Commissioning

Commissioning

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1. Introduction 32. Definitions 43. Aims 54. Background 55. Issues 96. CIPS position on Commissioning 107. Impacts 138. Risks 149. Conclusion 14

IntroductionThe term ‘commissioning’ is widespreadin the UK public sector and the role ofthe commissioner has existed for yearsin most central government departments,particularly in the National HealthService (NHS). Initially the termCommissioning was used differently inhealth, education and social care, butmainly to refer to the contracting orsetting up of a new department,institution or facility such as a school,prison or hospital. It is also used acrossall business sectors in the sense of“setting to work” - for example, a newmachine, piece of equipment ormanufacturing plant.

However, in recent years the termcommissioning has evolved and is nowbeing applied in a wider sense todescribe the process in which servicesare provided by the public sector, inparticular the commissioning of servicesto be procured from, and provided by,the private sector, the third sector orindeed a particular part of the publicsector itself.

Local authorities use a number ofdifferent titles for commissioning but allamount to more or less the same thing,building services around the user.Commissioning tends to be used inrelation to provision of social welfarerelated services, for example child care,back-to-work programmes, and so on.In 2006, the Department for Educationand Skills developed the ‘Joint Planningand Commissioning Framework forChildren, Young People and MaternityServices’ which was the first time thegovernment set out the commissioningcycle (as below) to which key

Government departments and otherorganisations in the government fieldsigned up.

Ref: everychildmatters.gov.uk/strategy/planningandcommissioning/In the NHS the term ‘commissioning’, or‘world class commissioning’ as it is oftenreferred to, is now used for all healthcareservices. In effect, a Primary Care Trustwill ‘commission’ all the healthcareneeds for its population – from NHStrusts, the independent sector, thirdsector, social enterprises and privatesector – all are now in effect ‘providers’of healthcare.

The major driver in recent years hasbeen the advent of best value regimesbringing pressures to bear on the cost ofpublic services, building services aroundthe user to improve the delivery ofservices to the public, and to obtainvalue for money. Indeed the perceptionthat the private sector may be betterplaced to deliver higher quality, morecost effective services has alsoinfluenced this process.

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Monitor and reviewservices and process

Plan for workforce andmarket development

Commission -including use ofpooled resources

Decide how tocommission services

efficiently

Look at outcomes forchildren and young

peopleLook at particulargroups of childrenand young people

Develop needs andassessment with user

and staff views

Identify resourcesand set priorities

Plan pattern ofservices and focuson prevention

In some cases the commissioners will bepolicy makers (civil servants or publicemployees) forced to find ways toreduce costs and increase value formoney because of headcount or budgetrestrictions. In addition, commissionerscan fail to recognise that markets insome of the service sectors are immatureor even non-existent. They do notbehave in the same way as conventional,mature commercial markets, andcertainly the voluntary and not for profitsector needs to be managed differentlythan would be the case for theconventional commercial sector. Thismeans managing both the market (interms of development and management)and the provider relationships in anappropriate manner.

There is some evidence thatcommissioners are recognising that insome instances the third sector needsdifferent treatment. The case study onSandwell in 2006http://www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/resources-and-practice/search/IG00072/)highlights this.

DefinitionsIt is interesting to note that the OxfordEnglish Dictionary defines ’commission’only as a straightforward verb or noun.The various definitions of the verb “tocommission” do not include the businessrelated activities we are discussing here.This shows that the various definitionshave been brought into common usefrom many sources, and hence it ishardly surprising that so much confusionexists around this topic.

The Institute of CommissioningProfessionals (although it should bestated this Institute is not recognised bythe government) defines commissioningas: ‘securing the services that mostappropriately address the needs andwishes of the individual service user,making use of market intelligence andresearch, and planning accordingly’

This is an interesting definition as ‘needs’and ‘wishes’ are not necessarily the samething. For example, drug addicts mightwish for unlimited supplies, their needsmight be expressed in medical terms andpublic policy as to what they should begiven could be something else! Further,this definition only includes securing theservices to address needs, whereas somewould argue commissioning is moreabout identifying the needs and shapingthe services to meet that need. Also,there is much more to it than providing‘soft’ services, and the service users(customers) are not always willingrecipients (for example offenders underprobation or in custody).

The following definition by the Instituteof Public Care (IPC) encapsulates this:

Commissioning is the “process ofidentifying needs within the populationand of developing policy directions,service models and the market, to meetthose needs in the most appropriate andcost effective way”.

It seems there is no universallyunderstood and agreed businessdefinition of commissioning, nor a clearview of how it relates to theprocurement of goods and services and

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how these various activities should behandled to ensure best quality and value.

AimsThere are different views and definitionsof what commissioning is all about,some of which CIPS would stronglychallenge - particularly where these arebased on a narrow definition ofprocurement as being limited to sourcingand contracting with suppliers. Thisnarrow view of procurementundervalues its role in thecommissioning process and we believeoften leads to the sub-optimal exclusionof procurement professionals from thecommissioning activity as well as afailure to make appropriate use of theskills they can bring to the process. Theprocess of commissioning is clearlylinked to market knowledge and theprofessional activities of market andsupplier/provider development andrelationship management. These are keyskills for effective procurementprofessionals, and organisationsemploying category management as abusiness process. (For more informationsee: www.cips.org for the KnowledgeInsight on Category management) Theywill be aware that these key stages of theprocess cannot be separated from thelater stages of category planning,sourcing, contracting andcontract/relationship management.

CIPS believes, therefore, that the relativepositioning of the two activities needs tobe clarified, and agreement reached onwhether commissioning is different fromprocurement, and what that means inpractice – this is primarily the aim of thispaper.

BackgroundWithin certain political environments,delivery of public services (for examplenursing in healthcare, probation officers,prison officers, and so on) is still run bypublic servants. This is very prevalent inWales but not quite so prevalent inScotland. In these instances, delivery ofpublic services has been reconfigured sothat an internal purchaser/providermarket is created.

There will be a body that commissionsthe service required, and another thatdelivers. Historically, they would havebeen the same public sectororganisation, but now may be the publicsector, the private sector or the thirdsector. For example, the NationalOffender Management Service (NOMS),originally part of the Home Office butwhich now sits within part of theMinistry of Justice, commissionsprovision of services to offenders, fromconviction to end of probation (end-to-end commissioning).

This includes the commissioning of PFIprisons, private sector prison services,prisoner transport, public sector prisonservices. The provider here is the PrisonService and includes other specialistprison and probation services, some ofwhich are provided by the third sector.

There is a vision that, at some point, allor part of those services will be subjectto more open competition. As a steptowards achieving this, a programme of“market testing” public sector-runprisons is taking place. The public sectordelivery of public services is what ismeant by in-house. A classic example is

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a care-home run by a local authority.Other care-homes are privately run butthey provide all or part of their servicesto the local authority, such as the serviceis “outsourced” or “bought in”.

In some instances, the termcommissioning is now used within thewider process of “place shaping”. “Placeshaping” is described (for example in thecase of community care) as the overarching strategic framework which willdefine the community services required,and how these services should bedelivered. Delivery will be through fourmethods: grants for delivery via the thirdsector; procurement; in-house; or byinfluencing the private sector (marketdevelopment) to deliver the requiredservices.

In the ‘Lyons Inquiry into LocalGovernment March 2007’, Sir MichaelLyons defines his vision of place shapingas “the creative use of powers andinfluence to promote the general well-being of a community and its citizens”. Itincludes the following components:• building and shaping local identity;• representing the community;• regulating harmful and disruptivebehaviours;

• maintaining the cohesiveness of thecommunity and supporting debatewithin it, ensuring smaller voices areheard;

• helping to resolve disagreements;• working to make the local economymore successful while being sensitiveto pressures on the environment;

• understanding local needs andpreferences and making sure that theright services are provided to local

people; and• working with other bodies to respondto complex challenges such as naturaldisasters and other emergencies.

Different models are used to try toencapsulate what commissioning is. Anexample of one of the models used bypeople in Social and Health Care is theInstitute of Public Care (IPC) model thatdefines commissioning and itsrelationship to procurement.

In the introduction to this paper we haveincluded a model used by the DCSF.This paper will not try to reference allthe various models being used, but willgive examples of some of the mostpopular – the choice of appropriatemodel depends upon the application.

The IPC model links the commissioningand procurement (or purchasing) cycles,and is relevant across public careservices such as health, education, socialcare and housing. It is based upon fourkey performance management elements -analyse, plan, do and review - andassumes that all of the four elements aresequential and of equal importance, suchas commissioners and contractors shouldspend equal time, energy and attentionon the four elements. Thecommissioning cycle (the outer circle inthe diagram) should drive theprocurement/purchasing and contractingactivities (the inner circle). However, thepurchasing and contracting experiencemust inform the ongoing development ofcommissioning. Essentially,commissioning of services is the contextwithin which purchasing and contractingtakes place.

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A key principle of the model is that thecommissioning process should beequitable and transparent, and also opento influence from all stakeholders via anon-going dialogue with patients/serviceusers and providers. Hence the public,patients/service users and carers areplaced at the centre of the model.The paragraphs below outline some ofthe activities that might be undertakenunder each element of the IPCcommissioning cycle.Analysis - understanding the values andpurpose of the agencies involved, theneeds they must address, and theenvironment in which they operate. Thiselement of the commissioning cycleinvolves activities such as:

• clarifying the priorities throughreviewing legislation, nationalguidance and local strategies andpolicy statements

• undertaking population needsassessment

• mapping and reviewing existing andpotential services across agencies tounderstand provider strengths andweaknesses and identify opportunitiesfor improvement or change inproviders

• identifying resources needed, and risksinvolved, in implementing changeand/or continuing with the status quo.

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Commissioning

Purchasing/Contracting

Developspecification andcontract/ SLA

Purchasing plan

Secure service/treatment

Contactmanagement

Review individualoutcomes

Contractmonitoring

Analyse providers

Assessindividualneeds

Legislation andguidance

Population needsassessment

Review strategy andmarket performance

Manage providerrelationships

Capacity building

Market/ supplierdevelopment

Resource analysis

Gap analysis

Commissioningstrategy/prospectus

Service design

Analyse Plan

DoReview

Planning - identifying gaps betweenwhat is needed and what is available,and planning how these gaps will beaddressed with available resources. Thiselement of the commissioning cycleinvolves activities such as:• undertaking a gap analysis to reviewthe whole system and identify what isneeded in the future

• designing services to meet needs.• writing a joint commissioning strategy(or prospectus) which identifies clearservice development priorities andspecific targets for their achievement.

Doing - ensuring that the servicesneeded are delivered as planned, in wayswhich efficiently and effectively deliverthe priorities and targets set out in thecommissioning strategy. This element ofthe commissioning cycle involvesactivities such as:• supply management and capacitybuilding to ensure a good mix ofservice providers, offering consumersan element of choice in how theirneeds are met

• developing good communications andeffective relationships with existingand potential providers

• purchasing and contracting of servicesand de-commissioning services that donot meet the needs of the populationgroup.

Reviewing - monitoring the impact ofservices and analysing the extent towhich they have achieved the purposeintended. This element of thecommissioning cycle involves activitiessuch as:

• pulling together information fromindividual contracts or service levelagreements

• developing systems to bring togetherrelevant data on finance, activity andoutcomes

• analysing any changes in legislativerequirements, population need andreviewing the overall impact ofservices to identify revisions needed tothe strategic priorities and targets.

The procurement or purchasing cycle(the inner circle) follows the samepattern of analyse, plan, do and reviewand consists of similar activities, but at adifferent level, such as contracting for aservice, but could encompass the caremanagement of a referral function ofsecuring a service for an individual.Activities in the purchasing cycleinclude:• analysing patients/service users'individual needs

• confirming the resources available forthe contract delivery

• analysing the strengths andweaknesses of providers, in relation tothe direction set in the commissioningstrategy

• developing service specifications anddeciding on contract type and terms

• making a spot purchase to implementthe care plan, this is one option of theprocurement strategy

• day-to-day care and contractmanagement and communication withproviders

• tendering for services and letting ofcontracts or SLAs

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• monitoring and reviewing contractsand care plans for their continuedsuitability

• reviewing the providers performance.

Further information about the IPC jointcommissioning model can be found inthe Introduction in chapter one of theCare Services Improvement Partnership(CSIP) Commissioning eBookhttp://integratedcarenetwork.gov.uk/betterCommissioning/index.cfm?pid=858.Whatever model is used it shouldencompass and take account of thefollowing:• clear realistic objectives should be set• maximising value in the supply chainand the processes needed to achievethe objectives cost-effectively, and atunderstood and agreed levels ofuncertainty and risk which need to bedefined

• the time needed to plan, implement,manage and measure performanceagainst the plan should be definedand agreed before any of the ‘doing’

• tasks should be undertaken by aseamless team of people where theskills, knowledge and experience ofthe people to effectively perform thesetasks, takes precedence overfunctional silos or traditional areas ofresponsibility.

IssuesOne of the key issues for the publicsector is how to deliver the services thecountry needs at a price the taxpayer canafford. The third sector is evolving andbecoming better at helping the publicsector to deliver more efficient servicesand greater value for money, and thiswill be used to fulfil a need by some

organisations/markets. Increasingly it isa question of structuring servicesappropriately to the needs and to themarket capability, and of deliveringefficiently services that provide addedvalue, rather than raising taxes toprovide more services.

The third sector (the not-for-profit orvoluntary sector) adds value throughextensive use of volunteers and its abilityto build social capital, thereby providingservices that the public sector is unableto or can no longer afford to provide.(Ref: Roger Howard, CEO CrimeConcern). The large-scale transfer ofpublic housing to housing associations isa good example of how this approachworks.

It is possible -though there are trickyrules under EU law about state aid - togive a grant to a third party - oftenvoluntary or third sector - to develop ordeliver a service. The traditional role ofthe third sector in commissioning hasbeen to provide expert advice in thecommissioning/design of services orcare-paths (because reputedly theyrepresent the views of the citizen or thespecial needs elements of thecommunity, and they have no bias orpecuniary interest).

In reality, the services that the thirdsector helps to design may not beavailable from commercial markets sothere has been a history of public bodiesgiving responsibility for service deliveryto the third sector. However, this causesproblems when the third sector does nothave enough capacity so the privatesector is then involved in an unplanned

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way. This often means sub-optimalservices and, in the longer term, a threatto the third sector organisation whichhas to compete with private sectorbusinesses. Ensuring that services arecommissioned appropriately, and thatmarkets and providers are managedeffectively through development andmaturity to the eventual “ideal” state, willhelp to avoid these pitfalls – this iscertainly an area where the commercialskills of procurement professionalsshould be employed in thecommissioning process.

If an organisation asks and pays a thirdparty to do something for it – as in thecase of commissioning services - thenthere is a contract (written or otherwise).Where that organisation is in the publicsector, then the Public ContractsRegulations come into play. TheseRegulations are derived from EUlegislation, so similar rules applyelsewhere in Europe. CIPS members inother parts of the world may be subjectto comparable local legislation. Wherethe organisation is private or third sectorthen the usual commercial rules andlaws apply, again there is a need forcontract skills in this process.

The big issue for public sectororganisations is that some'commissioners' do not understandcommercial principles or the marketenvironment and competitive landscape.They may go straight to market, thusjeopardising value for money andputting sustainable service delivery atrisk, as well as adversely affecting themarket for other services, suppliers orpublic sector customers. In addition,

commissioners often do not haverelevant commercial and procurementskills and experience. In such casesProcurement may be undertaken bypeople not qualified or competent tograsp the business drivers (commercialor otherwise) which condition theapproach needed to develop supplymarkets, craft specifications, draftcontracts or Service Level Agreements(SLAs), design contract and performancemanagement regimes, and ultimately todeliver value for money.

Many public services, the NHS forexample, are huge, extremely complexand beyond the capability of a goodmanager to control. Politicians and high-level civil servants must thereforesimplify what they expect to becommissioned and managed, and how.This should always be done inconjunction with a senior commercialexpert who has the acumen and marketknowledge to assess what is deliverablein the current and future commerciallandscape. If not, there is a possibilitythat the commissioners will be out oftheir depth and turn to expensiveconsultants who may themselves havenever ventured into the delivery of sucha complex project or service delivery.

CIPS position on CommissioningCIPS recognises the emergence of theterm ‘commissioning’ to describe aprocess for initiating strategic analysis ofmarket needs for particular types ofpublic sector human-based services (forexample social care, back-to-workprogrammes and so on), followed byservice design/ specification andprocurement processes (as described in

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the CIPS P&SM model, and CategoryManagement Insight guide @www.cips.org) to provide those servicesto deliver the desired outcomes.Further, CIPS would champion thatprofessional procurement is a vitalelement of the commissioning cycle andshould be managed or influenced bycommercial and procurementprofessionals. CIPS emphasises thatprocurement professionals must work aspart of, and inseparable from, a team-based approach, rather than alwaystaking the lead in this area.

Where the Public Contracts Regulationsapply, it is essential that procurementand governance is carried out properly,since the whole process is open toscrutiny and there are legal options opento aggrieved losers.

It is essential for procurementprofessionals to be involved in all stagesof the commissioning cycle, includingthe early stages involving the ’make/door buy’ decision. Procurement cancontribute an objective focus to help the‘'commissioner’ decide at the outset onthe scope of the service to becommissioned in the light of current andfuture market knowledge, as well asreducing the risk of the whole projectspiralling out of control with all the costand budget implications that brings.

Both the non-involvement ofprocurement professionals, andinvolvement only from the point ofsourcing suppliers will be sub-optimal.Procurement professionals will need tofully understand the rationale and needsof the commissioning process by being

fully involved in, and permitted tocontribute to, defining the desiredoutcomes of any project. Commissionersneed to fully understand the value andcontribution that the procurementprofessional will bring to the successfuloutcome.

Further pointsProfessional procurement in its widestsense – throughout the whole categorymanagement process from marketanalysis/service design to contractmanagement - is a vital element of thecommissioning cycle and should becarried out by procurement professionalsas part of a team approach.

CIPS believes there should be a strongleadership strategy for commissioningand would stress the need for a robuststakeholder engagement strategy (SES).

CIPS believes this strategy should bedriven by a professionally preparedbusiness case where all the options,risks, costs and outcomes are identified.Commissioning strategy should be linkedto business planning, overall corporateobjectives and budgetary control.

CIPS believes the ‘purchasing’ elementsof the commissioning cycle are oftenpoorly resourced with greatercapabilities and resource put into the‘assessment of need’ than ‘contracting’and ‘contracting management’.

It is important to manage theprocurement in such a way that thewhole team can assess the options andsee how the various potential suppliersor providers propose to meet the

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requirement, ways in which servicescould be designed and improved, howinnovation could be deployed,performance could be measured,relationships managed, contractsconstructed, and commercial options forpayment changed and improved.

There should be an alignment betweencommercial and procurement directorsand heads of commissioning within anorganisation.

Procurement professionals should workwith and advise commissioners oncommercial activities such as marketdevelopment, supplier development andrelationship management, sourcingstrategy, procurement procedures, spendanalysis, achieving Value For Money(VFM), performance measurement,contracting and negotiation, and contractmanagement, regardless of the sectorbeing dealt with.

Procurement professionals should takethe lead on all sourcing, contract letting,governance and contract managementactivities. Where possible, procurementprofessionals should arrange forfamiliarisation training on commercialaspects and the role of procurement forcommissioners within their organisation.

CIPS recognises that there are variouscommissioning frameworks and it willwork with appropriate parties to developthese further, regardless of the sectorbeing dealt with. Early involvement andcontribution of procurementprofessionals to the commissioningprocess is essential.

CIPS recognises that there will bepolitical differences in devolvedcountries, for example in England amore market-led approach to delivery ispreferred to that used in Scotland andWales.

CIPS further believes that skillednegotiations are essential throughout theprocess.

CIPS believes the principles of the ECTreaty need to be enshrined incommissioning contracts, including arequirement to advertise Part B servicecontracts (which commissioning is) in a‘suitable medium’ so that contracts canbe seen by all Member states (thebusiness of proportionality applies here).(For reference see:http://www.fordham.edu/law/pubs/filj/citeman.htm)

Best Value legislation dictates the needfor best practice in this area, and thatcannot be done without procurementinvolvement at a strategic and tacticallevel.

CIPS believes commissioning bodiesshould make more effort to shape themarket by analysing shortfalls and tryingto build capacity where such shortfallsexist. This is a key area to useprocurement professionals forknowledge and expertise.

Without procurement involvement,commissioning bodies tend to bereactive. This could lead to terms andconditions of contract being inferior,benefits leakage, and little attempt toplan (and forward-buy) capacity.

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Procurement opens the door to betterpractice in these areas.

CIPS believes there is a desire for jointcommissioning - a number of agencies tocreate a strategic alliance in order tojointly commission services which couldlead to benefits in market development,competition and economies of scale.

CIPS believes tensions may exist betweennational priorities and local needs.

CIPS believes there are quick wins whereprocurement can make a significantdifference quickly. Temporary agencystaff, meals-on-wheels, frozen meals,transportation, repair services, alarmsystems, OT services, aids for thedisabled, and other home care servicesare just a few examples of things that willyield higher rewards/returns than say,care home places where prices are set ata national level and capacity is tight.

CIPS supports the need to map astrategic commissioning framework.This could consist of: currentstate/service mapping/strategic futurestate requirements/priorities/testinginnovation and ideas/examiningoptions/implementation planning/resource allocation and budgetarymanagement/business and IT processes/resource matching/actual procurement,in a chronological continuum.

ImpactsIn practice a ‘commissioner’ of childcareservices will, for example, see his/herrole as defining ‘outcomes’, such as whatchanges in outcomes for children, youngpeople and families do we want to

achieve through talking to them andothers before looking jointly with otherkey partners (as part of Children’s Trustarrangements) at service pathways, themarket, supply chains, funding streamsand contractual and performanceframeworks, to bring those outcomesabout. For examples in this area, see:http://www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/strategy/planningandcommissioning/localcommissioning/. The role of procurementwill be at the heart of this process inhelping to define these outcomes, alignthem with the pursuit of best value, andprovide the solutions being sought.

Here the art is to create a well-articulated objective requirement thatallows:1. potential suppliers to evaluate what iswanted and to frame bids accordingly

2. the procurement and commissioningteam to assess the bids and select asupplier in accordance with the pre-setcriteria

3. monitoring the supplier’s performanceis not easy for procurement to when itis simply providing an impartial input.

This shift also means that, to someextent at least, we are transferring asignificant responsibility to the market.As buyers, we stop saying ‘this is whatwe want’ and start saying ‘this is thechange what we want you to achieve’.This will need a shift in mindset to amore ‘outcome’ based approach andCIPS needs to recognise that there is asignificant area where skills andcompetences will need to be developed.Organisations may also look to‘commission’ work formerly done in-house, so there may be a cultural shift to

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manage – any outsourcing of an existingservice could result in staff transfersubject to the Transfer of Undertakings(Protection of Employment) Regulations2007 (TUPE) which preserve employees'terms and conditions when a business orundertaking, or part of one, istransferred to a new employer.

RisksThe financial strategy should ensure thatthe commissioning strategy is affordableand is set with the organisation’s riskand assurance framework in mind. Thecommissioner should ensure that theservice provider assessment of riskcorresponds with theirs. Failure to do sois a risk in itself.

There tends to be a misunderstandingabout risk management and risk transferin the public sector because the privatesector relates risk directly to financialoutcomes; in the majority of cases thepublic sector cannot do this realistically.

Other risks in the commissioningprocess, some of which may havealready been mentioned, may be:• specialist procurement knowledge andcontracting skills may not besufficiently utilised throughout thecommissioning process

• objectives of the service to becommissioned are not clear or defined

• the data which is required to plan,implement, manage and measure theperformance against the plan has notbeen defined

• commissioners will fail to work withproviders to sustain and improve thevision for services

• commissioners will fail to engage inconstructive performance managementto ensure continuous improvement.

In the NHS world class commissioningthere is a strong emphasis on not onlyselecting the best providers (andsometimes there is little choice), but alsoon managing, motivating and inspiringthem to produce real value for money.It is essential for procurement to possessskills such as supplier performancemanagement, motivation, contractmanagement, incentivisation, delivery,supplier relationship management andstakeholder management. Ongoingmanagement will be down to a teamapproach - procurement with operationalmanagement and suppliers allcollaborating to deliver bestperformance, value and innovation.Individual organisations may manage itdifferently, but all the above skills arerequired – not having these skills will bea risk both to the delivery and on-goingsuccess of the commissioning project.

ConclusionTo conclude, it is necessary to reiteratethe opening paragraphs of the CIPSposition - CIPS recognises the emergenceof the term ‘commissioning’ to describe aprocess for initiating strategic analysis ofmarket needs for particular types ofpublic sector human-based services(such as social care, back-to-workprogrammes and so on), followed byservice design/specification andprocurement processes (as described inthe CIPS P&SM model at www.cips.orgto provide those services to deliver thedesired outcomes.

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Further, CIPS would champion thatprofessional procurement is a vitalelement of the commissioning cycle andshould be managed or influenced byprocurement professionals. CIPSemphasises that procurementprofessionals must work as part of, andinseparable from, a team-basedapproach, rather than the lead in thisarea.

It is essential for procurementprofessionals to be involved in all stagesof the commissioning cycle, includingthe early stages involving the ‘make/door buy’ decision.