Mountain Plains Community Development Corporation (MPCDC) is seeking proposals from qualified consultants or firms to provide Salesforce training and technical assistance services for certified and emerging Native Community Development Financial Institutions (Native CDFIs).
The purpose of this engagement is to strengthen participating Native CDFIs’ ability to effectively use Salesforce as an organizational tool for data management, program administration, customer and borrower relationship management, reporting, and other operational functions.
Participating organizations may have varying levels of Salesforce experience, internal capacity, organizational size, and system maturity. Some organizations may already actively use Salesforce but need assistance improving staff knowledge, workflows, reporting, or system utilization. Others may be newer to Salesforce or need foundational assistance understanding how the platform can support their operations.
The selected consultant will provide practical, accessible training designed around the operational realities of Native CDFIs. Training should emphasize building the knowledge and confidence of participating organizations so that staff can independently manage and effectively use their Salesforce environments after the engagement concludes.
MPCDC anticipates that services will combine group-based education with opportunities for organization-specific technical assistance.
Proposal Deadline: October 3, 2026 / Please direct proposals and inquiries to: admin@mountainplainscdc.org
Background
MPCDC works to strengthen the capacity and economic health of Native communities through capacity building, access to resources, technical assistance, and strategic support for Native CDFIs and other Native-serving organizations.
Native CDFIs operate complex lending, development, and community-based programs and frequently manage information across lending platforms, spreadsheets, customer relationship management systems, grant reporting systems, and other technology.
Salesforce can provide organizations with significant opportunities to improve data management, reporting, workflow coordination, stakeholder engagement, and organizational decision-making. However, organizations often require specialized training and technical assistance to ensure that Salesforce is configured and utilized in ways that are appropriate for their programs, staffing levels, and operational needs.
Through this RFP, MPCDC seeks a partner capable of providing Salesforce education and technical assistance that recognizes these differences and helps participating Native CDFIs build sustainable internal capacity.
Who May Respond
Qualified individual consultants, consulting firms, nonprofit organizations, or other entities with demonstrated expertise in Salesforce training, administration, implementation, or technical assistance may respond.
Priority will be given to applicants demonstrating:
Experience working with federally grant-funded programs is preferred.
Scope of Work
The selected consultant will work with MPCDC and participating Native CDFIs to develop and deliver a structured Salesforce training and technical assistance program.
The consultant’s proposed approach should accommodate organizations ranging from emerging Native CDFIs and newer Salesforce users to established organizations seeking to improve their use of existing Salesforce systems.
At minimum, the engagement should address the following areas.
The consultant will work with MPCDC to develop a process for assessing participating organizations’ current Salesforce environments, staff knowledge, organizational needs, and priorities.
The assessment should help identify:
The assessment should be appropriately scaled so that organizations can participate without an excessive administrative burden.
Provide accessible training that establishes or reinforces participants’ understanding of Salesforce and its core functions.
Training may include, as appropriate:
Training should distinguish between skills needed by general users and skills needed by staff responsible for Salesforce administration.
Training should demonstrate how Salesforce may be used to support common Native CDFI functions.
Examples may include:
The consultant should recognize that Salesforce may complement rather than replace organizations’ existing loan-management, accounting, or other specialized systems.
Provide training that helps participating organizations move beyond basic data entry and use Salesforce information for organizational decision-making.
Training should address:
Where practical, examples should reflect metrics and reporting needs relevant to Native CDFIs.
Provide participating organizations with guidance on maintaining their Salesforce environments following the engagement.
Topics may include:
The objective should be to increase organizational self-sufficiency rather than create long-term dependence on outside consultants for routine Salesforce administration.
The proposed engagement should include opportunities for participating Native CDFIs to receive individualized technical assistance.
Technical assistance may address organization-specific questions, workflows, reports, dashboards, data structures, administrative challenges, or other Salesforce needs identified during the engagement.
Proposers should clearly identify the number or range of individualized technical assistance hours included in their proposed budget and explain how those hours will be allocated among participating organizations.
The consultant should provide reusable materials that participating organizations can reference after the engagement.
Resources may include:
MPCDC prefers resources that can continue to support participating Native CDFIs following completion of the contract.
Training Approach
MPCDC anticipates that training will primarily be delivered virtually to allow participation from organizations located throughout the region.
Proposers are encouraged to recommend an instructional structure that balances comprehensive training with the operational demands placed on Native CDFI staff.
Training should:
Proposers may recommend cohort-based training, office hours, individualized technical assistance, administrator-focused sessions, recorded modules, or other approaches that support these objectives.
Deliverables
The selected consultant will be expected to provide, at minimum:
Proposers may recommend additional deliverables based on their experience.
Instructions for Proposals
1. Closing Submission Date
Proposals must be received by October 3, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. MT.
2. Proposal Format
Proposals should be concise and provide sufficient information for MPCDC to evaluate the proposer’s qualifications, approach, scope, and pricing.
3. Pricing
Proposals shall clearly outline the pricing model, payment terms, and total proposed cost. Pricing should include a not-to-exceed total fee for the proposed scope of work.
Any anticipated out-of-pocket expenses should be separately identified. If travel is proposed, estimated travel expenses must be clearly identified and justified.
4. Inquiries
Questions regarding this RFP should be directed to:
admin@mountainplainscdc.org
5. Submission
Proposals must be submitted electronically as a PDF to:
admin@mountainplainscdc.org
Required Proposal Content
At minimum, proposals should include the following information:
1. Understanding of the Engagement
Describe your understanding of the Salesforce training and technical assistance needs of Native CDFIs and how your proposed approach addresses organizations with varying levels of Salesforce experience and organizational capacity.
2. Proposed Scope and Approach
Describe the proposed methodology for completing the scope of work, including:
Clearly identify any proposed modifications or additions to the scope contained within this RFP.
3. Salesforce Expertise
Describe the proposer’s Salesforce experience and expertise.
Include relevant certifications, credentials, platform experience, implementation experience, training experience, and examples of Salesforce environments or use cases relevant to this engagement.
4. Native CDFI and Industry Experience
Describe experience working with:
If the proposer does not have direct Native CDFI experience, describe other experience that demonstrates an understanding of the operating environment and how the proposer will ensure services are responsive to participating Native CDFIs.
5. Prior Similar Engagements
Provide examples of similar Salesforce training, implementation, technical assistance, or capacity-building projects.
Examples should identify the type of organization served, general scope of work, and outcomes or deliverables produced.
6. Project Team
Identify staff who will be assigned to the engagement and briefly describe:
7. Organizational Information
Provide a brief description of the proposer, including:
8. Proposed Timeline
Provide a proposed timeline showing major project activities, training sessions, technical assistance periods, deliverables, and project completion.
9. Budget and Pricing
Provide a detailed budget that clearly identifies:
The proposal should identify the assumptions used to develop the budget, including the number of training sessions and technical assistance hours included.
Confidentiality and Data Protection
The proposer agrees to maintain the confidentiality of information obtained through this engagement.
Because technical assistance may involve access to participating organizations’ Salesforce environments, the selected consultant may encounter confidential organizational, client, borrower, financial, or personally identifiable information.
The selected consultant will be expected to use appropriate administrative, technical, and organizational safeguards to protect such information and to limit access to personnel with a legitimate need to access the information for purposes of completing the engagement.
Information accessed through this engagement may not be copied, disclosed, published, reproduced, retained, or used for purposes unrelated to the contracted services without appropriate authorization.
The selected consultant must promptly notify MPCDC of any actual or suspected unauthorized access, disclosure, loss, or breach involving information accessed through the engagement.
Additional confidentiality, data-security, and system-access requirements may be incorporated into the final consulting agreement.
Ownership and Use of Training Materials
Proposers should identify any pre-existing or proprietary training materials that will be used during the engagement.
Unless otherwise negotiated in the final agreement, MPCDC and participating organizations should receive ongoing access to project-specific training materials, recordings, guides, templates, and other resources developed specifically for the engagement for internal educational and capacity-building purposes.
Any limitations on MPCDC’s ability to retain, reproduce, or distribute training materials to participating organizations must be clearly identified in the proposal.
Evaluation Process
MPCDC will evaluate proposals based on factors including:
MPCDC may request additional information, conduct interviews, or request clarification from one or more proposers before making a selection.
Right to Reject or Modify
MPCDC reserves the right to reject any or all proposals received in response to this RFP; request clarification or additional information; negotiate the scope, timeline, deliverables, or price with a selected proposer; waive minor irregularities in proposals; or discontinue the procurement process when determined to be in the best interest of MPCDC.
Issuance of this RFP does not obligate MPCDC to award a contract or reimburse proposers for costs associated with preparing or submitting a proposal.
Following selection, MPCDC and the successful proposer will execute a consulting agreement establishing the final scope of work, deliverables, project schedule, payment terms, confidentiality requirements, data-security requirements, and other applicable terms and conditions.
