Outsourced Data Protection Service

AI-generated analysis of the documents. Check the official notice and any amendments for current submission details.

1. At a glance

2. Scope of Work

Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI) ran this procurement for “Outsourced Data Protection Service” as an operational contract requiring implementation and sustained service execution. The extracted pack showed qualification-stage material with references to later ITT technical depth; practical activity therefore centred on building, integrating, and operating the specified service stack with compliant reporting and handover obligations where stated. Constituent activities and named work elements in the supplied extracts:

• Title: Outsourced Data Protection Service
• ority estimates that the expenditure on the Services to be covered by the proposed Services Contract may amount to some €40,000 per annum (excl
• rer shall be required to supply its Tax Clearance Access Number and Tax Reference Number to facilitate online verification of their tax status by
• Prior to and as a condition of award of any Services Contract, the successful Tenderer shall be required to designate a single entity who will carry overall responsibility for the Services Contract (the “Prime Contractor”), irrespective of whether
• Prior to and as a condition of award of any Services Contract, the successful Tenderer shall be required to designate a single entity who will carry overall responsibility for the Services Contract (the “Prime Contractor”), irrespective of whether or not tasks are to be performed by a subcontractor or other consortium member (the “Subcontractor”).
• No publicity regarding this Competition or any Services Contract pursuant to this Competition is permitted unless and until the Contracting Authority has given its prior written consent to the relevant communication.
• The terms “Registrable Interest” and “Relative” shall be interpreted as per Section 2 of the Ethics in Public Office Acts 1995 and 2001, copies of which are available at https://www.irishstatutebook.ie/. The Contracting Authority will, at its absolute discretion, decide on the appropriate course of action, which may in appropriate circumstances include eliminating a Tenderer from this Competition or terminating any Services Contract entered into by a Tenderer.
• [RfT - Outsourced DPS 2025 Oct 2025.docx] its absolute discretion, decide on the appropriate course of action, which may in appropriate circumstances include eliminating a Tenderer from this Competition or terminating any Services Contract entered into by a Tenderer.
• Any conflict of interest or potential conflict of interest on the part of a Tenderer, Subcontractor or individual employee(s) or agent(s) of a Tenderer or Subcontractor(s) must be fully disclosed to the Contracting Authority as soon as the conflict or potential conflict is or becomes apparent. Tenderers are required to declare that the preparation of their Tender was carried out independently. In the event of any actual or potential conflict of interest, the Contracting Authority may invite Tenderers to propose means by which the conflict of interest might be removed and in circumstances where there are links between Tenderers, the Contracting Authority may seek further information to confirm the Tenders have been prepared independently. The Contracting Authority will, at its absolute discretion, decide on the appropriate course of action, which may in appropriate circumstances include eliminating a Tenderer from this Competition or any Mini-Competition or terminating any Framework Agreement or Services Contract entered into by a Tenderer.
• [RfT - Outsourced DPS 2025 Oct 2025.docx] circumstances include eliminating a Tenderer from this Competition or any Mini-Competition or terminating any Framework Agreement or Services Contract entered into by a Tenderer.
• QQI is the State agency responsible for promoting the quality, integrity and reputation of Ireland’s further and higher education system.
• QQI supports learners at each stage of their learning journey, whether by issuing and replacing QQI Award certificates, verifying existing qualifications such as FETAC or HETAC awards, or advising on the move to higher education. Non-binding monetary references in the source were treated as context only and were not used as qualification thresholds.

3. Background & buyer context

The buyer context reflected a formal Irish public-procurement route, with pre-qualification used to control entry into the tender stage.

• QQI supports learners at each stage of their learning journey, whether by issuing and replacing QQI Award certificates, verifying existing qualifications such as FETAC or HETAC awards, or advising on the move to higher education.
• As the national awarding body for further education and training and most private higher education providers, QQI works in partnership with providers and to develop and maintain award standards. Along with offering guidance on certifying awards and verifying qualifications, we maintain searchable databases of QQI-validated programmes and CAS awards and support the recognition of prior learning, and access, transfer and progression pathways.
• Evaluate and Oversee QQI’s Information Governance Framework to ensure QQI complies with Data Protection legislation to include review and update of QQI policy and procedures to ensure compliance with legislation and current practice.
• The DPS will be involved with DPIA’s, policy development and breach management as required.

4. Eligibility & selection criteria

• Turnover requirement — not specified for this tender
• Insurance — not specified for this tender
• Certifications — not specified for this tender
• Past experience — not specified for this tender
• Personnel — not specified for this tender
• Geographic / facility constraints — not specified for this tender

5. Award criteria & scoring

6. Submission requirements

• Method statement / response document (template/page limits) — not specified in extract.
• CVs (page count, named roles) — not specified in extract.
• Pricing schedule (format/template) — expected at ITT stage.
• Case studies (number/value range) — client references/comparable project evidence was referenced.
• Declarations (ESPD/Bona Fides/Tax/COI) — ESPD/declaration/statement-of-confirmation language was present.
• Mandatory site visit — not specified in extract.
• Submission portal and formatting — eTenders portal and PDF electronic copies were referenced. Submission-related source lines:
• Appendix 3A: Schedule C – Declaration of non-notifiable foreign financial contributions (valued between €200,000 and €999,000 in the last three years preceding the declaration)
• 2022/2560 and where the notifying party has been in receipt of foreign financial contributions which are valued between €200,000 and €999,000 in the last three (3) years preceding the declaration
• For reporting of foreign financial contributions which are of a value between €200,000 and €999,000 in the last three (3) years preceding the declaration
• Appendix 3A: Schedule D – Declaration of non-notifiable foreign financial contributions (valued between €1,000,000 and €3,999,000 in the last three years preceding the declaration)
• 2022/2560 and where the notifying party has been in receipt of foreign financial contributions which are valued between €1,000,000 and €3,999,000 in the last three (3) years preceding the declaration
• in receipt of foreign financial contributions which are valued between €1,000,000 and €3,999,000 in the last three (3) years preceding the declaration

7. Key dates & process

8. Contract terms that matter

Contract duration in the extract: 3 years. Payment cycle, SLA/KPI schedule, and penalty regime were not fully disclosed in the snippets unless listed below.

• VERIFIED PHRASES (deterministic regex extract from the documents — treat as authoritative for numerical claims)
• 2022/2560 and where the notifying party has been in receipt of foreign financial contributions which are valued between €200,000 and €999,000 in the last three (3) years preceding the declaration
• 2022/2560 and where the notifying party has been in receipt of foreign financial contributions which are valued between €1,000,000 and €3,999,000 in the last three (3) years preceding the declaration
• in receipt of foreign financial contributions which are valued between €1,000,000 and €3,999,000 in the last three (3) years preceding the declaration
• e right to extend the Term for a period or periods of up to 12 months with a maximum of two such extension or
• ontinues for 30 calendar days either Party may terminate at 14 days notice
• breach(es) (if the breach(es) are capable of remedy) within 30 days after receipt of a request in writing f
• For the Term and for a period of 12 months thereafter (and save in respect of publ

9. Risks, red flags & unusuals

• Numeric qualification gates were only partially visible, so eligibility certainty required full pack review.
• The two-step process (PQQ then ITT) shifted effort to compliance evidence early, with competitive scoring detail potentially deferred.
• Technical and contractual granularity appeared ITT-dependent, increasing ambiguity at qualification stage for non-incumbent bidders.

10. SME fit assessment

This competition looked most accessible to firms with established public-sector tender capability, documented financial capacity, and direct operational experience in the relevant service category.

• Credible bidder profile — specialist operator with compliant procurement governance and evidencable experience.
• Consortium / sub-contracting — allowed or addressed in the extracts (Appendix references and reliance provisions).
• Indicative bid-prep effort — 6 to 12 working days for evidence collation, form completion, and review cycles at PQQ level.
• Pwin signal — strongest for bidders with reusable qualification artefacts, comparable references, and low-friction mobilisation capability.

11. Where to dig deeper

• Source RFT/PQQ filenames: RfT - Outsourced DPS 2025 Oct 2025.docx, To be completed by notifying parties where the value of the procurement procedure is equal to or greater than the financial thresholds in Article 28 of Regulation (EU) 2022/2560 and where the notifying party has been in receipt of foreign financial contributions which are valued between €1,000,000 and €3,999,000 in the last three (3) years preceding the declaration. Notifying parties are required to complete the table below. They must list all foreign financial contributions received, to include all non-not

[RfT - Outsourced DPS 2025 Oct 2025.docx, Appendix 3A: Schedule C – Declaration of non-notifiable foreign financial contributions.

• eTenders CFT / notice reference: not specified in extract.
• Clarification contact / portal: eTenders message portal (email not surfaced in extract).
• Key attachments to prioritise: Appendix 3A: Schedule D – Declaration of non-notifiable foreign financial contributions, RfT - Outsourced DPS 2025 Oct 2025.docx] Request for Tenders dated, RFT Requirements.