Request for Proposals: RRC Project Lead
Project Name: Rapid Response Cooperative Project Lead
RFP Issue Date: June 21, 2021
Response Due Date: July 21, 2021
The Democracy at Work Institute (DAWI) seeks to contract with an independent, self-directed qualified organization or person to lead project management for our Rapid Response Cooperative Project.
About DAWI
DAWI is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit movement-based think-and-do tank that expands the promise of cooperative business ownership to communities most directly affected by economic, social, and racial inequality. Our core work is supporting the expansion of democratic employee ownership of business as a strategy for racial, gender and economic equity. We do research and advocacy; we develop tools and new models; we train worker-owners and developers; and we convene communities of practice to ensure that further growth in the worker cooperative movement reaches low-income people, BIPOC communities and recent immigrants. We are affiliated with the US Federation of Worker Cooperatives, the national grassroots membership organization.
Project Overview
DAWI’s Rapid Response Cooperative (RRC) Development Initiative creates replicable, out-of-the-box worker-owned businesses that provide a pathway to work for people with barriers to employment. DAWI partners with organizations to develop cooperatives for their constituents who seek to work as consultants through an LLC cooperative entity. This professional staffing agency, named “Radiate Consulting Cooperative,” creates a vehicle for talented professionals to find steady work in the field of their choice, to market their services, negotiate contracts, and access back-office services. DAWI has developed and vetted the intellectual property and processes to create multiple RRCs around the country. We are currently replicating this model with several different partners across the country, including community-based organizations, educational institutions and city governments.
This role ensures that the RRC model expands to various partners and regions in an effort to scale and replicate widely. The Project Lead will lead the RRC team, and collaborate with our institutional partners, to assure that we work towards our campaign goals and vision, particularly focused on the activities and outcomes of the CA SEED grant. DAWI is a high-functioning organization with close-knit staff and contractors who are driven by our values, and we want to work with a skilled and reliable colleague.
The RRC Project Lead oversees the CA SEED Rapid Response Cooperative (RRC) Development Project, a yearlong, $1m, 6-organization state grant, the Social Entrepreneurs for Economic Development (SEED) Initiative, to pilot a common cooperative model for low-wage workers in Southern California.
Scope of Work
Anticipated project period: July 30, 2021 - June 30, 2022
Anticipated project budget: $78,000 - $96,000
Anticipated activities:
- Project management, including partner, consultant and subcontractor management for DAWI’s RRC project with a special focus on the CA SEED RRC project
- Technical assistance to cooperative developers and startup cooperative businesses
- Training, professional development, mentoring and coaching for cooperative developers and member
- Team and organizational coordination with DAWI
Milestones and deliverables:
- Written project plan for RRC project, including:
- Development/launch calendar
- Partner management plan
- Training calendar and curriculum
- Member-administrator coaching plan
- Written project plan for CA SEED RRC project, including:
- Project design implementation plan
- Partner management plan
- Project tracking and assessment plan
- Technical assistance and training plan
- Data and metrics analysis plan
- Budgeting and financial management support plan for each cooperative in development
- Meeting agendas for all project meetings
- Monthly progress reports and final end-of-project report
Proposal
Interested parties should submit a proposal and letter of interest including:
- Statement of Qualifications, including relevant experience and demonstrated competence in the required areas
- If an organization, names, location and role of assigned staff, including a short bio and resumes of staff that will be allocated to the project. If an individual, resume, including description of work experience and formal training and two references.
- Statement of Work: Clearly written, brief proposal describing the proposer’s understanding of and plan to address the work described in the Scope section of this document, including key project milestones and deliverables.
- Budget, including proposed hours and rate.
Proposal Submission Instructions
Organizations and individuals that meet the qualifications outlined in this document should submit their documents electronically in a single PDF by emailing them to the address below.
Project Name: RRC Project Lead
RFP Issue Date: June 21, 2021
Response Due Date: July 21, 2021
Submission Email Address: hiring [at] institute.coop
Submission Email Title: “RRC Project Lead”
Notice of Nondiscrimination
Democracy at Work Institute (DAWI) is committed to a multi-racial and class-diverse staff that reflects the future of worker cooperatives. We are an anti-racist organization that centers racial equity in our values, programs, and vision. Women, people of color and others who may be underrepresented at senior levels of the nonprofit workforce are strongly encouraged to apply. DAWI is committed to equal opportunity for all persons without regard to sex, age, race, color, religion, creed, national origin, marital status, disability, or sexual orientation, and any other class of individuals protected from discrimination under state or federal law. It is the policy of DAWI to comply with all federal, state, and local laws and regulations regarding equal opportunity. In keeping with that policy, DAWI is committed to maintaining a work environment that is free of unlawful discrimination and harassment. Accordingly, DAWI will not tolerate unlawful discrimination against or harassment of any of our employees or others present at our facilities by anyone, including any supervisor, coworker, vendor, client, or customer of DAWI.