Contractors get Whitehall mentors

X Factor-style mandarins will meet contractor bosses to solve problems. Michael Glackin reports

Contractors on public sector contracts are set to get X Factor-style “mentors” in the shape of senior civil servants who will monitor their work and provide feedback to company bosses to help improve performance.

Under new procedures for public sector contracts, government departments will appoint a “crown representative” who will hold regular meetings with the chief executives of the “top 10” contractors and consultants working on government contracts.

The plan is part of new procurement rules put forward by the Efficiency and Reform Group (ERG), under the aegis of cabinet office minister and paymaster general Francis Maude, and is expected to be rolled out over the next year.

The ERG, which replaced the Office of Government Commerce after last year’s election, was established with a remit to reduce costs and provide Whitehall with additional leverage with its buying power when negotiating with suppliers.

One supplier said: “The mentor will be a very senior civil servant, not some 24-year-old that’s wet behind the ears, but someone with lots of experience in government procurement who can talk one on one to chief executives and managing directors. The idea is they will meet two to three times each year to discuss the supplier’s performance and what improvements can be made to benefit both parties.”

He added: “It is a bit like the X Factor, but it’s really all about ensuring the government gets value for money. It will also give contractors the chance to discuss specific issues on a contract or issues surrounding government procurement in general with a senior Whitehall figure on a regular basis.”

A cabinet office spokesperson said: “Crown representatives enable government to fundamentally change the way it does business with its major suppliers. We are putting an end to the days when departments could sign up, without any central control or coordination, to a series of different contracts with the same supplier.”

She added: “Crown representatives can also intervene to solve problems more quickly as they interact at a more senior level, liaising with construction company chief executives on behalf of departments.”

Crown representatives have been used extensively by other government departments such as the MoD, but only now is the mentoring role being used for construction procurement.

For the initial phase of the scheme, Vincent Godfrey, procurement director at the Ministry of Justice and Ann Pedder, commercial director with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, will mentor Balfour Beatty, Carillion and Interserve.

While only the largest will be given a mentor, all suppliers will now be rated by the Contractor Appraisal Feedback (CAF) system, under which they will be rated twice a year by government departments on their ability to improve performance and reduce costs. They will also be rated on their commitment to sustainability 
as well as their technical and commercial capability.

Contractors will also be rated on their willingness to attend regular client meetings and ranked on their ability to achieve high BREEAM ratings and reduce the carbon impact of suppliers within their own supply chain.

Under the CAF scoring system, contractors will be rated on a sliding scale of 0-5, with zero denoting “unacceptable” and 5 standing for “excellent”.