SYNDICATED RESEARCH STUDIES

Trade Agreement: NONE
Tendering Procedures: The bidder must supply Canadian goods and/or services
Competitive Procurement Strategy: N/A - P&A/LOI Only
Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement: No
Nature of Requirements: 

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION
RE: SYNDICATED RESEARCH STUDIES


**Update**
As departments typically develop their annual POR plans near the beginning of each fiscal year, suppliers are strongly encouraged to submit their information before the end of June each year. When the price or availability of submitted products changes, suppliers should re-submit updated information on their respective syndicated studies. Accordingly, for suppliers that submitted information in fiscal year 2018-2019 (i.e., between April 1, 2018 and March 31, 2019 inclusively), we suggest that they submit updated information or make PSPC aware whether there are any new studies, or studies that are no longer available.


The Public Opinion Research Directorate (PORD) of Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) coordinates public opinion research (POR) activities for the Government of Canada (GC).

On behalf of the GC, PORD is seeking information on public opinion research* syndicated studies that are available for purchase with a government-wide subscription. For the sake of clarity, this is how PORD describes syndicated research to federal government clients: Syndicated research studies are off the shelf products produced by the private sector on a range of societal and government-specific topics (e.g. social media usage, youth, etc.) for paying subscribers. Costs and the results of these studies are shared only among subscribers for a fixed period of time, often in the form of reports, presentations, raw data, etc. Unlike custom research where the Government of Canada determines the research content and retains the intellectual property, the suppliers who produce syndicated studies retain copyright and sole responsibility for managing the content.

PORD defines "government-wide subscription" as: The information and deliverables from each study will be shared within the federal public administration; this includes all departments, as defined in section 2 of the Financial Administration Act, and all divisions, branches and other portions of the federal public administration listed in schedules III, IV, V, and VI of the Financial Administration Act.

The GC is principally interested in studies that may provide relevant information to assist and support a large number of government programs, and not duplicate existing custom research. Only studies submitted in the Request for Information (RFI) process will be considered for purchase. Suppliers can submit information about syndicated products on any topic area. Preference may be given to GC priority areas. 

The GC is in search of the most economical means of accessing research on these broad issues. Consequently, this RFI solicits detailed information on syndicated research studies. 

Each syndicated study will be considered based on whether it meets the needs of GC departments, whether there is sufficient interest and available budget, whether it provides sufficient value, and whether it is the most cost-effective research option available. Only studies offering a government-wide subscription will be considered. 

Please note: The GC is under no obligation to proceed with the purchase of a subscription to any of the syndicated research studies for which information is received**. If and when subscriptions are to be obtained, PORD will act as the coordinator on behalf of the GC and the Communications Procurement Directorate will act as the contracting authority.


RESPONSE SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS 

All submissions must demonstrate the high quality of the research products being presented for consideration and the value-for-money they offer. Submissions should contain (at minimum) the following details: 

1. the title of the study; 
2. an overview of the topics covered, including questions and/or specific areas/issues addressed in the research; 
a. please note: Syndicated research studies must not contain information regarding electoral voting intentions, or political party preferences or party standings with the electorate;
3. the target population(s) covered; 
4. a breakdown of the methodology(ies) used.  In the case of qualitative research: research techniques, research frequency, recruiting methods, recruiting sources, geographic locations, etc., and, in the case of quantitative research: research techniques, sample size and breakdown by region, survey duration, frequency of surveys, sample source (probability or non-probability) as well as any other pertinent information, etc.; 
5. details of the language(s) used in data collection; 
6. suppliers should indicate whether a previous iteration of the syndicated study was conducted. Please also include information on the availability of previously-collected data for tracking purposes, if applicable;
7. the deliverables; 
a. indicate what deliverables are included in the price (e.g. final report, data tables, raw data file (SPSS/Excel etc.), presentation). At minimum the deliverables should include 2 presentations, and accompanying presentation deck in one of the official languages; 
b. planned timeline should be included (e.g. tentative field and deliverable dates);
8. cost;
a. a total cost with and without HST (as a government-wide subscription). Also note that cost proposals should include, at minimum, two presentations (via web/video conference) to the GC on the research findings, and accompanying presentation deck;  
b. a total cost if the same project were to be done as a custom study for the GC; 
c. suppliers should provide a separate cost for the translation into the other official language (with and without HST) of the final presentation deck separate from the cost of the overall syndicated study;
d. suppliers should also provide a separate cost (with and without HST) for a fully web accessible*** version of the final presentation deck in HTML 5.0.
9. Permission;
a. The GC is seeking advanced permission to share all of the information provided in the submission with interested GC departments. Please ensure to indicate if you agree to this in the submission template.

Because this is not a bid solicitation, the GC will not necessarily respond to enquiries in writing or by circulating answers to all suppliers. However, suppliers with questions regarding this RFI may direct their enquiries to paola.amaral@pwgsc-tpsgc.gc.ca.


RESPONSES

GC intends to accept responses to this RFI on a continuous basis. Submissions received will be periodically reviewed based on GC requirements and internal resource availability. The information in this notice will be updated on an ongoing basis through the issuance of an RFI amendment on buyandsell.gc.ca.

As departments typically develop their annual POR plans near the beginning of each fiscal year, suppliers are strongly encouraged to submit their information before the end of June each year. If the price or availability of submitted products changes, suppliers should re-submit updated information on their respective syndicated studies.  

Responses should be submitted directly to Paola Amaral at paola.amaral@pwgsc-tpsgc.gc.ca. Responses should include the RFI Submission Template provided below. Although it is not a requirement, suppliers can also include a prospectus in addition to the completed RFI Submission Template.


Canada retains the right to negotiate with suppliers on any procurement.

Documents may be submitted in either official language of Canada.


* Definition of Public Opinion Research - https://www.canada.ca/en/treasury-board-secretariat/services/government-communications/public-opinion-research-government.html

** The issuance of this RFI does not create an obligation for the GC to issue a solicitation or contract, and does not bind the GC legally or otherwise, to enter into any agreement with the respondents. The GC reserves the right to cancel or modify any of the preliminary requirements described herein.

*** Standard on Web Accessibility - https://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/ws-nw/wa-aw/index-eng.asp


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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS: 


1.  Is this opportunity exclusively for companies on the Standing Offer or is it open to others?

This opportunity is not exclusive to Standing Offer holders and any supplier with a syndicated research study may submit a response. 


2. Do RFI submissions have to use the exact Word template provided, or can we use a branded PowerPoint template as long as it includes all the required information?

Although we prefer that the template be used, suppliers can submit the information in any format as long as the information is included. 


3. I was wondering about having a web-ready copy of the report available if the study is not intended for public use but rather for internal use only.  Would this still be required?

Although it is not shared publicly, as its government-wide it is shared to all GC departments through our intranet (internally), and has to be accessible for employees.


4. What is meant by key areas of interest?

Key areas of interest, the 3rd item indicted on the RFI Submission Template refers to the topic, subject area, or key areas of interest in the suppliers syndicated product.


5. When you say target population, are you referring to the group(s) or stakeholders that are being surveyed or are you talking about who would be interested in accessing this information contained in the survey?

Target population refers to the population and sub populations being surveyed.


6. Can we submit copies of the templates for the Syndicated Studies electronically or do you require a hard copy of each study template by the due date?

Electronic copies are accepted, and are preferred as per the Government of Canada Greening Initiatives. 


7. In the past, some syndicated products purchased by the Government of Canada had a variety of features, including core questions available to all subscribers and proprietary questions available to subscribers on a per question purchase basis. Is this approach in line with current thinking regarding syndicated research studies and this RFI?

The RFI is meant for the purchase of syndicated research. In circumstances where  studies allow for the inclusion of additional questions generated by the Government of Canada, it will be treated through a separate contract.  These client based/ omnibus questions will be treated as custom research and the results will be made available to the public through the Library and Archives of Canada Website.  A methodology report along with the data table(s) will be required. The cost of any client-based questions and methodology report should be identified separately. 


8. In terms of section viii (cost) d. which refers to a fully web accessible version of the final presentation, can you confirm that this web accessible version is intended for internal Government of Canada use only and not intended to be made public on any Government of Canada website or other source? If there is an intent to make it public, is there a delay period before public release (for example, would it be made available one year after initial publication)? Likewise, are all other deliverables (reports, tables, and so forth) intended for Government of Canada internal use only or would they be made public

Web accessible versions of the final presentations are only intended for internal Government of Canada use and will not be made public.


9. Could you please clarify what is required for "custom study cost" (Item 8b) in the template, and how this information will be used/why it is needed? 

We are hoping for further insight into what you are looking for here. Since there always needs to be a business case to run a syndicated study, in terms of the subscription price (i.e., getting enough subscribers to offset the project cost), it is unclear what is the relevance of a custom study cost. 

A "custom study cost" refers to the cost the supplier would charge for the study if it was done as an individual project where the Government of Canada was the sole client.  Custom studies are ones where the Government of Canada (GC) would determine the content and retain the copyright. 
 
As indicated in the RFI "the GC is in search of the most economical means of accessing research". The GC will use the information on "custom study cost" to compare the cost of purchasing a syndicated study subscription with the cost of undertaking a custom study. 


10. We have a question about how to properly respond to Section 8(A), 8(D) and 8(E) in the Syndicated Research Studies RFI submission.

As we have no prior experience to draw upon, we are not sure how to properly quote for licensing costs and the cost for web accessibility.  Would it be acceptable to leave these sections 8 a,d,e blank so that they could be discussed and quoted properly at a later time should there be interest to proceed with the research?

Yes, sections 8d, 8e can be left blank. However, for "section 8a", a price will have to be provided before Public Services and Procurement Canada can make the submission available to departments. Public Services and Procurement Canada may contact suppliers to obtain this information after this RFI closes.

Delivery Date: Above-mentioned

The Crown retains the right to negotiate with suppliers on any procurement.

Documents may be submitted in either official language of Canada.