procurement

SMEs still struggling to crack the Whitehall purchasing barrier
10/02/12
A Coalition pledge to boost the number government contracts awarded to SMEs has yet to materialise after figures revealed that 92% of Whitehall business is still going to big corporations.
 
The Coalition promised when it came to power in 2010 that it would oblige departments to place a quarter of all external orders with small and medium-sized businesses.
Viewpoint: Gail Wilson, Achilles
09/02/12
Gail Wilson of procurement professional services specialist Achilles worries why there are so many supplier challenges going to court
 
Supplier challenges are on the rise.
Rochdale's Web-based procurement approach opens up £100m of business to local firms
08/02/12
Rochdale Borough Council is using the Web to make it easier and faster for local companies to do business with it - a move that it says is slashing the time to process contracts and reducing costs.
 
For the last three years the authority has published all its potential business opportunities online.
CIPS adopts new best procurement approaches
07/02/12
The Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply (CIPS) has committed to adopting the best practice of its US equivalent in a bid to boost the global drive to boost public sector.
 
It says combining its public sector knowledge with the expertise of US body the National Institute of Governmental Purchasing (NIGP) by adopting NIGP’s Values and Guiding Principles of Public Procurement will be an invaluable aid to all governments looking to beat the recession by more efficient procurement approaches.
 
CIPS is also acting as a
Red Tape still burdening UK SME industry, say start-ups
13/01/12
Coalition promises to cut regulations and make it easier to start and grow businesses, especially in technology, have some way to go before the SME market can see the full benefits.
 
This at least is one take-away from an interesting live webchat this week from Number 10 organised by PublicTechnology.net’s sister site, BusinessZone.
Dell offering zero per cent finance for one of its public sector offerings
15/12/11

Dell KACE is hoping to boost uptake of its systems management offerings among public sector clients with a zero per cent financing package.

Central govt HR goes to Logica in new framework procurement deal
13/12/11

Central government HR BPO will be in the hands of Logica following the awarding of a four year framework contract worth between £50m and £500m by the Government Procurement Service (GPS).

Long road ahead for SMEs in government - Cloud notwithstanding
07/12/11
SME Cloud players are finding it tough to crack government contracts, as local and central authorities alike seem to still prefer to stick to the tried and tested suppliers they're always used.
 
That was the consensus at least among panellists in the “The Public Sector and the Cloud” session at the Business Cloud Summit in London this week was that government was still hard for smaller players to break into.
 
Government chief procurement officer John C
Brum NHS procurement body shifts to "social network" e-invoicing
25/11/11
Birmingham Primary Care Shared Service Agency (BPCSSA), the Financial Services Directorate that provides finance and procurement to three Primary Care and one NHS Trust across Birmingham, has shifted to a Cloud-based way of invoicing.
 
Surge in number of UK HMG contracts signed with SMEs
24/11/11
Small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) are starting to get more business from the government, it claims.
 
Some 40% of government contracts were signed with SMEs in September compared with just 5% in January, according to John Collington, the Cabinet Office's recently-appointed chief procurement officer.

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