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Introduction On 1 st November 2010, the Minister for the Cabinet Office, Francis Maude, announced a “Lean Review” 1 to uncover wasteful practices and unnecessary complexity in the procurement process and to suggest actions to rectify them.
The Review was undertaken over a 6 week period and concluded on 14th December 2010.
The Review was conducted as a “partnership” between government and industry involving “lean” practitioners from Unipart Expert Practices (UEP) and members of the HMRC Pacesetter unit which is an established “lean” team within HMRC, working with the Efficiency and Reform Group (ERG) within the Cabinet Office.
The Review was undertaken using “visual management” as the principal way of working for the team, which provided a visible and accessible environment for the team as well as the many interested parties and stakeholders who contributed to the Review.
As there is a mandatory time period between this and the next phase, there is a sense of “rush to OJEU” which eventually results in increased turnaround times and therefore increased supplier costs.
To achieve these benefits will require radical changes in the approach to planning procurements, the upskilling of procurement and commercial professionals, the allocation of resources to complex procurement projects, and the effective sharing of “best practices” across government departments.