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CAG Review of Use of Consultants
Action Plan
| Recommendation | Outcome | Action | Lead | Timescale (nb all dates refer to end of month) |
R1
| Implement a corporate framework for recording current skills within the States' workforce and those skills identified as needed as the organisation changes. | Establish a Corporate skills directory that it is on line, self-completing and maintained | The New HR and Payroll System (HRPAYSYS) will have a learning and development module which enable a skills register to be downloaded by individual, section and department or at a corporate level in order to identify the in house skills within the organisation. | Director, Human Resources
| December 2017 |
R2 | Use the corporate skills framework to drive training, recruitment and skills transfer. | Ensure all Job Information Templates have a KSF style statement attached to them which can inform learning and development. | Use the Competency Framework and a skills audit (on line) of current staff to establish a database which can be used as part of a recruitment /talent management tool post implementation of the new HRPAYSYS.
| Director, Human Resources
| March 2018 |
R3 | Check the availability of skills within the States' workforce before engaging consultants. | Trawl of existing staff takes place (evidenced) as part of either a recruitment or Invitation to Tender process. | Pre-recruitment for consultants will verify that skills/capacity does not exist within the organisation. | Director, Human Resources
| June 2017 |
R4 | Adopt, communicate, implement and monitor compliance with a consistent corporate framework for the use of consultants, including a less ambiguous definition. | A consistent corporate framework for the use of consultants. | Definition of consultants recommunicated to departments.
Updated guidance to be included in How to Buy Pages on the Intranet (the Procurement Toolkit).
Revised mandatory requirements and guidance on use of consultants to be included in the financial direction on Expenditure.
| Director of Financial Planning and Performance
Director of Strategic Procurement
Director of Financial Planning and Performance | April 2017
April 2017
April 2017 |
R5 | Enhance information for departmental monitoring, and introduce corporate monitoring, of the use of consultants. | Information on expenditure on consultants available to departmental senior management teams. | The detail at which expenditure is accounted for across the organisation facilitates reporting of expenditure recognised as consultants' fees and also captures supplier. Information on consultant expenditure over £50,000 will be presented to departmental senior management teams.
| Departmental Finance Directors
| March 2017 |
R6 | Require a documented, structured needs assessment, proportionate to the expenditure involved, prior to the use of consultants: linked to organisational resource planning; assessing whether benefits justify the costs; and considering the option of employing staff if there is an ongoing need. | Clear decision and approval process that is documented and relevant information captured to inform overall impact on the States.
Improved controls and VFM assessment. | Procurement Strategy and Invitation to Tender (ITT) templates to be modified to capture specific requirements when engaging consultants.
Approval and sign off of these documents will be carried out by departmental authorised officers stating that an assessment of the in house skills/capacity has been undertaken which will have considered the use of contract employees. | Director of Strategic Procurement
| April 2017 |
R7 | Ensure, including through effective monitoring, that corporate requirements for business cases are prepared prior to the use of consultants. | Procurement strategies to include assessments. | Approval and sign off of procurement strategies will be carried out by authorised officers stating that an assessment of the in house skills/capacity has been undertaken which will have considered the use of contract employees. | Director of Strategic Procurement
| April 2017 |
R8 | Align relevant Financial Directions to the new procurement strategy. | A financial compliance framework for Jersey that is clear to accounting officers and budget holders. | The new financial direction will set out principles in the Procurement Strategy that must be adhered to.
| Director of Financial Planning and Performance
| April 2017 |
R9 | Liaise with departments to identify areas where corporate guidance on matters that are relevant across the States should be prepared and prepare such guidance. | A robust and transparent process for the identification of issues and their incorporation into regulations and guidance if appropriate. | Finance Advisory Board (FAB) to be used as the forum to identify appropriate corporate controls including those arising from internal audit work.
Develop online register of issues which enables a robust process for continuous improvement of States-wide guidance issued by the Treasury.
| Director of Financial Planning and Performance
| Complete
December 2017 |
R10 | Develop procurement arrangements for consultants through the increased use of framework contracts and the adoption of rate cards. | Call Off contracts in place to ease the appointment of consultants and ensure States pricing and terms are adhered to.
A database of information that will assist with R6 and R4. | A Professional Services Framework for Programme and Project Managers is being tendered.
Rate cards will be established for bespoke contracts and one offs.
The States of Jersey Strategy for Procurement requires Departments to input to a central contract register.
| Director of Strategic Procurement
| June 2017
As per contract timelines
December 2017 |
R11 | Ensure, including through effective monitoring, compliance with existing requirements for managing consultant contracts. | Monitoring in place for corporate contracts. | Corporate Procurement will coordinate monitoring of corporate contracts.
Monitoring of individual contracts to ensure compliance with Financial Directions and best practice set out in the Procurement toolkit is a matter for each accounting officer whose department engages consultants.
| Director of Strategic Procurement
| Ongoing |
R12 | Require all consultants to provide a formal output. | Consultants managed in accordance with the deliverables and outcomes leading to more effective and documented advice and services. | Procurement Strategy document updated to include a requirement for outputs and what this may look like. Including schedules to contracts.
Departments briefed as to their responsibility to ensure compliance
| Director of Strategic Procurement
| April 2017 |
R13 | Develop and implement a framework for ensuring that skills transfer is considered as an integral part of consultancy contracts. | Corporate consultancy contracts to include consideration of a requirement for skills transfer. | Where contracts are let through Corporate Procurement consideration will be given to whether it is appropriate to include a requirement for skills transfer. Where departments let contracts without the involvement of Corporate Procurement, guidance will be issued in the Procurement Toolkit. It is a matter for individual accounting officers to ensure the guidelines are adhered to.
| Director of Strategic Procurement
| January 2018 |
R14 | Develop post consultant engagement evaluation processes, including: value assessment; benefit delivery; knowledge transfer; assessment of outcomes and processes; lessons learnt; and sharing lessons with other departments. | Improvement in Corporate information and learning. | A contract management checklist for the engagement of consultants to be included in the Procurement toolkit and to be part of formal contract management process. | Director of Strategic Procurement
| June 2017 |
R15 | Develop requirements and guidance for the consideration, implementation and monitoring of agreed consultant recommendations. | Corporate process in place to monitor progress against accepted recommendations | A new reporting model is currently being implemented to monitor progress against recommendations. However, Chief Officers are responsible for ensuring that recommendations that have been agreed by their department are implemented. | Chief Executive
| December 2017 |