Key Objective 4 – Encourage innovation by emphasising our needs and desired outcomes to allow suppliers to come up with the most cost effective and sustainable solutions
We should, where appropriate, ensure that our officers use either an output or outcome specification. These contain certain minimum standards or characteristics but beyond those, the bidder is allowed to make further suggestions and identify solutions. The bidder is then able to offer innovative solutions which can make for better sustainability and cost effectiveness.
In addition, we will encourage Officers to use less traditional methods of procurement and look to find innovative methods of working. It may be appropriate, for example, to consider co-commissioning with other organisations or Social Impact Bonds which are a type of pay-for-success financing for a project and is one form of outcome-based contracting.
We are taking action to achieve our key objectives
We intend to encourage innovation by emphasising our needs and desired outcomes to allow suppliers to come up with the most cost effective and sustainable solutions. To achieve this objective, we will take the following actions:
- Action 11: Focus on outcome-based specifications, where appropriate to encourage suppliers to create low-carbon solutions
- Action 12: Create a ‘whole-life’ cost model for bidders to price against