Project Information

Bid Title

Compensation and Classification Study & Analysis

Issuing Agency

Collegedale city

Location

Tennessee

Published Date

Jun 3, 2026

Closing Date

Jul 1, 2026

Government Level

State & Local

Status

Closed

Original Source

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Bid Documents

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Project Description

City of Collegedale – Compensation and Classification Study & Analysis Click HERE for RFP document. The City is seeking proposals for qualified firms to conduct a Compensation and Classification Study & Analysis. This analysis shall illustrate total compensation for comparable public job classifications. Employee total compensation shall be compared to similar municipal government employers, local employers, and incorporate private sector data from existing survey sources into the final analysis. This analysis shall include and review internal pay structure across the City departments and functions. All proposals must be received by the City of Collegedale on or before 4:00 p.m. EST July 1, 2026, and the project name referenced on the submittal.

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CITY OF COLLEGEDALE, TENNESSEE

Request for Proposal Form

PROJECT NAME:

City of Collegedale – Compensation and Classification Study & Analysis

WHO WE ARE:

The City of Collegedale is a small city in Hamilton County that borders Chattanooga. The city’s population is

approximately 12,000 and growing daily. Collegedale was incorporated in 1968, and is home to McKee Foods Corporation,

Southern Adventist University, and other thriving businesses. The City Manager, working under the direction of the City

Commission, guides the city priorities and departments, including Police, Public Works, Parks & Recreation, Finance, HR,

Building & Codes, Airport, Library, and Planning.

WHY ARE WE ISSUING THIS REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP):

The City is seeking proposals for qualified firms to conduct a Compensation and Classification Study & Analysis. This

analysis shall illustrate total compensation for comparable public job classifications. Employee total compensation shall

be compared to similar municipal government employers, local employers, and incorporate private sector data from

existing survey sources into the final analysis. This analysis shall include and review internal pay structure across the

City departments and functions.

City of Collegedale

Request for Proposal Form

Revised 05/19/2026

Page 1 of 9

CITY OF COLLEGEDALE, TENNESSEE

Request for Proposal Form

WHAT THE CITY EXPECTS IN THE PROPOSAL:

Proposed services:

The proposal for services must, at a minimum, include the following:

• A general description of the firm, including size, primary business, and other business or services offered.

• Identification of the project team who will be the primary contact through all phases of the project, as well

as identification of other personnel who will be performing engagement work and estimated expected

contribution to the project.

• Summary information regarding the qualifications and professional experience of the team that will

perform work under this engagement.

• Description of the firm’s experience in providing services to similarly sized government organizations.

• List of references, including at least three (3) municipal clients for which services have been provided

which are similar to those in the Scope of Services of this document. References should include client

name, address, telephone number and e-mail address for the contact person in each organization.

• Description of the firm’s understanding of the requested services including the proposed approach, specific

project steps including detailed information regarding the number and length of onsite work, timeline to

include specific milestones, and interim and final work products. Innovative approaches concepts,

especially those reducing project cost, are encouraged.

• Proposals shall provide a statement as to whether any portion of the work performed under this proposal

will be subcontracted or performed under a partnership of joint venture. Information on such entities must

be included in the proposal such as related experience and qualifications of assigned staff.

• Proposal shall state whether any survey information will be obtained from centralized data sources; for

example BLS, proprietary survey banks, etc.

• Submission should also include interim and final report formats.

Costs:

• Proposed costs must include travel for two (2) days for on-site presentations.

• Proposals shall include a contingency allowance for unforeseen items arising during the course of the project.

The contingency amount shall be clearly identified and may only be used with City approval.

City of Collegedale

Request for Proposal Form

Revised 05/19/2026

Page 2 of 9

CITY OF COLLEGEDALE, TENNESSEE

Request for Proposal Form

PROJECT SCOPE & DETAILS:

BACKGROUND

As of July 1, 2026, the City will have 89 budgeted full-time positions and 14 budgeted part-time positions, with all

newly authorized positions anticipated to be filled by January 2027.

The City’s current compensation structure is adapted from the 2019 pay study and has been further refined through

City administration recommendations and market research of salary data from comparable municipalities and

employers. The City’s pay structure emphasizes consistency and internal equity by maintaining uniform base pay

within individual job classifications. Rather than utilizing a formal step progression system, the City recognizes

employee longevity and ongoing service through its annual Retention & Incentive Plan.

The City Commission has historically provided an annual Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for employees; however,

the amount is variable and determined each year based on budgetary considerations and economic conditions.

There are supplemental pay enhancements such as police FTO, uniform allowance, call back, and other specialty pays

to be considered.

The City’s last comprehensive update was in 2019 and implemented in part in Fiscal Year 2020. All job descriptions are

in Microsoft Word format and have been updated with respect to current job tasks.

SCOPE OF SERVICES

The City would like to update the current total compensation to provide market comparative compensation to

employees. The City is requesting proposals for the following areas of work.

• Classification & Compensation Study & Analysis

• Job Audit and Analysis

• Final Report Requirements

City of Collegedale

Request for Proposal Form

Revised 05/19/2026

Page 3 of 9

CITY OF COLLEGEDALE, TENNESSEE

Request for Proposal Form

REQUIRED DELIVERABLES FOR THIS PROJECT:

Compensation and Classification Study & Analysis

The selected firm shall provide information collected through both previous project experience and a custom survey of

market-comparable organizations in order to complete the following:

1. Conduct an analysis of the City’s pay ranges as compared to the external labor market, including comparable

cities and counties and potentially comparable private employers, and make recommendations for changes to

the pay ranges. This analysis must include job duties and responsibilities and not just titles.

2. Recommend a Compensation and Classification plan establishing a competitive market position to support all

full-time and part-time jobs by providing compensation analysis using recommended sources, but must

include data from comparative cities and counties, as well as potentially evaluating private sector data, where

appropriate for hard-to-fill/critical positions.

3. Recommend pay structure features that will provide opportunities for advancement, including consideration

of career lattices/pathways when assessing and revising the job classification plan.

4. Conduct an analysis of the City’s Supplemental pay enhancements as compared to the external labor market,

including comparable cities and counties and potentially comparable private employers. This analysis must

include criteria for the supplemental pay, pay frequency, and any restrictions or limitations.

5. Recommend Supplemental pay additions, changes or improvements to encourage career advancement and

improve recruitment efforts.

6. Recommend policies on how to compensate for hard-to-fill or critical positions, such as engineers and other

specialized or highly competitive roles, where competition for talent is strong.

7. Recommend placement of current employees upon implementation within the appropriate classifications,

including addressing any pay equity concerns that may arise.

8. Recommend methods for rewarding higher skills/responsibilities or achievements without necessarily making

employees a supervisor/manager.

9. Recommend pay progression methods to include sound practices to prevent salary bypassing and mitigate pay

compression. Implementation recommendations must address any pay equity issues discovered as part of this

compensation analysis.

10. Recommend best practices regarding flexible scheduling and the impact on compensation.

11. Prepare cost analysis for implementation of recommended changes to the pay and classification system,

including any supplemental pay changes.

12. Ensure internal equity between positions occurs by reviewing job descriptions and ensuring that positions

performing similar work with the same level of complexity, responsibility, knowledge, skills, and abilities are

classified together.

13. Compare performance and incentive pay practices with comparable cities, counties, and other market

comparatives.

14. Provide recommendations on all aspects of pay plan, including structure, best practices for annual salary scale

adjustments (e.g., COLA, matching Social Security CPI, etc.).

City of Collegedale

Request for Proposal Form

Revised 05/19/2026

Page 4 of 9

CITY OF COLLEGEDALE, TENNESSEE

Request for Proposal Form

REQUIRED DELIVERABLES (CONTINUED)

Job Audit and Analysis

The selected firm will:

1. Evaluate current FLSA classifications for all full-time positions

2. Gather necessary employee information using job analysis questionnaires

3. Conduct meetings with Department Heads to understand the structure, scope, and responsibilities of each

full-time position

4. Information will be used to analyze the duties and responsibilities of each employee and position to determine

the following:

a. Whether individual employees are appropriately classified.

b. Whether a position should be moved to a different job classification and/or pay grade.

c. Whether position titles are appropriate compared to market data.

d. Other recommendations as identified during the analysis.

The consultant shall also:

Provide guidelines for implementing future structure adjustments and how the adjustments should impact employee

pay; these guidelines should be based on a methodology that allows the City to determine market-based salary

adjustments consistent with maintaining a competitive position in the market, considering relative competing fiscal

demands and financial constraints.

Provide a detailed description of the procedure, methodology, and tools that will be followed to develop a process for

the benchmarking and reclassification of existing and new positions.

Job Descriptions

1. All full-time job descriptions will be evaluated after review of job analysis audit.

2. Recommendations will be made to revise, create, or consolidate titles.

3. Job descriptions should be established in a standardized format which is ADA and FLSA compliant.

4. Final job descriptions adjustments provided to the City, with allowance for one set of revisions included in the

project cost

Compensation and Classification Final Report requirements

The final report must include, at a minimum:

1. Methods used to conduct the salary survey results and methodology of job evaluation

2. Summarize position comparison data

3. Recommended classification plan

4. Recommended pay structures

5. Recommendations to maintain future market competitiveness

6. Any other relevant recommendations identified during the analysis

The successful firm will be expected to work with management during all phases of this project, including onsite

meetings, and will be expected to present the final recommendations to the Board of Commissioners.

City of Collegedale

Request for Proposal Form

Revised 05/19/2026

Page 5 of 9

Commodity Codes

• NAICS 541611Administrative Management and General Management Consulting Services
• NAICS 541612Human Resources Consulting Services
• NAICS 541990All Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

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