Item - 2025.GG26.27

The General Government Committee recommend that:

1. City Council authorize the Chief People Officer to in accordance with Section 195-7.1(E) of the Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 195, Procurement, to enter into, and execute a non-competitive contract with Symphony Talent, LLC, commencing from January 1, 2026, for a one (1) year term with an option to extend the contract by one (1) additional one (1) year period for a total potential value of  $190,045 net of all taxes and charges ($193,390 net of Harmonized Sales Tax recoveries), subject to terms and conditions acceptable to the Chief People Officer.

The purpose of this report is to request authority to enter into a non-competitive agreement with Symphony Talent, LLC, for skills assessment software. Symphony Talent, LLC, was previously awarded Request for Proposal number 3405-16-3013 on January 1, 2020, for a three-year term, plus two one-year renewals, executed in 2023 and 2024. This contract was extended for one year through a non-competitive procurement and expires December 31, 2025.

The skill-testing software provided by Symphony Talent, LLC is a critical component of the City’s recruitment process, supporting approximately 10,000 candidate assessments annually and ensuring recruitment timelines are maintained.

People and Equity is currently leading a capital technology project and working with Technology Services Division to modernize recruitment systems. Vendor demonstrations are ongoing, and a final procurement strategy is expected shortly.

A non-competitive procurement with Symphony Talent, LLC is required as a change cannot be made for economic or technical reasons without causing service delivery gaps and recruitment delays. This will ensure operational continuity and mitigate risks during the transition to a new solution.

City Council approval is required in accordance with Municipal Code Chapter 195, Purchasing, where the current request exceeds the Chief Procurement Officer’s authority of the cumulative five-year commitment limit for each vendor under Article 7, Section 195-7.3(D) of the Purchasing By-law or exceeds the threshold of $500,000 net of Harmonized Sales Tax allowed under staff authority as per the Toronto Municipal Code, Chapter 71, Financial Control, Section 71-11(A).