The UK considers procurement and commercial skills essential ingredients, as they lead to positive partnership relationships with providers. A recent report22 by the NAO found that the key barriers to developing commercial skills in the UK's public sector are:
• pressure to reduce public spending and the frequency with which commercial staff move, both impacting on the commercial experience of project teams
• the Government not using its scarce commercial skills and experience to best effect.
Key approaches adopted to address the gaps in commercial skills in the UK include:
• recruitment of commercial directors
• establishment of commercial units
• introduction of skills initiatives (including skills assessment; a graduate training programme; and commercial skills frameworks).
It has also produced a skills strategy Building the procurement profession in government that departmental permanent secretaries have largely endorsed.
Other approaches adopted to address gaps in commercial skills in the UK include:
• the standardisation of contract terms and procedures, which has reduced the level of input required from commercial experts
• centralised commercial support from Partnerships UK (now Infrastructure UK) or local authority adviser Local Partnerships (formerly 4ps) to advise on critical commercial decisions
• focusing on the career development of commercial staff by ensuring a logical progression from project to project and through mentoring, which can help staff gain valuable experience and achieve promotion to senior positions.
The requirement for highly experienced and capable personnel is even more critical for Australian projects, given their typically non-standard nature.
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22 Source: A 2009 report by the NAO "Commercial skills for complex government projects"