4.1.15 There must be people with the right interpersonal and management skills to manage relationships at multiple levels in the organisation. Clear roles and responsibilities should be defined, and continuity of key staff should be ensured as far as possible. A contract manager (or contract management team) should be designated early and be involved in the process for selecting the PPP provider in the first instance. The contract management team must understand the business fully and know the contract documentation thoroughly. This is essential if they are to understand the implications of problems (or opportunities) over the life of the contract.
4.1.16 The PPP provider should also be made fully aware of the GPE's contract management team and its structure, particularly the roles and responsibilities of the contract manager and its management reporting arrangements.
4.1.17 The GPE's contract management team should reflect the various skills and knowledge required to effectively discharge contract management responsibilities over the life of the project. Generally, the contract management team should consist of members with competencies to manage the following areas:
a) design and construction;
b) facilities and services management;
c) information (especially for IT projects);
d) statutory safety and regulatory responsibilities;
e) contractual law; and
f) finance.
4.1.18 The main focus of the contract manager and his team will be to facilitate an "intelligent customer" approach, and not to interfere with the way the services are delivered by the PPP provider, provided the service specifications under the PPP contract are met. It is the contract manager's responsibility to coordinate inputs from the various team members in order to ensure effective and consistent contract management. Each member of the team will have varying degrees of inputs depending on the circumstances.