In summary, PPP partnership management issues are:
- Organisational culture. Partnerships should be based on establishing the "right" working culture that is beneficial to both partners and then maintaining good relations over the life of the contract to deliver agreed outcomes as un-cooperative working environments can lead to operational difficulties between partners. Factors integral to effective organisational culture are team building, team working and employee motivation. Poor relationships and unsatisfactory performance can go 'hand in hand'.
- Management commitment and support. Commitment and support from management may be needed to address under-performance. For the public partner, a contract manager may be supported through the provision of additional resources such as more staff or the allocation of more time to review and then report upon complex service delivery outcomes.
- Employee capability and expertise. A lack of staff capability or expertise can lead to tensions between public and private partners and, if not remedied, could lead to service delivery under-performance. Service delivery and the quality of public partner contract management skills, including monitoring performance targets, must be effective if governments are to achieve VfM outcomes.
- Clear and open communication. A lack of communication or miscommunication flowing from decision-making can lead to misunderstanding between PPP partners. If left unchecked, this could result in communication break-downs which can reduce the level of trust that partners have in each others' motives and impact on operational productivity.
- Relationship continuity. Personal influence can be used to obtain information and resolve day-to-day issues without having to resort to more formal means. This approach can save partners time and money over the long-term and potentially prevent small issues from escalating into larger ones. Situation-specific understanding of the operating environment and ease of relationship with their opposite partner is often required to enable this to happen. Staff departures can result in vital knowledge being lost due to discontinuity.
- Conflict management. Conflict should be managed to reduce animosity and build understanding and trust. Broadly speaking, disagreements can arise over timeframes, costs and quality issues. Managing conflict is crucial because disputes can damage relationships and may impact on achieving VfM outcomes.