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“Good for business, good for communities”: Local economies and procurement at Procurex Scotland 2019

Procurex Scotland 2019 and the 15th Scottish Government National Procurement Conference were held this year on 29 October at the SEC, Glasgow. You can access our event report on procurement and sustainability here. In the second of our reports looking back at some of the highlights and key themes of the day, six weeks on, we look at the links between procurement and social benefit. Although considering social value as part of any procurement exercise has been mandatory for buying organisations since 2012, buyers and suppliers are increasingly aware that areas such as environmental impact, community activities and contribution to the local economy are increasingly important to service users, employees and businesses. As the talks at Procurex Scotland and the Scottish Government National Procurement Conference showed, considering social impact is also good for business too, with community sustainability going hand in hand with economic growth.

The local economy agenda

Kate Forbes MSP at Procurex Scotland 2019

A keynote address from Kate Forbes MSP, Minister for Public Finance and Digital Economy, began the Scottish Government National Procurement Conference. Ms Forbes’ talk was a survey of many of the ways in which procurement can effect change, on a local and global level. Insisting that “there is great collective power in this room,” Ms Forbes described the need to “build resilience into our own organisations, but also organisations we have dealings with.”

Emphasising the role of building sustainable economies at the local level, Ms Forbes stated that “it’s easy to look at the national picture without realising how powerful the local picture is.” She pointed out that issues of corporate responsibility such as paying a real living wage or addressing gender inequality in the workplace are not simply beneficial for their own sake, but stimulate local economies – in turn feeding back into business. Reminding the Conference audience that “your spend creates £10bn of economic activity,” Ms Forbes underlined the extent to which procurement has a major role to play in stimulating local economies.

An important element of contributing to local economies, as was addressed by several of the day’s speakers, is the role of SMEs. The Supply2Gov tender alerts service allows SMEs to be alerted to upcoming opportunities, through access to the UK and Republic of Ireland’s largest database of public sector contracts. With a particular focus on organisations newer to public sector tendering, Supply2Gov allows businesses to access alerts from the whole of the UK, or simply a local area of their choosing, free of charge. For buyers looking to work more with SMEs, CompeteFor exists to deliver sustainable and measurable community benefits through ‘opening up’ major supply chains from capital expenditure projects to SMEs and local businesses. Aiming for transparency of opportunities through the entire supply chain, CompeteFor’s free service enables businesses to compete for contract opportunities linked to major buying organisations in both the public and private sector – increasing the diversity of organisations participating in the supply chain, and ensuring ethical transparency throughout.

Local communities, national benefits

Scott Bell at the National Procurement Conference

Following Ms Forbes was Scott Bell, Deputy Director of Procurement Development and Construction with the Scottish Government, whose talk focused on specific instances of procurement success that have had wider community benefits. These included the case of a school in Inverclyde which, thanks to a national framework, was able to provide iPads for some of its poorest pupils to use in class, along with the necessary training for teachers; and the ‘baby box’ delivered to every new parent in Scotland, a GO Award-winning project delivered by APS Group. However, as Mr Bell pointed out, the benefits of procurement “are not just about the contract.” By way of example, he pointed to the case of a family in South Uist who were able to have a new boiler fitted in their home – after having to use an oil burner for heat – thanks to the Warmworks scheme. Aside from the benefit to the family, Mr Bell pointed to the fact that Warmworks is a collaboration between a business, a third sector organisation and a charity. The procurement process itself therefore and the collaboration are “good for business, good for employees and good for communities.” Introducing the National Performance Framework, Mr Bell explained that it “describes the Scotland we aspire to.” Despite – or because of – showing the benefits that can be achieved through the procurement process as well as the end result, Mr Bell impressed on delegates that “purpose beats process.”

A seemingly very different topic was addressed in the talk by Paul McNeill, Head of Community Development at Scottish Football. Mr McNeill said that “the impact of football is far bigger than 22 men running about a field”, claiming that “every household in Scotland has some kind of engagement with football” – from supporting teams as fans to working for a business that sponsors or is involved in providing building materials for stadiums. Mr McNeill said that the Scottish FA recognised a need to “take responsibility for being the country’s biggest sport,” and to communicate better the social and business benefits of football to Scotland. Looking at the “social return on investment,” Mr McNeill talked about the economic, social and health, as well as financial, benefits of grassroots football, and the importance of making sure these benefits are communicated widely.

Paul McNeill of the Scottish FA

Beside the financial importance of football for Scotland and Scottish communities, which Mr McNeill made very clear, the link between football and procurement more widely may not seem immediately obvious. However, there was an interesting discussion between Mr Bell and Mr McNeill after the latter’s talk, which made clear how the two fields can learn from each other. Mr McNeill’s talk made clear, said Mr Bell, the importance of leadership space, and how strategic thinking from leaders in key positions can ensure that a wider agenda, and the benefits that it will have, are communicated clearly to both end-users and stakeholders. Moreover, said Mr Bell, “the place agenda features very highly” for procurement in Scotland, with an increased focus on benefiting local economies and communities, which – as the talks at the National Procurement Conference showed – have a positive effect on sustaining economic growth. The Scottish FA provides “a great example,” Mr Bell noted, “of taking something national and applying it locally” – making apparent how a large-scale national industry can benefit local communities, as well as showing how small-scale local economic growth can scale up.

Sharing best practice, celebrating success

The strength of Scottish procurement in tackling local issues was also recognised in a keynote talk by Malcolm Harrison, CEO of the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (CIPS), and Nikki Archer, Deputy Director, Head of Procurement and Commercial Policy & Strategy and Head of Procurement Profession with the Scottish Government. Kicking off the GO Excellence Live Stage at Procurex Scotland, Mr Harrison and Ms Archer, interviewed by Scotland Tonight presenter Rona Dougall, described some of the major trends and challenges currently facing procurement in Scotland.

Malcolm Harrison, Nikki Archer and Rona Dougall at the GO Excellence Live Stage

Mr Harrison suggested that “there are areas where Scotland is leading best practice internationally,” particularly noting social value and the impact on local communities. Ms Archer agreed that “the holistic approach [Scotland] takes is unique.” Ms Archer said that assuring social value and a positive wider impact through procurement is “not a tick-box exercise,” urging delegates to look at priorities in individual cases. For example, where a supply chain includes a high proportion of SMEs, Ms Archer suggested that focusing on the local economy impact would be particularly important. This is not always a simple fix, however, and Ms Archer added that “buyers deserve recognition for managing these challenges.”

The GO Awards series of events aims to recognise and celebrate excellence in all aspects of procurement from across the UK, from the public, private and third sectors. As Mr Harrison and Ms Archer kicked off a series of interviews with nominees for this year’s GO Awards Scotland, Ms Archer said that while the procurement environment in Scotland is unique, it is important for Scottish procurement leaders to share best practice with colleagues in Wales and Northern Ireland too. The GO Awards Northern Ireland and GO Awards Wales 2020 events will take place on 10 March and 18 March, respectively, and entries are now open. As well as celebrating organisations’ success and innovation in procurement, the Awards are a great opportunity for teams to share best practice with colleagues and potential partners, including in areas such as Social Value, Environmental Impact and Supplier Relationship Management. See the full list of categories here. The nominations will be announced at the end of January, so enter your organisation or team soon to make sure their success is recognised.

Local Government Procurement Expo 2019: Transformation and Innovation

This year’s Local Government Procurement Expo (LGPE) showcase was held on Thursday 28 November at the Novotel London West in Hammersmith. As the premier event dedicated to the development of the UK local government procurement marketplace, and officially supported by the Local Government Association, LGPE remains an unmissable date in the public sector business calendar. Procurement professionals from across local government departments the length and breadth of the UK came together to discuss the major ongoing themes affecting the industry, from the embrace of social value to initiatives supporting smaller businesses, to drive efficient and effective procurement in this vital sector.

Increasing innovation in public procurement

Malcolm Harbour CBE at LGPE 2019

Malcolm Harbour CBE at LGPE 2019

One of the highlights of the day was the speech delivered by Malcolm Harbour, Chair of the Local Government Association Task and Finish Group on Public Procurement of Innovation, on how the procurement rules can be innovation-friendly if organisations know how to use them correctly. Mr Harbour said that driving innovation begins at the root of a company, with management responsible for creating “a culture in which you encourage people to think about new ways to do things and how you want to do them.” He further commented how “alternative procurement procedures including innovation partnerships, negotiations and working closely with suppliers in a commercial partnership” can inspire collaboration between buyers and suppliers. Lucy Patchett from Supply Management covered Mr Harbour’s speech in detail in an article, which you can read here.

Another key speaker was Kevin O’Malley, Innovation/SBRI Lead at Innovate UK. Mr O’Malley’s speech focused on how effective procurement strategies can help solve the complex public sector service challenges of today, with support for innovative SMEs at the heart of this endeavour. Lizzy Grayson’s session on supporting apprenticeships and Sarah Bass’s on ‘Preventing Modern Slavery in the Supply Chain’ continued the social value theme, with lively and informative discussions afterwards.

“A number of people came to speak to me afterwards and queued up… People wanted to share their experiences with me, and they also wanted to ask what we’d done and share documents with them which I was absolutely thrilled to do. One individual came up to me and said she’s aware of an individual who she believes is being trafficked into the UK and she’s struggling with what to do, so I’ve been able to support that. If there’s one thing I’ve done today [at LGPE] it’s preventing someone from being in modern slavery – which is just amazing.” – Sarah Bass, Commissioning, Procurement and Brokerage Service Delivery Manager at Telford and Wrekin Council

Transforming local government procurement

One interesting theme that was echoed throughout the event by all organisations, across the public and private sectors alike, was just how exciting a time it is to work in the UK local government procurement marketplace. Across the many special features and zones of the event, there was an overwhelmingly positive understanding of the sheer size of the opportunity available in the sector – and an appreciation that buyers and suppliers should work together to make a real difference to the lives of people across all our communities. Through many passionate speeches and insightful conversations, the message was truly delivered how imperative it is that events like LGPE exist to provide a platform for professionals to network and share experiences that can drive positive change.

Looking to the future

Thank you to all the 700-plus delegates who attended LGPE 2019, the 40-plus organisations that exhibited on the day and the 20-odd speakers who delivered such important and insightful sessions. We hope the impact of this year’s LGPE showcase will continue to be felt for a long time to come. Keep your eyes peeled for LGPE 2020 announcements and register your interest soon on the LGPE website.

 

GO Awards Scotland 2019/20 Finalists Announced

GO Awards Scotland logo

The finalists for the GO Awards Scotland have been announced.

Celebrating the best in all aspects of public procurement from across the public, private and third sectors in Scotland, the GO Awards Scotland presentation ceremony will take place at the Marriott Hotel, Glasgow in Birmingham on 29th October. The standard of entries this year was very high, so we would like to extend our congratulations to all nominees, and thank everyone who entered.

All entries will be reviewed by our judging panel comprised of experts from across Scottish procurement. You can learn more about the judges here.

The full list of finalists is as follows:

Social Value Award

sponsored by Remploy Scotland

  • Balfour Beatty
  • City of Edinburgh Council & Wildact Solutions
  • Dumfries and Galloway Council, Dumfries and Galloway LGBT Plus, Dumfries and Galloway Multicultural Association, DGVoice, LGBT Youth Scotland & Third Sector Dumfries and Galloway
  • Multiplex Construction Europe Ltd & University of Glasgow
  • National Services Scotland, for entry: Product Donation – Northern Iraq
  • National Services Scotland, for entry: National Catheter Passport
  • Nurse Directorate for NHS Scotland, Scottish Government Workforce Directorate, National Services Scotland, National Procurement, Dimensions Clothing, Haven PTS, Developing the Young Workforce, National Education Scotland (NES), NHS Scotland Health Boards
  • Perth and Kinross Council & Balfour Beatty
  • Scotland Excel & Scotland’s Bravest Manufacturing Company
  • Scottish Procurement Alliance, Lintel Trust, Hawthorn Housing Co-Operative, Linstone Housing Association, Perth and Kinross Council, South Ayrshire Council,Wheatley Group, River Clyde Homes, Cairn Housing Association, Clyde Valley Housing Association, Paisley Housing Association, South Lanarkshire Council, Dundee City Council, Angus Council & Barrhead Housing Association
  • South Ayrshire Council
  • University of Strathclyde

Best Service Award – Micro and Small Businesses and Third Sector Organisations

sponsored by Scotland Excel

  • Carnegie Clinical Research Ltd
  • Cenefits & City of Edinburgh Council
  • Child Bereavement UK
  • Health by Science
  • H&W Forestry Services
  • Scotia Books Ltd

Best Service Award – Medium and Large Organisations

sponsored by Lyreco

  • ACL Hire
  • APS Group (Scotland) Limited
  • Hadden Group, Perth and Kinross Council at Scott Street & Perth College UHI
  • McConechy’s Tyre Services Ltd
  • Pertemps
  • Retinue Health, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, NHS Lanarkshire, NHS Forth Valley & NHS Dumfries and Galloway

Best Environmental Impact Award

  • South Ayrshire Council
  • Scottish Government & Scottish Futures Trust
  • University of Strathclyde
  • Stirling Council, Scottish Water, Horizons & Scottish Government Low Carbon Infrastructure Transition Programme (LCITP)

Infrastructure or Capital Project of the Year

sponsored by Zscaler

  • NHS Orkney
  • Perth and Kinross Council & Balfour Beatty
  • Transport Scotland
  • University of Edinburgh

Market Development Award

sponsored by APS Group

  • City of Edinburgh Council
  • Kibble Education and Care Centre working in partnership with the Scottish Government, Strathclyde University, The Fostering Network, Who Cares? Scotland & CELCIS
  • NHS National Services Scotland, National Procurement
  • South Ayrshire Council

Procurement Project of the Year (sub-£20m value)

sponsored by Scottish Procurement Alliance (part of the LHC Group)

  • NSS National Procurement Equipping Sourcing Team, working with NSS Health Facilities Scotland Equipping Team
  • Police Scotland, for entry: Provision of a National Network for Police Scotland
  • Police Scotland, for entry: The Supply and Delivery of Body Armour, Ancillary Items and Services
  • South Ayrshire Council
  • Stirling Council

Procurement Project of the Year (above £20m value)

sponsored by ACL Hire Ltd.

  • Department for International Development
  • National Services Scotland
  • Police Scotland

Supplier Relationship Management Award

sponsored by SOTI

  • APUC Ltd
  • City of Glasgow College
  • EDF Energy & Scottish Procurement

Team of the Year

sponsored by Softcat

  • Supplier Development Programme
  • Scottish Borders Council
  • City of Glasgow College
  • Scotland Excel, Scottish Government & Hey Girls
  • Highlands and Islands Enterprise
  • Scottish Government
  • University of Edinburgh
  • City of Edinburgh Council
  • University of Strathclyde

GO Excellence Award

sponsored by Badenoch & Clark

Finalists will be announced on the evening of the Awards from winners of the other categories.

GO Awards Scotland lead judge Grahame Steed said of the finalists:

I’m delighted to see such a strong array of finalists in this year’s GO Awards Scotland. Each has made it through the first phase of judging and deserve recognition for their achievement. Once again, we have a diverse range of finalists from across the entire nation, demonstrating how vibrant and progressive public sector procurement is in Scotland.

To learn more about the GO Awards Scotland and secure your place at the presentation ceremony, click here.

New report: Social value, supply chain ethics and procurement legislation

BiP Solutions is pleased to launch our latest market report, ‘Is Procurement Good Business? Social value, supply chain management, legislation and innovation in the current procurement landscape.’

This report examines three of the most pressing themes in contemporary procurement: social value, ethical supply chains, and the relationship between legislation and innovation. Aside from specific political events, these three themes are perhaps the major issues that have the potential to reshape how procurement is practised across the UK in the near future.

Following Procurex National 2019, the flagship event in the UK public procurement calendar, hosted by BiP Solutions, this report includes expert analysis and comment from procurement leaders from the day. The clear message from both attendees and the expert speakers at Procurex National is that legislation, like social value and ensuring an ethical supply chain, can prove to be a source of opportunity to procurement. Rather than stopping competition or innovation, or enforcing arbitrary boundaries, all three key themes can in fact make for better business.

  • Social value is not only a legal requirement, but is also increasingly weighed into procurement requirements in many different sectors. We discuss how organisations can shape their own ‘social value’ position.
  • Supply chain ethics are important in an ever-more transparent age. Learn how buyers can make sure ethical business is factored into every stage of the supply chain.
  • Legislation and innovation can seem like they are at odds in procurement, but we look at how procurement legislation can work to spur innovation and improve efficiency.

The report includes comment from figures including Malcolm Harrison, CEO of the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply; Simon Tse, CEO of the Crown Commercial Service; and Mark Roberts, Continuous Commercial Improvement Director at the Cabinet Office. The report also describes key ways in which BiP Solutions can help you get ahead in procurement by supporting you to stand out in terms of social value, ensuring a robust and ethical supply chain, and working in the best way within the legislation.

Download your full copy of the report here to find out how to maximise your opportunities by keeping abreast of the latest burning issues in procurement.

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