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State Courts Seeking Vendor for Managed Services

The Judicial Council of California has issued a request for proposals for the shift. Vendors’ questions about the project are due by April 3, and the deadline for proposals is April 25.

A person in a business suit reaching out to touch the words "managed services" with symbols hovering beneath them in a circle, including an unlocked lock, a wrench, a female figure, gear wheels, a magnifying glass and a male figure.
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The Judicial Council of California (JCC), the policymaking body of the nation’s largest court system, put out a call to vendors Monday for a managed services provider.

In a broad request for proposals (RFP) published Monday, JCC seeks IT “operational managed services support to address the evolving IT needs” of the council, whose IT office “coordinates court technology initiatives statewide and supports coordination throughout the Judicial Branch; manages centralized statewide technology projects; and optimizes the scope and accessibility of accurate statewide judicial information.”

JCC has relied on the California Courts Technology Center (CCTC) for hosting its enterprise technology since the center was established in 2003. Until recently, the tech center included a “legacy, two-facility data center model.” JCC is in the midst of migrating the legacy data center’s hosting and support services to “next-generation cloud-hosted platforms,” which the RFP says will provide “flexibility, scalability, expedited delivery and future cost savings.” The contract would be for three years, from roughly June 26 through June 25, 2026, with options to renew for three additional one-year terms. The RFP does not include a cost estimate.

In the RFP’s scope of work, JCC cites three main areas:
  • Data Center Operational Services: The vendor would “deploy and manage the data center infrastructure (e.g., data center environment, data center LAN) and third-party services and related connectivity required to support the computing environment and to provide the Judicial Council infrastructure monitoring, reporting and support,” the RFP says. JCC’s environment, according to the RFP overview, encompasses “a hybrid combination of on-premises and cloud-based, Windows and Linux-based systems, associated data storage and backup services, supporting systems software (e.g., operating systems, utilities, middleware) and supporting system interfaces at both a court and enterprise level via middleware of direct system interfaces.”
  • Data Network Management Services: The RFP notes that the Data Network Management Services team “supports the network and network-based security lifecycle, including the phases of strategy, design, transition, operation, and improvement.” The vendor “should address the design, maintenance, and distribution of Judicial Council’s standard, secure network environment to all authorized users by leveraging the current Judicial Council infrastructure and applying ITIL-based processes,” the RFP says. “This approach offers a solution that is responsive to the user and that encompasses all equipment, including routers, switches, circuits, and security devices.” This includes management of network, security services, identity management, and service delivery.
  • IT Service Management: JCC seeks project management services including the areas of project management services (IT life cycle, operations, and administrative services), services support (Incident, Problem, Configuration, and Change Management), and service delivery management (serve as the main point of contact for all matters relating to day-to-day service delivery, including ongoing services, supply/demand alignment, and performance management).

For all three areas, JCC notes: “JCC has invested in the adoption of a ServiceNow CRM tool which is the system of record for the JCIT systems and assets. ServiceNow is the primary tool used by all Judicial Council IT to provide daily operational support. This toolset drives consistency and reinforces global processes among the teams. ServiceNow provides the functionality and business rules necessary to comply with ITIL best practices.”

Vendors must send any questions about this RFP to the Judicial Council of California Solicitation Mailbox at solicitations@jud.ca.gov before 1 p.m. April 3. RFP submissions are due by 1 p.m. April 25.

The shift to managed services is being led by JCC’s chief information officer, Heather Pettit, who was featured in an Industry Insider — California “One-on-One” interview in March 2021. JCC’s IT Strategic Plan, covering 2023-2026, was published in September.
Dennis Noone is Executive Editor of Industry Insider. He is a career journalist, having worked at small-town newspapers and major metropolitan dailies including USA Today in Washington, D.C.