HomeMy WebLinkAboutRESPONSE - RFP - ELEARNING CURRICULUM DESIGN & DEVELOPMENTMonarch Media, Inc. • 406 Mission St., Ste. J, Santa Cruz, CA 95060 • 831.457.4414 • www.monarchmedia.com
December 1, 2012
Attn: David Carey, CPPB, and Doreen Kemp
Dear Mr. Carey and Ms. Kemp:
We are pleased to submit the following proposal for eLearning curriculum design and
development services to the City of Fort Collins, Colorado. We acknowledge receipt of the
proposal itself and two addendums.
The attached proposal is tailored to meet your needs as outlined in the RFP #7448. Our team has
the availability to begin work immediately and to provide ongoing eLearning development
services as needed.
As an introduction, Monarch Media has been in the eLearning business for more than 15 years
and has designed and implemented a range of online training programs for organizations such
as the National Institutes of Health, the California Department of Health Services, the
University of Tennessee, and the State of Iowa. Our expertise in Web-based training and our
experience with serving government clients will allow us to rapidly and cost-effectively develop
online courses and trainings, as well as provide excellent long-term service and support.
Please contact me with any questions or for additional input on our assumptions for this
project. We welcome the opportunity to work with you and are ready to make this project a
success.
Sincerely,
Chris Bush, CEO
Monarch Media, Inc.
chris@monarchmedia.com
831.457.4414 (p)
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Proposal
for
the
City
of
Fort
Collins
in
Response
to
RFP
#7448
Services
for
eLearning
Curriculum
Design
and
Development
P
resented by Monarch Media, Inc.
December 1, 2012
Contact: Chris Bush
chris@monarchmedia.com
831-457-4414
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Executive Summary
In response to RFP #7448 from the City of Fort Collins, Monarch Media is submitting this
proposal for providing eLearning curriculum design and development services. We have a
strong background providing similar eLearning services to clients ranging from the State of
Iowa to the University of Tennessee to the National Institutes of Health.
Monarch Media has more than 15 years of experience developing online training programs and
courses, and has particular expertise working with local, state, and federal government
agencies, as well as NGOs and public universities. Our work has included building alcohol and
tobacco vendor certification trainings for the Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division; a mandatory
employee safety training course for the California State University system; and a curriculum for
high school health teachers for the National Institutes of Health.
Monarch Media is one of only a handful of companies in the United States that has more than
15 years of experience developing eLearning courses and training products. It also has a
successful history of working with a wide variety of corporate, higher education, nonprofit, and
government clients.
In this proposal we present a breakdown of typical services and costs for developing an
eLearning course. Our goal is to always develop online trainings and courses that teach learners
the knowledge and skills they need to master in an engaging, interactive manner consistent
with best approaches in adult learning theory.
SCOPE OF PROPOSAL
Based on the RFP requirements, Monarch Media will develop and design all aspects of each
online course. Trainings will cover all topics indicated in the course outlines, and will present
them in an engaging manner that enhances the learning experience for better recall and more
effective results.
To ensure each course accomplishes the City of Fort Collins’ training goals, our instructional
designers will apply the ADDIE methodology (Analysis, Design, Development,
Implementation, and Evaluation) for course development. ADDIE phases include:
• Analysis: Instructional designers gather and analyze data about both the learners and
the training goals;
• Design: We develop course objectives and a learning and instructional strategy;
• Development: We build storyboards and scripts detailing all components of a course
based on content provided by the city and its subject matter experts (SME);
• Implementation: We develop the full online course, including all screens of content,
multimedia elements, assessments, quality assurance testing, and ADA 508 compliance;
• Evaluation: The instructional designers will thoroughly review each course to make sure
it effectively covers all required topics.
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From a technology standpoint, Monarch Media uses custom coding, eLearning authoring
software, and other tools to develop all course screens and assets, including multimedia,
assessments, and interactive exercises. For production, we typically use authoring tools such as
Articulate Storyline, which allows us to output a course in either Flash or mobile device-
friendly HTML5.
Finally, we conduct careful quality assessments of all courses we produce. Our QA team
proofreads all text and tests all links and multimedia elements to ensure they’re working
correctly. We also run a check to make sure the course meets the required level of ADA 508
compliance.
The section below details the deliverables that Monarch Media can provide for completing this
course.
Project Deliverables
Based on the City of Fort Collins’ requirements, deliverables for completing a typical 30-minute
online course include:
1. Instructional Design: Instructional designers will work with city SMEs to develop
storyboards and scripts, and tailor them for online effectiveness. They will develop
specifications for all interactive and multimedia elements to accompany the course. They
will ensure all materials and content for the course are presented in a way to maximize
learning effectiveness and engagement. Monarch Media’s deliverables for this phase are
typically final storyboards and scripts, including interactive components, for the course.
2. Graphic Design and Template Production: Monarch Media’s graphic designers
develop design comps for course screen layout. These templates include any required
city branding elements. City staff will then review and select its preferred design
direction and provide one round of edits to that comp. Monarch Media’s programmers
will then develop course templates to be used for screens throughout the course.
Deliverables for this phase will include:
• Initial design comps
• One edited final design comp
• Three to five course templates based on the final design mockup and elements
(buttons, logos, color schemes, etc.)
Please note: If the city chooses to reuse the same design and templates for multiple
courses, this can lead to significant cost savings for all subsequent courses after the
initial templates are developed.
3. Course Production: Using storyboards and other directions provided by the
instructional designers, Monarch’s developers build all screens and assets for the course,
including interactions and assessments. Interactive elements can include drag-and-drop
activities, fill-in-the-blank exercises, matching problems, and similar activities. If they
provide instructional value, we can also work with the city to produce videos to be
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incorporated into the course. Our deliverables for this phase include all course screens
and assets.
4. Voiceover Narration: Monarch Media’s professional voiceover talent will record all
narration for the course and videos. The narration will be incorporated into the course
and synced with the videos and screen progression.
5. Project Management and Quality Assurance: Managing project schedules, budgets, and
deliverables, as well as coordinating meetings and online project management system.
Providing thorough quality testing of all pages and functionality in the prototype demo.
The final deliverable will be the completed course, ready for posting by the city.
Learning Management Systems (LMS)
Monarch Media has extensive experience preparing courses to be implemented on a variety of
learning management systems (LMS). We frequently develop for some of the most commonly
used LMS in the world, including Moodle, Blackboard, Sakai, Angel, and more.
We have worked for more than 15 years with leading academic publishing clients, such as
Reed-Elsevier and Cengage Learning, whose eLearning courses and products must be
compliant with as broad a range of LMS as possible. We develop to meet common LMS
standards, such as SCORM or AICC compliance.
Our in-depth experience with a wide variety of open-source and commercial LMS will allow us
to make certain any courses we develop for the City of Fort Collins will work with the
Total/Rewards (T/R) LMS and to provide support to city IT staff in implementing the courses
on the system.
Project Team and Assigned Personnel
We believe that a fully integrated and experienced team is, without question, the only
management structure that ensures successful schedule, budget, and quality assurance on
eLearning development projects. Monarch Media’s team of experienced project managers and
technical architects, along with supporting instructional designers, graphic designers, and
developers, gives the City of Fort Collins access to industry professionals with extensive
experience in the creation and delivery of best-of-class online courses.
In all that we do, we strive to achieve consensus every step of the way so that each member of
the team moves forward together toward the final solution. From meeting facilitation,
requirements gathering, status updates, conducting analysis, developing documentation, and
technical course development, our goal is to ensure alignment.
Monarch Media fully understands the benefits of establishing a management structure that
promotes integration of all stakeholders. We identify a single point of contact for the City of
Fort Collins, and this point of contact is our team’s project manager (PM). The PM will direct,
plan, organize, control and manage the program to ensure that all contractual obligations are
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fulfilled in an efficient and timely manner. Further, the PM will coordinate with city staff to
arrange meetings and interactions with Monarch Media’s project team members. This
management structure provides the city with assurance that the project team will respond in an
orderly and timely fashion.
Team meetings are held at a minimum of once every two weeks to discuss the project. Meetings
are used to discuss the project schedule, client approval status, task delegation, quality control,
production scheduling and to resolve any outstanding issues. These meetings are held via
conference call or a Web meeting service. The costs of hosting conference calls and Web
meetings are included in the services provided by Monarch Media.
Our dedicated quality control team carefully and comprehensively checks every project
Monarch Media completes. These individuals ensure that the eLearning course is complete, free
of bugs or broken links, and that all text has been proofread for spelling and grammar errors.
They ensure that the final course is of the highest quality before we release it to the client.
Staff
Nicki Nelson, Senior Project Manager
Areas of Specialization: Project management, Learning Management Systems, ADA Section 508
Compliance, Solution Architecting
Professional Experience
Nicki has been a project and account manager for more than six years, managing eLearning and
training projects for a variety of clients. She has in-depth expertise in educational technologies,
such as learning management systems, and has led projects developing multi-module
interactive training programs for clients such as Elsevier, the State of Iowa, and the California
State University system. Nicki has extensive experience conducting project analysis, designing
learning products, and implementing training solutions. She has developed a variety of online
courses covering topics such as leadership development and public health education. She has
experience leading project teams, managing deliverables, and overseeing client
communications. Nicki also has an in-depth understanding of human resources and
employment law, as she worked as an employment law attorney for 10 years for the firm Paul,
Hastings, Janofsky & Walker.
Employers
Monarch Media, Inc., 2009-present
Scott Design, Inc., 2003-2009
Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker, 1989-1999
Education and Certificates
J.D. from the University of Texas School of Law, 1989
B.A. from the University of Texas, Austin, 1985
A.D. in Digital Publishing from Cabrillo College, Aptos, CA, 2004
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Nandu Madimchetty, Senior Programmer/LMS Platform Manager
Areas of Specialization: eLearning, Applications Architecting
Professional Experience
Nandu has worked for Monarch Media for more than 12 years and has significant experience in
software development and implementation both on the Web and with complex databases.
Working with open-source programming and open-source applications for 12 years, he has lead
programming teams in 25+ learning content management system (LCMS) implementations,
including Sakai and Moodle.
Education and Other Skills
B.Tech from Pondicherry Engineering College, Pondicherry, India, 1997
Anne Woods, Graphic Designer
Areas of Specialization: Project Management, Web Programming, Graphic Design
Professional Experience
Monarch Media, Inc., Project Manager/Developer, Santa Cruz, CA, 2007 - present
Managed eLearning and Web projects including site design, template programming, and
content population.
California State University, Office of the Chancellor, Assistant Webmaster, 2007
Contributed to projects within the Center for Distributed Learning department creating web
graphics, producing websites, and maintaining sites with Dreamweaver and WebGUI.
PBHS, Inc., Web Developer, 2004 - 2007
Web production using Dreamweaver and Photoshop. Responsibilities included producing web
templates based on designer’s mock-ups, building sites using HTML and CSS, optimizing sites
for search engines, managing pay-per-click campaigns and client management.
NASA Ames, Web Production Assistant, 2002
Designed title graphics for the monthly feature story on the supercomputing division’s public
website and created an interactive online calendar for the project team. Designed and produced
a website for use within the division. Created an online catalogue that allowed users to search a
database for keyword matches or to sort all entries by title or year.
Education and Other Skills
B.A. in Art Studio, University of California, Davis, CA, 1987
B.A. in Art Studio
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Background Information
Prime Offeror
Corporate Contact Monarch Media, Inc.
406 Mission St., Ste. J
Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Tel: 831-457-4414
Fax: 831-457-4414
Email: info@monarchmedia.com
Business Status
Founded in 1997, Monarch Media, Inc. is a California S Corporation with small-business and
green-business certifications.
Federal tax I.D. number 77-0467423
Number of employees: 15
Number of regular contractors: 10
Points of Contact
Contractual POC Chris Bush
CEO
406 Mission St., Ste. J
Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Tel: 831-457-4414
Fax: 831-457-4414
Email: chris@monarchmedia.com
Senior Project
Manager
Nicki Nelson
Project Manager
406 Mission St., Ste. J
Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Tel: 831-457-4414
Fax: 831-457-4414
Email: nicki@monarchmedia.com
Accounting Firm for Monarch Media, Inc.
Accounting Chiorini Hunt and Jacobs
901 Center St.
Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Tel: 831-423-3883
Fax: 831-423-3601
Email: David Jacobs, david@chj.com
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Experience
With 15 years in the eLearning business, Monarch Media offers the following levels of technical
expertise:
• Fifteen years of experience developing eLearning courses and online training materials
• Eleven years of experience implementing and customizing learning management
systems and providing hosting services through our partnerships with Pair Networks
and EAPPS
• Fourteen years of experience in database and dynamic Web application development
• Fifteen years of experience in website and portal development
• Member of the eLearning Guild and the American Society of Training & Development
Our team includes individuals with degrees and work experience in the areas of:
• Course authoring
• Web programming
• LMS customization and implementation
• Training & instructional design
• Multimedia programming
• Applications & solution development
• eLearning & support services
Programming languages and technologies we regularly use in developing solutions include:
• Coding, Scripting and Programming Languages: HTML/XHTML, XML, XSLT Suite,
CSS, JavaScript, PHP, MySQL, jQuery, PERL, JAVA, C, C++
• Learning Management Systems (LMS) and Content Management Systems: (CMS)
Sakai, Moodle, Joomla, Drupal, Angel, Blackboard, WebCT, WordPress
• Multimedia Programming: Flash and HTML5
• eLearning Software Tools: Articulate Presenter, Quizmaker, and Engage; Adobe
Captivate; Articulate Storyline
• Graphic Design: PhotoShop, Illustrator, InDesign, Flash
• eCommerce: OSCommerce, PayPal , 1shoppingcart
Availability and Motivation
Monarch Media’s team is solely focused on eLearning design and development. We offer
immediate and long-term availability to undertake projects for the City of Fort Collins. Our
clients turn to us time and again because we have the expertise and a team structure that allows
us to scale up or down depending on a projects size and requirements.
We take pride in our team structure and our capabilities in creating courses quickly and
providing fast turnaround. At the beginning of each project, we will work with the city to
develop a project plan and schedule that details all milestones and tasks that must be completed
to successfully launch the course on schedule.
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Methodology and Approach
Monarch Media brings a current, relevant, and innovative approach to eLearning design, which
translates into meaningful and engaging experiences for learners. Our project leaders leverage
best practices from both the
instructional design and software
development fields.
Our ultimate focus is always on
building solutions that help
organizations achieve their training
and educational goals while engaging learners. We listen…a lot. By using our individualized
approach to accurately diagnose needs and opportunities, we combine technology, instructional
design, and eLearning best practices to ensure your solution will be effective and align with
your needs and objectives.
Similar Projects
The following examples show projects that Monarch Media has completed within the last three
years. In each, Monarch Media worked with client subject matter experts to develop one or
more complete eLearning courses or trainings.
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State of Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division (ABD)
Description: Monarch Media developed this online training program that provides Iowa
tobacco vendors with mandatory compliance training in legal requirements and best practices
involved in preventing tobacco sales to minors.
To take the training, visit http://ipocp.iowaabd.com:8080/portal.
Reference
Tonya Dusold, Director of Communications
1918 SE Hulsizer Road
Ankeny IA 50021
Phone: (515) 281-7420
Email: Dusold@Iowaabd.com
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PEPNet—Access: The Fundamentals
Description: Monarch Media has developed a number of eLearning courses for PEPNet, a
leading provider of training services for post-secondary staff and faculty who work with deaf
and hard of hearing students. The trainings include video, assessments, interactive activities,
communities of practice, and more. PEPNet is funded by the U.S. Department of Education.
To take one of these trainings, Access: The Fundamentals, visit http://www.pepnet.org/e-
learning/access.
Reference
Project Contact: Marcia Kolvitz
Phone: 317-997-4273
Email: mkolvitz@utk.edu
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University of Tennessee Extension: Department of Family and Consumer Sciences
Description: Monarch Media developed two online courses for The University of Tennessee
Extension Department of Family and Consumer Sciences. The first course focuses on training
parents who are going through a divorce how to manage their finances. The second is a training
course for childcare educators.
To view a sample of the project, please visit:
http://qs1252.pair.com/monarchm/UT/articulate/200411
Reference:
Contact: Denise Brandon
UT Extension Family and Consumer Sciences
Phone: (865) 974-7193
Email: dbrandon@utk.edu
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California State University—Employee Safety Training Program
Monarch Media created this interactive training for California State University’s mandatory
Injury and Illness Prevention Program (IIPP). The instructional design encourages employees to
explore all the components of the program and to learn what role they have in creating and
maintaining a safe working environment.
Our goal was to make this compliance training very interactive. This training includes dozens of
interactions, including activities and reflective quiz questions. The training was developed in
Articulate using Presenter, Engage, and Quizmaker.
Take the training at http://qs1252.pair.com/monarchm/CSU/articulate/100407/
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COST ESTIMATE
Our costs for developing an eLearning course are typically driven by the following elements:
• Length of course (e.g. 30 minutes)
• Level of interactivity required that allows learners to meet course objectives. We
typically develop courses to one of three levels of interactivity:
Level Definition
Level 1: (Basic) Content pages, text, graphics, perhaps simple audio, test
questions. Basic pages with assessment.
Level 2 (Interactive) Level 1 plus 25% (or more) interactive exercises,
intermediate use of multimedia (audio, short video clips,
animations).
Level 3 (Advanced) Highly interactive, custom interactions, possibly
including simulations, advanced videos, or interactive
scenarios
• Technical and compliance requirements
Based on our understanding of the requirements listed in the RFP, the cost estimate below is
based on the following assumptions:
• The initial course will be 30 minutes in length and will likely require Level 2 interactivity
(based on the course outline provided in RFP Addendum 2).
• The initial course will require the development of a graphic design and template for the
course. Future courses that can repurpose the branding, design, and template used in
the first course may not require additional design costs.
• Video production for any video required will be produced by the city’s CPIO – Cable 14
division based on scripts provided by Monarch Media. Alternately, Monarch Media will
use existing video clips from the city’s archive.
• The course will be SCORM 1.2 compliant
• Monarch Media will provide documentation and support to help city technical staff
implement the course on the T/R LMS.
Based on these assumptions, we are please to provide a price quote for producing the first
course for the City of Fort Collins in the table below:
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\
Rates
To help the City of Fort Collins evaluate prospective costs for developing courses after the
initial one, the following lists the typical percentage costs for each element required to develop
a Level 2 Interactive course for government and nonprofit clients:
• Instructional Design: 25%
• Course Production: 20%
• Voiceover Narration: 5%
• Project Management: 20%
• LMS Implementation: 10%
• Graphic Design: 15%
Please note that video production costs can vary widely, so courses with video in them
may be more expensive than other types of multimedia and interactivity.
DELIVERABLE COST
Instructional
Design
• Design
interactive
elements
and
assessments
• Complete
final
draft
of
storyboards
and
scripts
Graphic
Design
&
Template
Programming $3,550
• Create
two
different
design
comps
for
a
course
screen
template
• Based
on
feedback,
complete
one
round
of
edits
to
one
design
comp
• • Develop Provide
graphic
course
screen
design
template
support
for
based
screen
on
final
production
design
comp
Course
Production $
3,175
• Produce
all
course
screens
based
on
storyboards
and
instructions
• Program
interactive
elements
and
exercises
• Incorporate
multimedia
elements
into
the
course
(voiceover,
video
clips,
etc.)
• Output
course
to
be
SCORM
1.2
compliant
Project
Management
and
QA $
3,500
• Manage
project
schedules
and
budgets
• Client
meetings
and
communications
• Testing
and
quality
assurance
• Managing
reviews
and
final
deliverables
Voiceover
Narration $
3,000
• Record
professional
voiceover
narration
of
script
• Incorporate
and
sync
voiceover
into
the
course
LMS
Implementation
Support $750
• Develop
LMS
implementation
documentation
• Provide
implementation
support
to
city
IT
staff
Total $$825 14,625