Request for Proposal for Strategic Planning Services

Cowichan Women Against Violence Society (CWAVS) works from a feminist perspective to provide supportive services, primarily to women and children who have been impacted by violence. We support diversity, change, choice and growth through counselling, advocacy, emergency shelter, transition and second-stage housing, community development, social justice and education.
We seek proposals from experienced professional services firms to develop a five-year strategic plan and supporting implementation needs, to guide our organization through 2030.
CWAVS has been awarded a grant from Women and Gender Equity Canada (WAGE) to support our ambitions and will be the funding mechanism for this project.
RFP Purpose
This RFP solicits proposals from professional services firms (“agency”) with experience in the consultative development of strategic plans for non-profit organizations. The selected agency will work closely with our Board of Directors, Executive Director, staff, and key external stakeholders to create a strategic plan aligning with our mission and positioning us for future success. They will also develop the goals and tactical steps, where required, as well as the key performance indicators and other supporting activities that provide CWAVS the best chance of achieving the Strategic Plan.
Scope of Work
The below list is a suggested list of activities expected to deliver this RFP purpose. Each respondent may want to provide alternate and/or additional activities. Where this is required, please include reasoning for the additional tasks.
1. Current State Assessment
Conduct a comprehensive assessment of the organization, including:
- Review the current mission, vision, programs, operations, financial health, and external environment
.- Facilitate stakeholder engagement, including interviews, surveys, and focus groups with board members, staff, volunteers, clients, donors, and community partners. 
- Conduct a SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats).
2. Strategic Planning
Facilitate strategic planning sessions with internal and external stakeholders to:
- Clarify and refine the organization's mission, vision, and values.
- Identify critical strategic goals and objectives for the next 5 years
. - Develop actionable strategies and tactics to achieve these goals
. - Establish metrics and a dashboard template to continuously monitor progress on the Strategic Plan.
- Develop a timeline for evaluating progress toward achieving strategic goals.
3. Deliverables
The consultant is expected to provide the following deliverables:
a) A comprehensive current state assessment report
b) A detailed strategic plan document, including mission, vision, values, goals, objectives, strategies, measures of success (metrics) and an implementation plan.
c) A presentation of the draft strategic plan to the Board of Directors and key stakeholders (PowerPoint).
d) A presentation that can be presented to internal and external stakeholders describing the approach taken to develop the Strategic Plan and sharing the highlights and key content from the Strategic Plan. After finalizing the plan with the Board of Directors, this presentation will update internal and external stakeholders (PowerPoint).
e) Two WAGE funding progress reports
4. Timing
We anticipate beginning this project in November 2024 and expect the project to take approximately 6 months, however if there is a perspective to increase the project length, please share this in your proposal response.
 5. Proposal Submission Requirements
Proposals should include the following:
1. Cover Letter: A brief statement of your understanding of the work to be performed and your commitment to providing the services described (max. 2 pages).
2. Consultant/Firm Profile: -
Provide an overview of the agency, including history, mission, firm size, location, and experience in strategic planning for non-profit organizations (max 2 pages). -
Up to 3 relevant examples of similar work completed for other non-profits who share a similar mission statement and/or have similar challenges and opportunities as an organization (max. 2 pages per example).
3. Proposed Approach: -
Describe your proposed approach to the strategic planning process. -
Proposed timeline and critical milestones.
-Describe stakeholder engagement methods, including example tools and templates for internal and external engagement sessions. This description should include leading with a trauma-informed, anti-oppressive, decolonization and intersectional feminist lens.
- Provide a description of the governance and risk management approach that will be taken to provide quality services and minimize impacts to timelines and budget.
4. Team Composition:
- Bios of key team members involved in the project, including their role on the project, qualifications, and relevant experience (maximum 1 page per person) in strategic planning for feminist, non-profit organizations and leading internal and external consultation with diverse groups of staff and community representatives.
- Describe what resources and expected effort you require from CWAVS to be successful in this project. For example, a CWAVS project manager to help book meetings with stakeholders.
5. References:
- Contact information for at least three references from non-profit organizations for which you have provided relevant services.
6. Budget: - A detailed budget, including all costs associated with the project.

 Alignment of the proposed budget ($70,000 CAD) with the scope of work References Experience regarding the consultant/firm’s performance on similar projects
7. Submission Deadline and Instructions
Intent to submit a bid for this RFP is required no later than October 25, 2024. Please email Sally Beal at cwav@cwav.org confirming your intent to bid.
Proposals must be submitted to Sally Beal at cwav@cwav.org by November 1, 2024, with the subject title: Strategic Plan RFP response
8. Questions and Clarifications
All questions regarding this RFP should be directed to Sally Beal at cwav@cwav.org by October 24, 2024, subject title: Strategic Plan RFP questions. Responses to all questions will be shared to all agencies who have confirmed they will bid on the project.
9. Proposal Review and Selection Process Proposals will be reviewed by a selection committee composed of the Board of Directors. The committee may request interviews with select agencies before making a final decision. The selected agency will be notified by November 15, 2024, with the intent to finalize the contract by November 22, 2024 and project kick-off on November 25, 2024.
10. Confidentiality All information provided by the organization and all proposals submitted by consultants/firms will be kept confidential and used solely for the purposes of this RFP process.
11. Disclaimers - We reserve the right to reject any and all proposals. - We are not responsible for any costs incurred by the respondents in preparing and submitting a proposal.

- We reserve the right to negotiate with the selected consultant/firm to modify the scope of work and budget. Thank you for your interest in helping shape CWAV's future. We look forward to reviewing your proposal