Organisational change management and staff integration services for the vaal-orange catchment management agency (vocma)

Objectives

• Organisational integration: integrate new and transferred employees in a structured, transparent and sustainable manner.
• Culture integration: build a shared VOCMA culture promoting accountability, ethical conduct, professionalism, service excellence, collaboration, innovation, water-resource stewardship, employee engagement, performance, inclusion and stakeholder focus.
• Change readiness: establish current organisational and employee readiness and identify intervention areas.
• Change impact: identify the transition's effect on employees, structure, functions, processes, systems, policies, performance, reporting, governance, stakeholders and service delivery.
• Employee engagement: create mechanisms for employees to understand, participate in and contribute to the transition.
• Resistance management: identify sources of resistance, conflict, uncertainty and anxiety and develop interventions.
• Leadership alignment: ensure the Board, CEO, executives and managers share an understanding of the transformation agenda and their responsibilities.
• Business continuity: protect the continuity and quality of VOCMA's statutory and operational functions.
• Sustainability: transfer change-management capability so VOCMA can sustain the changes independently after the assignment.

Closing

• 22 October 2026 at 11:00.

Briefing session

• None (not applicable).

Issue date

• 01 October 2026.

Bid validity

• 120 days from the closing date.

Bidding procedure enquiries

• Contact: Supply Chain Management
• Email: [email protected]

Technical enquiries

• Contact: Neo Smouse
• Email: [email protected]

Submission

• Method: e-Tenders portal

Submission

• Method: e-Tenders portal (electronic submission).
• Closing: 22 October 2026 at 11:00.
• Late bids are not accepted.
• Bids must be submitted on the official forms provided; retyped forms are not accepted.
• Bid validity: 120 days from the closing date.

Returnable documents

• SBD 1 (Invitation to Bid): bidder and contact details, signed as the offer cover page.
• SBD 3.3 (Pricing Schedule — Professional Services): ceiling price, personnel rates, phase costs and man-days.
• SBD 4 (Bidder's Disclosure): discloses any interest held by directors, members or shareholders in the state or in the procuring institution.
• SBD 6.1 (Preference Points Claim Form): claims the 20 specific-goals points.
• SBD 7.2 (Contract Form — Rendering of Services): signed in duplicate by the successful bidder and the purchaser.
• Proof of authority to sign, such as a company resolution.
• CSD registration number and SARS tax compliance status PIN, or a printed TCS certificate.
• B-BBEE status level verification certificate or sworn affidavit (EMEs and QSEs).
• CVs of proposed personnel and certified proof of professional registration.
• Foreign suppliers: questionnaire to bidding foreign suppliers.

Disqualification risks

• Bid delivered after the closing time.
• Any returnable form omitted or left unsigned.
• Bids from persons in the service of the state, or from companies or close corporations whose directors or members are in the service of the state.
• Failure to provide the required tax, CSD or B-BBEE particulars.

Preference point system: 80/20, applied under the Preferential Procurement Regulations 2022 and the VOCMA SCM Policy.

• Price: 80 points.
• Specific goals: 20 points, claimed on SBD 6.1.

Evaluation stages

1. Stage 1 — pre-qualification (mandatory requirements): proposed key personnel must meet the stated qualifications and experience.
2. Stage 2 — returnable administrative documents.
3. Stage 3 — price and specific goals.

Specific goals points

• Women ownership: 5

• Disability ownership: 5

• Youth ownership (35 years and below): 5

• B-BBEE status level 1 or 2, where the bidder is a QSE or EME: 3

• Location of enterprise (local equals province): also scored

• Total specific goals: 20

• A bidder that does not submit proof for a claimed goal is treated as not claiming those points.

• The agency may require substantiation of any preference claim before or after adjudication.

Purpose

• Appoint a professional service provider to design, facilitate, implement, monitor and evaluate a comprehensive organisational change management and employee integration programme for VOCMA.
• Context: employees transferred from the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) into the newly operationalising Vaal-Orange Catchment Management Agency, together with newly employed staff.

Objectives

• Integrate transferred and new employees into VOCMA in a structured, transparent and sustainable manner.
• Build a shared VOCMA culture covering accountability, ethics, professionalism, service excellence, collaboration, innovation, water-resource stewardship, employee engagement, performance, inclusion and stakeholder focus.
• Assess organisational and employee readiness for change and identify areas needing intervention.
• Assess the impact of the transition on employees, structure, functions, processes, systems, policies, performance, reporting, governance, stakeholders and service delivery.
• Establish employee engagement mechanisms, manage resistance and conflict, align leadership, maintain business continuity, and transfer change-management capability to VOCMA.

Workstreams (19)

1. Project initiation and mobilisation.
2. Organisational change readiness assessment.
3. Change impact assessment.
4. Change management strategy and roadmap.
5. Employee integration programme.
6. Organisational culture development.
7. Leadership alignment.
8. Process and systems integration.
9. Policy and procedure alignment.
10. Communication and stakeholder engagement.
11. Change champion network.
12. Resistance, conflict and employee concerns management.
13. Training and capacity building.
14. Knowledge transfer.
15. Change management risk management.
16. Employee engagement surveys.
17. Change management monitoring and evaluation.
18. Change maturity and sustainability.

Assessment methods

• Document review, interviews, focus groups, surveys, management workshops, employee engagement sessions, organisational diagnostics and benchmarking.

Change impact assessment areas

• People, structure, roles, processes, systems, policies, culture, performance, skills, leadership, stakeholders, governance, risk and service delivery.

Change management strategy must cover

• Change vision, objectives, guiding principles, methodology, stakeholder analysis, impact and readiness assessments, governance, communication, employee engagement, resistance management, leadership alignment, culture, training and capacity building, business continuity, risk management, monitoring and evaluation, change maturity, sustainability and an implementation roadmap.

Culture development

• Assess current culture, subcultures, cultural gaps, desired culture, required behaviours, values, culture risks and interventions, and facilitate a culture alignment programme.

Leadership alignment

• Involves the Board where appropriate, the CEO, executive management, managers and supervisors; covers strategic alignment, change leadership, accountability, managing resistance, communication, engagement, performance management, conflict management, psychological safety, leading through uncertainty, adaptive leadership and sustaining change.

Process and systems integration

• Integrate DWS-inherited processes with VOCMA processes across HR, finance, procurement, revenue management, ICT, records management, risk management, internal control, audit, legal, communication, water-resource management, stakeholder management and performance management; identify duplicated, obsolete, missing and conflicting processes, process ownership, dependencies and change requirements.

Communication

• Channels may include employee meetings, management briefings, electronic communication, FAQs, workshops, intranet/content platforms, change champions and feedback mechanisms; the programme must explain why change is happening, what is and is not changing, implications for employees, structure, policies, roles, performance, systems, available support and implementation timelines.

Change champion network

• Identify champions, selection criteria, training, roles and responsibilities, communication duties, issue escalation, feedback mechanisms, monitoring and sustainability.

Resistance and employee concerns

• A structured mechanism for resistance, rumours, misinformation, uncertainty, change-related grievances, conflict, disengagement, change fatigue, communication breakdowns and operational disruption; the provider supports but does not replace VOCMA's formal HR, labour-relations, grievance or disciplinary processes.

Training and capacity building

• Identify training needs across change leadership, organisational culture, role clarity, new systems, new processes, policy awareness, performance management, communication, stakeholder management, teamwork, conflict management, customer service, leadership, governance and operational capability.

Knowledge transfer

• Identify critical knowledge, knowledge holders, critical processes, undocumented institutional knowledge, knowledge gaps, transfer requirements, standard operating procedures and knowledge repositories.

Risk management

• Maintain a change-management risk register covering employee resistance, loss of critical skills and institutional knowledge, disengagement, productivity decline, labour relations, cultural conflict, role ambiguity, duplication of functions, inadequate systems, policy gaps, leadership misalignment, stakeholder dissatisfaction, service delivery disruption, financial impact and reputational risk; each risk records probability, impact, rating, owner, mitigation, due date and status.

Monitoring and evaluation KPIs

• Employees reached through communication: at least 95%.
• Employees participating in the integration programme: at least 90%.
• Managers trained: 100%.
• Change champions trained: 100%.
• Critical change risks with mitigation plans: 100%.
• Business units assessed: 100%.
• Change-impact assessments completed: 100%.
• Critical skills gaps identified: 100%.
• Employee feedback mechanisms operational: 100%.
• Final change-readiness assessment completed: 100%.

Governance and reporting

• The provider works under the VOCMA CEO or a delegated official.
• The steering committee includes the Office of the CEO, HR, corporate services, finance, ICT, risk management, legal/compliance and water-resource management.
• The provider nominates a suitably qualified Project Director/Manager responsible for delivery.
• Monthly progress reports cover activities completed and planned, deliverable status, employee engagement status, the change-risk register, the resistance/issues register, stakeholder engagement, expenditure, project risks and corrective actions.
• A final comprehensive report covers activities undertaken, outcomes achieved, employee integration status, culture assessment, change maturity, unresolved risks, outstanding interventions, lessons learned, the sustainability plan and recommendations.

Contract period

• 12 months, divided into phases.

Contract period

• Recommended contract period: 12 months, divided into phases.

Key deliverables (minimum)

• Inception report, project implementation plan, stakeholder map and change governance framework.
• Organisational change readiness assessment, change impact assessment, change management strategy and change implementation roadmap.
• Organisational culture assessment, VOCMA culture framework, employee integration programme and leadership alignment programme.
• Organisational/role alignment assessment, process integration assessment and policy alignment matrix.
• Communication strategy and calendar, change champion framework and resistance management framework.
• Training needs analysis, training programme and knowledge transfer framework.
• Change risk register, employee engagement dashboard, monthly change management reports and quarterly change management reviews.
• Final change impact assessment, change maturity assessment, sustainability and exit plan, and final comprehensive change management report.
• All source documents, templates, registers and tools developed during the assignment.

Key personnel requirements (mandatory pre-qualification)

• Project Director / Change Management Lead: Master's degree in organisational development, change management, business management, HR, organisational psychology or a related field; at least 10 years' relevant experience; at least 5 years managing organisational change programmes; public-sector transformation and institutional restructuring experience preferred; certified proof of registration with SABPP, SIOPSA or IPM.
• Senior Change Management Specialist: relevant Master's or Honours degree in organisational development, change management, business management, HR, organisational psychology or a related field; at least 8 years' experience; experience in organisational change and employee integration; proof of SABPP, SIOPSA or IPM registration.
• Organisational Development Specialist: relevant degree; at least 7 years' relevant experience; experience in organisational design, culture and organisational development.
• Human Resources / Labour Relations Specialist: relevant HR, industrial psychology or labour relations qualification; at least 7 years' experience; experience with employee transfers and organisational change preferred.
• Communications and Stakeholder Engagement Specialist: relevant degree; at least 5 years' experience in organisational communication and stakeholder engagement.
• Training and Capacity Development Specialist: relevant qualification; at least 5 years' experience; demonstrated facilitation and training experience.

Evidence required

• CVs of all proposed personnel.
• Proof of qualifications and professional registrations where applicable.
• Certified proof of SABPP, SIOPSA or IPM registration for the Project Director and Senior Change Management Specialist.

Reporting requirements

• Monthly reports must cover progress, activities completed, activities planned, deliverable status, employee engagement status, the change-risk register, the resistance/issues register, the stakeholder engagement report, expenditure, project risks and corrective actions.
• A comprehensive final report must cover activities undertaken, outcomes achieved, employee integration status, culture assessment, change maturity, unresolved risks, outstanding interventions, lessons learned, the sustainability plan and recommendations.

Pricing format

• SBD 3.3 (Pricing Schedule — Professional Services) must be completed.
• Bidders must state a ceiling price for the total estimated time to complete all phases, inclusive of all applicable taxes and expenses.
• Rates must be given per person and position as hourly and daily rates; certified invoices are rendered on this basis.
• Cost per project phase and man-days per phase must be stated.
• Travel expenses: only actual costs are recoverable, and proof must accompany certified invoices.
• Other expenses (for example accommodation, telephone and reproduction) must be itemised with rate, quantity and amount; proof must accompany invoices.
• Bidders must state the period required to commence after acceptance, the estimated man-days, and whether rates are firm for the full contract period; if rates are not firm, the adjustment basis (for example CPI) must be given.

Bid validity

• 120 days from the closing date.

Taxes

• All applicable taxes include VAT, PAYE, income tax, UIF contributions and skills development levies.

Registration and tax

• Central Supplier Database (CSD) registration number required.
• SARS tax compliance status PIN, or a printed TCS certificate, required.
• Where no TCS is available but the bidder is registered on the CSD, the CSD number must be provided.
• Consortia, joint ventures and subcontractors: each party submits its own TCS certificate/PIN and CSD number.
• Bids are not considered from persons in the service of the state, or from companies or close corporations whose directors or members are in the service of the state.

B-bbee

• A B-BBEE status level verification certificate, or a sworn affidavit for EMEs and QSEs, must be submitted to claim preference points.
• B-BBEE level 1 or 2 bidders that are QSEs or EMEs can claim 3 specific-goals points.

Key personnel (mandatory pre-qualification)

• Project Director / Change Management Lead: Master's degree in organisational development, change management, business management, HR, organisational psychology or a related field; at least 10 years' relevant experience; at least 5 years managing organisational change programmes; public-sector transformation and institutional restructuring experience preferred; certified proof of registration with SABPP, SIOPSA or IPM.
• Senior Change Management Specialist: relevant Master's or Honours degree; at least 8 years' experience; experience in organisational change and employee integration; proof of SABPP, SIOPSA or IPM registration.
• Organisational Development Specialist: relevant degree; at least 7 years' relevant experience; experience in organisational design, culture and organisational development.
• Human Resources / Labour Relations Specialist: relevant HR, industrial psychology or labour relations qualification; at least 7 years' experience; experience with employee transfers and organisational change preferred.
• Communications and Stakeholder Engagement Specialist: relevant degree; at least 5 years' experience in organisational communication and stakeholder engagement.
• Training and Capacity Development Specialist: relevant qualification; at least 5 years' experience; demonstrated facilitation and training experience.
• CVs of all proposed personnel and proof of qualifications must be attached, with professional registrations where applicable.

Authority

• Proof of authority to sign, such as a company resolution, must be submitted.

Foreign bidders

• Foreign-based suppliers must complete the questionnaire to bidding foreign suppliers and enclose proof of accredited representation in South Africa.

Change impact and risk coverage

• The change impact assessment must address people, structure, roles, processes, systems, policies, culture, performance, skills, leadership, stakeholders, governance, risk and service delivery.
• The change management strategy must include change vision, objectives, guiding principles, methodology, stakeholder analysis, impact and readiness assessments, governance, communication, employee engagement, resistance management, leadership alignment, culture, training and capacity building, business continuity, risk management, monitoring and evaluation, a change maturity framework, a sustainability framework and an implementation roadmap.
• The change risk register must cover employee resistance, loss of critical skills, loss of institutional knowledge, disengagement, productivity decline, labour relations, cultural conflict, role ambiguity, duplication of functions, inadequate systems, policy gaps, leadership misalignment, stakeholder dissatisfaction, service delivery disruption, financial impact and reputational risk; each risk records probability, impact, rating, owner, mitigation, due date and status.

Performance targets

• Employees reached through communication: at least 95%.
• Employees participating in the integration programme: at least 90%.
• Managers trained, change champions trained, critical change risks with mitigation plans, business units assessed, change-impact assessments completed, critical skills gaps identified, employee feedback mechanisms operational and the final change-readiness assessment: 100% each.

Sustainability

• At the end of the assignment the provider must assess VOCMA's change-management maturity, covering internal capability, change governance, change champions, communication and engagement mechanisms, change monitoring, risk management, leadership capability and processes to sustain change.

Knowledge transfer requirement

• VOCMA must not become permanently dependent on the provider.
• The provider must transfer knowledge to designated VOCMA employees through coaching, mentoring, training, workshops, toolkits, templates, documented methodologies and practical implementation support.
• At least 10 VOCMA officials must be identified as internal change-management champions or capacity recipients, subject to confirmation by VOCMA.

Stage 1 — pre-qualification (mandatory requirements)

• Project Director / Change Management Lead: Master's degree in organisational development, change management, business management, HR, organisational psychology or a related field; at least 10 years' relevant experience; at least 5 years managing organisational change programmes; public-sector transformation and institutional restructuring experience preferred.
• Evidence: CV of the proposed person and a valid certified copy of proof of registration with SABPP, SIOPSA or IPM.
• Failure to meet the mandatory personnel requirements disqualifies the bid at this stage.

Evaluation framework

• Conducted under the VOCMA SCM Policy and the Preferential Procurement Regulations 2022.
• Preference point system: 80/20.
• Price: 80 points.
• Specific goals: 20 points, claimed on SBD 6.1.

Stages

1. Stage 1 — pre-qualification (mandatory requirements).
2. Stage 2 — returnable administrative documents.
3. Stage 3 — price and specific goals.