2.15 Senior management's lack of engagement has meant they have not demanded robust information. We do not often see the contract summaries and manuals that would allow senior managers to understand their contracts. Departments do not have ways to aggregate cost, risk and performance data, so senior managers can scrutinise their portfolio of contracts.
2.16 The lack of senior demand for information has negatively affected data quality at a working level. Departments do not have integrated systems to manage their contracts. This means they do not capture all the contract changes and communications with the contractor, leaving them exposed if there is a dispute. The contractor is often best placed to produce performance data. However, instances of data manipulation have shown that departments need to validate and verify this information.37 Departments do not use open-book accounting often enough. This means they do not know if they are getting value for money, and cannot refine incentives or identify areas to cut unnecessary expenditure.
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37 Comptroller and Auditor General, The Ministry of Justice's electronic monitoring contracts, Session 2014-15, HC 737, National Audit Office, November 2013; Memorandum on the provision of the out-of-hours GP service in Cornwall, Session 2012-13, HC 1016, National Audit Office, March 2013.