Information Services

SPI's Information Services (IS) team of analysts and advisors continually monitor governmental entities to uncover business opportunities. The team analyzes data from strategic and operational planning documents to budgets and appropriations requests. The team focuses on uncovering current and future business opportunities as well as providing customized research that gives clients the competitive advantage they need to increase their chances of success.

Information Services supports clients in a variety of ways, but the most prominent tools are:

Future Opportunity Analysis - notification of new opportunities as they are discovered and updates to opportunities as new information becomes available
Bid Monitoring - timely notification of current procurement opportunities for over 500 state agencies, institutions of higher education, cities, counties, school districts, airports, and ports
Customized Research - specific intelligence on entities, opportunities, markets, trends, products, and competitors

In addition to its team of experts, Information Services credits its success to an Opportunity Model that incorporates vendors' needs for advanced notification of opportunities and SPI's databases that contain years of analytical research, data and insight. This model outlines processes that allows information to flow to and from IS to clients in a timely and convenient manner.

All clients have a unique profile specific to their markets and industries of interest that filters information on each project so that account teams and clients only receive information on relevant projects.

The model complements SPI's other divisions by providing background information and data to reinforce strategy development by account teams. For clients whose relationships with SPI do not include consultation or strategic planning, the model facilitates electronic notification by IS of qualified opportunities.

To further enhance knowledge of the marketplace or specific projects, SPI responds to requests from clients. The requests cover a wide range of industries and entities and differ in scope from client to client. Some common requests for information involve:

Funding sources
Incumbents and possible competitors for a project
Awarded vendor(s)
Preferred vendors for a project or a state agency
Full-Time Equivalents (FTE)
Top 100 school districts ranked by student enrollment
Historical spending data for a state agency
Competitive intelligence
Bios for executives/decision-makers
Procurement processes, guidelines, laws
Specific hardware (models) used by state agencies

In addition to ad hoc research requests, Information Services provides clients with services including, but not limited to:

Notice of qualified opportunities before they are public announced (with regular updates!)
Access to databases of expenditures and inventories of state agencies
Insight into trends and spending patterns of governmental entities
Timely notification of current bids, requests for qualifications, procurements, and addenda that meet client's specific criteria
Analysis of state legislation and attention to legislative hearings/meetings
Monitoring of political/societal events, media publications, and special interest groups/associations
For state agencies, analyses of Appropriations Bills, Agency Operating Budgets, Information Technology details, Legislative Appropriations Requests, Strategic Plans, and other sources
For local governments, analyses of Annual Budgets, Strategic Plans, Bond elections, Resolutions/Rulings of County Commissioners Courts and City Councils, Capital Improvement Projects/Plans, and other sources

By utilizing Information Services, clients:

Stay ahead of the sales process and recognize government needs and problems early
Spend less time searching for opportunities and more time developing relationships and closing new business
Obtain detailed information on public sector opportunities to qualify projects and allocate resources
Attain expenditure and contract data for state agencies to evaluate competitors and/or teaming partners
Optimize resources by using a single source for procurement information
Acquire tools necessary to explore new business in the public sector market

Information Services is constantly expanding its capabilities and providing new services. For additional information, contact us.