Developing 3SC: a consortium for third sector delivery of public services

Heaven is… English are administrators Italians are chefs Germans are technicians French are lovers

Hell is… French are administrators Germans are the chefs Italians are technicians English are lovers

3SC managing partners

3SC model 3SC Management Company (LLP*) contract-watch // tendering // performance & risk management // capacity building support // finance FJF Contract (100+) Membership Network (600 organisations) 10-15% 85-90% Economic model 10% share each Partners Board * with asset lock and profit cap

Notes 3Sc was created after the agreement of 10 partners to create a viable means of providing access to public contracts for third sector organisations. 3Sc was funded with a combination of seed capital from the partners (£100k) and from the Social investment business (£1.5m) 3Sc has managed to get through all post qualification exercises (PQQ’s) Currently, 3Sc carries the cost of bidding upfront What differentiates 3Sc from the prime contractors Ability to separate management and delivery effectively Opportunities to influence commissioners 85-90% of profits go to sub-contractors Agreement of partners was to create opportunities for the 3 rd sector

Consortium partners perspective Scope – clarity of purpose/vision Relationship between partners and SPV Governance arrangements Non compete clause Economic model and benefits Communication

Non-compete clause Where a Member identifies a potentially conflicting interest between its own activities and those of 3SC, for example (but not limited to) bidding for the same funding or contract, it must declare this conflict to the other Members and may not take part in any 3SC Members’ or Management Committee discussions or vote related to such funding or contract. Whilst recognising that this is likely to happen from time to time, the Members may, in their sole discretion, require any Member to resign…on the basis that such Member’s activity is likely to cause a severely detrimental effect on 3SC's business.

Commissioner perspective Three (mis)perceptions with consortia: It’s a start up Limited ability to manage quality Too many cooks

Notes Convince commissioners that the consortia is not a start-up by leveraging on past successes. To address the issue of ‘too many cooks’ demonstrate strength, quality, control and good management.

Learnings Informal - lower risk, quicker to set up Implications – time, money, independence Address commissioner concerns Cloak & daggers (avoid “new start” tag) Beware the negotiated peace Theory is easy, the practice is key

And… Remember you might even be successful – and need to deliver the contract!

Thank You