RFP 1255813 UW IRB System

The University of Washington is soliciting proposals for a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solution to support the Human Subjects Division and Institutional Review Board (IRB). The objective is to replace a legacy system with a modern cloud-based platform that streamlines workflows and ensures compliance with federal, state, and institutional regulations governing human subjects research. Proposals are due by November 21, 2026, and will be evaluated based on functional and non-functional requirements (40%), vendor licensing costs (15%), total cost of ownership (15%), experience with R1 public research institutions (10%), platform roadmap (10%), and the implementation approach (10%). The selected vendor must adhere to stringent technical and legal standards, including OCIO cybersecurity standards, Washington State IT procurement law, and WCAG accessibility guidelines. Key technical requirements include support for SAML 2.0 or OpenID Connect, AES-256 encryption for data at rest, and a SOC 2 Type II report. Performance benchmarks require core pages to load within two seconds for 95% of interactions, with a recovery time objective of four hours and a recovery point objective of 24 hours. Additionally, the system must support data classified as UW Restricted and comply with FDA 21 CFR Part 11 if electronic records and signatures are utilized. Vendors must also provide certifications regarding their minority and women-owned business status via the OMWBE response form.