1. PROCUREMENT UPDATE is the newsletter published by Procurement Branch, Department of Treasury and Finance, bringing you news on the latest developments in procurement and contracting in the Victorian Government. Enquiry: Call Lucille Tam (03) 9651 2577 PROCUREMENT UPDATE is the newsletter published by Procurement Branch, Department of Treasury and Finance, bringing you news on the latest developments in procurement and contracting in the Victorian Government. Enquiry: Call Lucille Tam (03) 9651 2577 P rocurement U pdate November 2000 EC4P Pilot Rapid Advancement The EC4P (Electronic Commerce for Procurement) pilot project at Department of Natural Resources and Environment (NRE) is proceeding rapidly. NRE is conducting a trial of the process of engaging suppliers to participate in their electronic procurement solution. This involves helping suppliers place their products and services on electronic catalogues. “Trade Fairs” have been held in regional cities such as Warrnambool, Tatura, Bendigo, Ballarat and Traralgon. Some 95 suppliers have agreed to participate in the pilot so far and around 55 of these suppliers’ catalogues have been loaded on to the system ready for use with the balance to be loaded before the system goes live. In the meantime other departments have been busy preparing their strategies and business cases for EC4P implementation. The strategy work will be used to form the basis of a Request for Quote (RFQ) which will then be submitted to selected panel members. Responses to the RFQ will assist the department’s decision as to which service provider will then be appointed to implement EC4P. EC4P Panel Following a recent review of the EC4P panel strategy, it has been decided to invite and evaluate new entrants from April 2001. The panel currently consists of four service providers who provide full electronic procurement solutions for use by departments and agencies. New entrants will be considered via a formal tender process that is expected to take about three months. The recent review of the panel strategy was conducted in conjunction with departments and other key stakeholders. - Andrew Ferrarese (Tel. 03 9651 2599) Project Manager, E-commerce - Cris Popp (Tel. 03 9651 2587) Project Coordinator, E-commerce

2. Review of Government Purchasing Arrangements and Connection with Premier’s Statement on Openness and Probity The Review of Victorian Government Purchasing Arrangements was completed by KPMG Consulting in June 2000. KPMG’s recommendations in the specific area of probity in procurement have been largely accepted by the Government and implemented as part of the Premier’s Statement “Ensuring Openness and Probity in Victorian Government Contracting” issued on 11 October 2000. That Statement drew from several sources including KPMG’s Review, Professor Bill Russell’s “Audit Review of Government Contracting” and two reports of the Public Accounts and Estimates Committee. The Premier’s Statement can be found in full via a hotlink from the Victorian Government Purchasing Board’s (VGPB) website www.vgpb.vic.gov.au. Key directions include:  Independent scrutiny of departmental contracts by VGPB to continue.  Construction contracts will also be subject to independent scrutiny.  Government contracts worth more than $10 million and headline details of all contracts worth more than $100,000 will now be made publicly available on the Internet. The public can access these contracts at www.contracts.vic.gov.au or via a hotlink from the Board’s website.  The Government will disclose up to 70 contracts entered into by Kennet Government on the VGPB website. A large number of these contracts are already available.  Freedom of Information principles will apply in managing any exceptions (only trade secrets or genuinely confidential information will be withheld from disclosure, along with material that if disclosed would seriously harm the public interest).  Ministers will notify Parliament of reasons for non-disclosure of contracts (eg. major events, business attraction) in annual reports.  Any Government Department letting a tender worth more than $10 million is now required to develop a probity plan. In addition, the Secretary of each Department will have the option, for particularly large, sensitive or complex transactions, of appointing an external auditor to provide ongoing advice on probity issues throughout the tendering process.  All public sector agencies and Government Business Enterprises are required to articulate probity standards which must be at least as strong as the VGPB’s. To support the Government’s disclosure requirements, the VGPB has released a policy ‘Disclosure of Contracts: Contracts Publishing System’. This policy outlines the Government’s contract reporting requirements in further detail. KPMG’s other recommendations eg. in the areas of regional or local development impact of tenders, more consistent application of procurement policy standards across the wider public sector beyond Government departments, wider monitoring of electronic commerce implementation strategies, study of reasons for waiving public tender requirements are currently under consideration by Government and further advice will follow. For further information, please contact Diana Joslin, Manager Policy Projects on (03) 9651 2275. - John Rickard (Tel. 03 9651 2162) Director, Procurement

3. Victorian Government Purchasing Board Annual Report 1999-2000 The Hon Lynne Kosky MP tabled the fifth annual report for the Victorian Government Purchasing Board in Parliament on 31 October 2000. The report covers:  Electronic Commerce in the Victorian Government  Accredited Purchasing Unit Procurement Activities  Review of Victorian Government Purchasing Arrangements  Performance Evaluation of Procurement in the Victorian Government  Online Developments  GST Implementation  Multi-million Dollar Savings through Strategic Contracting  Information about the Board  PURIST – Purchasing and Procurement Data across Government. To obtain your copy of the report, please contact Angelina Cardillo by phone on 03 9651 2398, or email your postal details to angelina.cardillo@dtf.vic.gov.au. An online version will be available from Monday, 20 November at the following URL: http://www.vgpb.vic.gov.au/about/anrep9900/index.htm. - Kimberley Jones (Tel. 03 9651 2803) Projects Coordinator, Procurement Systems

4. Three New Board Members The Governor in Council has approved three new Victorian Government Purchasing Board members who commenced their terms of office on 1 October, 2000. The new members are Ms. Faith Fitzgerald, Ms Marissa Di Pasquale and Mr Mark Burford. The new members bring skills in electronic commerce, policy development and government business enterprises. The Procurement Branch provided the new members with a short orientation presentation the day before they took their seats at their first Board meeting on 26 October 2000. The Review of Government Purchasing Arrangements carried out by KPMG Consulting has made recommendations in such areas as electronic commerce and more consistent application of procurement policies across Government (see separate article). The new Board will be well placed to continue and strengthen its role in leading and advising in such areas of policy and standards development. The re-appointed external members of the VGPB are Mr Robin Jervis-Read and Mr. Bruce Hartnett. Senior public servants Ms Karen Cleave (Department of Education, Employment and Training), Mr Alan Stewart (Department of Natural Resources and Environment) and Mr Lance Wallace (Department of Human Services) were also re- appointed to the Board. - Roy Duncanson (Tel. 03 9651 2582) Secretary to the Board

5. PACCER’s Recognition of Current Competencies Individuals who wish to have their procurement and contracting skills and knowledge formally recognised may now apply for the Recognition of Current Competencies (RCC) under PACCER. RCC (previously known as RPL - Recognition of Prior Learning) is a process that acknowledges competencies can be gained formally, through education and training programs, or less formally, through life and/or work experience. The PACCER RCC enables individuals to be assessed against competency standards under the Key Area “Procurement and Contract Management” within the National Public Services Training Package. (The Training Package was endorsed in November 1999 by the National Training Framework Committee and agreed to by all States and Territory Ministers.) Suitable candidates for the RCC under PACCER are:  Those nominated by Departments and agencies to fulfil the requirements for advancement to higher levels of the Victorian Government Purchasing Board (VGPB) Devolution Accreditation Framework.  Individuals who believe that they do not require procurement and contract management training but wish to obtain formal recognition of their level of competence.  Individuals wishing to assess their level of competence in procurement and contract management to identify gaps for further development. To find out more about the procurement and contract management competency standards, visit the Public Service Education and Training Australia’s website www.pseta.com.au, go to “National Training Package” then Key Area “Procurement and Contract Management”. To find out more about the RCC under PACCER or to apply for assessment, please contact your PACCER customer service staff on (03) 9651 2590. - Lucille Tam (Tel. 03 9651 2577) Training Co-ordinator, PACCER (Procurement and Contracting Centre for Education and Research)