2.36 The issues of risk management and value for money described in this document apply to all forms of procurement. However, within certain sectors of procurement, specific or combinations of issues can arise which are beyond the scope of this document. An important example of this is procurement of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and the implementation of business change enabled by ICT. Procurements in this area often have some strong characteristics of complexity, in particular:
∙ numerous internal and critical external project interfaces;
∙ situations in which it is not possible for the procuring authority to define fully the required technical solution up-front; and
∙ the use of bespoke technical solutions, notably customised software.
It is the extent, combination and often significant nature of these characteristics in ICT procurements which require a sector-specific response to risk management and specialised model contract terms as published by the Office of Government Commerce (OGC). More information on ICT procurement can be found on the OGC's website9.