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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2023-4157Contract #2023-4157 1 Joseph Kloiber From:Jean McGann <jean.mcgann@abdofs.com> Sent:Tuesday, April 18, 2023 1:50 PM To:Joseph Kloiber; Brenda Davitt Subject:Re: City of Columbia Heights (Abdo FS) Proposal This message originated from outside the City of Columbia Heights email system.Use caution when clicking hyperlinks, downloading pictures or opening attachments. If necessary, contact sender by phone.WHEN IN DOUBT, THROW IT OUT! Thank you! I appreciate the information. This is acceptable to Abdo. We are looking forward to working with you. Regards, Jean Get Outlook for iOS From: Joseph Kloiber <JKloiber@columbiaheightsmn.gov> Sent: Tuesday, April 18, 2023 1:30:28 PM To: Brenda Davitt <brenda.davitt@abdofs.com> Cc: Jean McGann <jean.mcgann@abdofs.com> Subject: RE: City of Columbia Heights (Abdo FS) Proposal Brenda or Jean: The proposal looks good. One point to clarify before I click the e-sign button. Under item 3 of the Articles of Agreement and Recitals it states,“ The Contractor shall be the exclusive outsourced accounting services provider during the term of this agreement.” That is correct with respect to the (payroll) accounting services the Client requests from the Contractor. However, as I mentioned in my initial email, the Assistant Finance Director position is currently turning over also. I may not have previously mentioned that to address that turnover we have contracted with the City’s current independent auditor (Redpath) to perform limited non-audit services including assistance with drafting the 2022 ACFR and the related annual filing with MN OSA, etc. These non-audit services from Redpath are expected to finish by June 30th , 2023, concurrent with their annual audit fieldwork. The City doesn’t expect any crossover between the services provided under the two separate agreements. None of the services from Redpath involve payroll for any period or any type of 2023 activity for that matter. Please let me know if this is acceptable to Abdo FS, and I will I click the e-sign button on the proposal. Appreciatively, Joseph Kloiber CPA | Finance Director City of Columbia Heights | Finance Division 590 40th Avenue NE | Columbia Heights, MN 55421 jkloiber@columbiaheightsmn.gov Direct: 763-706-3627 | Main: 763-706-3600 CITY COUNCIL MEETING AGENDA SECTION CONSENT AGENDA MEETING DATE APRIL 24, 2023 ITEM: Award Contract to Abdo Financial Solutions For Approximately Four Months of Payroll Services DEPARTMENT: Finance BY/DATE:Joseph Kloiber, Finance Director/April 19, 2023 CITY STRATEGY:(please indicate areas that apply by adding a bold “X” in front of the selected text below) _ Safe Community _ Diverse, Welcoming “Small-Town” Feel X Economic Strength _Excellent Housing/Neighborhoods _Equity and Affordability _ Strong Infrastructure/Public Services _ Opportunities for Play and Learning _Engaged, Multi-Generational, Multi-Cultural Population BACKGROUND: The City Finance department is currently undergoing staff turnover in two key positions. These are the Payroll/Financial Analyst, which has primary responsibility for preparation of the City’s biweekly payroll for all City employees; and the Assistant Finance Director, which provides the majority of the back-up coverage for payroll processing, in addition to providing many of the highest level accounting and managerial functions of the Finance department. Remaining staff in the department have training in only a limited number of payroll process steps. The department has conducted interviews and is pursuing a conditional offer with an experienced candidate to fill the vacancy for Assistant Finance Director as soon as practical. In consultation with the City Manager and the Human Resources Director, the Finance Director recommends temporarily contracting for payroll preparation services to stabilize this staffing transition, particularly with the impending relocation of City Hall adding to the challenge. By utilizing contract services to prepare payroll for approximately four months, the department can devote attention to appropriately onboarding the new hire for the Assistant Finance Director to make them successful faster, and then turn its attention to permanently filling the payroll vacancy, all while maintaining a relative degree of stability in daily operations. Moreover, this time frame would allow the contractor to provide much of the initial training of the permanent Payroll/Financial Analyst after they are hired. As provided for in the City’s Purchasing Policy, given the emergency need for these temporary contract services, staff did not seek proposals from alternate vendors. The vendor was selected based on their timely response and staff’s knowledge of both the industry and the vendor. Specifically, there are approximately five accounting firms that serve the majority of the small to mid-size governments in Minnesota. Of these five firms, Abdo’s clients include a preponderance of the small cities that lie just outside the metro area. These cities often have too few finance staff to manage staff turnover in- house. As a consequence of this, Abdo has developed (in the Finance Director’s opinion) a well-recognized reputation within local government for providing contract staff with a solid knowledge of the financial practices unique to Minnesota local government. In this particular case for example, that would include City of Columbia Heights - Council Letter Page 2 experience with the aspects of police and fire payroll, the public employees’ retirement association (PERA), that a generalist temp worker would not have. Various Abdo staff also have experience with the same software system used by the City. Of course, obtaining this level of service on short notice comes at a premium. The contract is expected to cost $12,000 to $14,000 per month. To the extent this exceeds the savings from the staff vacancies within the Finance Department 2023 budget, the balance of the contract is expected to be covered by the portion of the 2023 General Fund budget reserved for such contingencies. RECOMMENDED MOTION(S): Move to authorize staff to enter into an agreement with Abdo Financial Solutions for payroll preparation services at the terms listed in the agenda packet. ATTACHMENT(S):Service Proposal From Abdo Financial Solutions LLC