Achieving value for money
This course provides a discussion on value for money, what that means and how it applies when conducting procurement and contract management activities. Key rules underpinning the CPRs are achieving value for money, encouraging competition, and accountability and transparency. When undertaking procurement and managing a contract, the Commonwealth must deliver value for money. When conducting procurement activities and entering, extending, varying, or managing a contract, you must justify or defend the decision made in a way that the public would agree achieves value for money.
This learning experience has been provided by the Department of Finance.
Participant benefits
- Build on outcomes of the procurement basics and contract management basics courses.
- Explain what value for money is in the context of government procurement and apply that thinking to evaluation of tender responses.
- Describe when and how to consider value for money across the procurement lifecycle, including when defining the procurement need, managing risk, and considering costs beyond the up-front financial cost.
- Describe how effective contract management increases value for money outcomes.
- Explain the importance of good record keeping in justifying value for money decisions.
Suitable for
All staff. Suitable for officials who are new to procurement, may need a refresher, or who want to move to a role in procurement. It will benefit officials working in procurement on an ad hoc basis, regular procurers, and delegates.
Considerations
- This course is practitioner level and assumes basic procurement and contract management knowledge.
- Procurement Basics – Foundational knowledge of procurement legislation and policy, the procurement lifecycle, value for money, and reporting. This could be through the Procurement Basics course or through prior training or experience.
- Contract Management Basics – Foundational knowledge of contract management elements and activities. This could be through the Contract Management Basics course or through prior training or experience.
Key topics
- Importance of value for money and definition.
- Acquiring goods and services that meet need, acceptable cost, manageable risk.
- Value for money is not just price – cost considerations.
- Assessing risk in value for money.
- Consequences when not achieving value for money.
- Value for money alignment with the Procurement Lifecycle.
- Achieving value for money during tender evaluation and negotiation.
- Value for money considerations in contract management.
- General value for money assessment at panel set up.
- Keeping an auditable trail of value for money decisions.
Category and User Level
This learning experience is part of the Commonwealth Procurement and Contract Management Training program and aligns with the Implementation & Services Craft at the Practitioner level.
Price
Free of charge.
