A student could even take the game outside of the digital experience with the results linking back to the digital experience. 8. Which technologies are the CPE and GFA web apps built upon? Do they have open APIs to support data exchange? Who supports them? (11.10) For GFA, the web app is on AngularJS with Salesforce as a back end. The APIs are currently going through an AWS API gateway. A third-party vendor is supporting the front end while a project team member is supporting AWS and Salesforce on the back end. CPE is currently on a Canvas Catalog LMS, which does have an API supported by Canvas. 9. Is there an expected or desired launch window? What are the priority requirements for the initial launch phase? What deadlines or milestones are you facing? How do you expect those will translate to project milestones? The vendor is expected to provide an accurate timeframe for the full development of the requested solution, establish a baseline, and assess the quality of both the solution and solution provider. ASU will negotiate project milestones and deadlines with the awarded vendor to ensure that the solution is delivered within ASU s expected implementation timeline. ASU would like work to begin right after the SOW is executed and to launch the digital experience quickly. 10. Are you prioritizing specific platforms or technologies (e.g. mobile first, desktop, SMS, chat bots, etc.)? This tool needs to be many things to multiple stakeholders. What are the most important aspects and can you prioritize? The proposed solution is expected to adhere to all platform and technology requirements as specified in the RFP. If the vendor is unable meet any requirements, it is expected that the vendor will indicate this in their response. ASU will defer to the vendor s expertise as to how best to implement each of these within the solution. Prioritization of components will occur once the university understands the proposed vendor s capability. 11. Regarding overall timeline, has there been any discussion or decision about the timing of the platform s release, or are you looking to the proposers for recommendations on this?
ASU is currently looking for proposers to present an accurate timeline for the development of the full solution requested in the RFP. With that baseline set, ASU will work with the vendor for phased implementation that meets ASU s needs. 12. Are there currently other education partners, in addition to Starbucks that will be integrated with this solution? Will the provider work directly with these partners, and how many partners do you expect within the initial 2-year term? Yes, we are in discussions with or have signed contracts with over 30 educational alliances. EdPlus at ASU will work directly with these partners so no need to worry about coordinating directly with the educational alliances. 13. The RFP requires vision/wireframes/mockups. If we are able to express our vision in some other form, will that be satisfactory? If there are specific requirements around this demonstration, what are they? There are no specific requirements, so please use whatever method best represents and demonstrates your vision. Wireframes and mockups will be required after signing the contract and prior to beginning dev work. 14. The proposal mentions EU requirements and international students, what countries/languages does ASU plan to be active in upon launch? Tell us about the needs of your international audiences. In what ways do you imagine the tool will need to support them? There are several educational alliances that have an international presence, including Starbucks. At this time, our primary focus is a national audience but we need to ensure the solution can engage international audiences as we expand either our agreements or onboard new educational alliances. International considerations should be culturally sensitive, including (but are not limited to) language, imagery, user experience, navigation, program availability, mobile views, trade embargos, etc. 15. In regards to vendor responsibilities during the lifetime of the project, is the vendor responsible for creating content and managing the communications strategy, testing, and optimization? The vendor is expected to create and implement content in concert with ASU s dedicated content and communications teams. The communications strategy, testing and optimization will be the joint responsibility of both ASU and the selected vendor with emphasis on content approval by ASU. 16. How is the internal technical team at ASU structured and what subject matter experts will the vendor be interfacing with? The technical team at ASU is loosely a project-based structure and can act as SMEs upon request. If the needed expertise is not available within the project team, there are other internal EdPlus and/or ASU resources that can be of assistance with the proper notification. In addition, there are student experience SMEs that will also be made available to support and enhance the digital experience if necessary. 17. Will developers from the systems to be integrated with be available to us (e.g. ASU s single-sign-on team; ASU s master data management team; etc.)? What teams might we need to interact with? Project stakeholders include the Financial Aid Student Services team, enrollment coaches, enrollment leadership, marketing, data, development, business development, and EdPlus leadership teams, including various other stakeholders across the university such as academic units. There is a project team at ASU that the selected vendor will primarily interact with. With enough advanced notice, we should be able to get assistance and/or consult with the SMEs of the integrated systems.
18. Who are the project stakeholders and who is involved in the decision-making process? Are there multiple reviews of each milestone with ASU and Partners with various stakeholder groups, or will the work primarily be overseen by a core team at ASU with select presentations to leadership and Partners? Project stakeholders include the Financial Aid Student Services team, enrollment coaches, enrollment leadership, marketing, data, development, business development, and EdPlus leadership teams, including various other stakeholders across the university such as academic units and enterprise technical teams. There is a project team at ASU that the selected vendor will primarily interact with; however, vendors should be prepared for periodic demos of completed work. 19. What specific third-party solution is ASU currently using for this platform? Is there a support team internally that can provide documentation for any third-party code? Is the Starbucks integration complete or are there aspects of the platform that are still in development? What technology solution(s) is the University currently using for enrollment? There is no third-party technical solution currently in use. The current solution relies heavily upon enrollment coaches verbally guiding students through the application process. ASU plans to be innovative in this space by creating the first of its kind digital experience to assist students through the application process and will use Salesforce as an integration on the backend. 20. Has any user research been done over the last 1-2 years that would provide information on mindset or the user journey? We would normally utilize any current research as well as conducting additional user research, are you open to this? To inform our proposal, is there a way we might better understand the scope of the journey, the broader ecosystem of actors, and the nature of their interactions (e.g., by consuming previous research, access to simulations, demos, etc.)? We see that there are use cases included in the RFP. Is there additional documentation and/or research associated with each use case, or would more design research be needed to fully develop these? The research conducted over the last couple of years is anecdotal in nature and based on individual student feedback received. The RFP outlines all of the information available for public release at this time. Additional information will be provided to the selected vendor and we are definitely open to future user experience research to grow and improve the digital experience. 21. Have you developed personas for your applicant audiences? If yes, what information is included? Not yet, but we plan to collaborate with the selected vendor on this in the future. 22. In regards to the mandatory certification (security review process, section XIV), can you elaborate as to when this one week before your scheduled review would take place in the timeline? Please confirm that this would take place once the vendor is awarded the project, is this the case? The security review is scheduled once there is sufficient information available, which would fall sometime after vendor selection and requirements finalization. The project manager will coordinate with the selected vendor on the security review details, including when to schedule the security review. 23. Whom will we be able to consult with on your information security and compliance needs? The vendor should review the information security and compliance documentation located at the bottom of the RFP. If there are additional questions, the vendor should submit those questions through established channels and the appropriate teams will address them. Once awarded, ASU information security and compliance teams will work with the vendor to assess the vendor s solution.
24. Regarding mobile design, has there been any discussion or decision internally about whether the platform is a responsive, mobile web experience vs. a native mobile application? [Company] will of course make a recommendation there; however, it would be good to know if a native app is specifically desired for timeline/estimating purposes. Because ASU would like to maintain a cohesive experience across multiple platforms, a native mobile application is not in scope; the expectation is for a web experience that executes well on mobile as well as other devices. 25. Have you mapped the student journey and/or service ecosystem from lead generation to registration and retention (including both human and digital interactions/channels)? ASU has mapped the student journey from lead generation through registration which will be provided at to the selected vendor. The digital experience is just one component of the overall student experience and/or journey. 26. What triggered the creation of this project? The University has continued pursuit of excellence, as outlined in the RFP Section V Overview and Goals triggered the creation of this project. 27. What needs do you want to address in this first contract and which do you expect may happen later? The proposed solution is expected to address as many of the requirements as the vendor deems possible, based on their capability, within the first contract s constraints. Future contracts would be awarded for additional development, enhancements, ongoing maintenance, etc. 28. How do you imagine introducing this tool into your admissions processes? Point-in-time cutover? Gradual transition? ASU has developed an incremental plan to implement this solution with the selected prospective student populations. Rather than introducing this tool into ASU s admissions processes, it would be better described as laying over or bridging to existing admissions processes. 29. What is meant by multi-modular with respect to the envisioned solution? Module examples include Request for Information (RFI) > Pre-Admission Qualification > Program Discovery > Financial Options Discovery > Skills for Student Success > ASU Value Proposition > Application > Quick Enrollment/Registration. 30. What specific enrollment and retention issues are you trying to address in this design? What specific outcomes do you seek? How will you measure these? The purpose of this RFP is to design a digital experience that augments and provides additional ways to interact with ASU during the enrollment process. As such, ASU always seeks to raise the bar for retention and enrollment. ASU s would like to see outcomes as defined in Section II of the RFP and https://president.asu.edu/about/asucharter. Specific metrics, KPIs, and performance measurements will be discussed with the selected vendors. 31. In the Overview, reducing operating costs is listed as a goal of the program. Does the University have a specific metric here that would tie back to this proposal and costing?
With the implementation of a strong digital experience, ASU expects to see a larger number of students autonomously and independently interact with the digital experience, resulting in fewer headcount needs. Specific metrics, KPIs, and performance measurements will be discussed with the selected vendors. 32. How does integrating ASU data and existing technology with the digital solution support personalization? What kinds of data and technology do you envision using to accomplish this goal? ASU has included requirements that detail various systems integrations including Salesforce (CRM), PeopleSoft (Student Information Systems) and Me3 (program selection tool) within the RFP. ASU envisions that all of the listed technologies will in some way contribute to the quality and depth of the student s digital experience, including specific educational alliance elements where necessary. 33. Tell us more about requirement 10.6 (must have full API call architecture). The proposed solution should provide an efficient method for passing information from the digital experience to other applications within the ASU ecosystem upon demand, i.e. through API. A full RESTful API using OPEN API standard can handle the frequency and anticipated traffic for this solution. 34. Are there any constraints around programming languages or frameworks that can be used? No constraints are currently present around programming languages or frameworks for this proposal, except that the solution must be able to share information with other applications efficiently. There is a preference for Javascript, APEX, PHP, Python, CSS, Java, and HTML but the language decision should be based on what is best considering the proposed solution. 35. What are your development and quality assurance policies in regard to launch (requirement 13.2.2)? Wireframes and mockups will be required after signing the contract and prior to beginning dev work. Vendors should expect periodic demos of work in progress to ensure stakeholder needs are met. In addition, the vendor should coordinate with the project team on quality assurance and user acceptance testing. Fixes for all critical bugs and attendance at a go/no go meeting are necessary prior to launch. The selected vendor will also need to adhere to the launch plan and communicate any production issues immediately. 36. How do the different organizations enrollment processes differ? How are they similar? In what ways do the contracts with educational alliances differ? How might those differences affect the digital experience, co-branding, etc.? Admission criteria and processes may vary by academic unit within ASU but the digital experience should provide a consistent experience. In many cases, educational alliance contracts share the same service needs and digital experience requirements. As such, it s anticipated that the digital experience will support all alliance agreements and admissions processes the same way; however, sometimes alliance customization may include (but not limited to) brand guidelines, logo placement, available programs, geography, touch points, etc. If you have any questions regarding this notice, please contact me at 480-965-3849 or Lorenzo.espinoza@asu.edu. You may also find RFP 331801 and any updates at http://www.asu.edu/purchasing/bids/index.html