In part one, I shared some of the objectives of public procurement and the performance of the main actors in public procurement. In this article I share more; Understanding Procuring Entities Requirements In order for the suppliers to deliver the right items being procured, they must receive the right description of the items from the procuring entities. The right description of the items being procured can only be given by officials who fully understand those items. Therefore, public officials must understand both functional and technical specifications of the items being procured in order for them to be able to present to bidders, sufficient description of the items they are required to supply. Sufficient description of the items to be procured is achieved by the procurement and user departments working together. Items which are procured repeatedly should have their description improved from time to time as their understanding improves with each procurement. For new items, a lot of effort should be made to ensure a sufficient description of the items. If need be, an expert can be hired to support the procuring entity in writing the description (functional and technical specifications) Soft Skills Public procurement is about a relationship that is established between a procuring entity and a supplier through a tendering process mainly by competition. The process of establishing and managing this relationship requires some soft skills, especially communication skills, critical thinking and team work. Written communication skills are needed in drafting tender documents, writing functional and technical specifications and contract management; while oral communication skills are required during meetings and negotiations during the establishment and management of the relationships. For procurement staff, oral communication skills help them to persuade the user departments and management to play their part in ensuring the success of public procurement. The other two soft skills mentioned here are critical thinking and team work. Public procurement is described by one writer as “complex functions that involve multidisciplinary personnel, are governed by laws and regulations and are about competing interests of suppliers and procuring entities”. Therefore, they must be handled with a critical mind. In addition, the nature of these functions requires team work; hence public officials involved in public procurement should be team builders and team players. Positive Engagement with Suppliers Procuring entities should have a positive engagement with suppliers. Much as any close collaboration between procuring entities and suppliers runs the risk of leading to corruption or being perceived as such, the former should strive to establish a win-win situation with the latter and work together to overcome anything that is detrimental to this relationship including corruption tendencies and perceptions. Procuring entities on one hand should work to support the interests of the suppliers by paying their invoices, addressing their complaints, and replying their correspondences in time. Procuring entities should understand that fulfilling their obligations towards suppliers is good for them in particular and for the country in general as it enables them grow, provide employment and pay taxes. Suppliers, on the other hand, should understand that fulfilling their obligations towards procuring entities is good for them in particular since it helps them maintain a good business relationship and in general contributes to good governance for the country. Performance of Suppliers Suppliers play an important role in the success of public procurement. The procuring entities entrust them with almost all the activities necessary for the availability of goods and services required for the former’s operations. In other words, the achievement of the procuring entities’ objectives is highly dependent on the performance of suppliers who supply the goods and services necessary for their operations. To be high performers government suppliers must do the following: be ethical in their operations, master the public procurement legal and institutional framework, master their field of business, have sufficient capacity for specific tenders and understand the market to ensure the right pricing. Being Ethical in operations Suppliers should be ethical in their submission of bids and contract execution. All the information given in their bids should be true. During contract execution, they should always act in good faith and prevent any deviation from their obligations like late delivery or delivery of substandard goods. They should understand that being unethical may lead to sanctions which could mean suspension or debarment from participation in public procurement. Understanding the public Procurement Legal and Institutional Framework To be able to prepare quality bids and execute contracts well, suppliers need to understand the procurement legal framework. They should read and understand the law governing public procurement and other legal instruments that complement it. The law and other instruments help the bidders understand the process and conditions for the award of the contract thereby increasing the chances of winning the tender and execute the contract well if awarded. It also helps in understanding the reasons for not winning the tender which provides lessons for subsequent attempts. In addition, it helps the bidder to understand the right and process of appeal if necessary. Communications from bidders/suppliers that are not channeled to the relevant organs in due course, may disrupt the procurement process or create unnecessary disputes. Therefore, a clear understanding of institutional framework by bidders/suppliers is quite important since it facilitates the process of contacting the right people at the right time, at any stage of the procurement cycle. Mastering Your Field of business Governments want suppliers who are very good in what they are doing. In fact, competition is intended to select the best among suppliers. Therefore, suppliers who have not yet mastered their field of business are advised not to compete for government tenders. If a supplier who has not yet mastered their field of business wins a government tender, the risk of not fulfilling their obligations is high. If the supplier’s obligations are not fulfilled, their confidence is eroded and they may be sanctioned. Having sufficient Capacity for a Specific Tender Suppliers should have sufficient capacity, (in terms of personnel, equipment and finance), for specific tenders which they compete for. They may not have full time staff or own the equipment required for a specific tender but can hire and contract them during the execution of the tender. However, suppliers should have made arrangements with firm commitments for the availability of personnel and equipment before submitting their bid. To ensure that bidders compete for tenders they have sufficient capacity to execute, RPPA has adopted a practice of categorizing companies that participate in tenders for works and firms that participate in tenders for supervision of works in accordance with their capacities. Under this scheme, a company is eligible to compete only for tenders aligned with the category under which it falls. Understanding the Market and ensuring the right pricing for specific tenders For any tender, the price is an important factor in determining who wins it. Therefore, bidders need to price the items they bid for in such a way that if awarded the tender, they will cover all costs and have a reasonable margin. Overpricing for higher profits decreases the chances of winning the tender while underpricing, as a means to win the tender, exposes the supplier to failing to fulfill their obligations with bad consequences. The writer is a former director general of Rwanda Public Procurement Authority.
