The Construction Playbook emphasises the value of investing in and maintaining collaborative relationships and states that:
■ 'Acting together with suppliers drives mutual understanding and helps to solve problems more effectively, leading to better and faster delivery'
■ 'Strategic supplier relationship management can unlock additional value and innovation'
■ 'Contracting authorities should place significant importance on the relationships they create with their supply chains at an organisational and portfolio-level.' (p.64)
Frameworks provide an excellent medium for long-term collaborative commitments between framework providers, clients, managers and suppliers, enabling them to build successful relationships and to benefit from strategic relationship management.
| 90% of contractor participants support more collaboration across frameworks. |
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| Crown Commercial Service reports that 'not long after the award of the Construction Works and Associated Services Framework we organised supplier alliance forums allowing Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government direct access to our High-Rise lot suppliers in order to share expectations arising from the Hackitt Report. CCS facilitated the alliance forums which included multiple stakeholders from MHCLG, CCS alliance managers, CCS High Rise lot suppliers and CCS Construction Management suppliers, and which enabled better understanding of the practical implications of the Hackitt recommendations. Dame Judith Hackitt stated in her 'Progress of Culture Change in the Construction Sector' report that: ■ She 'welcomed the Construction Works and Associated Services Framework established by the Crown Commercial Service' ■ 'The contract will enable CCS to mandate collaborative working, creating more integrated relationships and sharing of good practice' ■ This highlights how CCS is 'influencing and shaping a positive culture within the Construction Industry', as an exemplar to others who have yet to demonstrate the leadership we are looking for'. |
When developing a framework strategy, the Playbook states that 'Contracting authorities should consider how they can adopt a strategic supplier relationship management approach in their organisation to drive win-win benefits. In practice, this means:
■ value creation beyond that originally contracted
■ managed engagement at an executive level
■ joint strategy development, objectives and planning
■ collaborative behaviours and working
■ relationship management and monitoring
■ management of aggregated performance and risk' (p.66).
Specific collaborative features of Gold Standard framework relationships are explored in other sections of this review, and their success depends on systems of communication and consultation that build confidence and trust at framework level.
Review participants express concerns as to the amount of time spent on unproductive communication through onerous framework reporting requirements, and on consultation through loosely structured framework focus groups and special interest groups. To address these concerns, a framework needs an explicit communication and consultation strategy, stating agreed communication channels between participants, rules for the use of these channels and the actions that will be taken to implement the outcomes from consultation.
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| The ISO 44001 International Standard for Collaborative Business Relationship Management states that each collaborative organisation needs to 'determine the need for internal and external communications relevant to the collaborative business relationship management system, including on what it will communicate, when to communicate, with whom to communicate and how to communicate.' |
Framework joint decision-making
Gold standard framework relationship management is supported by joint decision-making through a 'Core Group' or an equivalent group of individuals representing the framework provider, clients, manager and suppliers. The Core Group members are committed to review issues ranging from proposals for improved value to early warning of risk events and the actions required to avoid disputes. A Gold Standard framework contract states how the Core Group meets, how it makes its decisions and how those decisions are put into effect.
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| The Midlands Highway Alliance reports that 'The Framework Community Board meets every 4-6 weeks and comprises representatives of all users, framework contractors and some members of the supply chain. It provides a high level of support to all users, with highway authority representatives and framework contractors working together to further our jointly agreed aims and objectives. For example, where there is a lack of client awareness of detail processes, the Framework Community Board addresses this through joint awareness sessions in the form of a commission manual and roadshows.' |
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| Constructing West Midlands report that 'Contractor Partners principally operate within a management framework (under the auspices of their signed Framework Agreement) alongside their fellow Contractor Partners appointed within the same Lot. Contractor Partners are expected to work jointly in a spirit of openness and partnership with Contractor Partners appointed to other Lots on the CWM framework, in particular to support development, training and employment, to promote the Framework externally to others, and to jointly target improvement and innovation initiatives. The relationship between the CWMJCA and Contractor Partners (across all Lots) is steered at high-level by a Strategic Steering Group which will address matters including (but not limited to): ■ Overall Performance and Framework Effectiveness ■ Policy/Agree amendments to the Framework Agreement ■ Partnership Development, Continuous Improvement, target setting etc ■ Spending/ commissioning/ investment ■ Review of the Access Rebate and Annual Contractor Partner Levy ■ Sanctions/ suspension/ disciplinary measures'. |
Consistency is required for successful relationship management, and Core Group representatives should not change unless alternates are approved. Active participation in a Core Group is essential to its success, and a proven collaborative technique is for decisions to be made by unanimous agreement of all those members who are present at a meeting. A Gold Standard Core Group:
■ Monitors the operation and management of the framework, and provides constructive guidance to the framework provider, clients, manager and suppliers
■ Monitors framework performance by reference to agreed objectives, success measures and targets, and reviews and approves proposals relating to agreed incentives and relating to problems in achieving agreed targets
■ Reviews and approves proposals for framework activities that are intended to achieve improved value, and monitors the outcomes from those activities
■ Reviews and approves proposals for the framework provider, clients, manager and suppliers to share information that could assist value improvement, subject to intellectual property rights and other protections
■ Reviews and approves strategic measures that would enable the framework to withstand unforeseeable events and adapt to changing circumstances
■ Considers risk events and other problems notified by early warning, including for example signs of supplier financial distress, and considers and approves risk management actions that are designed to avoid disputes.
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| The Effectiveness of Frameworks Report notes that the Ministry of Justice framework alliance 'has a solid governance structure through a Strategic Core Group comprising representatives from the MoJ and the Alliance suppliers', and that 'Information on the delivery pipeline and updates on the MoJ ways of working, challenges, initiatives etc are discussed as part of Strategic Core Group meetings.' |