Make the rules work for you — Innovation in procurement without bending the rules

LG Leader June 2018

As councils are asked to do more with less, I see discussion in local government circles about how they may be able to avoid ‘process contracts’ in their procurement activities. Doing so, it is said, will allow councils to have more control over their procurement and achieve better outcomes.

With all due respect to those saying that, I have to disagree.

A process contract is the contract formed when a council seeks tenders (or expressions of interest, quotes or proposals) subject to terms, and contractors submit in accordance with those terms.

As we have seen in other areas of local government activity, it’s never a good look for councils to seek to bend the rules or get around them. Councils are in a situation where they must not only do what must be done but also be seen to do what must be done. Seeking to get out of rules which should apply to get a leg up in a procurement activity isn’t going to pass muster in the current environment.

However, this doesn’t mean that councils can not get great results in a procurement by being clever in how they set up the procurement and the process contract to give them flexibility and incentivise contractors to propose an innovative solution. To do so, they need to have a clear objective from the outset and prepare themselves properly for the process.

If you would like more information about setting up your procurement activities for success, please contact us on 08 8113 7100.