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Appendix 4 | Consultancy services | Commonwealth Ombudsman Annual Report 2007-08
APPENDIX 4 | Consultancy services
The office engages consultants when the expertise required is not available within the organisation or when the specialist skills required are not available without diverting resources from other higher priority tasks. In accordance with procurement guidelines, consultants are selected by open tender, panel arrangements, select tendering or direct sourcing.
Table A2 provides details of consultancy services let by the office during 2007–08 with a contract value (GST inclusive) of $10,000 or more.
Advertising and market research
Advertising is used to publicise the office’s services. No advertising contracts were let in 2007–08. The office’s advertising strategies were designed and conceived in-house. Recruitment and tender notices were placedin newspapers at a cost of $34,794; and advertisements to publicise the office’sservices were placed in newspapersand journals at a cost of $14,754. Notices and advertisements wereplaced through hma Blaze.
Instinct and Reason conducted two market research surveys on behalf of the office in 2006–07 and 2007–08:
- a survey of agencies in 2006–07 to ascertain their views about our effectiveness and interactions, and to identify areas where we could improve processes to lead to speedier and more effective resolution of complaints
- a survey of complainants in 2007–08 toobtain information on three key aspects—access, demographics and quality of service.
In 2007–08 a payment of $15,400 was made to Instinct and Reason for the agency survey. Through oversight, anotherpayment of $15,400 made in 2006–07 for that survey was not reported in our last annual report. Other payments totalling $93,610 were made to Instinct and Reason in 2007–08 for the survey ofcomplainants.
TABLE A2 Consultancy services, 2007–08
| Consultant name | Description | Contract price | Selection process (1) | Justification (2) |
| ThinkPlace Pty Ltd trading as ThinkPlace Trust | Provision of facilitation services | $11,880 | Select Tender | B |
| McPherson Consulting Pty Ltd | Own motion investigation into the administration of the CDDA Scheme by specified agencies | $37,125 | Direct Sourcing | B |
| Courage Partners Pty Ltd | Development and delivery of performance audit training | $16,500 | Select Tender | B |
| Instinct and Reason Pty Ltd | Market research services | $104,610 | Select Tender | B |
| Total | $170,115 |
Definitions
(1) Selection process
Select tender—procurement procedure in which the procuring agency selects which potential suppliers are invited to submit tenders. Tenders are invited from a short list of competent suppliers.
Direct sourcing—a form of restricted tendering, available only under certain defined circumstances, with a single potential supplier or suppliers being invited to bid because of their unique expertise and/or their special ability to supply the goods and/or services sought.
Open tender—procurement procedure in which a request for tender is published inviting all businesses that satisfy the conditions for participation to submit tenders. Public tenders are sought from the marketplace using national and major metropolitan newspaper advertising and the Australian Government AusTender internet site.
Panel—an arrangement under which a number of suppliers, usually selected through a single procurement process, may each supply property or services to an agency as specified in the panel arrangements. Tenders are sought from suppliers that have pre-qualified on the agency panels to supply to the government. This category includes standing offers and supplier panels where the consultant offers to supply goods and services for a pre-determined length of time, usually at a pre-arranged price.
(2) Justification for decision to use consultancy
A—skills currently unavailable within agency
B—need for specialised or professional skills
C—need for independent research or assessment