August 29, 2025
Overview
Supply Ontario (SO) has established a new enterprise-wide Vendor of Record (VOR) arrangement for Data Integration Visualization and Analytics. The VOR arrangement features ten (10) Capabilities, with multiple vendors qualified in each Capability.
The VOR arrangement, effective as of June 1, 2025, has a four (4) year term ending May 31, 2029, with one (1) optional extension of up to three (3) years. The VOR arrangement is mandatory for OPS ministries and agencies and is optionally available to non-OPS entities including municipalities, academic institutions, school boards, health care providers, and major transfer payment recipients.
The ten (10) Capabilities, which were individually awarded, are:
- CAPABILITY 1 – DATA INTEGRATION
Data Integration refers to business and technical processes which provides users a unified view of data residing in multiple sources and formats both structured (e.g., relational databases) and unstructured (e.g., the Web. Data Integration). Technical processes involved in Data Integration may include data discovery, cleansing, monitoring, extraction, transformation, masking, and loading.
It also includes Pipeline Orchestration, which focuses on workflow automation, job scheduling, dependency management, and monitoring for data pipelines.
- CAPABILITY 2 – DATA MODELING
Data Modeling is the process of documenting the design of a complex software system as an easily understood diagram (e.g., entity relationship), using text and symbols to represent how data flows. The diagram serves as a blueprint for building new software or for re-engineering a legacy application. The models may be conceptual, logical, or physical.
Data modeling supports semantic modeling, data contracts, entity identification, synchronization, and data harmonization.
- CAPABILITY 3 – DATA QUALITY ASSURANCE
Data Quality refers to the business and technical processes that ensure data is fit for its intended purpose. It is measured across multiple dimensions including:
Accuracy, Completeness, Update Status, Relevance, Consistency Across Data Sources, Reliability, Appropriate Presentation, and Accessibility
Data Quality consists of automated anomaly detection, continuous profiling, data quality monitoring, and data validation.
- CAPABILITY 4 – DATA SECURITY AND PRIVACY
Data Security refers to all the practices and processes that are in place to ensure data is not being used or accessed by unauthorized individuals or parties. Data Privacy is about controlling rights to access data.
- CAPABILITY 5 – DATA MANAGEMENT
Data Management refers to the development and execution of architectures, policies, practices, and procedures that properly manage the full data lifecycle for an enterprise. It covers data lifecycle management, metadata governance, business glossary, data cataloging, and compliance tracking.
- CAPABILITY 6 – STATISTICAL MODELING
Statistical Modeling creates mathematical models (e.g., regression, time series analysis, forecasting, and geospatial analysis) to understand and predict real world observations based on a set of factors or variables.
- CAPABILITY 7 – INTEGRATED DEVELOPMENT ENVIRONMENT
An integrated development environment (IDE) is a software application that helps programmers develop software code efficiently by combining key capabilities (e.g., software editing, building, testing, and packaging) into an easy-to-use application. Just as writers use text editors and accountants use spreadsheets, software developers use IDEs to enhance productivity.
- CAPABILITY 8 – MACHINE LEARNING
Machine Learning is a method of data analysis based on automated analytical model building. It presumes that computer systems can analyze and learn from data, identify patterns, and make decisions with minimal human intervention. Machine Learning is widely used in fields such as robotics, self-driving cars, and visual recognition applications (e.g., facial ID recognition).
- CAPABILITY 9 – VISUAL ANALYTICS & REPORTING
Visual Analytics refers to a graphical method of inquiry whereby data sets can be “sliced” and “diced” interactively by the user in search of certain insights. It provides interactive and visual methods for data exploration and decision-making. Visual Analytics also includes dashboards, automated reporting, predictive modeling, and Real-Time Data Processing & Streaming Analytics, which focus on low-latency event processing and continuous data analysis.
- CAPABILITY 10 – CLOUD PORTABILITY
Cloud Portability refers to the ability to quickly transfer applications, workloads, data, etc., between cloud environments. This can involve moving from a private cloud to a public cloud (or vice versa), or switching between cloud providers.
Benefits
- Savings for the Province
- Centralized management and enhanced security
- Sustainability
- Improved efficiencies and business processes
- Favourable rates for a wide range of software licenses
Related services, including:
- Maintenance and support
- Training
- Implementation services
How to access the VOR arrangment
For Ontario Public Service (OPS) ministries
This VOR arrangement and the user guide are available on InsideOPS.
For Non-OPS entities
Access is available through the Doing business with Ontario website.
Contacts
Questions about the VOR arrangement can be directed to:
(416) 915-7772 or 1-888-996-7772