Section A - Table of Contents

Section A Table of Contents

Section B Management Summary

Section C Meeting the Specification

Technical Requirements (Q1-Q10)

Data Security Requirements (Q1-Q7)

Service Capability Requirements (Q1-Q16)

Service Delivery Requirements (Q1-Q10)

National Implementation Delivery Requirements (Q1-Q5)

Media Market Services (Q1-Q10)

Recruitment Services (Q1-Q11)

Section D Response to terms and conditions of contract

Section E Declaration

Section F Price schedules

Lot 1
Lot 2
Lot 3

Section B - Tribal, the partner of choice - Management Summary

Tribal's distinctive offering combines professional; commercial and public service expertise that we believe makes us the ideal partner for the DCSF to engage with in the development and management of the national ATS system for schools recruitment.

We work in partnership with our clients to help shape policy and improve the quality and value for money of public services. Whether we are raising standards in schools and colleges, regenerating communities or improving hospitals, our focus is on delivering outcomes that enrich lives. Tribal's people reflect the values of our public service clients and our distinctive approach is one of working in partnership with our clients to make a positive difference to the communities they serve.

Our staff that number in excess of 2000 work with over 2500 public sector organisations and our regular clients include schools, colleges, universities, local authorities and work-based learning providers.

We have an unrivalled skills profile that is ideal for this contract which includes assessors and recruiters, marketing, advertising and PR professionals, internet and software developers, educators, trainers, project managers and national sales teams.

We are a flexible, confident and young organisation and while the range of expertise may be wide, every one of our people have things in common: they are recognised as being at the top of their profession in terms of technical, intellectual and managerial skills and they are dedicated to supporting the public sector vision and ethos through aligned values that are:

We work in partnership with the education sector to raise learning and skills standards to make a positive and lasting difference to the lives of people across the country. Our wide range of services, combined with our experience and ability to innovate, are transforming the education and skills sector today.

Tribal is the largest provider of inspection services for the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted) and information, advice and guidance to the Offender Learning and Skills Service (OLASS) as well as being one of the main providers of services to the Quality Improvement Agency (QIA).

We also supply consultancy and support to the Learning and Skills Council and work with the Training and Development Agency (TDA) and Lifelong Learning UK. We have built a strong relationship with the TDA through our work on teacher development and mathematics.

We also work with organisations including the Department for Children, Schools and Families and the Training and Development Agency as well as children's services departments across the UK and the voluntary sector to develop and implement policy. 

We work with schools to improve the performance of pupils, teachers and the school itself. Our leading Pupils' Champions! Programme is geared towards raising standards by helping pupils to improve their attitude, behaviour and personal skills.

Our new school improvement toolkit takes the core principles of Pupils Champions to the next level so the school can develop processes and practices to improve learning. We also work with an increasing number of schools to support the personal development of their teachers - this is all about raising standards.

Working with Ofsted, our inspection services contribute to the improvement and standard of schooling in more than a third of schools in England.

Tribal have a reputation for building successful ATS and job portal systems for the public sector, and already provide recruitment advertising media services and executive search and selection for schools; host a dedicated job board careersforeducationleaders.com; and a wide range of training and services for the professional development of teachers including distance learning as well as courses and conferences; so the school ATS project would become integrated into a joined up portfolio for those working in the sector.

Our recruitment experts are dedicated to delivering resourcing solutions that help schools attract, develop and retain the very best people. Our Careers for Head teachers web portal was the UK's first recruitment site dedicated solely to senior level recruitment in the schools sector. With over 150 UK Authorities contracted with us for the provision of recruitment services we have an immediate route to market and immediately upon winning the contract will be able to advise and guide LA's towards the new system. These authorities include the likes of:

We now manage in total more than £400 million of capital projects in education and have a proven track record of delivering projects and bespoke commercial solutions to schools, on time and budget. This proven project management experience means that the DCSF can be wholly confident that we will deliver. And for an organisation such as Tribal; anything less than excellence in our lead sector is simply not an option.

On behalf of all in Tribal, we trust you find our bid appealing and we look forward to having the opportunity of presenting further on this project.

Keith Pilling

Board Director and Contract Sponsor

Section C

Technical Requirements

Q1 - Please describe how your proposed solution would be able to manage the hierarchical structure for the different customer groups (The DCSF, Local Authorities, Clusters of Schools and/ or Individual Schools)?

Tribal's application will provide a hierarchical structure for different user groups who, will, in-turn, have different access rights to candidate information. Tribal's system and our configuration of it will provide differing customer groups with varied structure and access levels to meet their individual needs. The level of access (i.e. what users will be able to view on screen) will need to be agreed during the configuration stage of the build process.

We envisage the user types to be as follows (but not limited to):

The process of creating customer group users within Tribal's application

DCSF Users

DCFS users can be created within the system by assigning a DCSF user type to the user being created. They can only be created by a Super User or another DCSF User. The following information will need to be entered:

Local Authorities

A section will be available for Super Users to create Local Authorities (LA). A Super Admin User shall be able to enter the following for an LA:

LA Users

An LA can create admin users of two types: LA Super Users and LA HR Users. A Super User will first need to create the first LA Super User, and then this LA Super User will be able to create all other LA Users. A user being created will require the following:

Schools

A section will be available for schools to be created. As a school can only be created under an LA, it will be associated with the LA. A school can only be linked to one LA. The following information will need to be entered for a school:

School Users

A school can create admin users of three types:School Super Users, School HR Users and School Standard Users. A user being created will require the following:

Area Clusters

A cluster can be created within the system. A cluster is made up of a list of clusters, and each schools must be assigned to a cluster to be included within it..

Only a Super User or an LA Super User can create a cluster, and assign schools to a cluster. A cluster will only require the following information:

Once the cluster is created, schools can then be assigned to it.

Technical Requirements

Q2. Please describe how your proposed solution would manage the access and restrictions to data for the different user customer groups?

Tribal's application will provide a hierarchical structure for different user groups who will, in -turn, have different access rights to the system. Tribal's system and our configuration of it will provide differing customer groups with varied structure and access levels to meet their individual needs.

The level of access (i.e. what users will be able to view on screen) will need to be agreed during the configuration stage of the build process.

At its core, the system only allows administration access via user identification and password.

To conclude, the system has a comprehensive end-to-end security structure which enables the administrator to specify the type and level of access available to the user. The system supports Roles Based Access Control to help structure unlimited levels of users and user groups, as well as controlling access at user/user group, field or page level.

We envisage the user types to be as follows (but not limited to):

System User Types

LA HR Users

School Super Users

School HR Users

School Standard Users (Recruiter/Chair)

School Panel Members (Governors etc)

Media Agency User (Lot 2 provider)

Recruitment Service User (Lot 3 provider)

Technical Requirements

Q3 - Please describe how your proposed solution would be able to manage the different types of users within each customer grouping e.g. Super users, Admin users and standard users etc.

Tribal's ATS will be able to easily manage the different types of users required for each customer grouping. Final definition of the user type names and the level of access i.e. what they will be able to view on screen and action within the workflow will need to be agreed during the configuration stage of the build process.

Tribal's application will provide hierarchical structure for different user groups who in-turn will have different access rights to the system. The configuration of the Tribal system will allow differing customer groups to have varied structure and access levels to meet their differing needs

The system will enable the following user types to be managed within each customer grouping (but this is not limited to):

Technical Requirements

Q4 - Providers must be able to demonstrate that they can support and manage the potential increase in demand. Please describe how you would propose to manage the potential increase for the different customer groups and list all assumptions.

Anticipating Take-Up

During the configuration process we would expect to be working with the DCSF and other national bodies to help ensure that we can predict early adopter volumes and make certain that all aspects of service are allowed for. We have, for example, for the purposes of our bid and planning assumed a higher than predicted take-up rate. In addition, because Tribal is already working with all English Local Authorities and has contracts to provide many of them with recruitment services, we would therefore from the date of contract award be carrying out proactive evaluation assessments to define and secure likely take-up rates in order that both our capacity and resources can be pre-empted.

Tribal's commitment to the DCSF, LA's and Schools is that any school will be live on the system within 24 hours of submitting the online registration form.

The core areas of increased demand we have anticipated and catered for within our response are as follows:

Hardware & Software

The hardware and software proposed for this bid is resilient enough to manage in excess of 150,000 applications per annum (according to the ITT this is what we could potentially expect over the three-year process). This type of volume is not uncommon to clients using our product.

Our hosting scalability is unlimited and is able to be upgraded with immediate effect. However, as we continually monitor server usage we are able to predict upturns in capacity well in advance. As a basic policy we always leave in excess of 50% spare capacity so that all our ATS systems continually function at optimum levels.

Set up & Support

During the configuration process we would expect to be working with the DCSF and other national bodies to help ensure that we can predict early adopter volumes and that all aspects of service are allowed for. For the purposes of our bid, we have for example assumed a higher than predicted take-up rate.

The majority of customer group activity will be channelled through our lean, agile and well established Service Desk based in Sheffield. Along with supporting all ATS systems this Service Desk also manages national web projects .The standardised processes we would adopt for this project will allow us to keep risk to a minimum and ensure we provide all customer groups with the highest levels of service, quality and customer focus. Processes will be tailored dependent on the customer group.

Tribal's solution can be deployed with efficiency so customer groups can use our off-the-shelf solution in a matter of hours, following training.

See below for an example user story process of an establishment joining the ATS.

See below for an example of some of the detail which will be captured during the above process:

Training

Tribal is one of the largest providers of continuous professional development to the public sector. We are experts in online learning materials and blended learning, and have solid experience of working with both local authorities and the wider public sector. For example, Tribal has been awarded a contract to become a training provider for the Early Years Professional Status in three English regions. Tribal's trainers will help you get the most out of our software resources.

Tribal has over 2500 employees, with databases of thousandsof registered trainers that can be accessed at short notice. We also regularly deliver training to the education sector for schools across the UK. We are already an accredited training organisation for PRINCE2™ and Managing Successful Programmes.

Our training is different because we:

Sales & Implementation Management

Tribal has a 250 strong national mobile workforce specialising in recruitment, based out of one of our regional hub offices in London (x 2), Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester, Cambridge, Norwich, Bristol, Nottingham, Sheffield). All of our people are able and committed to providing knowledge and expertise on the ATS solution. We place 1000's of adverts weekly and will have no problem supporting large volumes of schools/LA enquiries.

We also run our own Process Outsourcing Centre which regularly handles large scale projects from the public sector.

Technical Requirements

Q5. Please provide details of your business contingency plan arrangements in the event of the need for disaster recovery.

Daily Data Backup

Our offsite backup solution is designed to run within an overnight backup window between 12am and 4am, without interruption to service. The data is sent via separate Network Interface Card (NIC) on the server, over a dedicated managed backup network in the Data Centre to the ADIC LT04 Tape Library. Once the backup is complete the tapes are removed from the library and stored in a separate suite in the data centre, in a fire proof safe until picked up.

Tapes will then be collected daily by Iron Mountain from the production site and transported to their storage facilities in Reading using their own secure transportation services. This service has a rigorous chain-of-custody control for tapes when in transit. Tapes are stored and protected in environmentally optimised vaults, with access available 24x7. The tape storage site in Reading is BS4783 complainant. Offsite vendor representatives do not have direct access to individual media containing customer data at any point or any time during the transport container's offsite period.

The back-up strategy is weekly full back-up, and daily differentials back-up, on a 2 week rotation.

Data Recovery Models

In addition to overnight backups, the SQL database is able to be set to FULL recovery model. This will allow a full restore of data up to any time period during the day. This type of restore allows for a fast restore of data, if data loss or data corruption occurred during the day, and the client does not wish to restore from a backup from the previous night.

Disaster Recovery - Failure of Hosting Platform

In a worst case scenario event where a server's RAID set experiences a catastrophic failure where all data on the server is lost or corrupted, there is a predefined set of procedures to get the system back online as soon as possible.

Steps to restore the system include the following:

Identify the Failure:

Replace the Hardware:

Once the issue has been isolated to a failed RAID array, the hardware SLAs guarantee that the hardware will be replaced within 1 hour, regardless of whether this means replacing multiple hard drives or rebuilding an entirely new server.

Re-instate the Operating System

In order for the Managed Backup system to connect to the server and begin restoring data the Operating System needs to be re-established. This is done via the automated network deployment systems to quickly configure the server to the original state in which it was provided to when installed. Typically this process takes 90-120 minutes depending on the amount of additional packages on the server (for example MSSQL).

Restore Data

Once the server is back to its original state, it is then ready for restore of the data from the most recent available backup. The restore process is initiated from the Managed Backup team who are available 24x7x365, and the SLA in place states to commence restore requests within 2 hours. In reality the restore requests can be started very quickly where the backup media is available on site, but for worst case scenario planning and tapes have been stored off-site at Iron Mountain, the would be returned to the data centre within 4 hours.

Restoring data from the backup system over the network can be done at a rate of 4-5GB/hour; the length of this step is entirely dependent on the amount of data needing to be restored.

Handover

Once the data has been restored, the development team will be notified to login to the system to ensure that everything is in order and begin to work with our support teams to resolve any outstanding issues relating to the Operating System or Application Infrastructure.

Disaster Recovery - Data Centre Unavailable

Should a disaster occur to the Data Centre hosting the live servers that completely removes the ability of that data centre to function, a Disaster Recovery (DR) site is available at Tribal's shared hosting infrastructure located in the 24x7 manned Easynet data centre based in London. The service will be remotely managed by Tribal from our Sheffield and London Offices.

Tribal's service management team working with Easynet, Tribal's co-location partner for this DR site, supply and provide the management of air conditioning, cooling, 24x7 secure/CCTV access, rack (including KVM, LCD Monitor and PDU's) and floor space, resilient power feeds, multi fibre connection via resilient paths connected  to tier 1 backbone, carbon footprint (low power consumption equipment and virtualisation of server the farm) and are continually reviewing, monitoring and improving the data centre SLA between Easynet and Tribal.

Tribal has many years of experience providing hosting solutions on a national level, from the Easynet Data Centre in London. The Tribal IT and Technical Services team currently manages the hosting for Schools for Care (SfC) and National Science Learning Centre (NSLC) national web sites support a combined potential user population of over 300 thousand users. Experiences gained from these projects have been used to develop the Tribal shared hosting infrastructure located in the Easynet data centre.

The DR site is setup in a similar architecture to the live server, with settings, and operating system the same. Recovery to the Disaster Recovery site will occur within 72 hours, and the data will be recovered from the last successful log ship. The Disaster Recovery service includes one annual DR test. Log shipping will be automated over an IP Secure VPN between Live Server and DR Server. Shipping of logs will occur every 4 hours based on asynchronous replication. If client requires replication more often, this is achievable and can be costed.

Once the DR site is in use following failure of Live system, the full redundancy of hardware can be achieved within 10 days.

DR Hosting Platform

- 2 x Virtual Machines includes 30Gb of Storage each running Windows Std Edition, 2Gb Memory

- 1 x Dedicated Database Server (Dual processor quad core) 50Gb Storage FC RAID 1 Storage running Windows Std Edt, 4Gb Memory

These items will sit behind:

- Pair of ASA 5520 Firewalls

- Pair CSS 11503 Load Balancing Switches

- Cisco Power Core Network

- VMware Cluster

- EMC SAN Fibre Channel and iSCSI

- Backup to tape (encrypted) stored offsite

Tribal Offices

Tribal has 10 different hub offices across the UK. If an office that hosts staff engaged on the DCSF shared recruitment contract is struck by a disaster, another office can be utilised to house the displaced staff, or engage their duties. The infrastructure hosting the office servers is on an MPLS network; this means access to general office systems and servers is available through permission logins by staff in any location.

Technical Requirements

Q6. Please provide details of how your organisation would plan for IT system continuity?

System continuity plans cover all eventualities that affect on-site uptime, including:

The following areas identify the specific plans and processes in place:

Server Structure

The structure of the servers provides for an architecture with no single point of hardware failure, and automatic failover to backup device if any item of hardware fails.

There are two load-balanced web servers and two clustered database servers, with SAN and SATA storage on the back end with high availability, dual firewalls / load balancers and additional switches and connections. All delivery components are fully redundant, and able to withstand single or multiple failures of hardware. To ensure a high level of performance the load balancer dynamically assigns new incoming connections to the web server with the least connections currently, meaning that the load is shared between the two servers. The advantage of this setup is that it allows for rapid deployment of additional webservers, databases, and/or SAN space as required for additional loads.

Scaling up the Hosting Platform

As usage increases with increased take-up of the Shared Recruitment Services offering, the demand on the servers increases. This usage and load is monitored constantly, and projections of load and possible required changes are planned based on monthly reviews of the monitoring reports. The hosting platform can be scaled up with additional webservers, database servers, SAN and SATA SAN, Backup and Bandwidth as required to meet the demands of user activity. An example of this scaling up of the hosting platform can be seen below.

Superstructure (Data Centres, Network, Servers, Software)

The facilities include a Tier 1 Data Centre, Cisco Powered Network™, Dell Hardware, leading backbone providers, 6.3 Gb/s of connectivity and 100% uptime network guarantee.

Daily Data Backup

A powerful suite of technologies and methods is employed to deliver a highly automated and robust backup. This suite of technologies is run by highly certified experts to ensure the data, designs and applications are protected. The back-up strategy is weekly full back-up and daily differentials back-up, on a 2 week rotation. Backups would be stored off-site at Iron Mountain data storage facility.

Recovery Models

In addition to overnight backups, the SQL database can be set to FULL recovery model. This will allow a full restore of data up to any time period during the day. This type of restore allows for a fast restore of data if data loss or data corruption occurs during the day and the client does not wish to restore from a backup from the previous night.

Deep Monitoring

To deliver more responsive and robust monitoring solutions for performance monitoring and Benchmarking, sophisticated monitoring tools are used that include :

The monitoring devices alert manned Service Desks immediately for any issues affecting uptime that may include:

The alerts include internal monitoring, and outside-in monitoring devices (contracted external services that operate outside the hosting LAN. These alerts are then checked to ensure the alert is a real issue, and then escalated to an engineer for resolution.

Power Systems

The Data Centre gets power from commercial utility underground conduits with a 10 minute battery backup in the event of failure. Additionally, there are multiple diesel generators with full-load capability, so if there was a significant power outage the Data Centre would still be able to function for another two days.

Routing

The Border Gateway Protocol (BGP4) is utilised for best case routing. Each packet is evaluated and sent over the best route possible.

Bandwidth Utilisation

The Data Centre's UK Network is currently approximately 20% capacity at peak times, which allows the system to accommodate even the largest spikes in traffic. As network utilisation reaches 30% Rackspace will automatically add more network capacity to ensure that we do not experience network degradation.

Bandwith Providers

A multi-provider strategy is employed to ensure that there is a fully redundant architecture, so should one of the providers fail, packets leaving the network are automatically redirected through another route via a different provider. Current network providers include Sprint, Verizon, Level 3, AboveNet, Tiscali, Cable and Wireless, Colt and LINX (The London Internet Exchange).

Technical Requirements

Q7 - Please confirm if your solution is able to be accessed using all the browsers listed in section 2.4 of `The Specification of Requirements' using either a PC or a Mac (where appropriate) without the need for any additional software.

Yes. The front-end of the system will support the following web browsers:

Our track record is always to comply fully with new software releases. The front-end of the system should support the following web browsers but cannot be guaranteed. Some of these versions are still in beta, and beta versions cannot be supported as they are not officially released and the software may change drastically between a beta and a live version:

Note: the Netscape browser software is no longer supported and the recommendations by the developers of the browser is to use Firefox.

Administration areas will be available in the following browsers:

Technical Requirements

Q8 How would you manage the potential integration with the media market solution (lot 2) within the ATS?

Our ATS systems are always designed on the basis that media agencies are able to interface with permission into our software to join up processes where needed. In order to manage an effective integration with the winner of Lot 2, Tribal will:

However, we have also assumed (from the recruitment process map) that with this ATS system schools will have a choice to order media direct or through the Lot 2 provider. The unique advantage of this is that the take-up of the ATS should be higher as schools will have the choice of provider.

The system will also, of course, maintain full management information on the approach adopted by the schools so as to be able to detail the scope of service provided by the Lot 2 provider as well as media volumes.

How we will integrate with the Lot 2 provider

The system-enabled processes are detailed as below:

Having been through stages 1-4 of the generic recruitment process, schools will be in a position to make a decision as to their preferred external route to fill their vacancy. Typically, they would only look to undertake this once they have exhausted the ATS's talent pool search capabilities (filling from either internal applicants or directly from the talent database).

It is important to note that the school retains the right to deal with the media directly and does therefore not need to engage the recruitment advertising agency provider. The system will guide them and provide clear instructional text so that they are clear as to the steps and choices available to them.

In terms of the process, the technology can allow for online job board postings to be automatically fed through to job boards of their choice and/or will be able to automate the communication and workflow process with the recruitment advertising (and assessment service) agency providers. This means that the ATS system despatches emails and `triggers' that automatically go to the chosen providers for Lot 2 (and 3) based upon simple on-screen decisions made by the school.

The solution will offer and make available a comprehensive searchable job board's database which can be maintained by a system Super User. We can agree with the DCSF a list to appear on the system in the first instance. This will enable comprehensive search ability via Generalist and Niche job sites.

If, however, they want to deal with offline print media directly without the support of a recruitment advertising agency, this by nature will have to be done from outside the system. The solution will, however, offer and make available a comprehensive searchable media database which can be maintained by a system Super User. This will allow powerful search options via National, Local and Specialist Trade Press.

Although not fully detailed within the generic recruitment process map, we would recommend the following workflow within the ATS for making a final decision on which external recruitment route to take:

They will then make their selections and input any additional information (e.g. PO numbers) and the chosen media will be notified of the order via an automated email trigger which contains all of the supporting documentation, invoicing information, logos etc.

The dialogue between the school and the media will then take place outside the system.

They will then make their selections and input any additional information (e.g. PO numbers) and the chosen media will be notified of the order via an automated email trigger which contains all of the supporting documentation, invoicing information, logos etc.

As an example, if recruitment advertising services are selected, the chosen agency representative that is assigned the order will be able to view and download the vacancy request and see all of the vacancy information. The main action of an agency user will be to issue a proposal/media schedule/ad guidelines/creative advert examples/quote. This will be done by the agency user uploading the proposal as a file (e.g. PDF)

An agency user will be able to perform two actions on a vacancy item:

Note: The above process will be carried out for each agency (advertising and/or recruitment) that was selected by the school administrator at the start of the process.

Once the proposal(s) have been received and the school administrator is happy with the documents provided, they will need to provide authorisation that they want to proceed..

The school administrator will need to enter a PO and this will trigger an email to the agency user(s) as confirmation to proceed with placing the order.

As and when the advertisements that are to appear within the media (whether it's online job boards, national or local press) the final agreed proof will also be uploaded onto the system so that the school is able to see the advert that has been placed in the media at any time in the future via the ATS.

Technical Requirements

Q9. How would you manage the potential integration of the assessment solution (lot 3) within the ATS?

Our ATS systems are always designed on the basis that recruitment agencies are able to interface with permission into our software to join up processes where needed. In order to manage an effective integration with the winner of Lot 3, Tribal will:

The system will also, of course, maintain full management information on the approach adopted by the schools so as to be able to detail the scope of service provided by the Lot 3 provider as well as assessment volumes.

How we will integrate with the Lot 3 provider

Tribal has a pedigree and unrivalled reputation for the provision of assessment design and support for the public sector as a whole. Our experience ranges from the provision of selection and assessment and job matching services for the executive and senior interim management marketplace through to assessment centre design and volume shortlisting and application sifting expertise. Tribal's staff have been providing support to local authorities, schools, academies, governing bodies and head teachers nationally for the last seven years. Together with this experience we have a wealth of understanding surrounding the schools sector and of job roles at all levels within primary, secondary, special needs and academies. We are contracted to deliver on behalf of the DCFS support to Keys to Success schools for the Greater Manchester Challenge programme.

This breadth of work ensures that Tribal's education domain expertise is constantly refreshed and that we have an understanding of the latest government strategies. This enables us to support clients with strategic planning for the implementation of these strategies.

Our mainstream education portfolio is extremely complex and covers the following areas of activity:

Tribal colleagues are in contact with large numbers of schools and Local Authority colleagues on a regular basis and have built ongoing relationships through their work. We will use this wider team as a network of customer-facing colleagues to ensure that initial, perhaps tentative enquiries can be encouraged and directed towards specialist teams.

We also have an in-depth understanding of online assessment provision and have long-standing relationships with the world's largest providers of online assessment tools. Tribal's in-house assessment teams have a wealth of experience in delivering assessment solutions as well as integrating online assessment tests and tools into recruitment processes and automated recruitment systems. As a result of this combined experience we believe we are ideally placed to advise and implement the best joined- up solution for the DCSF package.

Tribal understands and appreciates that this needs to be considered equally from a candidate's perspective as well as the school's, so that the assessment solution fits and works effectively within the systems workflow processes. Taking these `one at a time', here is a summary of how the processes will work:

Candidate's perspective

The candidate will have already been through pre-screening and applied online through the ATS.

The next communication from the ATS to the applicant will be a regret email or letter to inform them that they are being progressed to interview stage.

It will be this letter or email progressing the applicant to the next stage that will be fundamentally influenced in content as a result of the school choosing to employ assessment support or not.

This letter, for example, may contain instructions surrounding a two stage interview process, a single stage interview process, an assessment centre event or details and instructions around varying online psychometric tests. The nature of which of these options it may be is determined through the consultation with the school at the time the recruitment process commences. Indeed, it may be agreed that communications from the candidate are channelled to the supporting consultant rather than the school in the first instance. A full suite of template letters will be created and agreed upon during the configuration stage of the ATS build, to be incorporated within the generic recruitment process depending on what decisions are made.

With regards to the incorporation of any online psychometric tests, the candidate will receive an auto email generated from the ATS providing them with username entry details and destination URL to the test being used. So if this is the SHL OPQ32 or 16PF tests they will be directed through to the appropriate place to complete them within the secure SHL website. As and when they complete the test, they are informed online that the test process is complete and they are thanked for their time. Unbeknown to them as and when they complete the test, their results are forwarded back to the recruitment originator.

Whether interviews or an assessment centre are employed, full details surrounding the following are provided to the applicant and they are asked to confirm their attendance at their preferred/agreed time online via the ATS. Information sent includes:

Unbeknown to the candidate, the system will be updated on the outcomes from the assessment events involved. Subject to these outcomes, the next communications received by the applicant will either be regret following assessment (which will allow for feedback to be ascertained by the applicant through a phone call outside the system) or the receipt of a conditional offer letter. Following acceptance and successful passing of all employment checks which are noted onto the system, the ATS will then send confirmation of an unconditional job offer which should contain a start date and other details.

From the School's Perspective

Once a school has exhausted routes 1, 2 and 3 of the generic recruitment process, it will be given a choice as to whether to include assessment solutions within its external recruitment strategy. Clear guidance around the options available on this will be provided by the ATS. To summarise the options available are:

Candidate Search

The process is as follows:

Candidate Attraction

The process is as follows:

Candidate Assessment

The process is as follows:

Further detail around the actual process of assessment can be viewed below:

Job Settings

Assessment Log

All assessments made from the ATS will be stored in a log. The log will have three sub sections:

As well as the recruitment service provider ATS Super Users will also have access to this log.

If jobs have been set to use online assessment then the proposed method for recruitment systems to forward candidates for online assessment can be in one of two ways:

Workflow

If online assessments are selected for the job then the actual process around sending and interpreting online assessment results will take place at a specific point within the applicant workflow. The two specific stages which will be included will allow each candidate to be sent for online assessment and for the interpreting of results. The two stages will be:

The Send for Assessment stage will precede the Interpret Results stage.

RPS - Recruitment Package System

ACS - Assessment Centre System

The following details the functionality related with integrating with the proposed Online Assessment Centre. Please note this information is not concrete and is subject to change, including the cost. The specification for this is not yet finalised.

Once the Online Assessment Centre specification document is complete, it will be the overriding document.

User Permissions

New user permissions will be available to be set on admin user accounts within the RPS. An account can be set with an assessment level. The assessment level will determine what action the user can perform in terms of assessments. By default an admin user can perform no action in terms of assessments. An admin account will need to be set with a level to be able to perform an action in terms of assessments.

The following levels will be available:

RPS

Job Settings

A new setting will be added to the job edit page. This new setting will determine if online assessments can be used for candidates that apply. This can only be set by admin users that have a level 2, level 3 or level 4 permission.

Once a job has been set to use assessments then the following actions will need to occur:

Assessment Log

All assessments made from the RPS will be stored in a log. The log will have three sub sections:

RPS Super Users will have access to this log.

If jobs have been set to use online assessment then the proposed method for recruitment systems to forward candidates for online assessment can be in one of two ways:

Workflow (Assessment Stages)

This will be a module available within the variable workflow.

If the system employs workflow, then two stages will need to be added that will allow each candidate to be sent for online assessment and for the interpreting of results. The two stages will be:

The Send for Assessment stage will need to precede the Interpret Results stage.

Technical Requirements

Q10 - Is there anything that has been listed in `Technical Requirements' that you would not be able to provide?

No. We confirm that there is nothing listed within `Technical Requirements' that we would not be able to provide.

Data Security Requirements

Q1. Please outline and confirm your plans for a secure IT infrastructure to manage our data security requirements?

Certification

Tribal is currently working toward ISO 27001 certification, with expected completed in May 2009, and compliance on ISO27002.

Access Control

To mitigate the potential for data security issues, we limit access to data and systems so that our employees and contracted parties can only access those areas which are necessary for the performance of their duties.

Physical Access to Servers

The Data Centre employs multiple levels of security to ensure that physical access to server hardware (routers, switches and servers) is strictly limited to Database Centre Engineers only. The security measures include:

Physical Access to office locations

The barriers to access areas that house Development and Support teams include

Logical Access to Application

Access to the System Application is via approval process. The Project Manager will oversee any initial provision of access logins to the Application, until the system goes live, then this responsibility will pass to the Client. Access to the data is limited according to the access rights set for each specific user login or user type.

Logical Access to Database

Access to the application is via approval process, and is granted for Analyst, Developer and Database Engineers only. This is provided by secure VPN, or within firewall only.

Hardware Platform segmentation

The hosting platform infrastructure is separated into:

Access to the Private Segment is limited by the firewall, so users can only access the data they require through the Application and their login. Access directly to the Private Segment needs to be authorised by the Tribal Senior Account Manager, and this is through secure VPN access only.

Data Security Requirements

Q2. What policies and practices will you adopt to ensure that there is an absolute minimal risk of any data breaches occurring within your organisation or any third parties who you may rely on to support the service?

Detail regarding Tribal policies on data security can be found in the “Tribal IT and Information Security Policy” at the end of this document.

Data Security

Tribal ensures that all staff required to access the Personal Data stored on the system are informed of the confidential nature of the Personal Data.

Tribal provide training for staff and contractors employed or engaged in the provision of the Services in compliance with the Security Policy and Security Plan. Staff contracts require staff to adopt Company policies.

Tribal mandates that under no circumstance should staff publish, disclose or divulge any of the Personal Data to any third party unless directed in writing to do so by the Client.

Tribal will obtain prior written consent from the Client if there is a requirement to transfer the Personal Data to any Sub-contractors or Affiliates for the provision of the Services;

Portable storage devices are required to be encrypted to a standard of at least FIPS 140-2 or equivalent (eg PGP products).

Data Management

Any requirements to store, copy, disclose, or use Client Data, will be requested in from the Client, except as necessary for the performance of obligations under the Agreement.

Within eRecruitment systems, the data held in the database is owned by the Client. At any time the Client can obtain access to this data via their supplied user logins to the eRecruitment system.

Preserving the integrity of Data, and preventing the corruption or loss of Client Data, is of utmost importance to Tribal. The following include the methods for ensuring integrity and prevention of corruption or data loss:

Vetting of staff

Vetting of staff ensure Tribal take reasonable steps to ensure the reliability of any staff who have access to the Personal Data.

Vetting of staff (permanent, contract and temporary) includes screening checks for:

Confidentiality agreements are used as part of the employment agreement.

New staff are provided induction training, and this includes (amongst other items) IT, security, backup and handling of personal data policies and procedures. Regular updates on Information Security is provided through meetings and training sessions.

Access Control

To mitigate the potential for data security issues, we limit access to data and systems so that our employees and contracted parties can only access those areas which are necessary for the performance of their duties.

eRecruitment system - Roles and Responsibilities:

Physical Access to Servers

The Data Centre employs multiple levels of security to ensure that physical access to server hardware (routers, switches and servers) is strictly limited to Database Centre Engineers only. The security measures include:

Physical Access to office locations

The barriers to access areas that house Development and Support teams include:

Logical Access to Application

Access to the System Application is via approval process. The Project Manager will oversee any initial provision of access logins to the Application, until the system goes live, then this responsibility will pass to the Client.

Logical Access to Database

Access to the application is via approval process, and is granted for Analyst, Developer, and Database Engineers only. This is provided by secure VPN, or within firewall only.

Access to Data and Systems

Access rights are only given to staff / contractors who needs the information for them to perform their work. This “need-to-know” principle is fundamental to good security.

Line managers ensure that all new staff are given the appropriate access to data and systems for their role, and that staff have the appropriate clearances for their role (e.g. an enhanced CRB check if needed).

Managers also ensure, when staff leave their team, leave the organisation, or are absent for a prolonged period of time (e.g. on maternity leave or a career break), that:

Passwords

Password protection is an essential part of eRecruitment system security. Staff are required to follow the Password policy when setting the password and not to reveal it to anyone (ie 8 characters with a mixture of upper & lower case letters, and numbers). Sharing of password or user accounts is not allowed under any circumstances.

In eRecruitment systems, passwords are required to comply with the password policy. The passwords for access to the admin areas of the eRecruitment systems, is not able to be viewed by other administrators logged into the system.

(Supporting Document)

Tribal IT and Information Security Policy

Introduction

Background

This policy document relates to the use and monitoring of all Tribal Group IT infrastructure and communication systems (IT assets). It is intended to promote a legal, safe and secure working environment for all Tribal employees and associates.

This document replaces all existing end user IT policies in circulation within Tribal businesses.

This document will be subject to version control and regular review.

Tribal Group plc is referred to as `the Company' in this policy.

Provision of IT Services

The IT services provided to Tribal employees and associates may vary according to business stream and role. For example, some associates may be permitted to access only `webmail' and Sharepoint. If in doubt, please contact the IT Helpdesk.

The provision of IT support in some business streams may be outsourced to a third-party. However, all Tribal employees and associates are expected to comply with this IT End User Policy.

Responsibilities

Legal Responsibilities

Computing resources may only be used for legal purposes. Examples of illegal use include, but are not limited to, the following:

Ethical Responsibilities:

Computing resources must be used in accordance with the ethical standards of the Company. Examples of unethical use (some of which may also have legal consequences) include, but are not limited to, the following:

Unauthorised Use

The Company supplied Internet and email services are available for communication on matters directly concerned with the business. Although reasonable personal use is acceptable this should be restricted to times of the day when work demands are light or during lunch. At no time may personal use take priority over business use.

Third-parties will only be permitted access to the network for legitimate purposes (e.g. provision of remote support) and all requests for such access must be submitted via the IT Help Desk.

Under no circumstances may the Company's electronic communications systems be used for sending, accessing, receiving or storing any material (text or pictures) in breach of copyright, of a potentially offensive, discriminatory, harassing, threatening, obscene, political, illegal or defamatory nature, for the purposes of business (other than the Company's business), for chain letters, for spreading gossip or information which is untrue or malicious, or for any purpose that is illegal or against the Company's policies or contrary to the Company's interests.

You must not under any circumstances use Company equipment or networks for the following;

Monitoring Internet Access

The Company will monitor and record access to internet web sites by staff and associates using automated monitoring tools. Deliberate attempts to access web sites which contain explicit, illegal or other inappropriate materials will be deemed as unauthorised and will lead to consequent disciplinary action. The Company reserves the right to block access to sites which are considered inappropriate, or for which there is evidence of significant misuse (e.g. social networking, online auction or sports news sites). Automated blocks based on the recommendations of the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) will also be applied and the lists updated frequently by the monitoring tools.

From time-to-time the Company may limit or block the use of certain classes of software application (e.g. internet telephony or streaming radio) in order to maintain levels of network service.

Data collected by automated monitoring tools will be retained for no longer than 12 months and will not be disclosed to any third-parties except as required by law. Users of the Company's Internet services understand and accept that their use of the Internet is being monitored and that data relating to the sites they have visited will be retained within a central database, access to which will be strictly controlled. Details of specific Internet activity will only be divulged to third parties as part of an ongoing and appropriately authorised investigation, at the request of HR.

You should be aware that merely deleting information may not remove it from the system and deleted material may still be reviewed by the Company and/or disclosed to third parties.

Email (Acceptable Use) Policy

General Principles

Use of email by Company employees is permitted and encouraged where such use is suitable for business purposes and supports the goals and objectives of the Company and its business units. Email is to be used in a manner that is consistent with the Company's standards of business conduct and as part of the normal execution of an employee's job responsibilities.

Unacceptable Use or behaviour:

The following is list of examples of behaviour which are normally regarded as unacceptable. This list is not exhaustive.

Users may not:

Users should:

Monitoring

The Company accepts that the use of email is an extremely valuable business tool. However misuse of such a facility can have a detrimental effect on other users and potentially the Company's public profile. As a result;

Data collected by automated monitoring tools will not be disclosed to any third-parties except as required by law. Users of the Company's email services understand and accept that their use of email is being monitored and that data relating to email will be retained within a central database, access to which will be strictly controlled. Details of specific email activity will only be divulged to third parties as part of an ongoing and appropriately authorised investigation, at the request of HR.

You should be aware that merely deleting information may not remove it from the system and deleted material may still be reviewed by the Company and/or disclosed to third parties.

Legal use of software

Tribal Group partners with the Federation Against Software Theft (FAST) and takes it's legal responsibilities to ensure that all software is appropriately licensed very seriously.

You may not download any software from the Internet onto your Company computer. All software must be purchased by the IT department on your behalf and the original media must be catalogued and retained by them. The IT department reserves the right to uninstall any software which contravenes any element of the IT acceptable use and security policy, or which has not been appropriately obtained and licensed.

All Tribal computers are subject to regular automated software audits to ensure compliance with this policy.

If you believe you require software to perform your duties which is not on your computer, please contact the IT Help Desk in the first instance who will be able to tell you whether this software is authorised and can, with your line manager's approval, make it available to you.

Use of IT equipment

A standard catalogue of IT equipment is maintained by the IT Help Desk. This offers the best value for money and all requests for IT equipment will be fulfilled from the catalogue unless a business unit director approves an alternative purchase.

It is the responsibility of each staff member using Company assets (IT equipment, mobile phones, etc), to ensure those assets' proper use and security, whether at home, at a client's premises, or in transit. Such assets are provided for the sole use of Tribal employees and may not be used by family members or other third parties. As with mobile phones, laptops may not be taken on holiday unless there is a business need and only with prior agreement from your relevant Company Director. Should this authorisation be given then the laptop / mobile if lost or stolen will be replaced at company cost.

To comply with our insurance requirements, when Company assets are left unattended in a vehicle, they must be stored in the boot. Company assets may not be left overnight in a vehicle. Laptop computers must not be left unsecured in any office overnight.

Mobile telephones and 3G Mobile Data

Mobile telephones and 3G modems, where provided, are intended for business use. Moderate personal use is permitted, but itemised telephone bills are regularly analysed and Tribal reserves the right to charge individuals for excessive personal use.

Mobile phones must be PIN-protected to reduce the risk of unauthorised use.

Where mobile email devices are supplied, these must have a PIN set to lock the device after 5 minutes of inactivity to protect the user's email privacy.

Mobile email devices and 3G modems have a monthly data limit (currently 100MB for email devices and 5GB for 3G modems). Individual usage will be monitored, and excessive use may result in temporary suspension of service.

You should be conscious of the significantly higher cost of making or receiving calls and/or accessing email or the Internet over cellular networks when overseas. Mobile email devices default to manual synchronisation when `roaming' and this setting MUST not be changed.

Information Security

Our information and the IT systems that support it are important business assets. The availability, integrity and confidentiality of information are essential if we are to maintain our competitive edge and respected Company image.

All information and data relating to Tribal business or the business of any Tribal customer is the property of the Company. Unauthorised duplication, transmission or disclosure is prohibited.

Tribal employees and associates must observe the following security measures:

Protecting sensitive personal or commercial data

The Cabinet Office has issued guidelines to all Government departments and contractors for the minimum protection of sensitive personal data which is held on `removable media' including laptop computers, handheld computers, USB memory devices and CD or DVD media. Tribal's guidelines extend further to include sensitive commercial data relating to Tribal's businesses and those of our customers.

A working definition of sensitive personal data, as defined by CESG, is:

A working definition of sensitive commercial data is:

Information whose disclosure or loss would be likely to:

The principles are as follows:

Additional data security requirements

The requirement outlined above represent the minimum standards expected of all Tribal employees working with sensitive data. Access to some classes of data (for example information relating to offenders or vulnerable young people) may require additional measures (for example CRB checks) which will be communicated and monitored by individual business units.

Employees and associates must also observe any security policies or procedures required by Tribal clients.

Standard password characteristics

Passwords must:

These standards will be enforced for all users of Tribal Group IT services.

Personal data backup

Both staff and contracted associates are responsible for making sure that data stored on equipment issued to them is backed up regularly. Remote and home workers do not normally have access to centrally backed-up file servers and so must take additional responsibility for ensuring regular backups of data on laptop hard disk drives. IT will make available facilities and support to allow this to happen.

Office-based staff, and those remote workers who regularly visit a Tribal office, will be supplied, on request, with a private data area on the network into which they can save files. This area will be backed up automatically. Important documents must always be stored on devices that are subject to a regular backup regime.

Temporary staff

Temporary employees will be provided with restricted access sufficient to perform their duties. All temporary login accounts will have an expiry date which will need to be reset via the IT Help Desk should their period of employment be extended.

Home Workers

The Company will supply standard equipment from the IT catalogue to staff recognised by HR as `home workers'. In addition, subject to the approval of a business stream director, the Company will contribute to the costs of broadband and telephone services through normal expense submission. Local expense limits apply and staff should seek clarification of these from their line manager.

Employees will be responsible for arranging the installation of broadband and telephone services. The Company does not provide IT support for home broadband connections.

Leavers

All staff leaving the Company are obliged to return to IT all equipment and software issued by the Company so that the equipment may be catalogued and prepared for reuse. Equipment must not be passed on to any other employee.

Loss or damage to IT equipment

In the event that any item of IT equipment is lost, stolen or damaged, you must inform the IT Helpdesk at the earliest opportunity. Theft of any item must also be reported to the Police and you should obtain a Crime Reference Number which you must give to the Helpdesk.

Consequences of Non Compliance with this Policy

All instances and acts which are in breach of this policy will be taken seriously, will be investigated thoroughly and fairly in line with the Company's disciplinary procedure and may lead to disciplinary action up to and including dismissal.

Data Security Requirements

Q3 - What measures will your solution provide that will enable the DCSF to minimise the risk of data security breaches within the customer groups?

Each user is provided a login with user rights attached, that login can only view the data associated with that customer group.

Our application uses a structured hierarchical business layer object model. Since nearly every request and update of data in the system goes through this object model, we can embed logic near the bottom of the business logic to ensure that the same logic is used throughout the system.

This means that we only have to implement the restriction logic once for a system wide restriction of access based on the current users rights, which will prevent users from viewing data outside of their assigned scope. In addition, we have a QA process that will ensure this system is working properly before delivery.

Data Security Requirements

Q4 - What is your policy should any data breaches occur where your organisation is either directly or indirectly responsible?

Examples of this might include:

Data Security Requirements

Q5 - How can you provide assurance that your organisation keeps itself aware of the latest trends and development in data security?

For systems improvement Tribal adopts the PDCA (Plan Do, Check, Act) model.

Plan - Establish Information Security policy, objectives, processes and procedures relevant to managing risk and improving information security to deliver results in accordance with an organization's overall policies and objectives.

Do (implement and operate) - Implement and operate the policy, controls, processes and procedures.

Check (monitor and review) - Assess and, where applicable, measure process performance against policy, objectives and practical experience and report the results to management for review.

Act (maintain and improve) - Take corrective and preventive actions, based on the results of the internal SMS audit and management review or other relevant information, to achieve continual improvement of the policy and procedures.

Tribal have recently engaged in the certification process for ISO 27001, and 27002 for eRecruitment systems projects.

Checks on the security of the eRecruitment systems and hosting platform include Penetration Testing (blackbox testing) and Application Testing (greybox testing), and external audit, and are undertaken by certified independent organisations. These checks occur on new systems developed, as well as current systems, and processes.

The feedback from these regular tests provide detail of the latest security risks, and ways they can be prevented through code development, practices and processes of the systems. This is a significant educational process, as the feedback is filtered through our development and project teams to ensure that the latest security measures are being utilised in the development and management of systems that Tribal build.

Tribal is constantly tendering and developing new systems for clients. This process alone requires that best practice standards are adopted to ensure the ability to win tenders to meet the requirements of our clients.

Data Security Requirements

Q6 - Please provide details of [how] you would address our Risk Management Requirements?

The following process is adopted for Risk Assessment:

This is seen as a continuous cycle of assessing and re-evaluating risk.

Self-assessment, central reporting, audit and review combine together to provide for a robust level of assurance, as well as assisting in developing and refining policy.

Tribal has appointed a Senior Information Risk Owner within the Company For each Business we have assigned an Information Risk Owner, and for each information asset have assigned an Information Asset Risk Owner.

A formal chain of alert for any information risk within Tribal has been formed. Risk alerts escalate to the Information Asset Risk Owner, to the Business Information Risk owner, to the Senior Information Risk Owner.

Initial Technical Risk Assessment will be conducted at start of the project, using HMG IA Standard No.1, then, due to the information being classed as Personal Data, will be followed by a Risk Assessment every quarter. The decisions will be recorded in the Risk Management and Accreditation Documentation Set (RMADS), using HMG IA Standard No.2.

Data Security Requirements

Q7 - Please provide a security plan to ensure that all of our data security requirements are managed in a compliant manner that is consistent with Data Protection Legislation, ISO 27001 and ISO 27002, HMG Security Standards (Level 2 for data record sets and Level 3 for aggregated data)?

Tribal is currently working toward ISO27001 certification and ISO 27002 compliance. A CESG Listed Advisor will be engaged to consult on achievement of this compliance.

Service Capability Requirements

Q1. Please describe the extent that you are able to comply with the generic school recruitment process for the following Process Steps (Role Specification, Applicant Submission, Candidate Selection)

We are able to comply fully with the generic school recruitment process for all steps outlined. Further details can be viewed below.

Creating the Vacancy - Role Specification template Library

The system will enable a standard school user to log in securely to the ATS to create a new role specification.

The system will enable a standard school user (line manager/recruiter) to define a new role and pick from a template list as well as attach any other supporting information e.g. job description and person specification for the vacancy.

A library of role specifications can be created within the system (we believe that this is already work in progress for the implementation team). In addition to the national templates each local authority can create their own specification templates that will then will be available to all schools within the LA. The following will need to be entered for a job description:

In order to make the process as user-friendly as possible to the customer group at the point of creating a vacancy, a control will be available to select a role specification from the library and associate it to the vacancy.

In terms of access levels, Super Users can create items in the library and assign to any/all LAs. An LA can only create items that will be available to their authority and all schools within it.

We envisage that there will be further questions/fields that will need to be completed by the standard school user in order to progress the vacancy (e.g. purchase order number etc). We expect these to be defined during the specification phase of the project. During implementation we will work with and advise you on best practice processes using e-recruitment systems. Tribal is able to share with the project team example `requisition workflows' so as to expedite this aspect of the build process.

Certain fields within this stage of the process can be defined as being mandatory and include validation in order to capture the correct information.

The user will be able to save and return to their requisition order an unlimited number of times prior to submitting it for authorisation.

On submission, the `standard school user' that has been defined as the `authoriser' user type for the role will receive an automated email trigger from the ATS alerting them that an action is required within the process.

A link will be available within the email which will take the authoriser to the log-in area of the admin area.

The authoriser will be required to log-in to the admin area in order to authorise the request to recruit. Once the user has logged in they will be taken directly to the information which requires their action/attention.

Applicant Submission

Pre-screening

Tribal's system can be set with client defined pre-qualification questions (pre-screening/killer questions with the ability to make them non-killer if required as highlighted in your question). Each question can have two or more answers (typically yes/no), one of which is specified to be the correct one. If a candidate provides an incorrect response then they are thanked for their interest, but are unable to proceed with the application. Up to five questions can be assigned to a post.

In addition to pre-screening questions, the system will enable you to add the short-listing criteria (essential and desirable questions from the person specification. These are questionswhich will embed themselves into the application form for the post being advertised.

The administrator is able to upload and assign an unlimited number of questions on a job-by-job basis. These questions and their responses will be used by the recruiter and the panel within the short-listing stage of workflow.

Applying online

When a candidate is viewing the information for a job vacancy, they will be able to follow the link to apply online.

Before being able to apply, candidates will be required to create a candidate account accessed via a username and password. At the point of registration the system will provide facilities to generate address details automatically from postcodes. This will be done by integrating with http://www.postcodeanywhere.co.uk. The DCSF will need to factor in the cost for `look ups' to this service. 125,000 look ups cost £2500.

The candidate will be able to create their own unique username and password. Should a candidate forget their password the system provides the facility to send them an automated password reminder by email.

Once they are logged in, they will be able to go through the application form page by page by using the breadcrumb for navigation.

Candidates are able to save partially completed application forms and then return to themlater to add further details at any stage throughout the completion process (as long as the job is still live). There is no limit to the number of times they can do this.

The user will also be able to add supporting attachments to the application form if required. In each container within the application form there is a 250,000 character limit.

The system will additionally provide facilities for the applicant to complete an equal opportunities form and medical questionnaire.

Once submitted, these sections will be kept confidential and therefore not available to the selection panel.

On the final page of the form the next button will be replaced by a “save and preview” button. This will show the complete application in the exact format to be shown to the contact for the position. It will feature a button at the end allowing the user to submit the application. A button will also be available for the candidate to take a print-friendly, hard copy version of their form.

Once the application has been submitted, the data will be published to a HTML document. This will be made available in the admin area and can also be sent as attachment to the applicant for printing.

An applicant may only edit an application form prior to its submission. Once submitted, the form is no longer editable.

Candidates will receive an acknowledgement email of receipt of online application forms submitted (only if their email is a valid one). We will also provide a print-friendly screen which users can print off as 'proof of receipt'. In both cases a reference number (application id) will be provided so that users can quote it if they have a query (this will be searchable within the site's admin area).

The applications themselves will be saved within the database and made available to the recruiter for whose job they applied.

Should the user wish to apply for another position, the information (their profile) contained/saved from their last submitted application will be available. The system will offer the facility to allow the applicant to overwrite the pre-populated information. Users will also be able to view all previous applications submitted/partially completed and use the information contained within for subsequent applications.

Adding Offline Applications

School and LA HR administrators will also have the ability to enter the details of `requests' for application packs electronically.

By doing so, the site will also generate a standardised `job pack' letter and pre-populate an application form with the job title and reference if required.

If returned, the system enables application forms to be added as a .doc or .RFT and attached to the application record. The attachment is viewable by all users who are authorised to see online applications. The recruiter will need to have the ability to scan hard copy application forms to either .doc or .PDF (which is our preference). The process of adding an application form attachment takes approximately 2-3 minutes and does require some manual intervention by either an HR administrator or an external response handling unit. Applications submitted via email can be added to the system; however the process cannot be fully automated and therefore will require some manual invention such as creating an applicant to assign the application too, entering personal details, information on where the applicant saw the post advertised and finally equal opportunities information.

Shortlisting through the ATS

The system can record the names, email addresses and ethnicity data of the Standard School Users (includes the recruiting chair and panel). This information will need to be added at the point of creating the user within the system. The user name for log-in purposes will be their email address. It will be possible for a School or LA to create an unlimited number of Standard School Users.

For short-listing to take place a number of essential and desirable criteria will need to be specified for a particular job - we envisage that this will form part of the role specification selected at the very start of the process. The system provides a facility to create, store and update a bank of these key competencies. If you have a competency framework in place already, this can be loaded into the system upfront. As you can see from the following screen grab, these questions can be embedded into the online application form for applicants to complete. At the shortlisting stage Standard School Users will have a clear view of the role specification questions and applicants' answers.

Standard School Users and Recruitment Services users will be able to score applicants separately against these criteria. The system will allow an unlimited number of users with the correct user permission type to score applicants separately, and will, on completion of all scoring activity, amalgamate scores and produce a statistical report to inform discussion on final short listing. With previous systems, once panel members have scored the hiring manager is also asked to score. Once they have scored, collective decisions can be made in bulk as to whether to accept or reject applicants.

It is important to note that we also offer a `collective scoring' method in case panel members decide to make a group decision. This has been factored into the final price.

The system allows recruiting managers to score applicants using M (Met) ,P (Partially Met) , F( Fully Met). The system will provide a method of ranking candidates to display those candidates who score most `M', `P' or `F'ratings.

In addition, the system can display the time difference (in working days) between the closing date and the date candidates are scored, as well as providing automatic escalation to the manager/administrator if candidates not scored within a specified number of working days. This will need to be specified and agreed in more detail prior to development starting.

The system also allows short listed candidates to be `tagged' for invitation to interview, and simultaneously issues a bulk rejection letter to unsuccessful candidates if required.

At the shortlisting stage the administration user will see a list of applicants for the post. The view of the applicants is configurable, for instance in the next screen shot the user is unable to view personal details (name etc) or equal opportunities related information. They only see the `Candidate ID'. Please note that information is also available on whether the applicant is internal/external, has a disability, the number of applications submitted in the past etc

Once scoring is completed the system generates a collective shortlisting grid which records all scores for all applicants from all users who have short-listed. The School Standard User and the School Super User are the only users that are able to view this chart (this can be configured to allow School HR users).

Assessment Activity

The system will enable each client to choose whether they wish to incorporate an assessment activity for the post. It will not be compulsory to choose online assessment as a tool for every vacancy but instead allow the employer to select this assessment approach on a vacancy-by-vacancy basis.

Use of the online assessment tool will be available to schools to incorporate within a job process - either at the stage of uploading the vacancy details in the first instance, or latterly in the event that upon seeing response volumes it is decided that use of a test is needed. The system will show a dropdown list of test providers, with a subsequent dropdown list of test options suitable to the test provider that they have selected. Alongside the dropdown lists will be linkages to the tool's web pages for further information about the tests and providers as well as FAQs about other content, etc.

As a candidate reaches the online assessment stage of the recruitment process for the vacancy they have applied to, they will be sent an automated email containing a user id and password and a link to the test itself. Upon pressing the link they will be securely taken to the test provider's website, and upon entry of the user id & password they will be able to commence the test at a time convenient to them.

Once completed, the employer will be automatically sent the test results that will be `data fed' into the ATS. This in turn auto generates an email to the suitable recipient to enter into the system to view test results. The ATS will enable the authorised user to make a pass/decline decision as appropriate.

Test results will be contained on a database that is linked to the applicant details and application, so that in the future as needed, the system user will be able to access all applicant details in one location on the system.

If the test selected comes with a report for the applicant themselves, this will also be automatically sent to the applicant.

If it comes with a report for the School Standard User, this will also be automatically sent for their attention.

Each individual school will be responsible for paying the associated fees with using the tests.

Applicant notifications

Once key decisions have been made the system will automatically generate notifications to unsuccessful and successful applicants, as well as receiving email notifications. The system provides applicants with the ability to log in to the portal to check their status within the system.

Candidate Selection

The Tribal systems workflow for the Candidate Selection Stage will match that of the one in the ITT. At the very beginning of the process it will allow the administration user (whether School or Recruitment Service - Lot 3) to arrange preliminary interviews and develop specific interview questions. From a technical perspective the ATS will include aspects such as:

Workflow SMS

SMSs will be sent to candidates at pre-determined points within workflow. These points will be built at the point of development and will be in various points within workflow modules.

Examples of when SMS messages would be sent to a candidate would be when they are shortlisted, invited for interview, their references are being checked, or offered the position.

The DCSF should budget for the cost of sending individual text messages over the duration of this contract, as this is not included within our final pricing matrix.

Creating Vacancy Interview Slots

For each vacancy within the system a series of interview slots can be created. Each interview slot created shall have the following information:

Interview slots can only be created for a vacancy once it has closed and has passed into the workflow process. Within the interview stage of the workflow a link will be available that will take the School administrator/Recruitment Services User to the vacancy slots section of a vacancy. Interview slots can be created by the admin user.

Workflow Invite to Interview Stage

At the invite to interview stage of the workflow, the administrator can select the candidates to ask to interview and also which candidates will be able to select an interview slot that they would like to attend. A button will be available that will send an email using a default email template, and an attachment will be included that will be generated from a standard document template.

Workflow Interview Slot Stage

Within this stage the admin user will be able to select an interview slot for each candidate, or select the action that the candidate has declined the interview.

Those candidates that were marked to select their own interview slot will be able to log-in into their My Account Zone and select an interview slot for the vacancy from a list that has been created for the vacancy. The candidate will also be able to add a note if they have any special requirements for the interview. A decline action will also be available if candidates want to decline the interview.

The admin user will be able to select a slot for a candidate even if they are able to select their own slot from their My Account Zone. This will prevent the process being delayed if the candidate has not logged in to select a slot.

Interview Questions

The system will allow the admin user to enter scores against the interview questions assigned. Typically this methodology is as follows: 1 (Meets little or none of the evidence); 2 (Meets some of the evidence); 3 (Meets most of the evidence); 4 (Meets all of the evidence). On completion of all scoring activity the system will again amalgamate scores and produce a statistical report to inform discussion on preferred/unsuccessful applicants.

Offer stage

The system allows appointed candidates to be `tagged' for offer of appointment, and will simultaneously issue a bulk rejection letter to unsuccessful candidates. The system will auto-generate an offer letter from the provided template list.

Talent Pooling Appoint able Applicants

Where a school has marked good applicants for future consideration for alternative posts they can be retained in a `talent pool' for a period of six months. A standard letter will be issued to candidates informing them of this. Where an applicant does not wish to have details retained in this way, their personal data will be deleted within 12 months of their submitted application. We envisage this process will need further discussion and configuration during the project build.

Online Referencing and Checks

The referees section within the applications forms will need to have a checkbox control for candidates to mark each referee as agreeing to receive an email in regards to referencing.

Within the workflow there should be a referee module for the system to generate documents in relation to contact referees.

At this stage the administrator within the workflow will be able to see the referees that have been entered by each candidate. This will display such information as name, title, addresses, email address, and telephone number are examples. An administrator will be able to override this information if required.

Normally this stage will generate documents that can be printed and posted to each referee.

This online referencing module will allow emails to be sent directly to a referee and for the referee to use an online interface to provide the required information.

A referee can only be sent this email if the candidate has indicated that the referee is happy to receive an email with regard to a reference being sought.

Each candidate within this stage of the workflow will have a button to send the email to each referee. The button will not be available for a referee that has been provided and did not accept for the email method to be used.

This button will send and email to the referee with any documents that were generated. The email will contain default text.

The email will also contain a link that will include a token for the referee to click and be taken to a reference form. The token within the link will be validated against the token stored with the referee.

This reference form will contain a series of questions for the referee to answer. This form will be standard and will be used for all online referencing. The questions within it will need to be provided prior to the development process.

When a referee has completed the form, an email will be sent to the administration user that sent the request within the workflow process. The candidate within the workflow stage will show that a referee has completed the online form. A link will be available for an administration user to be able to view the information provided by the referee and print it.

A flag will identify each candidate within this stage of the workflow that has had one or more referees contacted via this method, where responses from the referee or referees have not been received. The candidate will not be able to be progressed further in the workflow process until this is received. A button will be available for an administrator to override this if the referee is not responding. This action will cancel the request, so if the referee does click the link within the email after this point, they will be taken to a page that will inform them that the reference request has expired.

CRB e-bulk integration

Although not yet available, we are currently working on a plug-in module to integrate with CRB's e-bulk system. The DCSF should be aware that although this module should be available for deployment around the time the proposed system is ready to go live, it is not included within our final tender submission price. The plug-in, however, will be able to fit in retrospectively to your version of the ATS, should this be of interest. The price is available on application.

Assigning clearance checks

On the Job Edit page the administrator will be able to assign which clearance stages are required for the post being advertised.

It is important to note that at the clearances stage the School Standard User will be able to log-in to view progress without actually being able to modify/amend anything (read only access).

The clearances page needs to be laid out in the following way

The options for outcome are:

At the base of this page the admin user will be able to save progress. Each time an update is made the Standard School User should receive an email trigger for notification.

Once all decisions have been made the administrator will be able either to go to the next stage or close workflow if the candidate fails. There will be the option to close workflow if a candidate withdraws from the process.

Enter Starter information

Once clearances have been completed the system will send the Standard School User an email asking them to input Starter information.

This will include the following:

Starting Salary etc.

Once entered, the Standard School User will submit this to the administrator. There needs to be the option to close workflow if a candidate withdraws from the process.

Conditional offer letter

The administrator will receive an email trigger when the Standard School User submits information around the new starter. The information entered at the latter stage will generate the conditional offer letter.

Service Capability Requirements

Q2. Please describe the extent that you are able to comply with the generic school recruitment process for the following Process Step: Internal Search

The ATS will allow vacancies to be flagged as internal only, thereby only allowing authorised users to view and apply for them.

When a vacancy is added to the system it can be flagged as an internal vacancy. This limits the users that can view and apply for it.. This is set in the Add Vacancy form, and can also be altered for a particular vacancy using the admin panel.

When a user registers, they can tick a checkbox marking themselves as an internal user. When this is done the user will be presented with two dropdowns. The first will be for the user to select a local authority: the user will need to select the LA that they work for, or if they are a school employee then the LA that the school comes under. The second dropdown will be to select a school that they work for - if they just work for the LA then they will not need to select a school.

A user marking themselves as internal will need to be authorised by an administrator before the data is set in the user's registration information (to be agreed during configuration). This process happens by the sending of an automatic email to a default administration email. If the user selects a school then the email will be sent to a default email for the school, or if they only select an LA then itwill be sent to a default email for the LA. The email will contain a link that must be clicked to approve the user as internal . Once this is done, the flag is set in the user's registration information and they are enabled to view and apply for internal vacancies. This flag can also be set on an existing user by an administrator of the system, so existing registered users can be set to view internal vacancies after they have registered as a non-internal user. The administrator will need to select an LA, and if a school employee then a school as well. When a user logs in who has the internal flag set, they are permitted to view vacancies which are flagged as internal.

An internal user for a particular school will only see internal vacancies for their school.

An internal user for just an LA and not a particular school will only see internal vacancies for all schools within their LA.

Service Capability Requirements

Q3. Please describe the extent that you are able to comply with the generic school recruitment process for the following Process Step: Talent Pool Search

Within the ATS there are two distinct types of talent pool.

The 1^st is where a front-end site user posts a talent profile from within their personalised account zone.

In addition, each profile shall include the following discretionary data entry fields:

If Profile Status is on (which the candidate decides), then their information will be available to view for admin users from within the system's back office.

LA Users will be able to search through the talent pool, but will only be able to see members of the talent pool that have associated themselves to the LA of the LA User.

Tribal's solution supports a combination of “structured database field”, “free-text” and conceptual searches which are detailed below:

Database Searching

Tribal's database searching capability enables recruiters to find candidates with specific characteristics. These may be based on scores that have been generated whilst assessing candidates or indeed any other fielded data associated with the candidate record. Typical fielded searches may include the following categories of fields:

School Users will be able to search through the talent pool but will only be able to see members of the talent pool that have associated themselves to the LA of the School User.

The relevant skills, qualifications and experience fields described above should allow free text to be entered for each.

Admin users will be able to select whether they want to send email or text alerts to talent pool subscribers informing of them of new vacancies. This will automatically happen if a front-end user subscribes to receive job alert notifications via email and SMS.

The second level of talent pool is for where chairs of interview panels have marked good applicants for future consideration for alternative or similar posts. These applicants can be retained in an `appoint able talent pool' for a period of either six or 12 months. At the point of submitting an application the ATS will ask the applicant whether they are happy to be included with the `appoint able pool.' If yes, a standard letter will be issued to candidates informing them of this (via email). Where an applicant does not wish to have details retained in this way, their personal data will be deleted within 12 months of their submitted application.

The system will send email or text alerts to talent pool subscribers informing of them of new vacancies.

If an applicant begins a new application, the system will automatically send them reminder emails at certain points within the recruitment process (for example, informing them that the job closes in XX days' time).

Both of these talent pools can be work flowed so as to fit in with the generic schools recruitment process. This means that searches of the front-end facing and appointable pools need to be made before moving onto 4.0 - the Recruitment Strategy.

Service Capability Requirements

Q4. Please describe the extent that you are able to comply with the generic school recruitment process for the following Process Step: Recruitment Strategy

The system fully complies with the generic recruitment process step for `Recruitment Strategy'.

In the first instance the user will need to agree that they have budgetary sign-off to continue with the process.

If not, the process will finish at this point. If yes, the user will be asked whether they wish to include pre-screening criteria. If they select yes to this they will be taken through to the following ATS module.

Vacancy Pre-screening Questions

Each vacancy that is added to the system can have a series of filtering questions created. A vacancy can be created within the system without any filtering questions, in which case the user will proceed to the online application form. If there are any questions, these will be presented to the user prior to them going on to the application form.

The administrator will add questions by entering a question and a number of options, and will need to select which option is the correct answer. Each option will also need a score entered. which will be used to calculate a total score. If a score is not entered for an option then it will default to 0. In addition, each question can be set as a showstopper, so if the user answered a question incorrectly they will not be able to start an online application. Each question created for the vacancy can be stored to a library, which will only be available to the school that the vacancy is for.

Question example:

Question: Do you hold a valid driving licence?

Showstopper: Yes

When a user applies for a vacancy before they start the application form, they will first need to answer all the filtering questions.

Each question will have a series of radio buttons, each of which will will be a question option. The user will need to select one answer per question. Once all questions have been completed, the user will pass through to the application form. A user will only not pass to complete the application form if they answer one or more questions incorrectly that were set as showstoppers. If this is the case, they will be presented with a screen informing them that they were unsuccessful and will not proceed through the application process.

The administrator will be able to see immediately if the user has passed the filtering questions.

Vacancy Pre-screening Questions Library

Super Users will be able to create filter questions in a library and these will be available to all other users within the system when vacancies are being created.

Only Super Users can create items in the library.

The process is the same for creating questions in the library as in the Vacancy Filter Questions section.

The Super User can add questions by entering a question and a number of options. The Super User will need to select which option is the correct answer. Each option will also need a score enteriedwhich will be used to calculate a total score. If a score is not entered for an option it will default to 0. In addition, each question can be set as a showstopper, so if the user answers a question incorrectly they will not be able to start an online application.

One addition to questions created in the library is that they must be categorised by a Job Type. The Super User will select one or more Job Types from a select control. Job Types are defined within the categorisation section.

When a vacancy is being created within the system, the administrator can create their own questions as per the Vacancy Filter Questions section, and/or select questions from the library. Questions that will be available from the library will only be those that have been set with the same Job Role as the vacancy.

Vacancy Pre-screening Questions Scoring

For each application submitted, a score will be provided based on the filter questions answered by the candidate. Each option selected for a question by a candidate will have a score. A total score will be compiled by the sum of all the option scores selected.

A vacancy can be set with a score level for the candidate to succeed. If this score is equalled or exceeded then the application submitted will be available in the system. If the candidate does not meet the score then their application will not be available to the administrator.

If a vacancy is not set with a score level then no applications will be failed.

The vacancy will display information for the number of candidates that have passed, number of candidates that failed to meet the score level, number of candidates that answered showstopper questions incorrectly (and therefore did not submit an application), and an average score for the vacancy.

Reviewing Media Effectiveness

Whether the user has either added pre-screening criteria or not, the next stage in the workflow process will enable the user to view national media effectiveness for the type of job they are intending on advertising. Once viewed, they will be able to make a decision as to which external route they would like to take (e.g. Job Board, Printed Media or Media Agency Review).

Service Capability Requirements

Q5 - Please describe the extent that you are able to comply with the generic school recruitment process for the following Process Step: Media Market Selection.

The Tribal solution complies fully with the generic recruitment process around Media Partner Selection.

As per the specified workflow, the process enables the user to select their preferred routes to market.

These are either:

The process of selecting a method will be as per the generic recruitment process map.

Utilising the Media Agency

Only one media agency (the one that is awarded Lot 2 of this contract) will be able to utilise the ATS fully. The agency can only be configured by Super Users. At the point of set-up the agency will require the following information:

Agency Name
Address 1
Address 2
City/Town
Postcode
Main Contact First Name
Main Contact Surname
Main Contact Number
Main Contact Fax
Main Contact Email
Pricing URL
Pricing Document (File Upload)

The agency will have one super agency user that will need to be set within the system. The agency super user will need to enter the following information:

User name (Email)
Password

Media Agency Users

Part of the Media Partner Selection process will require actions to be carried out by staff of the agency. Agency users will need to be created within the system to allow them to login and process required actions. An agency user will require the following:

First Name
Surname
Username (Email Address)
Password
Enabled

Direct Print/Press (offline)

The workflow of media type of “Print” will require Direct Press bodies to be selected (e.g. Gloucestershire Echo) that should be communicated with as part of the system.

Direct press will need to be created within the system. This can only be created by Super Users, and will require the following information:

Direct Press Name
Address 1
Address 2
City/Town
Postcode
Main Contact First Name
Main Contact Surname
Main Contact Number
Main Contact Fax
Main Contact Email
Pricing URL
Pricing Document (File Upload)
Enabled

A list of direct press will be presented to a school user when going through the Media Partner Selection process if a school decides to use this approach.

Direct Press Classification

If a school decides to adopt this route of advertising, a search facility will be made available to allow the administrator to hone in on the most appropriate print options. A direct press body can be selected with a list of classifications. that could be, for example, national press, local press andspecialist press. In time, ratings will be available for the various print options based upon the experiences of previous advertisers.

A direct press can have any number of classifications.

The classification list will be managed by system Super Users only, and they will just need to enter a title for each item.

When an administrator is selecting direct press they will be able to filter the list by selecting a classification.

Direct Press User

A direct press body will need to have a user to be able to access the system to carry out the appropriate actions as per the generic recruitment process map. A direct press body will only have one user and this is entered with the direct press information detailed above. The following information will need to be entered:

Username (Email)
Password

Job Boards

The workflow of media type “Job Board” will require job boards to be selected by a school user for the vacancy to be sent to.

A job board can have any number of classifications.

The classification list will be managed by system Super Users only, and they will just need to enter a title for each item.

When an administrator is selecting job boards they will be able to filter the list by selecting a classification.

In time, ratings will be available for the various print options based upon experiences of previous advertisers.

Media Partner Selection Process

The administrator will need to select the approach they want to use. If no media types are selected then the Media Partner Selection Process will be bypassed.

An administrator will be able to select Media Agency or Direct Press, but not both. Job boards can be selected irrelevant if media agency or direct press is chosen..

Media Agency

If the Media Agency option is selected, the first step will display the vacancy information that has been entered previously in the vacancy workflow. This information is what will be sent to the agency. This could be, for example, vacancy title, description, job role and hiring date.

The administrator will just need to click a confirm button, and an email will be sent to the Super User of the agency. The email will contain the vacancy information, and a link will be included that will take the agency Super User to the item within the system. They will need to log-in with their user name and password set in the system.

Please Note: An agency Super User will be able to log-in separately and see all vacancy requests that have been sent to the agency.

Media Agency Super User Actions

The action of the agency Super User will be to select an agency user to assign or channel the vacancy to carry out the necessary work. Once the agency user is selected and confirmed, this will trigger an email to the user selected. The email will contain the vacancy information, and a link will be included that will take the agency user to the item within the system. They will need to log-in with their user name and password set in the system.

Please Note: An agency user will be able to login separately and see all vacancy requests that have been assigned to them.

Media Agency User Actions

When viewing a vacancy request, an agency user will see the vacancy information. Their main action will be to work with the copy and logos provided to issue a proposal or quote to advertise in the requested publication etc. This will be done by the agency user uploading the proposal as a file.

An agency user will be able to perform two actions on a vacancy item:

Firstly, they will be able to add comments and send them back to the administrator that created the item. This action will trigger an email that will be sent to the administrator to inform them that the agency has added comments requesting additional information.

The administrator will then be able to read the comments and respond back to the media agency. A comments field will be available for the administrator to enter additional information and send to the agency. This will trigger an email to the agency user.

This process can be repeated as many times as required. The system will store and display all comments in a history log

Secondly, they'll be able to upload a proposal document and send it to the administrator that created the item. This action will trigger an email that will be sent to the administrator to inform them that the agency has uploaded a proposal document for approval

The administrator will be able to download the proposal and see any comments added by the agency user. If the administrator feels further work is required then they will be able to send comments back to the agency user for clarification or for changes to be made. The administrator will have a comments field to enter the request.

Administrator User Actions

Once the proposal has been received and the administrator is happy with the documents provided, they will need to select that they are happy to proceed with the agency.

The administrator will need to enter a PO, and this will trigger an email to the agency user as confirmation.

Advertisement Approval workflow

The next step would be for the agency user to generate an advert proof for the administrator to approve. The agency user will upload the proof and submit back the administrator. This will trigger an email that will be sent to the administrator, who will then need to approve the advert copy. If the administrator feels further work is required then they can send comments back to the agency user for clarification or for changes to be made. The administrator will have a comments field to enter the request.

Once the advert copy is approved by the administrator this will trigger an email to the direct press user to notify them of the approval.

Note: An agency Super User will be able to carry out the actions of any agency user.

Print (Direct)

If the Print option is selected, the administrator will be able to search to find a list of relevant Print media to contact directly.

The administrator will need to select the direct press that they want to work with.

Once the direct press or direct presses are selected, the next step will display the vacancy information that has been entered previously in the vacancy workflow. This information is what will be sent to each direct press body selected. This could include, for example, vacancy title, description, job role and hiring date.

The administrator will just need to click a confirm button, and an email will be sent to the email set against the one direct press user. This email will contain the vacancy information, and a link will be included that will take the direct press user to the item within the system. They will need to log-in with the user name and password set in the system.

Please Note: A direct press user will be able to log-in and see all vacancy requests that have been sent to their direct press body.

Direct Press User Actions

A direct press user when viewing a vacancy request will see the vacancy information. The main action of the user will be to issue a proposal. This will be done by the user uploading the proposal as a file.

A direct press user will be able to perform two actions on a vacancy item:

Firstly, they will be able to add comments and send back to the administrator that created the item. This action will trigger an email that will be sent to the administrator to inform them that the agency has added comments, requesting additional information.

The administrator will then be able to read the comments and respond back to the direct press. A comments field will be available for the administrator to enter additional information and send to the direct press body. This will trigger an email to the direct press user.

This process can be repeated as many times as required. The system will store and display all comments in a history log.

Secondly, they will be able to upload a proposal document and send it to the administrator that created the item. This action will trigger an email that will be sent to the administrator to inform them that the direct press has uploaded a proposal document for approval.

The administrator will be able to download the proposal and see any comments added by the direct press user. If the administrator feels further work is required then they will be able to send comments back to the direct press user for clarification or for changes to be made. The administrator will have a comments field to enter the request.

Note: The above process will be carried out for each direct press body that was selected by the administrator.

Administrator User Actions

Once the proposals of each direct press selected have been received and the administrator is happy with the documents provided, the administrator will need to select the direct press or direct presses that they want to proceed with.

The administrator will need to enter a PO for each direct press, and this will trigger an email to the related direct press user as confirmation.

Advertisement Approval

The next step would be for the direct press user to generate a advert proof for the administrator to approve. The direct press user will upload the advert proof and submit back the administrator. This will trigger and email that will be sent to the administrator. The administrator will then need to approve the advert copy. If the administrator feels further work is required then the administrator will be able to send back to the direct press user for clarification or for changes to be made. The administrator will have a comments field to enter the request.

Once the advert copy is approved by the administrator this will trigger an email to the direct press user to notify them of the approval.

Job Boards

If the Job Board option is selected, then the administrator will be presented with a list of job boards that are available. A search function will also be available enabling the administrator to search for job boards by their classification (e.g. Generalist or Niche).

The administrator will need to select the job boards to which they want the vacancy to be sent.. Once a job board or job boards are selected, the next step will display the vacancy information that has been entered previously in the vacancy workflow. This information is what will be sent to each job board selected. The information could, for example, include vacancy title, description, job role and hiring date.

The administrator will just need to click a confirm button, and an email will be sent to each selected job board. The email will be sent to the address set for each job board. The “From” address of the email will be set with the user name of the administrator performing the action. This will allow for the job board to reply directly to the administrator is required upon receiving the email. This process will not be tracked in the system.

Job Board Apply Now URLS

For each job board that a vacancy is sent to, the system will generate a unique URL that will be sent with the vacancy. This URL will be for job boards to use as the “Apply Now” link. This will take users from the job board that they have clicked the link on, to the ATS system where the user can complete the application form. The user will need to login/register to complete this application form.

Click and Application Tracking

The reason why a unique URL is generated for each job board per vacancy is to track the source of each application submitted, if the candidate came from a job board.

If a user comes from clicking the “Apply Now” link on a job board, then the user will be redirected to the ATS system, which will then log the hit. The system will store the job board that the user came from and the vacancy they are interested in. The user will be taken straight to the application form for the vacancy. When the user is redirected to the application form, they will need to log in to complete the application form. If they are not a registered user they will need to register on the site. Once they have successfully registered they will be taken back to the application form to complete it. This will only work for the same session. If the user begins the application form, then the system will log the user's application to the job board they came from. Therefore if the user completes and submits the application, the system will be able to track this.

This will allow the system to provide the following information on a per vacancy basis:

Vacancy A

Job Board Application Hits Application Submissions

A 5 3

B 2 0

C 8 8

Job Board Updates

Once a vacancy has gone live, if an administrator needs to adjust any vacancy information then they can do so. If they want to notify the job boards, the administrator will need to click a button to send an email to each job board. The email will contain the new vacancy information, and its subject should inform the recipient that this is a vacancy update request and not a new posting. The “From” address will be set with the administrator's username (email address). This will allow for the job board to communicate directly with the administrator that performed the action. This process will not be logged by the system.

Job Board Ratings

When an administrator is selecting job boards, they will be able to see an overview of statistics for each job board. The information displayed per job board will be:

Average Clicks

The average number of users coming from the job board. This will be the total number of clicks divide by the number of jobs sent to the job board.

Job Role Average Clicks

The average number of users coming from the job board for jobs with the same Job role as the one being created. This will be the total number of clicks divided by the number of jobs sent to the job board for the vacancy being created.

Submissions Percentage

A percentage of the number of completed submissions of applications completed by users redirected from the job board

Job Role Submissions Percentage

A percentage of the number of completed submissions of applications from users redirected from the job board with the same role as the one being created.

Media Partner Selection Surveys

At the end of the life of a vacancy, the school user associated to the vacancy will need to complete a survey. This will capture data to report on value for money and customer satisfaction.

When application workflow has been closed, the school user will be sent an email with a link to complete a survey. An email will be sent for each direct press that was selected for the vacancy or the agency in the Media Partner Selection process. Each of the following questions will askthe user to select a rating out of 5 (5 being the best score). The following questions will be available:

Note: The above is only an example list. The system will allow for ten questions, whichwill need to be provided at development.

A comments field will be available for comments to be added.

The survey is then linked to the agency or the direct press body.

Within the Media Partner Selection process, an administrator will be able to see a rating for the agency or a direct press body. The overall score will be an average of the scores allocated to the questions above.

The administrator will also be able to see an average score for each question above.

In addition, the administrator will be able to see an overall score based on the job role of the vacancy. So if the vacancy is a head teacher role, the score will be based on vacancies that have the same job role that has been carried out by the agency or the direct press body.

Service Capability Requirements

Q6. Please describe the extent that you are able to comply with the generic school recruitment process for the following Process Step: Candidate Search.

The Tribal system fully complies with the generic recruitment process for Candidate Search and Attraction.

Job Searching

Searching for jobs will not be available from the global section of the site. Only searches can be performed from an LA section or a School section.

On a local authority main page, a link will be available to search all jobs within the LA only (See wireframe 1). i.e. All jobs associated to schools within the LA.

On a school main page, a link will be available to search all jobs within the school only (See wireframe 2).

The detailed search function will allow site members to search for vacancies based on specific information by entering any or all of the following:

Each of the three dropdown controls within the search form will contain an `All' option.

Once a site member has entered their criteria for searching, the search may be performed.

Based on the entered search criteria, the system will search through current vacancies in the system, and retrieve those that match the criteria.

If the search is performed from a local authority section then the current vacancies will be ones for all schools within the LA. If it is carried out from a School section then the current vacancies will be ones from the school.

All the options for the detailed search criteria are independent of each. Results returned shall comply with all the criteria specified by the site member when the search is carried out.

The `keywords' option will allow site members and non-members to search for jobs, which only include specific keywords as chosen by the site member.

The keyword search tool searches for job title, main body text and short description as a minimum.

The system also allows site members and non-members to go back and alter the search terms of a search they are currently performing on the site.

Job Search Results

The system displays the following general information together with the list of results:

If there are no matches to the criteria, then the system returns a message that there are no results. It also presents an option to return to the search criteria.

The following information will be displayed for each result as a minimum:

The Short Description field is a 200-character limited textual field describing the vacancy. It provides a hook to encourage the user to click through to view further details.

The search listing can show additional vacancy information if required. The possible vacancy information that can be displayed is listed in Appendix A.

A vacancy within the listing will be displayed with one link to view the vacancy and another to apply for the vacancy.

Please note the following wireframe is for an LA search results page. The search results for a school will be the same except for the school logo, which will replace the LA logo at the top of the results.

Job Details (the full advert)

When a vacancy is clicked within the search results, a vacancy detail page will be displayed that presents more information to the user about the vacancy.

As a minimum, the following information on a given vacancy should be displayed:

Any attachments for the vacancy will display in a section on the right hand side of the page (e.g.. Job Description and Person Specification).

Service Capability Requirements

Q7. Please describe the extent that you are able to comply with the generic school recruitment process for the following Process Step: Feedback

The Tribal system complies fully with the generic recruitment process around gathering feedback. This is detailed below.

Media Partner Selection Surveys

At the end of the life of a vacancy, the school user associated with it must complete a survey. This will capture data to report on value for money and customer satisfaction.

When application workflow has been closed, the school user will be sent an email with a link to complete a survey. An email will be sent for each agency that was selected for the vacancy in the Media Partner Selection process. Each of the following questions will ask the user to select a rating out of 5 (5 being the best score). The following questions will be available:

Note: The above is only an example list. The system will allow for ten questions, which will need to be provided at development.

A comments field will be available for comments to be added.

The survey is then linked to the agency and the media type that the agency was used for (Media Print/Print).

Within the Media Partner Selection process, an administrator will be able to see a rating for each agency. The overall score will be an average of the scores given to the questions above.

The administrator will also be able to see an average score for each question above.

In addition, the administrator will be able to view an overall score based on the job rolle in question.. So if the vacancy is for a head teacher role, then the score will be based on vacancies that have the same job role that have been carried out by the agency.

Note: If an agency has been set as being able to offer media print and print services, the agency will have a different overall score for each.

Web Site Survey Tool

A survey created by a Super User will be able to classify a survey as follows:

A survey created by a LA user will be able to classify a survey as follows:

A survey created by a School user will be able to classify a survey as follows:

An administrator will be able to create various surveys and create numerous questions for each.

The administrator will be able to create, edit and delete a series of survey questions via the admin area. The administrator will need to enter the following:

The system will support the following question types:

A survey question can have a maximum of five options or a minimum of two, except for a free text survey question.

The Admin User will be able to set the order of the questions by setting the position.

Survey Campaigns

For a survey to be available on the site for users to complete, a survey campaign must be created. A campaign will require the following information:

If Campaign is created by a Super User then the following additional information will need to be selected:

Note: If no LAs are selected then the campaign will be displayed on the main menu of the site, and is therefore a site wide survey.

If Campaign is created by a LA User then the following additional information will need to be selected:

Note: If no schools selected then the campaign will be displayed on the menu of the LA site of the LA User

If Campaign is created by a School User then the campaign will only be displayed on the school of the school user's main page.

A Site Member will be able to complete the survey and each user's answers will be stored.

Service Capability Requirements

Q8. How would your solution help the customer groups comply with Equal Opportunities Legislation?

The solution will help customer groups comply with Equal Opportunities legislation in a number of key ways.

The System Configuration

Tribal's ATS system is designed and built to meet to all best practice public sector guidelines that enable equal opportunity for all browsers and job seekers. We have an ethical and legal obligation to create web platforms that are inclusive and accessible. Consequently, we make every effort to ensure that the websites we develop are usable, inclusive and accessible regardless of disability/ability.

To ensure the same level of experience for as many people as possible, we build inter-operable websites using WAI recommendations and standards-compliant design technologies.

Our aim is always to build and design our websites to a very high standard, ensuring the same functionality across various browsers and operating systems. Our sites are clean, elegant, fast-loading, hand-coded business solutions that adhere to WAI AA standard as set out by the World Wide Web Consortium.

In summary, we are committed to complying with appropriate accessibility standards. We will always:

• Use clean code to W3C/WAI standards

• Use elements for what they should be for (i.e. we don't use <p> when <h*> is needed)

• Use re-sizeable text to help the visually impaired

• Introduce a good contrast between foreground and background colours

• Ensure there are no sudden surprises, re-directs or pop-ups unless the user knows what is going to happen

• Alt text for all images, so those with images turned off still know what is there

• Avoid tables for layout, only using them for data

• Use short sentences avoiding jargon

• Code as much as possible using CSS, which reduces loading time

• Give users an indication as to what words constitute a link

• Explain abbreviations and acronyms

• Limit using JavaScript, as some people have this turned off

• Avoid Flash/flashy graphics and animated gifs, which can confuse some people

• Provide a text equivalent for every non-text element on the site

• Ensure that any information conveyed with colour is also available without it

• Ensure all documents on a website are well organised so that they can be read without style sheets

• Make sure that background and foreground colours have enough contrast so that when someone with a colour deficit looks at it (or when the site is viewed on a black and white screen) they can still read it clearly

• Try to provide a site map

• Provide summaries for all the tables if we use a table (which is not often).

This form can be built specific to your requirements and include categorisation such as:

All elements of categorisation can be configured by the global Super User.

Application Management Protocol

Once submitted, this section within the application form will be kept confidential and therefore not available to the selection panel assigned to the post. In addition to the equalities information being hidden we can also hide fields such as Title and First Name, Surname etc so the recruitment exercise becomes anonymous for certain user types.

Equal Opportunities Reporting

HR administrators and Super Users user will have the ability to use a tool, via the admin area, which will generate all necessary equal opportunity statistics.

The administrator will have the following options to choose from when running a report:

Applications Submitted

Equal Opportunities Information

Advertising Origin (External Media)

Workflow stage

Jobs

The administrator user does not have to select all the options. Once the user is happy with the options and select search, it will return the statistical information.

The administrator will have the option to generate a CSV file with the results of the report.

Equal Opportunities within Application Workflow

Where applicants with a disability meet minimum criteria for the job, the guaranteed interview scheme flag will be activated.

The minimum criteria will need to be determined by managers in conjunction with HR staff at the point of job load onto the system. This will be through setting pre-screening questions.

The Tribal system will highlight applicants meeting these criteria, and warn administrators if they have not been `tagged' for interview.

The system will be set up so that this is the only circumstance where any information provided on equality monitoring forms will be disclosed to Standard School Users and School Panel Members. In all other circumstances, equality monitoring data will be hidden from appointment panels.

Service Capability Requirements

Q9. How would your solution help the different customer groups develop policies and practices that are consistent with it being an excellent Equal Opportunities employer?

The Tribal solution will help customer groups using the solution to develop consistent policies and practices, enabling them to remain as Equal Opportunities employers. For instance:

Information Views

There will be an option either to print or not print the equalities data when application forms are printed out (e.g. for Recruiting Manager review,the equalities data is not shown).

There are also facilities to input the equalities data into the system for all offline applications (email or paper). We understand that this comprehensive information is needed to produce consistent monitoring and control reports.

Management Information

Recruitment management (including equalities) information will be available (as standard)::

1. Nationally

2. By Local Authority

3. By School and Cluster

The information analysed for these reports will be one or more of the following:

1. Age

2. Gender

3. Ethnicity

4. Disability Status

5. Sexual Orientation

6. Religion/belief

7. Vacancy Title

8. Source of advert (a code or a name)

9. Status (or stage) of application.

10. Census data for comparative reporting.

Consistent Accessible Site Design

The system will be built to ensure that both the web-user and admin-user interfaces are intuitive, easy to use and support current Equalities Strategy.

It is important to note we have an ethical and legal obligation to create web platforms that are inclusive and accessible. We make every effort to ensure that the websites we develop are usable, inclusive and accessible regardless of disability/ability.

To ensure the same level of experience for as many people as possible, we build interoperable websites using WAI recommendations and standards-compliant design technologies.

Our aim is always to build and design our websites to a very high standard, ensuring the same functionality across various browsers and operating systems. Our websites are clean, elegant, fast loading, hand-coded business solutions that adhere to WAI AA standard as set out by the World Wide Web Consortium.

We are committed to complying with appropriate accessibility standards, and will always

Consistent Recruitment Processes

The system will employ a generic standardised electronic recruitment process around Applicant Submission, Assessment, and Selection. This means candidates across the country will all go through the same fair process.

Service Capability Requirements

Q10 - How would your solution provide and encourage `development' opportunities for candidates?

Tribal's ATS solution will proactively enable and inform applicants of potential development opportunities. It will do this through a variety of methods, most of which require little to no manual intervention by administrators. For instance:

New Job alert notifications by email (JBE)

The system will allow users to subscribe for jobs by email. Users will subscribe with the following fields:

Inevitably, when an applicant is looking to make a career move they are looking at jobs that invariably have a higher remuneration rate. This service is thus one of the most effective methods of informing candidates of the latest vacancies which match their reward aspirations.

Registering is free and enables the applicant to receive updates on all the latest jobs directly to their inbox.

In terms of the process, the sending out of job alerts will be fully automated and happen daily. All vacancies will be flagged as being “sent”, so only new vacancies added afterwards will be sent on the next jobs by email.

It is important to note that a JBE will not be sent per school, one email will be sent per site member that has subscribed to the JBE.

Areas within the website can be designated titles such as `The Forum' or `Blog' and allow for career advice and guidance to be provided for all. In addition, we can provide guidance surrounding the recruitment process the skills and experience required for differing role types, etc. either through video or audio content, The scope for us is limited only by what we want to include and it is this content that will predominantly support job seekers in their ongoing development.

Site members will be able to unsubscribe from jobs by email from within the system.

Job alerts by SMS

The ATS will allow users to subscribe to receive regular new job alert notifications by SMS. The search criteria used for the jobs by SMS is the selected criteria added in the Jobs by Email section. A checkbox will be available for the user to check if they want to receive the message.

The frequency of the alert will be the same as that of the email option. Users will receive information only on the number of jobs that match their selected criteria.

Talent Pool

The talent pool is designed for schools to match potential applicants to the jobs they are seeking to fill. To ensure that applicants understand how to get the most from this facility, guidance notes and advice will be provide on the website. Along with this will be links into the guidance mentioned above surrounding career paths and development, to make it as transparent as possible for applicants to discover what skills and expertise are required for roles across the sector.

Send to a friend

When viewing a vacancy on the candidate front-end of the ATS, users will be able to click a button to send the specific vacancy URL to a colleague/associate or friend. In most instances these types of referrals will only take place if the original message sender feels that the person to whom they are sending the message is actually suitable for the role.

Job RSS feeds

With web 2.0 techniques at front of mind, the ATS will enable candidates to set up suitable job RSS feeds. This enables updates of all the latest job opportunities to go straight to their desktop, home page, Social Networking site etc.

E-Bulletin - Useful Development Resources

The system will enable a particular user type (to be decided - it probably doesn't fall into any of the ones quoted within the Technical Capabilities Q1,Q2 and Q3 but we are able to create a new one to meet individual needs) to upload relevant development materials/ resources that can be sent to registered candidates. Candidates will be able to register to receive these alerts through the ATS's My Account zone.

When the admin user is uploading career development news, this will need to be categorised so it goes out to the right audience groups/job roles e.g. Deputy Heads.

At the point of registering for job alerts by email/SMS the candidate will tick a tick box to say they want to receive the development e-bulletin. If they do, they will receive the resources based upon their preferred JBE categories.

Development Training Events by Email (DTE) - Raising awareness of National Professional Development Opportunities

This service is similar to the ATS's jobs by email service. The new user type quoted in the E-Bulletin Section above will be able to manage a list of national career development events. When they are adding these to the system they be categorised by job role and hosting LA region. Candidates will subscribe to the free service as they do for job alerts by email. The process of sending out the DTE will be automated. Candidates will only receive updates based upon their preferred DTE categories.

Future developments

In the future, new modules we are developing for our ATS package could enable registered candidates to ask questions, share information and take part in discussions in the forums. This level of 2.0 functionality does not form part of our final submission price.

Service Capability Requirements

Q11 - How would your solution provide strategic management information to enable the customer groups to proactively manage `staff development'?

Management information pertinent to staff development will be generated from the system in a number of ways as follows:

DCSF Super Users

DCSF users can be given full access permission to the ATS to run national searches and report against numbers of applications towards specific vacancies or general vacancy types.

Making this information available to DCSF users should be sufficient to start building a nationalised picture of trends of response volume so that shortfall areas can be defined for training purposes.

The user running the search will be able to export a CSV of the data from the ATS and then run this through Microsoft Excel to generate useful graphs and charts.

LA Super Users

LA Super Users can be given limited access permissions to the ATS to run regional searches within their locality and report against numbers of applications towards specific vacancies or general vacancy types.

Making this information available to LA users should be sufficient to start building a regionalised picture of trends of response volume so that shortfall areas can be defined for training purposes.

The user running the search will be able to export a CSV of the data from the ATS and then run this through Microsoft Excel to generate useful graphs and charts.

School Super Users

School Super Users can be given limited access permissions to the ATS to run a specific search for their School and report against numbers of applications towards specific vacancies or general vacancy types. Making this information available to School Super Users should be sufficient to start building a localised picture of trends of response volume so that shortfall areas can be defined for training purposes.

The user running the search will be able to export a CSV of the data from the ATS and then run this through Microsoft Excel to generate useful graphs and charts.

The Tribal ATS is able to provide reporting and search functionality to enable customer groups to identify staff development opportunities.

DCSF Super Users

DCSF Super Users can be given full access permissions to the ATS to run national searches and report against all registered users that have a talent pool profile, or have classified themselves as internal, as well as all candidates that have registered to receive either or both Development E-Bulletins or Training Events by email. Filters will include job roles, skills, knowledge, experience, behaviours, training, qualifications, employment status, and LA and salary range.

Making this information available to DCSF users should be sufficient to start building a national picture of staff development opportunities, training needs and potential succession planning.

The user running the search will be able to export a CSV of the data from the ATS and then run this through Microsoft Excel to generate useful graphs and charts.

LA Super Users

LA Super Users can be given limited access permissions to the ATS to run regional searches within their locality and report against registered users that have a talent pool profile or have classified themselves being internal, as well as all candidates that have registered to receive either or both Development E-Bulletins or Training Events by email. Filters will include job roles, skills, knowledge, experience, behaviours, training, qualifications, employment status and salary range.

Making this information available to LA users should be sufficient to start building a localised picture of staff development opportunities, training needs analysis and potential succession planning.

The user running the search will be able to export a CSV of the data from the ATS and then run this through Microsoft Excel to generate useful graphs and charts.

School Super Users

School Super Users can be given limited access permissions to the ATS to run a specific search for their School and report against registered users that have a talent pool profile or have classified themselves being internal, as well as all candidates that have registered to receive either or both Development E-Bulletins or Training Events by email. Filters will include job roles, skills, knowledge, experience, behaviours, training, qualifications, employment status, and salary range.

Making this information available to School Super Users should be sufficient to start building a localised picture of staff development opportunities, training needs analysis and potential succession planning.

The user running the search will be able to export a CSV of the data from the ATS and then run this through Microsoft Excel to generate useful graphs and charts.

Service Capability Requirements

Q12 - How would your solution help the customer groups in their `succession' planning practices?

All organisations, whether in the private or public sectors, need to be able to find people with the right skills to fill key and top leadership jobs. This is especially true within the Education sector with many of its leaders approaching retirement ages.

Much of the current literature on the state of the market for head teachers in the UK points to a severe shortage and a `demographic time bomb' - with a large proportion of head teachers reaching the end of their careers and very little new blood being developed to take their place. This has led the National College for School Leadership to look carefully at the issue of succession planning for leadership in education, and this is now a key theme of their work in helping to prepare UK schools for the future.

The Tribal talent pool module enables applicants to register and be registered against specific job role types to enable potential successors to be identified for a variety of roles. Candidates manage their registration through a dedicated account area.

Within the back office of the system, jobs are clustered by role function and level so that the generic skills responsible for particular roles can be developed.

All of the clients we work with recognise the business case for diversity and are increasingly aware of the need to ensure that the talents of women and ethnic minorities are properly developed. Tribal's talent management solution enables effective data capture, storage and reporting of all equalities monitoring information of those applicants stored within it.

The bi-product of this clustering is fair and equal, well developed pre-screened pools of talented people, each of whom is adaptable and capable of filling a number of roles. Because succession planning is primarily concerned with developing longer-term successors as well as short-term replacements from experience, each pool will be considerably larger than the range of posts it covers.

So our software effectively links available jobs with potential successors. Of course, the databases need to be continuously updated in order to offer any real value. The update and maintenance that is required is to ensure that registered users keep their profiles up-to-date with their skills and experience; and that as and when people find roles and no longer wish to be matched against other vacancies, their profiles are frozen from being searched and matched against. Tribal's ATS system helps by enabling automated email communications to all registrants to be sent at regular intervals to prompt them to maintain this data on behalf of the employers.

A talent pool can be managed and developed in a variety of ways, including: