IT Managed Services

The Vendor is required to provide IT Managed Service providers.
- Provide supplementary IT services to the County’s existing IT department.
- Providing a comprehensive suite of services, including but not limited to project consulting and management, Azure and AVD infrastructure support, networking and firewall knowledge, webservers, database, software/hardware updates, documentation management, afterhours support, procurement, and senior level helpdesk personnel to support the IT department.
- Responsible for the seamless transition of management tools, applicable software, and licensing, ensuring minimal service disruption and a smooth transition from the current provider.
- Change Management
•    Implement change management procedures to ensure seamless transitions and minimal disruption.
•    Document and communicate changes to stakeholders in a clear and timely manner.
•    Adhere to Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) or equivalent frameworks for structured change control processes.
- Supplemental Role to Internal IT Department
•    Act in a supplemental capacity to the County’s internal IT department, enhancing their capabilities without assuming or replacing their core responsibilities.
•    Collaborate closely with internal IT staff to provide suggestions on improvement, specialized expertise, resources, and support for complex projects, advanced technical services, and strategic initiatives.
•    Ensure clear delineation of roles and responsibilities through regular communication and coordination with the internal IT team to avoid overlap or conflict.
- After-hours Support
•    Provide 24/7 after-hours support for critical IT systems, including network infrastructure, security incidents, and cloud services, to ensure minimal disruption to County operations.
•    Provide support (by phone and email) for all staff outside of regular business hours on an emergency basis for any IT issue. Escalate any high-priority incidents, if necessary to internal support.
•    Offer a clear escalation path for after-hours incidents, including direct access to senior technical staff for high-priority issues.
•    Document and report all after-hours support activities, including incident details, resolution steps, and follow-up actions, in regular status reports to the County.
- Ticketing System
•    Provide access to MSP ticketing system or client portal to update or review tickets, hours, billing and notes.
- Documentation
•    Assist in maintaining the County IT documentation system, keeping our on-prem knowledge base, applicable software and infrastructure documentation up to date as required.
- IT Asset and License Management
•    Maintain the IT Asset Management (ITAM) system to track hardware, software, and cloud resources across the County’s infrastructure.
•    Provide, manage and optimize software licenses, including Microsoft 365, Azure, and other third-party applications, to ensure compliance and cost efficiency.
•    Provide yearly reports on asset inventory, license usage, and recommendations for optimization.
•    Provide assistance during budgeting and ensure key licence renewal dates with clear costing and forecasting against County roadmaps.
- Cloud and Virtualization Expertise
•    Demonstrate advanced fluency in cloud infrastructure management for Microsoft Azure, Intune, and Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD).
•    Support the County in optimizing cloud-based solutions for scalability, security, and performance.
- Edge Security
•    Manage existing edge security solution to protect the County’s network perimeter.
- Identity and Access Management
•    Manage and maintain Single Sign-On (SSO), System for Cross-domain Identity Management (SCIM), and Security Assertion Markup Language (SAML) solutions.
•    Ensure seamless and secure user authentication and access control across systems.
- Artificial Intelligence Integration
•    Provide expertise in integrating AI-driven solutions to enhance County operations, such as automation, analytics, data lakes, or predictive maintenance. This is applicable for all County departments.
•    Recommend AI tools and services that align with the County’s strategic goals.
- Security Operations
•    Manage and support existing Anti-Virus (AV), Network Detection and Response (NDR), Managed Detection and Response (MDR), and Extended Detection and Response (XDR) solutions. Vendor will be provided upon request.
•    Ensure continuous monitoring, threat detection, and rapid response to security incidents.
- Backup Configuration and Management
•    Maintain on-prem and Azure backups, including backup policies, retention periods, and integration with Azure Backup services to ensure data protection and compliance with organizational recovery objectives
- Infrastructure Management and Updates
•    The selected MSP will be capable of providing comprehensive NOC (Network Operations Center) services, including proactive monitoring and alerting, such that they notify us immediately and begin auctioning any server or network outage 
•    Maintain 24×7x365 availability and integrity of all production infrastructure, including proactive monitoring, incident response, and ensuring minimal downtime.
•    Provide advanced database administration and support as required.
•    Plan, communicate, and execute regular updates to the County’s IT infrastructure, including hardware, software, and firmware.
•    Ensure updates are performed with minimal downtime and in alignment with change management procedures.
- Project Consulting, Management, and Documentation
•    Provide expert consulting for IT projects, including planning, execution, and evaluation.
•    Deliver integration design, development, implementation, testing, troubleshooting, and ongoing support for system-to-system integrations.
•    Deliver comprehensive project management, ensuring timelines, budgets, and objectives are met.
•    Maintain detailed documentation for all projects, including requirements, configurations, and outcomes.
- Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM)
•    Provide and maintain an RMM solution to monitor the County’s IT infrastructure proactively.
•    Ensure real-time visibility into system performance, alerts, and potential issues.
•    RMM solution needs to be deployed to all servers and endpoints and access granted to Wheatland County IT staff.
- Network Scanning and Assessment
•    Utilize a network scanning tool (e.g., Auvik, Network Detective) to identify assets on all networks and assess network health, performance. Access to the platform needs to be provided to County IT staff.
•    Provide regular reports on network vulnerabilities, performance bottlenecks, and optimization recommendations.
- 3rd Party Vendor Communications
•    Act as the primary point of contact for all third-party IT vendors, when applicable, coordinating and managing communications to ensure alignment with County objectives.
- Onboarding and Transition Management
•    Liaise with the incumbent Managed Service Provider (MSP) to ensure a seamless and orderly transition of services.
•    Coordinate the systematic removal of the incumbent MSP’s management tools if necessary, and the implementation of the appropriate replacement solutions.
•    Manage the transfer of Microsoft licensing, Azure reservations, and other relevant licensing agreements.
•    Develop present and execute a detailed onboarding plan, including timelines, milestones, and risk mitigation strategies.
•    Provide documentation and reports on the onboarding process, ensuring transparency and accountability.
- Service Management and Reporting
•    Within the proposal, supply an example of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and Service Level Agreements (SLAs) you have used against each of the proposed services, which would meet or exceed industry standards.
•    During contract development, suggest clear KPIs that can be measured and maintained towards SLAs with the County.
•    Maintain services against agreed upon KPIs and SLAs; the Service Agreement must be measurable, enforceable and service based.
•    Provide standardized monthly reports on service levels, projects, billable hours, maintenance activities, and key contributions to continuous improvement. 
•    The agreement needs to include industry standard service levels & appropriate guardrails for ensuring services levels are consistently achieved. Additionally, agreement requires the flexibility to include RPO/RTO service levels based on a future Disaster Recovery project.
•    Management of recurring and ongoing issues, with root cause analysis performed as required.

- Contract Period/Term: 5 years
- Questions/Inquires Deadline: December 22, 2025