Title
a. Approve and authorize the Director of the Department of Social Services to sign an agreement with SkillSurvey Inc., including nonstandard vendor liability limits and payment provisions, for $42,311 to purchase an online employment reference assessment software system retroactively effective January 1, 2019 through December 31, 2021; and
b. Authorize the Director of the Department of Social Services to sign up to three (3) amendments to this agreement where the total amendments do not exceed 10% ($4,231) of the original contract amount and do not significantly change the scope of work.
Report
RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the Board of Supervisors:
a. Approve and authorize the Director of the Department of Social Services to sign an agreement with SkillSurvey Inc., including nonstandard vendor liability limits and payment provisions, for $42,311 to purchase an online employment reference assessment software system retroactively effective January 1, 2019 through December 31, 2021; and
b. Authorize the Director of the Department of Social Services to sign up to three (3) amendments to this agreement where the total amendments do not exceed 10% ($4,231) of the original contract amount and do not significantly change the scope of work.
SUMMARY/DISCUSSION:
This Agreement with SkillSurvey Inc. is to provide the Department of Social Services (DSS), Human Resources (HR) Branch with an on-line automated software to conduct hiring employment reference checks in a consistent, timely, and cost-efficient manner. SkillSurvey, Inc has knowledge, skills, and expertise with the on-line reference check process and has established business relationships through multi-year contracts with Human Resources in the Monterey County Health Department (MCHD) and Natividad Medical Center (NMC). NMC, MCHD, and DSS are the three largest departments in the County by FTE count and approval of this agreement will allow DSS to join NMC and MCHD in leveraging the improved quality and efficiency offered by SkillSurvey when performing reference checks.
SkillSurvey’s automated on-line hiring reference check tool will assist DSS HR professionals in coordinating with job candidates for timely completion of the reference check process and will provide the DSS hiring manager with a comprehensive candidate report to evaluate the candidates being considered.
The current process of conducting reference checks often results in limited information for managers to consider when making hiring decisions. The SkillSurvey on-line reference check process will expedite the hiring process and provide consistent and detailed job candidate reports for the hiring manager.
This agreement contains non-standard payment provisions with each annual payment being due at the beginning of the annual term and liability limitations capped at the net fees paid through this agreement. These same non-standard terms are also contained in the current MCHD and NMC agreements. Because of the low risk nature of this agreement, the industry standard of prepayment for software services and the successful use of this service by the MCHD and NMC, DSS recommends the approval of these non-standard terms.
No services will be performed prior to execution of this agreement, but the intra-county negotiations regarding these nonstandard terms resulted in delays which prevented this agreement from being brought before your Board prior to the start date.
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
Purchasing has reviewed and approved this agreement. County Counsel has approved the agreement as to form. Risk Management will not approve this agreement due to the limits of liability for SkillSurvey. SkillSurvey’s liability under this agreement is limited to the aggregate fees paid by the County to SkillSurvey through this Agreement. The Auditor-Controller will not approve this agreement due to the payment terms.
FINANCING:
Purchasing has reviewed and approved this agreement. County Counsel has approved the agreement as to form. Risk Management will not approve this agreement due to the limits of liability for SkillSurvey. SkillSurvey’s liability under this agreement is limited to the aggregate fees paid by the County to SkillSurvey through this Agreement. The Auditor-Controller will not approve this agreement due to the payment terms.
BOARD OF SUPERVISORS STRATEGIC INITIATIVES:
This agreement correlates to the Administration Strategic Initiative adopted by the Board of Supervisors by allowing the Department to more efficiently and accurately assess the reference material of potential hires to increase the quality of future staffing.
Mark a check to the related Board of Supervisors Strategic Initiatives
__Economic Development
X Administration
__Health & Human Services
__Infrastructure
__Public Safety
Prepared by: Brette Neal, Human Resources Manager x1555
Approved by: Henry Espinosa, Acting Director, x4430
Attachments: SkillSurvey Agreement
Proposed agreement is on file with Clerk of the Board as an attachment to this Board Report