REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS: Graphic Design and Communications Services: Brand Collateral Development

About CBI

The Consensus Building Institute (CBI) is a nonprofit organization that helps leaders, communities, and organizations collaborate effectively to solve complex problems. For more than 30 years, CBI has provided mediation, facilitation, and collaborative problem-solving services to government agencies, communities, businesses, and nonprofit organizations across the United States and internationally. CBI is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with staff and consultants located across North America. Learn more at www.cbi.org.

Background and Purpose

Over its history, CBI has built its reputation through consistent, high-quality work that leads to repeat clients and word-of-mouth referrals, particularly in regions where staff have historically been located. As CBI grows into new markets, we understand that establishing experience and trust requires more than strong written and oral communication. Professional graphic design has become a baseline expectation for signaling legitimacy and reliability, and high-quality design paired with concise, strategic writing helps communicate value to clients and collaborators quickly.

CBI's communications have historically focused on highlighting our mission-driven work, and we have done this by writing case studies, publishing emerging knowledge on mediation theory and practice, and promoting our training offerings. CBI now seeks to complement these efforts with modernized brand collateral: materials that directly promote CBI's services through strong graphic design and strategic, marketing-focused communication.

CBI is issuing this RFP to engage a graphic design and communications contractor for a short-term contract to develop a foundational set of brand collateral for business development use, along with design guidance to inform CBI's future branding needs.

Scope of Services

The selected contractor will provide:

1. Overall Branding Guidance: Written guidance on how to use modern graphic design to better tell the wider world about CBI's story, services, and value, particularly through graphic collateral used for business development.
2. Communications Assistance: Coordination with CBI's Communications Director and select team members to combine graphic design and written content effectively into the brand collateral deliverables.
3. Brand Collateral Development: Production of the deliverables listed below.
4. Accessibility and Section 508 Compliance Guidance: Demonstrated guidance on Section 508 accessibility compliance as it applies to graphic design deliverables. While not all CBI materials need to be 508 compliant, the contractor should be equipped to help guide that determination.

Deliverables

1. Branding Guidance Document: A summary of key brand and design principles that inform the collateral, recommendations for CBI's future collateral development, and general Section 508 accessibility guidance in the context of CBI branding. This is not expected to be a formal style guide or report.
2. 4-6 2-pager / Bifold Brochures: An “About CBI” brochure for general use; a regional brochure for at least one region (e.g., Canada), adapting the existing brochure as a template for future regional collateral; and at least two brochures highlighting CBI's services in areas such as land use and resilience planning and coalition-building.
3. PowerPoint Slide Deck Masters: A modern design for client pitches, proposal interviews, and conference presentations, adaptable for day-to-day client-facing work. As relevant, this could involve modification of existing CBI templates.
4. Zoom Backgrounds: Modern virtual meeting backgrounds consistent with current market standards.
5. CV and Resume Masters: Redesign of CBI's existing CV and resume templates with design elements that ensure consistency and a modern, professional look.

All deliverables must be provided in formats regularly used by CBI staff (compatible with Microsoft Office, Google Workspace, and Canva) for streamlined transfer and application. All design deliverables should be provided as finished, ready-to-populate products — CBI staff will supply content, not do further design work. Additionally, Deliverables 2-5 should meet Section 508 standards, unless determined otherwise in coordination with CBI.

Budget

CBI anticipates a total contract value not to exceed $10,000, depending on the level of design and degree of staff coordination proposed. Respondents should submit a cost proposal reflecting their proposed approach.

Contract Terms and Working Arrangement

This is a short-term, project-based contract. The contractor may work fully remotely. The contractor will coordinate directly with designated CBI staff; CBI believes direct coordination between design and content is essential to maximizing the impact of these materials. Work is anticipated to occur between August 2026 and February 2027.

Proposal Submission Requirements

Interested candidates should submit the following to inquire@cbi.org by July 20, 2026:

1. A brief narrative introduction describing your approach to brand collateral design
2. A selected list of relevant experience, education, and training
3. Portfolio links and relevant work samples, such as brochures, presentation design, marketing collateral, and brand messaging for similar organizations
4. Hourly rate, and a proposed cost estimate for the scope described above. A project-based cost estimate may be proposed in lieu of an hourly rate, if the anticipated level of effort is clearly articulated.
5. A brief description of your experience with Section 508 accessibility compliance

Selection Process and Criteria

CBI will review submissions and invite selected candidates to interview with a panel that includes members of CBI's leadership team, CBI's Communications Director, and staff who will use the collateral. Proposals will be evaluated on the quality and relevance of prior work, demonstrated experience merging design with strategic communications, Section 508 accessibility experience, cost, and fit with CBI's mission and working style.

Anticipated Timeline

• RFP issued: June 26
• Questions due: July 6
• Proposals due: July 20
• Interviews: Week of July 27th
• Selection and contract start: Mid-August

Questions

Questions about this RFP may be directed to Cam Hager, Operations Manager, at inquire@cbi.org.