Report Prepared by: Jeff Bennyhoff, Director of Information Technology
Title
SUBJECT: Agreement for Professional Services with THOR, Inc. for AS/400 Programming Services
REPORT IN BRIEF
Authorizing a Professional Services Agreement with THOR, Inc. for $165,000 for AS/400 programming services to support SunGard financial application suite.
RECOMMENDATION
City Council - Adopt a motion approving Professional Services Agreement with THOR, Inc.; and, authorizing the City Manager to execute the necessary documents.
Body
ALTERNATIVES
1. Approve as recommended by Staff; or
2. Deny; or,
3. Refer to Staff for further evaluation.
AUTHORITY
Charter of the City of Merced, Section 200.
CITY COUNCIL PRIORITIES
As provided for in the 2015-16 Adopted Budget.
DISCUSSION
The Information Technology Department had two staff members recently retire. These two employees supported the City’s SunGard software suite. This software suite runs on technology created in the late 1960s, called RPG, which requires a very unique skillset. Currently the department has no one with these skills in-house. All recruitment efforts have failed to find an applicant with these unique skills.
The SunGard software suite has run many of the City’s critical business operations, including payroll, utility billing, GMBA, business licenses, building permits, and more, for over the past 25 years. The retired staff members modified the existing programs provided by SunGard to fit the needs of the departments over that period of time.
Although the SunGard system is dated, it is still a highly functional system. A modern day technology replacement to the SunGard system that would provide all the same functionality for departments would cost approximately $750,000. As the professional community of people that support this type of older technology is currently experiencing mass gentrification, it will become increasingly important to start the process to move to modern-day technology in future fiscal years.
Currently the City uses the Thor Group to support these custom modifications to the SunGard software suite. The Thor Group is a professional staffing agency which specializes in this type of older technology. We utilize a Thor employee that was formerly a programmer for SunGard through the 1990’s. This contract will allow the City to continue to utilize this person on a time-and-material basis of $109/hour to support our modified SunGard software suite.
The City has found only one other vendor that was interested in performing this work on the time and material basis and had the qualification and knowledge that we require. This vendor pricing was $150/hr.
Professional services from this fiscal year and from the proposed FY16/17 budget will be used to fund this contract.
IMPACT ON CITY RESOURCES
Funding is available in the following fund: 672-0404-512-1700; $165,000.
ATTACHMENTS
1. Thor Client Services Master Agreement