The first step to implementing a public private partnership is the establishment of a project team. The project team will be responsible for the public private partnership from its planning stage, through the development of a Request for Proposals (RFP), to the award and completion of a contract and finally, could also be involved in monitoring the performance of the private partner. Note, however, that the project team should not be directly involved in the selection of the successful proponent. This issue is discussed in section 7.5 of this guide.
The project team should consist of local government staff with a direct interest in the project. The leader of the project team should be someone who has a thorough understanding of public private partnerships and the process to be followed. It is also important to have someone as part of the team who has a thorough understanding (technical or otherwise) of the service to be delivered.
In some cases, it may be beneficial for the local government to engage expertise from outside the local government to lead the process. This ensures that the individual responsible for the public private partnership has an arm's length relationship to the local government with no bias. It is important for the local government to ensure that this person and the project team have the necessary authority to undertake the project. Lack of authority will delay completion and can lead to a lack of respect and confidence on the part of the private sector.
Requirements for establishing the project team include:
• A process manager must be chosen to lead the team.
• The necessary technical expertise must be available to guide the project team. This becomes extremely important for the local government and the private sector in the development of the RFP, evaluation criteria and negotiation of the public private partnership later on in the process.
• All project team members must be able to devote enough time to the project to guarantee that it stays on track.
• There must be no conflicts of interest on the part of any members of the project team.
• A communications protocol and the reporting relationships with senior local government staff and the Council or Board must be established.
• The need and type of outside technical advisors required throughout the process must be determined.
The Canadian Council on Public Private Partnerships indicates that acquiring the services of outside technical advice is a best practice for local government looking to enter into a public private partnership, for a number of reasons:
• Consultants can offer arm's length advice. A consultant cannot become a potential partner placing a bid on the project after the RFP has been developed, therefore the advice will come with no vested interest.
• Outside technical advisors can keep the local government apprised of the evolving legal, financial, policy and other aspects of public private partnerships. This type of expertise may not be available from within a local government.
• Strong outside advisors can assist the local government in the development of the RFP and in the negotiation process. This brings credibility to the local government's commitment to the public private partnership.
Technical advisors can ultimately save the local government time and money due to their expertise in these types of arrangements. They know what to watch for in developing an RFP as well as in contract negotiations. This expertise leads to respect and a balanced negotiation situation that can often lead to the "best deal" for a local government with a private sector partner.