OCMP-27-25799 Services - Stakeholder Experience

The Maryland Department of Health (MDH) /Developmental Disabilities Administration (DDA) is seeking a contractor to provide a solution to improve real-time visibility into program spending, utilization, claims, service delivery, stakeholder experience, and provider performance patterns.

The Maryland Department of Health, Developmental Disabilities Administration (DDA), requires a Contract for data analytics support and tool development to ensure financial and programmatic efficiency of Maryland's developmental disabilities service system. DDA administers a large and complex Medicaid funded program that has experienced rapid expenditure growth, structural budget pressure, increased service complexity, and heightened expectations for transparency, accountability, and program performance.

This is a single award.

Core Responsibilities Supporting Stakeholders

The Contractor(s) shall establish a Stakeholder function focused on how DDA authorities, reforms, communications, and operational changes are experienced by individuals receiving services, families, caregivers, providers, advocates, support coordinators, legislators, and other external stakeholders.

• Develop a stakeholder engagement and communication strategy.
• Identify and map key stakeholder groups, including individuals with lived experience, families, caregivers, providers, advocates, support coordinators, regional stakeholders, and legislative stakeholders.
• Conduct stakeholder journey mapping to identify pain points, barriers, communication gaps, and process frustrations.
• Establish feedback loops through surveys, listening sessions, focus groups, advisory meetings, interviews, or other methods approved by DDA.
• Produce accessible, plain-language communication materials regarding program changes, analytics- informed reforms, fiscal initiatives, and stakeholder-facing improvements.
• Support transparent and consistent messaging across stakeholder groups.
• Identify at least one priority stakeholder experience improvement opportunity each quarter, or on another cadence approved by DDA.
• Design, implement, and measure targeted improvement initiatives in coordination with DDA leadership and Regional Offices.
• Analyze stakeholder feedback and provide recommendations to DDA leadership.
• Ensure that stakeholder feedback informs operational reforms, communication strategies, and continuous improvement efforts.

Stakeholder Experience Deliverables

• Stakeholder engagement plan that follows the Memoranda of Understanding for stakeholder, engagement partnerships (DDA will publish no later than December 30, 2026).
• Stakeholder map and journey map.
• Communications calendar.
• Plain-language and bilingual, at minimum, FAQs, fact sheets, web content, presentations, and other communication materials that adhere to 508 compliance requirements
• Quarterly stakeholder feedback summaries.
• Experience improvement project briefs.
• Before-and-after metrics for targeted experience improvements.
• Stakeholder issue and theme tracker.
• Recommendations for improving communication, transparency, process clarity, and stakeholder trust.
• Annual stakeholder experience summary report.

The Contractor(s) shall propose a timeline to have work and deliverables completed by June 30, 2027. The start date is anticipated to be mid-December 2026.

Submission

Proposals shall only be accepted via the State's internet-based electronic procurement system, eMMA. Proposals are to be submitted on emma.maryland.gov under Title OCMP-27-25799 Services - Stakeholder Experience - ID BPM059601.

Offerors shall provide their Proposals in two separate envelopes through eMMA (Two Part (Double Envelope) Submission): a Technical Proposal in searchable Adobe PDF format, and a second searchable Adobe copy of the Technical Proposal, with confidential and proprietary information redacted; and a Financial Proposal entered into the price form spreadsheet within eMMA and all supporting material in PDF format, a Financial Proposal in searchable Adobe PDF format, and a second searchable Adobe copy of the Financial Proposal, with confidential and proprietary information removed.

The Procurement Officer must receive all electronic Proposal materials by the RFP due date and time specified in the Key Information Summary Sheet. Requests for extension of this date or time will not be granted.

Contract

A Contract will be awarded in accordance with the Competitive Sealed Proposals method under COMAR 21.05.03. Contract Type: Indefinite Quantity with Firm Fixed Prices. Contract Duration: 7 ½ months with no option periods. Multiple or alternate Proposals will not be accepted.

An overall Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) or Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) subcontract participation goal of 7 percent of the total contract dollar amount has been established for this procurement. This solicitation includes a VSBE participation Goal of 1%.