e-Contract Management Guidance project Peter Duschinsky, Project Manager James Johnston, Consultant The Imaginist Company

Agenda eContract Management Systems in practice 1.Introduction and a summary of our current findings 2.Case studies: –Deborah McNulty, Gateshead Council and NEPO –Andrew Maisey, Torfaen County BC and Welsh Purchasing Consortium 3.Panel discussion

Introduction e-Contract Management represents the single area of e- Procurement that has yet to be addressed by NePP Whilst much effort is put into preparing for procurement and the tender/buying cycle, contracts are often poorly managed, leading to legal, financial and under- performance problems e-CM allows a more proactive control and consistent approach to the procurement process The introduction of the National Procurement Strategy and the Gershon Efficiency review has elevated e-CM higher up the local government agenda

Establish guidance so that local authorities can access practical support and relevant information on ECM solutions Provide an understanding of technical solutions and estimated costs Deliver comprehensive, structured and easy to use guidance Open dialogue with Procurement practitioners in local government to determine the type of service and assistance required Scope of e-CM guidance project

The Imaginist Company is a leading independent consultancy specialising in helping public sector organisations change and adopt modern systems to realise the benefits of e-government We have led best practice for local authority e-procurement over the past 5 years: –We delivered the NePP Supplier Adoption strand and have an excellent track record in the development of best practice guidance and case studies –We have worked with a number of collaborative groups of LAs to help them plan and implement e-procurement –We have assisted over 100 LAs, including 50 as part of the NePP Support for Authorities project - with very positive results About us

Definitions Consult Regional Centres of Excellence (RCEs) Consult and seek detailed information from eCMS solution providers Consult IDeA, OGC etc Develop functional comparison database Report progress at NePP Conference Phase 1: Research

Comprehensive and practical ‘how to’ guide, to include: –Definitions and how eCMS tools can complement other e-procurement solutions e.g. e-sourcing, e-tendering –The benefits of e-CMS and how e-CMS adds value to the procurement process –Useful tips/lessons learned for successful implementation –Advice on suitability of e-CMS for different types of authority and groups of authority –Specific advice on collaborative implementation of eCMS –Solution provider contacts and reference points Phase 2: Development of Materials

Technical review of eCMS solutions being used by local authorities, including: –Comparative functionality chart –Compliance to standards, integration capability, scope for future inter- operability 3 case studies, showing how e-CMS added real value Model eCMS project implementation plan Collaborative implementation map Costing models and business case template Phase 2: Development of Materials

Huge potential for savings – but double counting is rife! There is little understanding of the capabilities of e-CMS and even less activity - it has been difficult to identify real examples of eCMS implementation that have moved beyond the initial stages  Part of the problem is that there is no clear understanding of where e-CMS starts and finishes re e-Sourcing  The main misconception is that e-CMS is positioned to start after the contract has been signed – the focus is almost always on implementing e-tendering Initial findings - 1

 e-Tendering automates highly visible manual processes in use in all authorities - eCMS is more difficult to justify as contract management is not currently being fully enforced  Fewer than 15% of authorities have a complete contract register which is a key building block for good contract management  RCEs see eCMS as a critical element in collaborative e- Procurement and some, including Y&HCE, NEPO, are actively addressing the issue Initial findings - 2

Initial findings - 3 eCMS solutions on the market are, in the main, enhancements to existing Portal and Tendering applications Different solutions offer different benefits eg risk management Provision for relationship management will probably be one of the key differentors when building the functional comparison chart

Positioning eCMS SuppliersBuyers e-Contract Management Collaborative stakeholders FMS, operational & legacy systems

Case study presentations Deborah McNulty Gateshead Council and NEPO implementing the Due North system Andrew Maisey Torfaen County BC and Welsh Purchasing Consortium implementing the Alito system

Panel discussion - key questions What do we mean by CMS? What are the benefits of good contract management? Who is implementing eCMS? What are the barriers and how do we overcome them?