Central Government

By the Government continuing to deliver economic and social value objectives, we have detailed knowledge of the most effective performing Strategic Suppliers that can deliver maximum value across those service areas.

We know the Strategic Suppliers in the Central Government marketplace, extremely well:

  • Their strengths. The key attributes of each Strategic Supplier and what internal client disciplines you will need to have in place so they can achieve your outcomes and objectives, quickly.

  • Their challengesComplex service delivery does not always go to plan. We can advise you what diligence your team can put into place to assure these strategic suppliers deliver to your expectations.

  • Their contractual constraints. We know what most Strategic Suppliers will accept contractually, what they will not, and why. Our ‘Optimise’ process assures you can overcome these constraints and be fully contractually protected for fit for purpose services.

Your key expectation you should have from Strategic and Complex Supplier Relationships:

  • Optimum value in service and solutions deliveryThese specialist suppliers represent themselves as ‘experts’ in their disciplines. Recent case law determines you can often rely on the supplier’s represented expertise to drive maximum value for money in your service delivery, even if your contract terms are ambiguous in terms of their responsibilities.

Benefits of using BPG to facilitate your Strategic Supplier Relationships

  • We know what practices work really well. Having optimised over 500 complex supplier relationships, we have deep expertise of trust building in relationships. We also have proven template documentation including procurement structures, service requirements, agile fit-for-purpose contracts, implementation and operating governance, along with expertise in what actions you need to avoid to make sure your strategic supplier relationships achieve your outcomes, quickly.

Key Considerations when Central Government enters into Complex Supplier Relationships

How the BPG 'Optimise' Process delivers great Strategic Supplier Relationships

The BPG ‘Optimise’ Method is evidenced from over 500 complex supplier relationships. It shows there are 8 characteristics present in every successful complex relationship. We can help you successfully implement these quickly to improve service innovation, supplier relationships and drive down BAU costs.

Click here to see how the ‘Optimise’ process can help you drive maximum value in your strategic supplier relationships.

Some of the Strategic Suppliers we have detailed knowledge of

  • 3M
  • Accenture
  • Action for Employment Ltd
  • Airwave Solutions
  • Amey Community
  • A-One Integrated Highway Services
  • Aspire
  • Aspire Defence Holdings
  • Atkins
  • Atkins Mantix
  • Atos Origin
  • Babock International Group
  • BAE Systems
  • Balfour Beatty
  • BFS Group
  • Birse Civils
  • BP
  • BT
  • Bytes Technology Group
  • Cammell Laird Ship-repairers and Shipbuilders Ltd
  • Capgemini
  • Capita
  • Carillion-WSP Joint Venture
  • Carlson Wagonlit Travel
  • Central Office of Information
  • Chapman Freeborn Air Chartering
  • Clearpower
  • Clearpowermorgan
  • Cobham
  • Computacenter
  • Connect Plus (M25)
  • Costai-Skanska A14 Joint Venture
  • CSC
  • Deloittes
  • DTZ Holdings
  • EADS
  • EDF Energy
  • Enterprise
  • Ernst and Young
  • Finmeccanica
  • Fujitsu Services
  • G4S
  • General Dynamics
  • Genysys Telecommunications
  • HCR Group Holdings
  • Heckler and Koch
  • Hess Corp
  • Hewlett-Packard
  • Hirtenberger GER Defence Systems
  • IBM
  • Ingenus Group
  • Interroute
  • Interserve Site Services
  • KBR
  • Kier Northern
  • KPMG
  • Land Securities Trillium
  • Le Grand Annington
  • Linksairwave Solutions
  • Lockheed Martin
  • Logica
  • Lowdham Grange Prison Services
  • Man
  • Mantix
  • Mapeley Steps
  • Marshall of Cambridge
  • Matrix FPMS Holdings
  • McKesson Information Solutions
  • Mitie
  • Modus Services
  • Morgan Vinci McAlpine Joint Venture
  • NATO Maintenance and Supply Agency
  • Navistar International Corporation
  • Occar-Ea
  • Purple Foodservice Solutions
  • Qinetiq
  • Raytheon Systems
  • Receiver General for Canada
  • Reed Specialist Recruitment
  • RMPA Holdings
  • Road Management Services
  • Rolls-Royce Group
  • Royal Dutch Shell
  • Royal Mail Holdings
  • Scottish and Southern Energy
  • Serco Group
  • Shape
  • Shaw Trust
  • Siemens
  • Sodexo
  • Steria
  • Supacat
  • Supreme Group
  • Telereal Trillium
  • Thales
  • The Boeing Company
  • Total
  • Turner & Co. (Glasgow)
  • Ultra Electronics Holdings
  • US Government
  • Vinci McAlpine Joint Venture Working
  • VT Group
  • Wates Group
  • WSP Global
  • Xerox

The Behaviours you should expect from a 'Good' Strategic Supplier Relationship

  • Objectives being met
  • Critical friend supplier
  • Inherent commercial trust
  • Sustained collaboration and innovation
  • Reduced service cost
  • High reputation with your peers
  • Internal team aligned
  • Services always aligned to outcomes
  • Flexible/agile contract structure
  • Evidenced based results

Typical Complex Supplier Relationship hurdles faced in Central Government

We’ve dealt with optimising over 500 complex supplier relationships. More than 50% of complex supplier relationships experience misunderstandings between client and supplier over your requirements and expectations.

If the right foundations are not in place to drive maximum value, you may experience:

  • Additional charges and costs for ‘misunderstood expectations’
  • A lack of understanding of contractual roles and responsibilities
  • Governance and performance escalation not clearly delineated
  • Senior client executives not being clear on their expectations and dynamics of the relationship
  • Not enough investment by senior executives in the resourcing or skills of the client supplier management team
  • Loss of key in-house expertise to the supplier (inadvertent staff poaching)
  • Employee resistance to new working methods from the supplier
  • Clashes of culture between client and supplier staff and so forth.

Operational challenges faced by Central Government

This is a challenging time for the UK Government generally. In particular, with improving outcomes for those that use public services during the last 10 years of austerity. Each government department is trying hard to respond to the issues being faced, and preparing for the likely on-going challenges of the future.

With ongoing financial restraint, the government looks to deliver services in new ways and with fewer resources, through greater delegation to local bodies, partnerships with the private and third sector, and with digital technology. Such significant level of change brings with it opportunities for efficiency but also risks to value for money and service delivery. At the same time, the uncertainties created by Brexit place further strain on government resources. Successfully meeting these challenges will depend greatly on government capability and effective prioritisation. These challenges include:

  • Brexit. Uncertainty over the economic arrangements, wide ranging strains for government resources and significant changes to the availability and prioritisation of funding streams
  • Capability in the Public Sector. Negotiating the UK’s departure from the EU, whilst delivering an ambitious infrastructure investment and transformation programme, needs new skills and capabilities
  • Emerging risks. The likes of Carillion failing and other major supplier service partners in financial difficulty have all led to risks to public services
  • Restoration and Renewal of Parliament. The Palace of Westminster is being restored and Parliament has to be temporarily re-located. The restoration will be a large, costly and complex project involving a nationally significant building in the heart of a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Reducing Service Costs, Better Innovation and Collaboration

The move to digital channels across central government is forcing the more strategic suppliers to come up with new innovations. In turn, this is forcing government to collaborate more effectively, not only with key suppliers, but also with cross-departmental working and shared services. The stakeholder management across these groups is extensive. But when the innovation and collaboration works, it works remarkably well to operate new ways of working and driving out extensive BAU costs.

What stage are you at in your Strategic Supplier Relationship?

New Relationship

You’re procuring or contracting and you need it to work really well.

Existing Relationship

You’re in a partnership that could be working better.

Broken Relationship

It’s gone wrong. You need help to exit a relationship early and safely transition to another.