Mastering the Recreation Software RFP

Your community expects convenient, efficient, and responsive services.

Yet, over the years your team has band-aided 34 different workarounds because your recreation software is outdated, expensive, and doesn’t function as you were promised.

Sound familiar?

Well, it’s time to mobilize your team and update the central technology provider for your department.

A practical guide to drafting a Recreation Software RFP

Why Consider an RFP for Recreation Software?

• Enhanced User Experience: Imagine a system where your community members can effortlessly view availability of your rental facilities, enroll in summer camps, or ask for a refund - all from their phones.

• Streamlined Operations: Turn on your Musco field lights with the click of a button. Market your services to different neighborhoods based on past scholarship applications. Download drop-in usage for Jazzercise over the last 30 days.

• Data-Driven Decision Making: With real-time data and analytics at your fingertips, you can make pull a report to answer a question from a councilmember in 5 minutes instead of 5 days.

Key Considerations Before Releasing your RFP

Assess Your Current and Future Needs: Pinpoint the gaps in your current system and envision your department's future requirements.

• Are you selling activities, memberships, and managing drop-ins?

• Are you booking facilities for special events, weddings, or the local Rotary group?

• Do you issue permits, receipts, and send email blasts to thousands of community members?

• In an ideal world, and you could click a button, what would you want?

Integration and Compatibility: Your new software needs to integrate with your existing systems. With modern day API’s, this isn’t so far-fetched as it used to be.

• Consider functionalities and integrations with existing systems (because that’s what every parks professional loves doing, integrating and learning the 14 different systems we use for council workflow, timecards, HR, finance, budgeting, etc. 😉

User-Friendly Design: Accessibility is key. Both your staff and the public should find the software intuitive and easy to navigate.

• The software should be fully functional and easy to use on various mobile devices, catering to users on the go.

• The product should utilize a visually appealing and uncluttered layout to enhance user engagement and reduce learning curves.

• Offer multiple language options to cater to diverse community demographics.

• Ensure compliance with ADA standards to make the software accessible to people with disabilities.

Cost-Effectiveness: Budget wisely. Consider not just the purchase cost but also the long-term value.

• Evaluate if the software can grow with your department's needs, avoiding future replacement costs.

• Factor in ongoing expenses for software maintenance, updates, and customer support.

• Assess potential savings in time and resources the software could bring, leading to indirect cost benefits.

Vendor Reliability: Hot take. The current providers who are bidding on Recreation Software RFPs will NOT be able to hit every checkbox on your wishlist.

• Understand that no single provider may meet every one of your functional or technical requirements. Prioritize your needs to identify non-negotiable features versus desirable ones.

• Look into the vendor's history with similar projects and ask for references from other departments who serve similar population sizes or feature sets you want.

• Evaluate the level and availability of customer support after the software is implemented. Ask them about their Service Level Agreements (SLA’s) during the RFP process.

Security and Compliance: Ensure the protection of your data and adherence to regulatory standards.

• Full transparency. We are not security and compliance experts. Ask your IT department for help here.

Understanding Your Needs

Start by thoroughly assessing your department's specific needs.

You're likely using an outdated system, but is it worth the time, money, and focus of several team members to implement new software?

In our experience, in order to successfully implement a new recreation software will take ~5-6 months. Anything less is a not conducive to a successful outcome.

Learning from Others

Reviewing RFPs from other cities reveal the importance of a comprehensive approach.

Visit Parks & Recipes to view an entire category dedicated to software reviews for parks and recreation professionals, to understand the technology providers, currently bidding on recreation software RFPs around the country.

Crafting Your RFP

1. Detailed Pricing Matrix: Include a clear pricing proposal to evaluate vendors based on solution capability, vendor experience, and cost.

2. Integration Needs: Clearly outline the need for seamless integration with existing financial and operational systems.

3. Implementation Timeline: Provide a clear timeline from RFP launch to bid submittal, typically spanning several weeks to a few months.

Engaging Vendors

Encourage potential vendors to present solutions to YOUR specific problems.

We’ve analyzed dozens of current RFP’s and the vendors below are the top-5 players in Q1 2024:

• Active Network, LLC

• Amilia Technologies

• CivicPlus

• RecDesk, LLC

• Xplor Recreation

Final Thoughts

Crafting an RFP for recreation management software is a significant but manageable task. By learning from other cities and clearly outlining your department's needs, you can pave the way for a successful digital transformation in your Parks and Recreation Department.