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Request for Proposal Governance, Risk & Compliance Audit July 2016
Request for Proposal
Governance, Risk & Compliance
Audit
July 2016
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REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL
FOR
GOVERNANCE RISK COMPLIANCE CONSULTANT SERVICES
SECTION I: GENERAL INFORMATION
1. Introduction:
The State Universities Retirement System of Illinois (SURS) requests proposals from an individual/firm
to provide a Governance Risk Compliance Assessment (GRC) for the purpose of assessing risks in the
area of the operations of SURS and in conjunction with its Internal Audit Program and Compliance
Program. SURS is issuing the RFP for due diligence purposes, to ensure its receipt of quality services at
cost-effective, market pricing.
2. Background:
Created in 1941, SURS exists as a body politic and corporate governed by a board of trustees in
accordance with Illinois Law. The SURS Board of Trustees currently consists of six (6) elected and five
(5) appointed members, including the chair of the Illinois Board of Higher Education, who also serves as
the chair of the SURS Board of Trustees. The SURS Board of Trustees delegates their authority to the
executive director and nearly 130 full-time staff in administering the provisions of Articles 1, 15 and 20
of the Illinois Pension Code (40 ILCS 5).
Administrative functions performed by SURS Staff include processing retirement, survivor, disability and
death benefits for more than 228,000 members who have current or previous employment with 61 higher
education entities in Illinois.
Members of SURS make a one-time, irrevocable election upon certification of initial employment to
participate in one of three retirement options: the Traditional Plan, the Portable Plan, or the Self-Managed
Plan. SURS administers a defined benefit plan (DB Plan) and a defined contribution plan (DC Plan).
SURS investments are made externally and are closely monitored by Investment Team staff members.
SURS reports its performance and its market shares in monthly, quarterly and annual reports. Additional
information regarding SURS investment policies and allocations are available on the www.surs.org
website.
Funding for SURS generally comes from three main sources: employer (state) contributions, employee
contributions and investment returns. Pursuant to Illinois law (40 ILCS 5/15-55), the SURS Board of
Trustees annually certifies the required state contribution necessary for the System to reach a funded ratio
of 90 percent of assets to liabilities by the end of state Fiscal Year 2045, under the projected unit credit
actuarial cost method. Additionally, all members of SURS contribute eight percent of pensionable
earnings toward their selected retirement option. SURS invests more than $17 billion in assets to generate
investment returns for the defined benefit plans (or the Traditional and Portable Plans). (SURS members
in the Self-Managed Plan, or the states only employer-matched defined-contribution plan, invest their
own account balances and bear the risk associated with their investment decisions.)
Located in Champaign, Illinois SURS offices are roughly 130 miles south of Chicago, 125 miles west of
Indianapolis, and 85 miles east of Springfield. Additional information regarding SURS can be obtained at
www.surs.org
SECTION II: REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL OBJECTIVE
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1. Purpose of Request for Proposal
SURS is soliciting responses from qualified individuals/ firms interested in providing a GRC Assessment.
A detailed description is set forth in Section III below under the heading “Scope of Work”.
2. Issuing Officer, Contacts and Lobbying
SURS is issuing this RFP. The Issuing Officers identified below are the sole points of contact regarding
this RFP. No contacts with any other employee of SURS, members of the Board of Trustees, or state
officials are permitted with respect to this RFP. The prohibition includes, but is not limited to, any
lobbying efforts directed at state legislators or any state officer or employee who might reasonably be
considered to have influence over the process and final outcome.
The Issuing Officers for this RFP are:
Ms. Allison Kushner, Compliance Officer
Mr. Steve Hayward, Director of Internal Audit
SURS
1901 Fox Drive
PO Box 2710
Champaign, IL 61825-2710
(217) 378-8815
Additional information regarding Submission of responses to this RFP is set forth in Section V below
under the heading “Submission of Proposal and Selection Process”
SECTION III: SCOPE, QUALIFICATIONS AND INFORMATION REQUESTED
1. Minimum Qualifications
Failure to satisfy each of the minimum qualifications will result in the immediate rejection of the
proposal. The responder must address each of the qualifications substantiating how the responder satisfies
each of the minimum qualifications. The responses must contain sufficient information as prescribed to
assure SURS of its accuracy. Failure to provide complete information will result in rejection of the
proposal.
1. The responder must have been in the business of GRC and/or ERM assessments for at least five (5)
years, evidenced by a certificate of incorporation or other evidence of LLC or LP status, as well as
documentation of services dating back a minimum of five (5) years.
2. The primary contact(s) for SURS account must have at least five (5) years of experience directly
related to those duties.
3. The responder should have as of February 1, 2016, at least three (3) comparably sized organizations.
4. The responder’s key professionals and/or organization must not have material conflicts of interest with
the SURS Board, its custodian, its Executive Leadership Team members, or its investment managers.
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5. The responder must be willing to enter into a most favored nation clause certifying that the fees, costs,
or pricing charged to SURS do not exceed the fees, costs, or pricing charged by the responder to any of its
clients for the same or similar level of services.
2. Legislative Considerations
The Illinois Governmental Ethics Act, 40 ILCS 420, provides guidelines for ethical practices
concerning state and local pension plans. The Act also encourages the Board to increase the racial, ethnic,
and gender diversity of its fiduciaries, to the greatest extent feasible within the bounds of financial and
fiduciary prudence. In furtherance of this Act, SURS will use its best efforts to increase the racial, ethnic,
and gender diversity of its vendors/investment managers.
A section of the Illinois Procurement Code1 concerning prohibitions of political contributions for
vendors, 30 ILCS 500/50-37, may or may not apply to SURS investment managers or other service
providers. However, each investment manager or service provider should be familiar with the provisions
of this section and comply with this section if the investment manager or service provider deems it
appropriate.
Public Act 99-0462 establishes the following aspirational goals for certain public retirement systems,
pension funds, and investment boards, beginning January 1, 2006:
The utilization of emerging investment managers for not less than 20 percent of the total funds
under management;
That not less than 20 percent of investment advisors are minorities, females, and persons with
disabilities; and
The utilization of businesses owned by minorities, females, and persons with disabilities for not
less than 20 percent of contracts awarded for information technology services, accounting
services, insurance brokers, architectural and engineering services, and legal services.
For these reasons, the SURS Board of Trustees encourages individuals who are minorities, females, and
persons with a disability, as well as firms owned by minorities, females, and persons with a disability to
respond to this RFP.
3. Diversity Disclosure Requirements
Effective January 1, 2015 Section 1-113.21 of the Illinois Pension Code prohibits certain public
retirement systems, pension funds, and investment boards from awarding a contract, oral or written, for
investment services, consulting services, or commitment to a private market fund, unless the investment
advisor, consultant or private market fund first discloses:
The number and percentage of its investment and senior staff who are: i) a minority person, ii) a
female, and iii) a person with a disability;
The number of contracts, oral or written, for investment services, consulting services, and
professional and artistic services that the investment advisor, consultant, or private market fund
has with i) a minority-owned business, ii) a female-owned business, or iii) a business owned by a
person with a disability and;
1 Note: While SURS is not subject to the Illinois Procurement Code generally (30 ILCS 500/1-15.100), each responder should
comply with any applicable sections of the Illinois Procurement Code.
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The number of contracts, oral or written, for investment services, consulting services, and
professional and artistic services the investment advisor, consultant, or private market fund has
with a business other than: i) a minority-owned business, ii) a female-owned business, or iii) a
business owned by a person with a disability, if more than 50 percent of services performed
pursuant to the contract are performed by i) a minority person, ii) a female, and iii) a person with
a disability.
Each responder (even if the responder may not be in fact an “investment adviser, consultant, or private
market fund”) must disclose this information in Appendix A.
4. Scope of Work
A. General
SURS seeks a qualified Governance, Risk and Compliance Consultant to provide Governance Risk and
Compliance Consulting (GRC) services. The objective of the consulting engagement is to engage with
SURS to identify and assess risks especially related to strategic and operational risks, and to develop a
framework and template for each risk owner to formulate and operationalize a plan to mitigate and report
on these identified risks. The resulting product of this consulting assessment will be an integrated GRC
program which leverages and harmonizes existing risk assessment processes, control systems and
activities, oversight processes and Board governance which ultimately clarifies risk responsibility
assignments. The end product will be a measurement-driven approach that will focus on identifying top
key risk factors, understanding their probability of occurrence and impact of the risks. Risk mitigation
strategies are then focused on the most material risks to the SURS organization. This creates an integrated
GRC program that can be used for both budgeting and strategic planning.
Note: SURS is an administratively lean organization. Any recommended CRG system/approach and the
associated processes and procedures should be simple but effective, and can be readily achieved within
SURS current staffing complement without ongoing/continuing support and/or specialized software.
B. Specific
The GRC consultant shall perform the following duties:
1. Facilitate discussions with the Board of Trustees, Department Directors and other staff members
as necessary in order to determine the adequacy of SURS current risk management;
2. Assess strategic, operational, reporting and compliance risks across the SURS organization;
3. Identify and assess control activities at SURS;
4. Identify inherent and residual risks in the SURS organization;
5. Advice on risk program priorities, including the cost benefit analysis and the linkage to the
strategic plan and also assist in framing the communication strategy for the GRC program along
with developing a detailed project timeline in consultation with the Executive Leadership Team.
6. Work directly with the Board of Trustees and staff to assess and to establish the risk appetite of
the SURS organization;
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7. Assist in the development of objectives to ensure effective compliance and risk management at
SURS;
8. Assist SURS in the development of a GRC communications plan including materials;
9. Provide recommendations for the establishment of specific committee working groups and assist
in determining the group participants by position;
10. Provide a scoring methodology that accesses the likelihood and impact of identified risks and
includes consideration of existing internal controls that offset the risk;
11. In conjunction with the Compliance Officer and Internal Audit Department conduct risk/existing
control overview and present finings at a minimum of two meetings to the Executive Leadership
Team and Board of Trustees;
12. Identify internal and/or external events, including but not limited to, regulatory and statutory risks
and opportunities affecting SURS;
13. Assist SURS in developing risk response plan for identified risks;
14. Assist SURS in determining control activities (policies/procedures) to ensure risk responses are
effectively carried out by SURS staff;
15. Assist in determining the best method to monitor the entirety of the GRC program at SURS;
16. Assist in the development of reporting tools such as heat maps, risk summaries and GRC Plans.
17. Assist in development of a risk and control accountability matrix by SURS-the risk owner,
including the responsible operational manager-the process owner;
18. Assist in developing a consistent framework which would include reporting templates;
19. Provide SURS with recommendations for GRC/ERM software and/or programs.
C. Additional duties:
The consultant should provide detailed information regarding its proposed approach to providing the
GRC consulting services, to include, but not limited to:
A. The services described above;
B. The process schedule;
C. The project phases- to include:
a. SURS obligations and associated required resources (to include SURS personnel,
technology requirements, access to Board Members, etc.) and the recommended approach
for SURS;
b. Coordination with SURS;
c. The number of on-site meetings and locations;
d. The milestones/deliverables per phase
D. Reporting- to include:
a. The type of, and content included in the reports the consultant or firm submits; and
b. The frequency of reporting
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SECTION IV: PROPOSAL QUESTIONS AND FEE PROPOSALS
A. Proposal Questions
1. Organization and History
Provide the name, title, address, e-mail address, and telephone number of the individual responsible for
responding to this request.
1. Describe your organization providing comment on the following:
a. Business background, organizational history (including year founded) and ownership
structure, including but not limited to parent organizations, affiliated companies, and joint
ventures. If an affiliate, designate percent of parent firm’s total revenue generated by
your organization. If the firm is a joint venture partner, identify the percentage of
ownership and revenues recognized by each partner to the combined association.
b. Identify the location of your firm’s main office and if different, the office from which
services would be provided to SURS. Does your firm have an office located in Illinois?
c. State the consultant/firm’s mission statement (if any) and briefly provide the firm’s
philosophy.
d. How many years have you or the firm has been providing GRC or ERM?
e. Have you provided these assessments to institutional investors and specifically, to public
pension fund clients? If yes, please identify when you provided these assessments.
f. Indicate the total number of entities for which you have provided GRC or ERM
assessments over the last five years:
2. Indicate the composition of your or your firm’s client base, both number and percentage of
clients. Provide an explanation if your firm is heavily weighted to any particular type of client.
Client Type Number Percentage
3. For your three largest clients, provide the following information:
Name Date/s of Assessment Contact Information
1. If applicable, provide a list of all public pension fund clients to which your firm has provided
GRC or ERM assessments, including name, contact, telephone number, asset values, when the
client retained you or your firm. Please note, SURS may contact these clients for reference
purposes.
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2. Have any of your contracts for assessment services been rescinded due to non-performance by
any of your clients over the past three years as of September 30, 2015 and if so, please explain the
reasons why. If relevant, explain any remedies you have employed to address any shortcomings.
3. Provide three references for which you or your firm provides has provided similar services as
requested in this RFP, including entity name, contact name, phone number and email address.
Provide a short description of the services you provide and the length of the contract.
4. Does your firm qualify as a minority owned business, a female owned business or as a business
owned by a person with a disability as these terms are defined in the Illinois Business Enterprise
for Minorities, Females, and Persons with Disabilities Act (MWDBE)? If yes, please provide
certification.
5. Please provide an organizational chart diagramming your firms operations (if applicable).
Indicate the number of employees you have in each functional area and the location in which
those services are provided and any other relevant functions.
6. Please provide contact information for each firm representative that will be assigned to SURS in
the following grid:
Name Address Business Phone Business Fax E-mail Address
7. Please attach biographies of the individual(s) who would be assigned to this assessment including
i) the role of each representative for this assignment, ii) the year each representative joined your
firm, iii) a description of his or her position and current responsibilities, iv) areas of expertise and
experience, v) educational and professional designations and memberships, vi) relevant
publications and presentations, and vii) the number and names of clients these representatives
serves.
8. What measures will your firm employ to ensure that the representative(s) will be readily available
to answer questions from SURS staff?
9. What is the turnover of professional staff (senior personnel) over the last five years, if applicable?
10. Describe any significant developments in the firm’s basic ownership structure or any other
significant changes in the organization (changes in ownership, personnel reorganizations,
substantial downsizing, and substantial growth) in the last five years.
11. Describe the objectives of you or your firm with respect to future growth, commenting on new
products or services over the next three to five years.
a. Detail any pending agreements to merge or sell your company or any of its units,
b. Explain how your firm will manage its growth plans, including acquiring additional
resources and capacity limitations.
c. Describe any anticipated changes in the firm’s basic ownership structure or any other
significant changes in the organization, if applicable.
d. Please detail plans for personnel growth and succession planning for this period of time
as well.
12. Provide a list of any subcontractors that your firm plans to utilize in performing the services
required, if any. Indicate the contractual relationship and/or affiliation with the subcontractor(s).
Detail the services to be provided by subcontractor(s) and how your firm monitors those services.
Describe any licenses and insurance you require of your subcontractors.
2. Legal and Regulatory Compliance
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1. Describe the levels (U.S. dollar amounts) of coverage and deductibles for errors and omissions
coverage and any other fiduciary or professional liability coverage that your firm carries. List the
insurance carriers supplying the coverage. If selected, proof of insurance will be required in an
amount to be negotiated.
2. Do you or your firm have a written code of conduct or a set of standards for professional
behavior? How is employee compliance monitored? Please describe findings of the most recent
compliance review. Include a copy of your firm’s Code of Ethics, if applicable.
3. Does your firm have a diversity or inclusion policy? If so, please provide.
4. What is the percentage of minority, female and persons with disabilities of persons on your firm’s
staff? How diverse is the team that would be assigned to the SURS relationship. Please specific
the percentage of African Americans, Asian Americans, Latinos and females. Please fill out the
attached Appendix A: Diversity Disclosures for your entire firm. Please also fill out Appendix C:
Diversity Profile.
5. Over the past five years, has your firm or any of its affiliates or parent, or any officer, principal,
or primary contacts been involved in any litigation relating to fiduciary duties, securities or tax
law violation investigations or proceedings, other legal proceedings between an officer or
principal and the firm, or in any government investigations. If so, provide a detailed explanation
and indicate the current status.
6. Describe in detail any conflicts of interest your firm may have with SURS, its executives or
Board of Trustees. How are conflicts of interests identified, managed, disclosed or prevented?
Include any other pertinent activities, actions, or relationships not specifically outlined in this
question. Does your firm have a conflicts of interest/ethics policy? If so, please provide a copy.
7. Do you or your firm accept soft dollars as payment for services? If so, please explain why.
8. Do you or your firm have a business continuation and disaster recovery plan? Please describe the
key features of the plan.
9. List the professional organizations of which you or your firm is a member.
10. Please provide any political and/or charitable organization contributions over the last five years
that you or your firm has made. Please disclose the dollar amount for any contributions over
$5,000.00.
3. Fee Proposals
SURS has not fully determined the services for which it will contract, if any. For that reason, responders
are requested to price the services individually as requested below and indicate any price differential for
bundling or selecting all of the proposed services listed below. Please be sure to include all costs
associated with the consultation process. The term of the contract will be for one consultation period
during SURS FY2017.
4. Negotiation of Fees and Best and Final Offers
While fees are a material element in selection, SURS shall reserve the right to negotiate fees and request
best and final offers. Cost, however, is only one of several factors used to evaluate proposals and SURS
may select the organization other than the lowest cost provider.
SECTION V: SUBMISSION OF PROPOSAL AND SELECTION PROCESS
1. Schedule
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SURS reserves the right to alter the following schedule if necessary. If the schedule changes, the
SURS representative, Ms. Allison Kushner, will notify the affected responders via e-mail. In no event will
the dates listed below be changed to earlier dates.
Schedule Dates
RFP Issued July 1, 2016
Deadline for Responder Questions July 20, 2016
Response to Questions July 31, 2016
RFP Responses due 4:00 p.m. CST August 15, 2016
Evaluations August 2016
Candidate Interviews/ Selection September, 2016
Contract Negotiations and Drafting September-October, 2016
2. Submission Process
Deadline:
To be considered for selection, proposals must be received via e-mail in Adobe Acrobat format by Ms.
Allison Kushner at [email protected] no later than 4:00 p.m. CST, August 15, 2016. Please reference
the “GRC Consultant RFP” in your communications. An e-mail confirmation will be sent confirming
receipt of the proposal.
Freedom of Information Act Disclosure:
If, in response to this RFP, trade secrets or commercial or financial information are furnished under a
claim that they are proprietary, privileged or confidential and that disclosure of the trade secrets or
commercial or financial information would cause competitive harm to the person or business responding
to this RFP, such claim must be clearly made and such information must be clearly identified. (5 ILCS
140/7 and 7.5) Responses to this RFP with every page marked as proprietary, privileged or confidential
will not satisfy this requirement. Bidders are required to make a good faith attempt to properly identify
only those portions of the response that are truly furnished under a claim that they are proprietary,
privileged or confidential and that disclosure of the trade secrets or commercial or financial information
would cause competitive harm to the person or business responding to this RFP. However, such a claim
is not definitive. SURS has the right and obligation to determine whether such information is
exempt form disclosure under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act and no information will be
considered or determined by SURS to be proprietary, privileged or confidential unless it is
identified and separated as indicated herein. (5 ILCS 140/7 and 7.5)
All materials submitted in response to the RFP become property of SURS. Proposals remain
confidential during the selection process. However, upon completion of the selection process, all
responses, including that of the individual or firm selected, will be a matter of public information
and will be open to public inspection in accordance with the State of Illinois Freedom of
Information Act (FOIA).
Withdrawal:
A proposal may be withdrawn any time prior to the deadline by written notification signed by the
individual applicant or authorized agent of the firm and received by Ms. Allison Kushner at
[email protected] no later than the deadline of 4:00 p.m. CST, August 15, 2016. Please reference the
“GRC Consultant RFP” in your communications. An e-mail confirmation will be sent confirming
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withdrawal of the proposal. The proposal may be resubmitted with any modifications no later than the
deadline. Modifications offered in any other manner will not be considered.
Inquiries:
Inquiries seeking clarification as to the intent or content of the RFP must be e-mailed to Ms. Allison
Kushner at [email protected] no later than 4:00 p.m., CST on July 15, 2016. Please reference the
“GRC Consultant RFP” in your communications. No verbal inquiries will be accepted. By no later
than 4:00 p.m., CST on July 31, 2015, 2016, SURS will e-mail the question(s) (without identification of
the questioner) and the answer(s) to all parties who have contacted Ms. Kushner via e-mail indicating
interest in responding to the RFP and will also post them at www.SURS.org.
SURS Quiet Period Policy:
Please note the following Quiet Period Policy establishing guidelines by which the SURS Board of
Trustees and SURS Staff will communicate with prospective service providers during a search process.
The Quiet Period for this RFP began on or about June 8, 2016.
1. The quiet period shall commence upon Committee action (or Board action if the selection is not
initiated through a Committee) to authorize a search for a service provider and end once a
selection has been made by the Board and accepted by the service provider;
2. Initiation, continuation and conclusion of the quiet period shall be publicly communicated via the
SURS website (www.SURS.org) to prevent inadvertent violations;
3. All Board members, and SURS staff not directly involved in the search process, shall refrain from
communicating with potential service providers regarding any product or service related to the
search offered by the provider throughout the quiet period and shall refrain from accepting meals,
travel, hotel, or other value from the providers;
4. Throughout the quiet period, if any Board member or SURS staff member is contacted by a
potential service provider, the Board member or SURS staff member shall refer the provider to
the SURS staff member directly involved in the search process;
5. All authority related to the search process shall be exercised solely by the relevant Committee or
Board as a whole, and not by individual Board Members;
6. All information related to the search process shall be communicated by SURS staff to the relevant
Committee or Board as a whole, and not to individual Board Members;
7. The quiet period does not prevent Board approved due diligence, client conference attendance, or
communications with an existing service provider that happens to be a provider in the ordinary
course of services provided by such service provider; however, discussions related to the pending
selection shall be avoided during those activities;
8. The provisions of this policy will apply to potential service providers throughout the quiet period
and shall be communicated to providers in conjunction with any competitive proposal process;
and
9. A potential service provider may be disqualified from a search process for a violation of this
policy.
Ex-Parte Communications:
The State Officials and Employees Ethics Act (5 ILCS 430) provides that all “ex parte communications”
concerning investment, rulemaking or quasi-adjudicatory matters pending before a state agency must be
documented and some must be reported. An “ex parte communication” is any written or oral
communication by any person that imparts or requests material information or makes a material argument
regarding potential action concerning an investment, a rulemaking process, or a quasi-adjudicatory
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matter. An “ex parte communication” does not include statements publicly made in a public forum or
communications among employees of the state agency.
An “ex parte communication” from an “interested party” or his or her official representative or
attorney to an employee or the agency must be memorialized and made a part of the record. An
“interested party” is a person or entity whose rights, privileges, or interests are the subject of or are
directly affected by an investment, regulatory or quasi-adjudicatory matter.
An “ex parte communication” other than that described above must be reported by the SURS staff
member or Board Trustee immediately to the agency’s Ethics Officer. The communication must be
memorialized and made a part of the record. The communication must be filed with the Executive
Ethics Commission, accompanied by a memorandum from the Ethics Officer.
Rights Reserved:
SURS reserves the right to amend any segment of the RFP prior to the announcement of a contractor. In
such an event, all respondents will be afforded the opportunity to revise their proposals to accommodate
the RFP amendment.
SURS reserves the right to remove any or all of the services from consideration for this contract. At its
discretion, SURS may issue a separate contract for any service or groups of services included in this RFP.
SURS may negotiate additional provisions to the contract awarded pursuant to this RFP.
SURS may request additional information from any or all bidders to assist in the evaluation of proposals,
and SURS reserves the right to conduct background investigations of selected individuals or firms prior to
awarding a contract under this RFP.
SURS does not bear any obligation to complete the RFP process or to select any individual(s) or firm(s).
SURS also reserves the right without prejudice to reject any or all proposals submitted.
SURS will NOT reimburse any expenses incurred in responding to this RFP.
3. Proposal Evaluation
All proposals received by the SURS representative, Ms. Allison Kushner, by the deadline of 4:00 PM,
CST, on August 15, 2016, will be reviewed to determine whether they meet the requirements of this
RFP. The primary factors that will be considered include, but will not necessarily be limited to:
1. Experience and Qualifications, including project team
a. Each proponent should provide the following in its proposal:
i. A brief description of the proponent
ii. A description of the goods and services the proponent has previously and./or is
currently delivering, with an emphasis on experience relevant to the
Deliverables;
iii. The roles and responsibilities of the proponent and any of its agents, employees
and sub-contractors, who will be involved in providing the Deliverables, together
with the identity of those who will be performing those roles and their relevant
respective expertise. Proponents will include CV’s related to the personnel that
will be assigned to the project/
iv. Its knowledge, skills and experience as it pertains to the Deliverables;
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2. Methodology: The proponent shall outline the methodology that will be used to complete the
work. How and from whom will the necessary information be gathered, and in what time frame?
Define the contribution anticipated from SURS staff and Board of Trustees. Include a work plan
and define the key milestones.
3. Scope of Work: The respondents shall clearly indicate what components are within the scope of
the base project and clearly indicate any optional portions of the project.
4. Timeline: The respondents shall define the proposed timeline and key milestones associated with
the proposed work.
5. Pricing: The respondent will clearly indicate all project costs.
Terms and Conditions:
Following a review of submitted materials, selected individuals or firms must be prepared to make a
presentation to the SURS Board of Trustees at a date and location to be determined by SURS. SURS will
NOT provide reimbursement for any costs incurred by the individuals or firms associated with this
presentation. Prior to the award of a contract pursuant to this RFP, selected individuals or firms must:
1. Consent to a background check;
2. Provide the Diversity Disclosures as presented in Appendix A and Appendix C; and
3. Agree to the terms and conditions of the “Addendum to Contract” as presented in Appendix B
4. Respondents shall bear all costs associated with or incurred in the preparation and presentation of
its proposal, including, if applicable, costs incurred for interviews or demonstrations.
Consultations or firms shall keep in mind the likely requirement that they appear for a
presentation at the Board of Trustees June 9-10, 2016 Meeting in Chicago, Illinois.
SECTION VI: DEFINITIONS AND APPENDICES
Definitions Under Illinois Law:
Link to Illinois Compiled Statutes: www.ilga.gov
“Contract” means all types of [State] agreements, regardless of what they may be called, for the
procurement, use, or disposal of supplies, services, professional or artistic services, or construction or for
leases of real property where the [State] is the lessee, or capital improvements, and including renewals,
master contracts, contracts for financing through use of installment or lease-purchase arrangements,
renegotiated contracts, amendments to contracts, and change orders.
“Minority person” means a person who is a citizen or lawful permanent resident of the United States and
who is a member of a minority.
“Minority owned business” means a business which is at least 51% owned by one or more minority
persons, or in the case of a corporation, at least 51% of the stock in which is owned by one or more
minority persons; and the management and daily business operations of which are controlled by one or
more of the minority individuals who own it.
“Female owned business” means a business which is at least 51% owned by one or more females, or, in
the case of a corporation, at least 51% of the stock in which is owned by one or more females; and the
management and daily business operations of which are controlled by one or more of the females who
own it.
“Business owned by a person with a disability” means a business that is at least 51% owned by one or
more persons with a disability and the management and daily business operations of which are controlled
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by one or more of the persons with disabilities who own it. A not-for-profit agency for persons with
disabilities that is exempt from taxation under Section 501 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is also
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APPENDIX A
Disclosures Pursuant to Illinois Pension Code Section 1-113.21
Beginning January 1, 2015, Section 1-113.21 of the Illinois Pension Code requires the following
disclosures from an investment advisor, consultant or private market fund prior to the awarding of a
contract with such entity:
Name of Proxy Consultant and/or Firm:
________________________________________________________________________
1. The number of its senior staff and the percentage of its senior staff who are (i) a minority person (ii) a
female, and (iii) a person with a disability;
(If none, state “none”)
Staff Classification Number of Senior Staff Who
Are
% Percentage of Investment
and Senior Staff Who Are
Minority
Female
Person with a Disability
2. The number of contracts, oral or written, for actuarial services that the firm has with (i) a minority
owned business, (ii) a female owned business, or (iii) a business owned by a person with a disability;
and
(If none, state “none”)
Contracts Number Contracts
Minority
Female
Person with a Disability
Supplemental Information (Optional):
If desired, please include additional information on your firm’s diversity efforts to supplement the
information provided above. This may include initiatives such as internal training and development
programs, as well as recruitment and outreach efforts, etc.
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APPENDIX B
ADDENDUM TO CONTRACT
As an addendum to the contract entered into between State Universities Retirement System (SURS) and
____________ (the “Contractor”) on ___________, 2016, and in consideration of SURS entering into
such contract, the Contractor also agrees to the following:
1) If the Contractor is an individual, he or she certifies that he or she is not in default on an educational
loan as provided in Section 3 of the Educational Loan Default Act, 5 ILCS 385/3.
2) The Contractor certifies that it is not barred from being awarded a contract or subcontract because of a
conviction or admission of guilt for bribery or for bribing an officer or employee of the State of Illinois or
any other state in that officer or employee’s official capacity as provided in Section 50-1 of the Illinois
Procurement Code, 30 ILCS 500/50-1.
3) The Contractor certifies that it will provide a drug free workplace by engaging in the conduct
prescribed in Section 3 of the Drug Free Workplace Act, 30 ILCS 580/3.
4) The Contractor certifies that it is not barred from contracting with SURS because of a violation of
either Section 33E-3 (bid-rigging) or 33E-4 (bid rotating) of Article 33E of the Criminal Code of 1961,
720 ILCS 5/33E.
5) The Contractor certifies that neither it nor any substantially owned affiliated company is participating
or shall participate in an international boycott in violation of the provisions of the U.S. Export
Administration Act of 1979 or the regulations of the U.S. Department of Commerce promulgated under
that Act.
6) The Contractor certifies that no fees, commissions, or payments of any type have been or will be paid
to any third party in connection with the contract to which this is an addendum, except as disclosed in the
contract or an exhibit thereto. The Contractor shall promptly notify SURS if it ever has reason to believe
that this certification is no longer accurate.
7) To the extent Illinois law is applicable to Contractor, pursuant to 775 ILCS 5/2-105, Contractor agrees
to:
a) Refrain from unlawful discrimination and discrimination based on citizenship status in
employment and undertake affirmative action to assure equality of employment opportunity and
eliminate the effects of past discrimination;
b) Comply with the procedures and requirements of the Illinois Department of Human Rights’
regulations concerning equal employment opportunities and affirmative action;
c) Provide such information, with respect to its employees and applications for employment, and
assistance as the Illinois Department of Human Rights may reasonably request; and
d) Have written sexual harassment policies that shall include, at a minimum, the following
information:
i) The illegality of sexual harassment;
ii) The definition of sexual harassment under State law;
iii) A description of sexual harassment, utilizing examples;
iv) Contractor’s internal complaint process including penalties;
v) The legal recourse, investigative and complaint process available through the Illinois
Department of Human Rights and the Illinois Human Rights Commission;
vi) Directions on how to contact the Illinois Department of Human Rights and the Illinois Human
Rights Commission; and
vii) Protection against retaliation as provided by Section 6-101 of the Illinois Human Rights Act.
A copy of the policies shall be provided to the Illinois Department of Human Rights upon
request.
8) To the extent it applies to Contractor and this contract, Contractor agrees to comply with the Illinois
Prevailing Wage Act, 820 ILCS 130/1, et seq.
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9) Contractor shall maintain, for a minimum of five (5) years after the completion of the contract,
adequate books, records, and supporting documents to verify the amounts, recipients, and uses of all
disbursements of funds passing in conjunction with the contract. Contractor shall further make all such
books, records, and supporting documents related to the contract available for review and audit by the
internal auditor of SURS and by the Illinois Auditor General and shall cooperate fully with any audit
conducted by the internal auditor of SURS and the Illinois Auditor General and will further provide the
internal auditor of SURS and the Illinois Auditor General full access to all relevant materials.
10) Contractor agrees to notify the SURS Ethics Officer if it solicits or intends to solicit for employment
any of the employees of SURS during the term of the contract.
11) Contractor understands that SURS and this contract are subject to the provisions of the Illinois Open
Meetings Act (5 ILCS 120/1, et seq) and the Illinois Freedom of Information Act (5 ILCS 140/1, et seq).
12) Counterparts. This Agreement and Addendum may be executed in counterparts, each of which shall
be deemed to be an original, but all of which, taken together, shall constitute one and the same agreement.
The counterparts of this Agreement and Addendum may be executed and delivered by facsimile or other
electronic signature by any of the parties to any other party and the receiving party may rely on the receipt
of such document so executed and delivered by facsimile or other electronic means as if the original had
been received.
Under penalties of perjury, Contractor certifies that ___________________________________ is its
correct Federal Taxpayer Identification Number.
Contractor is doing business as a(n) (please circle applicable entity):
• Individual
• Sole Proprietorship
• Partnership
• Corporation
• Not-for-Profit Corporation
• Medical and Health Care Services Provider Corporation
• Real Estate Agent
• Governmental Entity
• Tax Exempt Organization (IRC 501(a) only)
• Trust or Estate.
Dated this __________________ day of __________________, 2016.
Contractor State Universities Retirement System
By:___________________________________ By:_____________________________
Name: ________________________________ Name:
Title:__________________________________ Title: Executive Director
