Methodology Preview:Functional families and class counts are modeled to the City of Gainesville's ~570 classifications and ~1,500 employees per RFP HRDX-260051-WB. Salary, benefit, and pension figures shown here are illustrative, with production data populated from the City HRIS, the City's pension plans, the collective bargaining agreements, and the Florida comparator jurisdictions' adopted pay plans at engagement award.

HSG Methodology Demo

City of Gainesville · RFP HRDX-260051-WB

Methodology · 6-Phase Project Plan

September 2026 to February 2027 · aggressive ~6-month engagement, with preliminary results by December (the City's 7/1 Q&A ask)

The RFP §GENERAL REQUIREMENTS is explicit: a comprehensive timeline, regular progress reports to the HR Director, employee engagement, a detailed implementation plan, and a final report to the HR Director. Our six-phase methodology maps directly to RFP §CLASSIFICATION STUDY and §COMPENSATION STUDY items A through G. Every phase below cites the specific RFP requirement it satisfies.

  1. 01

    September 2026

    2 weeks

    Project kick-off, data intake, & stakeholder engagement design

    Maps to: RFP §GENERAL REQUIREMENTS: initial kickoff meeting with the HR Director, HR staff, and County Administrator

    Activities

    • ▸Kickoff meeting with the HR Director, HR staff, and County Administrator to finalize scope, comprehensive timeline, dedicated personnel, and progress-reporting cadence
    • ▸Schedule department-head briefings (1 per major department, 14 total)
    • ▸Schedule employee briefings (one per department, recorded for absent staff)
    • ▸Pull authoritative source data: ~570 current job descriptions, FY2026 and FY2027 Adopted Budget personnel schedule, current pay plan, FLSA designations
    • ▸Pull City pension plan designations per incumbent: General vs. Police & Fire plan (sworn deputies and certified career firefighters/medics)
    • ▸Stand up secured project folder + portal credentials for the HR Director

    Deliverables

    • ◆Kickoff Memo
    • ◆Stakeholder Engagement Plan
    • ◆Comprehensive Project Timeline
    • ◆Project Risk Register v1

  2. 02

    October 2026

    4 weeks

    Classification audit & evaluation across ~570 classifications

    Maps to: RFP §CLASSIFICATION STUDY: assess current system, review job descriptions, compare job functions

    Activities

    • ▸Employee engagement: classification questionnaire issued to all incumbents plus structured interviews; 100% return targeted (RFP §GENERAL REQUIREMENTS)
    • ▸Department-head structured interviews (14 sessions) to validate questionnaire data
    • ▸AI-drafted classification profile generated for each of ~570 classes (using HSG's reconciliation methodology)
    • ▸Each AI-drafted profile reconciled by Certified Job Evaluator (Gilda Weech-House) against the questionnaire, Florida peer descriptions, and DOL O*NET
    • ▸Functions-not-titles benchmarking: we compare actual job functions rather than titles, per RFP §CLASSIFICATION STUDY
    • ▸Internal hierarchy & relative-worth assessment using point-factor methodology; recommend consolidation or expansion of classes

    Deliverables

    • ◆Classification Questionnaire inventory (~570 returns)
    • ◆Draft Class Specifications (~570 classes)
    • ◆Internal Hierarchy Memo
    • ◆AI/Expert Reconciliation Log

  3. 03

    November 2026

    4 weeks

    Comparator survey & external market data collection

    Maps to: RFP §CLASSIFICATION STUDY (market analysis, all departments/levels) + §COMPENSATION STUDY items B to E

    Activities

    • ▸Florida public-sector comparators surveyed: Tallahassee, Ocala, Lakeland, Clearwater, Cape Coral, Palm Bay, Melbourne, Daytona Beach, Boca Raton, Sarasota, and Kissimmee, plus Alachua County as the home-market peer
    • ▸Each comparator's adopted pay plan pulled (authoritative public records). The core of the RFP §BACKGROUND problem is that neighboring cities out-pay the City
    • ▸Targeted private-sector benchmark for non-public-sector comparable roles across the / Florida labor market
    • ▸Florida League of Cities salary data and BLS OEWS wage percentiles cross-referenced for regional context
    • ▸Gainesville-equivalent role mapping by job function (broad benchmark coverage anticipated; flagged where unique)

    Deliverables

    • ◆Comparator Database (Excel)
    • ◆Market Position Report
    • ◆Compression Analysis Brief
    • ◆Regional Percentile Memo

  4. 04

    November to December 2026

    8 weeks

    Pay structure design & compression analysis

    Maps to: RFP §COMPENSATION STUDY items A through G (range spread, midpoint-to-maximum, placement, movement, compression)

    Activities

    • ▸Pay grade design: minimum, midpoint, maximum, and range spread for each grade (RFP §COMPENSATION STUDY item A)
    • ▸Senior-management / department-head grade ladder built to analyze supervisory compression (RFP §COMPENSATION STUDY item G)
    • ▸Recommended placement of all jobs in pay ranges, actual pay vs. market (RFP §COMPENSATION STUDY items D and E)
    • ▸Compression analysis run on every classification, INCLUDING supervisory compression; remediation plan tiered (immediate / FY2028 / structural)
    • ▸Internal-equity / external-competitiveness reconciliation against the named Florida comparators
    • ▸Movement-through-ranges guidance: COLA, off-cycle, step, and merit processes (RFP §COMPENSATION STUDY item F)

    Deliverables

    • ◆Recommended Pay Plan v1
    • ◆Supervisory-Compression Ladder Memo
    • ◆Compression Remediation Plan
    • ◆Preliminary Results Package to the City (December)

  5. 05

    January 2027

    4 weeks

    Recommendations, cost impact, & HR maintenance approach

    Maps to: RFP §COMPENSATION STUDY (cost implications, ongoing maintenance) + §CLASSIFICATION STUDY (maintenance approach)

    Activities

    • ▸Tiered recommendation package (immediate / FY2028 / structural)
    • ▸Cost-impact model: base + City pension rollup (General and Police & Fire plan) per classification per position
    • ▸Ongoing classification & compensation maintenance approach so County HR can keep the system current after award (RFP §CLASSIFICATION STUDY + §COMPENSATION STUDY)
    • ▸Detailed implementation plan with communications, procedures, and training (RFP §GENERAL REQUIREMENTS)
    • ▸Special-pay guidance: career-development, certification (FDLE/CJSTC / FL Bureau of EMS / water-wastewater license), bilingual, acting/out-of-class, and longevity differentials

    Deliverables

    • ◆Tiered Recommendation Package
    • ◆Cost Impact Model (Excel)
    • ◆HR Maintenance Approach (documented)
    • ◆Updated Pay Plan (electronic)

  6. 06

    February 2027

    3 weeks

    Final delivery, Board presentation, & HR training

    Maps to: RFP §GENERAL REQUIREMENTS: final report to the HR Director + implementation plan with training

    Activities

    • ▸Comprehensive final report to the HR Director: full study plus each grade and class before/after with reasons
    • ▸Presentation to the City Commission, pre-rehearsed with the HR Director and County Administrator
    • ▸HR-staff training executed: 2 sessions over 2 weeks, covering classification administration, market-data refresh process, and the maintenance approach
    • ▸FINAL DELIVERY: February 2027, ahead of the City's FY2028 budget development cycle

    Deliverables

    • ◆Final Report (PDF + DOCX)
    • ◆Board Presentation Deck
    • ◆HR Training Program (recorded + slide deck + reference manual)
    • ◆Maintenance Approach Documentation

On-Time Delivery Commitment

February 2027, locked in writing.

We hold this date because the final report must land before the City of Gainesville's FY2028 budget development cycle opens. Every phase above carries a hard buffer to absorb data-availability slippage from comparator jurisdictions or HRIS pull delays without compressing the final review-and-approval window. We do not negotiate the February 2027 commitment in kickoff. It is the commitment.