Uncertainty avoidance: public sector clients and procurement selection

Purpose: Choosing the appropriate procurement system for construction projects is a complex and challenging task for clients particularly when professional advice has not been sought. To assist with the decision making process, a range of procurement selection tools and techniques have been developed by both academic and industry bodies. Public sector clients in Western Australia (WA) remain uncertain about the pairing of procurement method to bespoke construction project and how this decision will ultimately impact upon project success. This paper examines ‘how and why’ a public sector agency selected particular procurement methods. · Methodology/Approach: An analysis of two focus group workshops (with 18 senior project and policy managers involved with procurement selection) is reported upon · Findings: The traditional lump sum (TLS) method is still the preferred procurement path even though alternative forms such as design and construct, public-private-partnerships could optimize the project outcome. Paradoxically, workshop participants agreed that alternative procurement forms should be considered, but an embedded culture of uncertainty avoidance invariably meant that TLS methods were selected. Senior managers felt that only a limited number of contractors have the resources and experience to deliver projects using the nontraditional methods considered. · Research limitations/implications: The research identifies a need to develop a framework that public sector clients can use to select an appropriate procurement method. A procurement framework should be able to guide the decision-maker rather than provide a prescriptive solution. Learning from previous experiences with regard to procurement selection will further provide public sector clients with knowledge about how to best deliver their projects.

Knowledge sharing : enablers and constraints in and Australian public sector organisation

Is the environment more arduous for knowledge sharing in a public sector organisation? The organising principles, operations, internal environment and power relations of public sector organisations exhibit distinctive characteristics in a range of dimensions which differ from corporate sector organisations (Moynihan & Pandey, 2007). This paper discusses the findings of a study that explored the impact on knowledge sharing of environmental and relational issues in a public sector organisation. Individual knowledge sharing orientation and behaviour was found to be profoundly influenced by factors in the macro-level environment, locally constructed practices, and workers’ perceptions of their relations with the organisation and their colleagues. Key words: knowledge management, public sector, knowledge sharing

Economic issues in funding and supplying public sector information

In May 2005, a research team began to investigate whether designing and implementing a whole-of-government information licensing framework was possible. This framework was needed to administer copyright in relation to information produced by the government and to deal properly with privately-owned copyright on which government works often rely. The outcome so far is the design of the Government Information Licensing Framework (GILF) and its gradual uptake within a number of Commonwealth and State government agencies. However, licensing is part of a larger issue in managing public sector information (PSI); and it has important parallels with the management of libraries and public archives. Among other things, managing the retention and supply of PSI requires an ability to search and locate information, ability to give public access to the information legally, and an ability to administer charges for supplying information wherever it is required by law. The aim here is to provide a summary overview of pricing principles as they relate to the supply of PSI.

Contracting for community development : a case study based perspective of a public sector client initiative in Hong Kong

The construction industry is known to be an important contributor towards the gross domestic product of many countries. Moreover, the health of the construction industry is positively correlated to the economic growth of a country and in many economies public sector clients account for a major share of construction works. Given this strength, it is important for public sector clients to initiate innovations aimed at the betterment of the industry. In this context, concern about sustainable development has been a major driver of some innovative initiatives in construction industries worldwide. Furthermore, the Government of Hong Kong regards both sustainability and community development as important criteria when planning and procuring construction projects. This paper is based on a case study of a public sector development project in Hong Kong, and presents the salient features of the procurement and contractual systems adopted in the project, which foster sustainability and community development. The reported interim findings are based on a preliminary document analysis that is part of an ongoing longitudinal case study into the project. The document analysis takes a three-pronged approach in terms of how the procurement and contractual systems foster economic, environmental and social sustainability, and sums up their impact on the community as a whole.

Enabling Open Access to Public Sector Information With Creative Commons Licences : The Australian Experience

This chapter considers how open content licences of copyright-protected materials – specifically, Creative Commons (CC) licences - can be used by governments as a simple and effective mechanism to enable reuse of their PSI, particularly where materials are made available in digital form online or distributed on disk.

Open Access and Public Sector Information : Policy Developments in Australia and Key Jurisdictions

This book chapter considers recent developments in Australia and key jurisdictions both in relation to the formation of a national information strategy and the management of legal rights in public sector information.

Public sector legislation in Queensland : old or new directions

It has been 150 years since the Queensland public service was established. This paper looks back over the successive civil and public service acts in Queensland from 1859 to 2009, to examine the why the acts were passed, the changing structure of the public sector and the political justifications for the changes. It will establish how much has changed and how much has stayed the same over 150 years. Discussions regarding the success of the public service acts will be approached from an accountability perspective and will work to determine how effective the legislation has been in creating an independent and efficient public sector. The paper will demonstrate that change has occurred but some of it has turned back on itself;proposals that were rejected in the past have reappeared as fresh ideas and innovations. Finally, the paper will make conclusions as to the progress or repetition of public sector legislation in Queensland.

Economic issues in funding and supplying public sector information [Presentation slides]

PowerPoint presentation by Dr John S Cook at the Spatially Enabled Government Summit 2009, Mapping the Future of Interoperability, Data Collection & Data Management for Operational Excellence within Australian Government, held on 24-27 August, 2009 at the Marque Hotel, Canberra, ACT

A review of rationale for allocating costs and payments in producing and supplying public sector information

Presentation given by Dr John S Cook at the Queensland Spatial Conference 2008, Global Warming: What’s Happening in Paradise?, held at Holiday Inn, Surfers Paradise,Queensland from 17-19 July, 2008 This presentation provides some semblance of an information infrastructure that is aligned generally to problems of governance in complex organisations.

A summary view of government cost recovery policies in Australia and New Zealand relating to the supply of public sector information

Researching administrative history is problematical. A trail of authoritative documents is often hard to find; and useful summaries can be difficult to organise, especially if source material is in paper formats in geographically dispersed locations. In the absence of documents, the reasons for particular decisions and the rationale underpinning particular policies can be confounded as key personnel advance in their professions and retire. The rationale for past decisions may be lost for practical purposes; and if an organisation’s memory of events is diminished, its learning through experience is also diminished. Publishing this document tries to avoid unnecessary duplication of effort by other researchers that need to venture into how policies of charging for public sector information have been justified. The author compiled this work within a somewhat limited time period and the work does not pretend to be a complete or comprehensive analysis of the issues.----- A significant part of the role of government is to provide a framework of legally-enforceable rights and obligations that can support individuals and non-government organisations in their lawful activities. Accordingly, claims that governments should be more ‘business-like’ need careful scrutiny. A significant supply of goods and services occurs as non-market activity where neither benefits nor costs are quantified within conventional accounting systems or in terms of money. Where a government decides to provide information as a service; and information from land registries is archetypical, the transactions occur as a political decision made under a direct or a clearly delegated authority of a parliament with the requisite constitutional powers. This is not a market transaction and the language of the market confuses attempts to describe a number of aspects of how governments allocate resources.----- Cost recovery can be construed as an aspect of taxation that is a sole prerogative of a parliament. The issues are fundamental to political constitutions; but they become more complicated where states cede some taxing powers to a central government as part of a federal system. Nor should the absence of markets be construed necessarily as ‘market failure’ or even ‘government failure’. The absence is often attributable to particular technical, economic and political constraints that preclude the operation of markets. Arguably, greater care is needed in distinguishing between the polity and markets in raising revenues and allocating resources; and that needs to start by removing unhelpful references to ‘business’ in the context of government decision-making.

Where have all the workers gone? Exploring public sector workforce planning

Governments undertake extensive planning of many services and functions, but tend to neglect planning of public service workforces. Disruptions to public service delivery, such as shortages of nurses and doctors, have rejuvenated interest in workforce planning, but many organisations struggle to do it effectively. This historical study examines the capacity of central personnel agencies to predict workforce risks and support workforce planning, using a study of the Queensland public service. It identifies lack of workforce data as a barrier to effective workforce planning, as a result of factors such as changes in the direction of the central personnel agency, lack of appreciation for the value of comprehensive central workforce data, and limited agency human resource (HR) skills or capacity.

The management of transport construction projects : a survey of public sector organisations in Queensland Australia

Construction procurement organisations in the Australian framework provide broad guidelines on project management in setting benchmark performance measurements and processes for evaluating their projects. Despite this, little has been known in the project management practise in transport construction projects in Australia, in particular Queensland. Questionnaire data from 53 project management practitioners employed in State and City public sector organisations in Queensland,suggested that many practitioners in the public sector have little or a lack of understanding of government regulatory policies, which are used as economic evaluation tools for project options. Public sector project managers perceive socio-economic evaluation tools as inappropriate for public sector projects. The survey results also found conducting risk management analysis, developing a risk register and mitigation of risks were most effective way of managing risk. This study provides an opportunity for the public sector to review and provide training on project management practices and government regulatory policies governing public projects. This will improve project management practitioners’ understanding and interpretation of government regulatory policies.

Access to public sector information : law, technology and policy

On the back of the growing capacity of networked digital information technologies to process and visualise large amounts of information in a timely, efficient and user-driven manner we have seen an increasing demand for better access to and re-use of public sector information (PSI). The story is not a new one. Share knowledge and together we can do great things; limit access and we reduce the potential for opportunity. The two volumes of this book seek to explain and analyse this global shift in the way we manage public sector information. In doing so they collect and present papers, reports and submissions on the topic by leading authors and institutions from across the world. These in turn provide people tasked with mapping out and implementing information policy with reference material and practical guidance. Volume 1 draws together papers on the topic by policymakers, academics and practitioners while Volume 2 presents a selection of the key reports and submissions that have been published over the last few years.