Small Business Center Counseling Services

STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA
Southwestern Community College
Invitation for Bid #: 2026-9-1
Small Business Center Counseling Services
Date of Issue: September 24, 2026
Bid Opening Date: 10/7/26
At 10:00 AM ET
Direct all inquiries concerning this IFB to:
Suzanne Vincent
Coordinator of Procurement
Email: s_vincent@southwesterncc.edu
Phone: 828-339-4464

STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA
Invitation for Bid #
2026-9-1
______________________________________________________
For internal State agency processing, including tabulation of bids, provide your company's eVP (Electronic Vendor
Portal) Number. Pursuant to G.S. 132-1.10(b) this identification number shall not be released to the public. This
page will be removed and shredded, or otherwise kept confidential, before the procurement file is made available
for public inspection.
This page shall be filled out and returned with your bid.
Failure to do so may subject your bid to rejection.
___________________________________________________
Vendor Name
______________________________
Vendor eVP#
Note: For a contract to be awarded to you, your company (you) must be a North Carolina registered
Vendor in good standing. You must enter the Vendor number assigned through eVP (Electronic Vendor
Portal). If you do not have a Vendor number, register at https://evp.nc.gov/SignIn
Electronic responses ONLY will be accepted for this solicitation.
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Bid Number: 2026-9-1 Vendor: __________________________________________
STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA
Southwestern Community College
Refer ALL Inquiries regarding this IFB to: Invitation for Bid #: 2026-9-1
Suzanne Vincent Bids will be publicly opened: 10/7/26 @ 10AM
Southwestern Community College Balsam Center rm 190a
447 College Drive Southwestern Community College
Sylva, NC 28779 447 College Drive
s_vincent@southwesterncc.edu Sylva, NC 28779
Using Agency: Southwestern Community College Commodity No. and Description: 801015 - Business Consulting
Requisition No.: na
EXECUTION
In compliance with this Invitation for Bid (IFB), and subject to all the conditions herein, the undersigned Vendor offers and agrees to furnish and
deliver any or all items upon which prices are bid, at the prices set opposite each item within the time specified herein.
By executing this bid, the undersigned Vendor understands that false certification is a Class I felony and certifies that:
this bid is submitted competitively and without collusion (G.S. 143-54),
none of its officers, directors, or owners of an unincorporated business entity has been convicted of any violations of Chapter 78A of
the General Statutes, the Securities Act of 1933, or the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (G.S. 143-59.2), and
it is not an ineligible Vendor as set forth in G.S. 143-59.1.
Furthermore, by executing this bid, the undersigned certifies to the best of Vendor's knowledge and belief, that:
it and its principals are not presently debarred, suspended, proposed for debarment, declared ineligible or voluntarily excluded from
covered transactions by any Federal or State department or agency.
As required by G.S. 143-48.5, the undersigned Vendor certifies that it, and each of its sub-Contractors for any Contract awarded as a result of this
IFB, complies with the requirements of Article 2 of Chapter 64 of the NC General Statutes, including the requirement for each employer with
more than 25 employees in North Carolina to verify the work authorization of its employees through the federal E-Verify system.
As required by Executive Order 24 (2017), the undersigned Vendor certifies will comply with all Federal and State requirements concerning fair
employment and that it does not and will not discriminate, harass, or retaliate against any employee in connection with performance of any
Contract arising from this solicitation.
G.S. 133-32 and Executive Order 24 (2009) prohibit the offer to, or acceptance by, any State Employee associated with the preparing plans,
specifications, estimates for public contracts; or awarding or administering public contracts; or inspecting or supervising delivery of the public
contract of any gift from anyone with a contract with the State, or from any person seeking to do business with the State. By execution of this
response to the IFB, the undersigned certifies, for Vendor's entire organization and its employees or agents, that Vendor is not aware that any
such gift has been offered, accepted, or promised by any employees of your organization.
By executing this bid, Vendor certifies that it has read and agreed to the INSTRUCTION TO VENDORS and the NORTH CAROLINA GENERAL TERMS
AND CONDITIONS incorporated herein. These documents can be accessed from the ATTACHMENTS page within this document.
Failure to execute/sign bid prior to submittal may render bid invalid and it MAY BE REJECTED. Late bids shall not be accepted.
COMPLETE/FORMAL NAME OF VENDOR:
STREET ADDRESS: P.O. BOX: ZIP:
CITY & STATE & ZIP: TELEPHONE NUMBER: TOLL FREE TEL. NO:
PRINCIPAL PLACE OF BUSINESS ADDRESS IF DIFFERENT FROM ABOVE (SEE INSTRUCTIONS TO VENDORS ITEM #21):
PRINT NAME & TITLE OF PERSON SIGNING ON BEHALF OF VENDOR:
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Bid Number: 2026-9-1 Vendor: __________________________________________
VENDOR'S AUTHORIZED SIGNATURE*: DATE: EMAIL:
VALIDITY PERIOD
Offer shall be valid for at least sixty (60) days from date of bid opening, unless otherwise stated here: ______ days, or if extended by mutual
agreement of the parties in writing. Any withdrawal of this offer shall be made in writing, effective upon receipt by the agency issuing this IFB.
ACCEPTANCE OF BIDS
If your bid is accepted, all provisions of this IFB, along with the written results of any negotiations, shall constitute the written agreement between
the parties ("Contract"). The NORTH CAROLINA GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS are incorporated herein and shall apply. Depending upon the
Goods or Services being offered, other terms and conditions may apply, as mutually agreed.
FOR STATE USE ONLY: Offer accepted and Contract awarded this________ day of __________, 20____, as indicated on
The attached certification, by ____________________________________________________________________.
(Authorized Representative of Southwestern Community College)
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Bid Number: 2026-9-1 Vendor: __________________________________________
Contents
1.0 PURPOSE AND BACKGROUND ...................................................................................................... 5
1.1 CONTRACT TERM ....................................................................................................................... 5
2.0 GENERAL INFORMATION .............................................................................................................. 5
2.1 INVITATION FOR BID DOCUMENT ................................................................................................ 5
2.2 E-PROCUREMENT FEE ................................................................................................................. 5
2.3 NOTICE TO VENDORS REGARDING IFB TERMS AND CONDITIONS ................................................... 5
2.4 IFB SCHEDULE ............................................................................................................................ 6
2.5 BID QUESTIONS ......................................................................................................................... 6
2.6 BID SUBMITTAL ......................................................................................................................... 6
2.7 BID CONTENTS ........................................................................................................................... 7
2.8 ALTERNATE BIDS ........................................................................................................................ 7
3.0 METHOD OF AWARD AND BID EVALUATION PROCESS .................................................................... 7
3.1 METHOD OF AWARD .................................................................................................................. 7
3.2 CONFIDENTIALITY AND PROHIBITED COMMUNICATIONS DURING EVALUATION ............................. 8
3.3 BID EVALUATION PROCESS ......................................................................................................... 8
3.4 PERFORMANCE OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES .............................................................................. 9
3.5 INTERPRETATION OF TERMS AND PHRASES .................................................................................. 9
4.0 REQUIREMENTS .......................................................................................................................... 9
6.0 CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION .................................................................................................... 13
7.0 ATTACHMENTS ......................................................................................................................... 15
ATTACHMENT A: PRICING ...................................................................................................................... 15
ATTACHMENT C: NORTH CAROLINA GENERAL TERMS & CONDITIONS ....................................................... 16
ATTACHMENT D: CUSTOMER REFERENCE FORM ...................................................................................... 16
ATTACHMENT E: LOCATION OF WORKERS UTILIZED BY VENDOR ............................................................... 16
ATTACHMENT F: CERTIFICATION OF FINANCIAL CONDITION ..................................................................... 16
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Bid Number: 2026-9-1 Vendor: __________________________________________
1.0 PURPOSE AND BACKGROUND
The Small Business Center Network (SBCN) was established in 1984 by the NC General Assembly as a constituent program of the
NC Community Colleges. The objective of the SBCN is to increase the success rate and the number of viable small businesses in
North Carolina by providing high quality, readily accessible assistance to prospective and existing small business owners, which
will lead to job creation and retention. Each SBC is a community-based provider of education, training, counseling, referral and
information.
The intent of this solicitation is to award an Agency Specific Contract.
1.1 CONTRACT TERM
The Contract shall have an initial term of one year, beginning on the date of final Contract execution (the "Effective Date")
At the end of the Contract's initial term, the State shall have the option, in its sole discretion, to renew the Contract on the same
terms and conditions for up to two (2) additional one-year terms. The State will give the Vendor written notice of its intent to
exercise each option no later than thirty (30] days before the end of the Contract's then-current term. In addition to any optional
renewal terms, and with the Vendor's concurrence, the State reserves the right to extend the Contract after the last active term.
Bids shall be submitted in accordance with the terms and conditions of this IFB and any addenda issued hereto.
2.0 GENERAL INFORMATION
2.1 INVITATION FOR BID DOCUMENT
This IFB is comprised of the base IFB document, any attachments, and any addenda released before Contract award, which are
incorporated herein by reference.
2.2 E-PROCUREMENT FEE
ATTENTION: The E-Procurement fee may apply to this solicitation. See the paragraph entitled ELECTRONIC PROCUREMENT of
the North Carolina General Terms and Conditions.
General information on the E-Procurement Services can be found at: http://eprocurement.nc.gov/.
2.3 NOTICE TO VENDORS REGARDING IFB TERMS AND CONDITIONS
It shall be the Vendor's responsibility to read the Instructions to Vendors, the North Carolina General Terms and Conditions, all
relevant exhibits and attachments, and any other components made a part of this IFB and comply with all requirements and
specifications herein. Vendors are also responsible for obtaining and complying with all Addenda and other changes that may be
issued in connection with this IFB.
If Vendors have questions or issues regarding any component of this IFB, those must be submitted as questions in accordance with
the instructions in the BID QUESTIONS Section. If the State determines that any changes will be made as a result of the questions
asked, then such decisions will be communicated in the form of an IFB addendum. The State may also elect to leave open the
possibility for later negotiation of specific provisions of the Contract that have been addressed during the question-and-answer
period, prior to contract award.
Other than through the process of negotiation under 01 NCAC 05B.0503, the State rejects and will not be required to evaluate or
consider any additional or modified terms and conditions submitted with Vendor's bid or otherwise. This applies to any language
appearing in or attached to the document as part of the Vendor's bid that purports to vary any terms and conditions or Vendors'
instructions herein or to render the bid non-binding or subject to further negotiation. Vendor's bid shall constitute a firm offer
that shall be held open for the period required herein ("Validity Period" above).
The State may exercise its discretion to consider Vendor proposed modifications. By execution and delivery of this IFB Response,
the Vendor agrees that any additional or modified terms and conditions, whether submitted purposely or inadvertently, shall
have no force or effect, and will be disregarded unless expressly agreed upon during negotiations and incorporated by way of a
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Bid Number: 2026-9-1 Vendor: __________________________________________
Best and Final Offer (BAFO). Noncompliance with, or any attempt to alter or delete, this paragraph shall constitute sufficient
grounds to reject Vendor's bid as nonresponsive.
2.4 IFB SCHEDULE
The table below shows the intended schedule for this IFB. The State will make every effort to adhere to this schedule.
Event Responsibility Date and Time
Issue IFB State September 24, 2026
Hold Pre-Bid Meeting/Site Visit State n/a
Submit Written Questions Vendor 9/29 @ 1p
Provide Response to Questions State 10/1 @ 3p
Submit Bids Vendor 10/7 @ 10a
Contract Award State TBD
2.5 BID QUESTIONS
Upon review of the IFB documents, Vendors may have questions to clarify or interpret the IFB in order to submit the best bid
possible. To accommodate the Bid Questions process, Vendors shall submit any such questions by the "Submit Written Questions"
date and time provided in the IFB SCHEDULE Section above, unless modified by Addendum.
Written questions shall be emailed to s_vincent@southwesterncc.edu by the date and time specified above. Vendors should enter
"IFB #2026-9-1: Questions" as the subject for the email. Question submittals should include a reference to the applicable IFB
section and be submitted in the format shown below:
Reference Vendor Question
IFB Section, Page Number Vendor question ...?
Questions received prior to the submission deadline date, the State's response, and any additional terms deemed necessary by
the State will be posted in the form of an addendum to the electronic Vendor Portal (eVP), https://evp.nc.gov, and shall become
an Addendum to this IFB. No information, instruction or advice provided orally or informally by any State personnel, whether made
in response to a question or otherwise in connection with this IFB, shall be considered authoritative or binding. Vendors shall rely
only on written material contained in the IFB and an addendum to this IFB.
2.6 BID SUBMITTAL
IMPORTANT NOTE: This is an absolute requirement. Late bids, regardless of cause, will not be opened or considered, and will be
automatically disqualified from further consideration. Vendor shall bear the sole risk of late submission due to unintended or
unanticipated delay. It is the Vendor's sole responsibility to ensure its bid has been received as described in this IFB by the specified
time and date of opening. The time and date of receipt will be marked on each bid when received. Any bid or portion thereof
received after the bid deadline will be rejected.
All proposal responses shall be submitted electronically via the electronic Vendor Portal (eVP). Additional information can be found
at the eVP updates for Vendors link: https://eprocurement.nc.gov/news-events/evp-updates-vendors.
Failure to submit a bid in strict accordance with these instructions shall constitute sufficient cause to reject a Vendor's bids(s).
Vendors are strongly encouraged to allow sufficient time to upload bids.
Critical updated information may be included in Addenda to this IFB. It is important that all Vendors responding to this IFB
periodically check the State's eVP website for any Addenda that may be issued prior to the bid opening date. All Vendors shall be
deemed to have read and understood all information in this IFB and all Addenda thereto.
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Bid Number: 2026-9-1 Vendor: __________________________________________
2.7 BID CONTENTS
Vendors shall populate all attachments of this IFB that require the Vendor to provide information and include an authorized
signature where requested. Failure to provide all required items, or Vendor's submission of incomplete items, may result in the
State rejecting Vendor's bid, in the State's sole discretion.
Vendor IFB responses shall include the following items and attachments, which shall be arranged in the following order:
a) Title Page: Include the company name, address, phone number and authorized representative along with the Bid Number.
b) Completed and signed version of all EXECUTION PAGES, along with the body of the IFB.
c) Signed receipt pages of any addenda released in conjunction with this IFB, if required to be returned.
d) Completed version of ATTACHMENT A: PRICING
e) Completed version of ATTACHMENT D : CUSTOMER REFERENCE FORM
f) Completed version of ATTACHMENT E: LOCATION OF WORKERS UTILIZED BY VENDOR
g) Completed and signed version of ATTACHMENT F: CERTIFICATION OF FINANCIAL CONDITION
2.8 ALTERNATE BIDS
Unless provided otherwise in this IFB, Vendor may submit alternate bids for comparable Goods, various methods or levels of
Service(s), or that propose different options. Alternate bid must specifically identify the IFB requirements and advantage(s)
addressed by the alternate bid. Any alternate bid, in addition to the marking described above, must be clearly marked with the
legend: "Alternate Bid #___ [for 'name of Vendor']". Each bid must be for a specific set of Goods and Services and must include
specific pricing. If a Vendor chooses to respond with various offerings, each must be offered with a separate price and be contained
in a separate bid. Each bid must be complete and independent of other bids offered.
3.0 METHOD OF AWARD AND BID EVALUATION PROCESS
3.1 METHOD OF AWARD
North Carolina G.S. 143-52 provides a general list of criteria the State shall use to award contracts, as supplemented by the
additional criteria herein. The Goods or Services being procured shall dictate the application and order of criteria; however, all
award decisions shall be in the State's best interest.
All responsive bids will be reviewed, and an award or awards will be based on the responsive bid(s) offering the lowest price that
meets the specifications provided herein, to include any required verifications set out here in such as but not limited to past
performance, references, and financial documents. More specifically, all qualified bids will be evaluated, and award made based
on considering the following criteria listed in descending order of importance, to result in an award most advantageous to the
State:
1. Counselor Qualifications & Experience
2. Service Delivery Approach
3. Past Performance & References
4. Cost Proposal & Value
While the intent of this IFB is to award a Contract(s) to a single Vendor, the State reserves the right to make separate awards to
different Vendors for one or more line items, to not award one or more line items, or to cancel this IFB in its entirety without
awarding a Contract, if it is considered to be most advantageous to the State to do so.
The State reserves the right to waive any minor informality or technicality in bids received.
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Bid Number: 2026-9-1 Vendor: __________________________________________
3.2 CONFIDENTIALITY AND PROHIBITED COMMUNICATIONS DURING EVALUATION
While this IFB is under evaluation, the responding Vendor, including any subcontractors and suppliers, is prohibited from engaging
in conversations intended to influence the outcome of the evaluation. See the Paragraph 29 of the Instructions to Vendors entitled
COMMUNICATIONS BY VENDORS.
Each Vendor submitting a bid to this IFB, including its employees, agents, subcontractors, suppliers, subsidiaries and affiliates, is
prohibited from having any communications with any person inside or outside the using agency; issuing agency; other government
agency office or body (including the procurement lead named above, any department secretary, agency head, members of the
General Assembly and Governor's office); or private entity, if the communication refers to the content of Vendor's bid or
qualifications, the content of another Vendor's proposal, another Vendor's qualifications or ability to perform a resulting contract,
and/or the transmittal of any other communication of information that could be reasonably considered to have the effect of
directly or indirectly influencing the evaluation of proposals, the award of a contract, or both.
Any Vendor not in compliance with this provision shall be disqualified from evaluation and award. A Vendor's proposal may be
disqualified if its subcontractor and/or supplier engage in any of the foregoing communications during the time that the
procurement is active (i.e., the issuance date of the procurement until the date of contract award or cancellation of the
procurement). Only those discussions, communications or transmittals of information authorized or initiated by the issuing agency
for this IFB or inquiries directed to the procurement lead named in this IFB regarding requirements of the IFB (prior to proposal
submission) or the status of the award (after submission) are excepted from this provision.
3.3 BID EVALUATION PROCESS
Only responsive submissions will be evaluated.
The State will conduct an evaluation of responsive Bids, as follows:
Bids will be received according to the method stated in the Bid Submittal section above.
All bids must be received by the issuing agency not later than the date and time specified in the IFB SCHEDULE Section above,
unless modified by Addendum. Vendors are cautioned that this is a request for offers, not an offer or request to contract, and
the State reserves the unqualified right to reject any and all offers at any time if such rejection is deemed to be in the best
interest of the State.
At the date and time provided in the IFB SCHEDULE Section above, unless modified by Addendum, the bids from each
responding Vendor will be opened publicly and all offers (except those that have been previously withdrawn, or voided bids)
will be tabulated. The tabulation shall be made public at the time it is created. When negotiations after receipt of bids is
authorized pursuant to G.S. 143-49 and 01 NCAC 05B.0503, only the names of offerors and the Goods and Services offered
shall be tabulated at the time of opening. Cost and price shall become available for public inspection at the time of the award.
Interested parties are cautioned that these costs and their components are subject to further evaluation for completeness
and correctness and therefore may not be an exact indicator of a Vendor's pricing position.
At their option, the evaluators may request oral presentations or discussions with any or all Vendors for clarification or to
amplify the materials presented in any part of the bid. Vendors are cautioned, however, that the evaluators are not required
to request presentations or other clarification-and often do not. Therefore, all bids should be complete and reflect the most
favorable terms available from the Vendor. Prices bid cannot be altered or modified as part of a clarification.
Bids will generally be evaluated, based on completeness, content, cost and responsibility of the Vendor to supply the
requested Goods and Services. Specific evaluation criteria are listed in Section 3.1 METHOD OF AWARD.
Upon completion of the evaluation process, the State will make Award(s) based on the evaluation and post the award(s) to
the State's eVP website under the IFB number for this solicitation. Award of a Contract to one Vendor does not mean that the
other bids lacked merit, but that, all factors considered, the selected bid was deemed most advantageous and represented
the best value to the State.
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Bid Number: 2026-9-1 Vendor: __________________________________________
The State reserves the right to negotiate with one or more Vendors, or to reject all original offers and negotiate with one or
more sources of supply that may be capable of satisfying the requirement, and in either case to require Vendor to submit a
Best and Final Offer (BAFO) based on discussions and negotiations with the State.
3.4 PERFORMANCE OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES
Vendor shall complete ATTACHMENT E: LOCATION OF WORKERS UTILIZED BY VENDOR. In addition to any other evaluation criteria
identified in this IFB, the State may also consider, for purposes of evaluating proposed or actual contract performance outside of
the United States, how that performance may affect the following factors to ensure that any award will be in the best interest of
the State:
a) Total cost to the State
b) Level of quality provided by the Vendor
c) Process and performance capability across multiple jurisdictions
d) Protection of the State's information and intellectual property
e) Availability of pertinent skills
f) Ability to understand the State's business requirements and internal operational culture
g) Particular risk factors such as the security of the State's information technology
h) Relations with citizens and employees
i) Contract enforcement jurisdictional issues
3.5 INTERPRETATION OF TERMS AND PHRASES
This IFB serves two functions: (1) to advise potential Vendors of the parameters of the solution being sought by the State; and (2)
to provide (together with other specified documents) the terms of the Contract resulting from this procurement. The use of
phrases such as "shall," "must," and "requirements" are intended to create enforceable contract conditions. In determining
whether bids should be evaluated or rejected, the State will take into consideration the degree to which Vendors have proposed
or failed to propose solutions that will satisfy the State's needs as described in the IFB. Except as specifically stated in the IFB, no
one requirement shall automatically disqualify a Vendor from consideration. However, failure to comply with any single
requirement may result in the State exercising its discretion to reject a bid in its entirety.
4.0 REQUIREMENTS
This Section lists the requirements related to this IFB. By submitting a bid, the Vendor agrees to meet all stated requirements in
this Section as well as any other specifications, requirements, and terms and conditions stated in this IFB. If a Vendor is unclear
about a requirement or specification, or believes a change to a requirement would allow for the State to receive a better bid, the
Vendor is urged to submit these items in the form of a question during the question and answer period in accordance with the Bid
Questions Section above.
4.1 PRICING
Bid price shall constitute the total cost to the State for complete performance in accordance with the requirements and
specifications herein, including all applicable charges for handling, transportation, administrative and other similar fees. Complete
ATTACHMENT A: PRICING FORM and include in Vendor's response.
4.2 FINANCIAL STABILITY
As a condition of contract award, the Vendor must certify that it has the financial capacity to perform and to continue to perform
its obligations under the Contract; that Vendor has no constructive or actual knowledge of an actual or potential legal proceeding
being brought against Vendor that could materially adversely affect performance of this Contract; and that entering into this
Contract is not prohibited by any contract, or order by any court of competent jurisdiction.
Each Vendor shall certify it is financially stable by completing ATTACHMENT F: CERTIFICATION OF FINANCIAL CONDITION. The State
is requiring this certification to minimize potential issues from contracting with a Vendor that is financially unstable. From the date
of the Certification to the expiration of the Contract, the Vendor shall notify the State within thirty (30) days of any occurrence or
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