Managing risk through assurance in the local public sector_Paul Monaghan

Managing risk through assurance in the local public sector

APM conference 19 May 2015

© Local Partnerships LLP 2009

Presentation agenda

• About Local Partnerships

• Harnessing Assurance to mitigate risk

• LP Review community

• Maximising the power of assurance data

• Questions


About Local Partnerships

LP is a joint venture between Her

Majesty’s Treasury and the Local

Government Association.

We work with Government, Local

Authorities, local public bodies, and the

community focussed third sector to

support them deliver investment in local

infrastructure and local services.

Through our ownership, and joint

activities with other parts of the Local

Government Group, we form part of the

local government family.

LP works only for the public or third

sectors, and solely for public benefit. This

ensures we operate without the limitations

of commercial conflict, and can (and do)

share our intellectual capital freely across

the public sector.

Our offering is additional, and we are not

seeking to displace commercial or

specialist advisers, instead our focus is

on making the public sector client side’s

commercial and delivery capability

stronger.

Our charging model is based on cost

recovery (not maximising profit).

© Local Partnerships LLP 2009 4

Local Partnerships support to public services

Assurance - Reviews of high risk programmes and projects to

keep them on track.

Efficiency - support public sector contracts to make savings,

and the management of outsourced contracts.

Infrastructure - develop specialist support for a wider range of

infrastructure programmes

Investment & Reform –Support for wider public sector reform

agenda to create shared services and more efficient delivery.

Growth - Physical development, property and asset

management, including asset rationalisation and retro-fitting

energy measures.

Commercial and procurement support to projects, programmes and change processes.


Efficient risk mitigation through assurance

• An intensive and concentrated focus on external objective scrutiny of a

specific programme, project or change process to identify areas of best

practice and those needing strengthening to enhance likelihood of a

successful outcome.

• Using LP database of review information to spread anonymized good

practice and knowledge of key sector risks and mitigation strategies.

• Also using database of information to

inform policy makers at government

level of issues at delivery stage.

• Building capacity and capability in

public sector community by exposure

to a broader body and range of work


Wider benefits of Assurance

• Limit risks of expensive failures √

• Harness best practice √

• Develop networking √

• Baseline against best in class √

• Widen public sector skill base √

• Increase project awareness √

• Assess views of and strengthen

stakeholder community awareness √

• Develop latent potential in

project management community √

• Provide support at key stages √

• underpin corporate governance √

• Provide objective external perspective √


7

Building the Capacity of Public Services

Better

Skilled

Staff

Assurance

Reviews

Improved

Project Delivery

Improved

Public Service

Capability

Development

of Best Practice

… to improve project delivery


Reviewer benefits

• Wide range of reviews in different sectors

• Networking - Reviewers drawn from a wide range;

Public sector, LP consultant associates, Local

Partnerships staff, other assurance hubs.

• LP Reviewer support –

training & network events

and virtual community

• Broader perspective -

Members of LP reviewers

take part in reviews for other

assurance hubs


Building strong review teams

• Carefully selected blend of skills and experience matched to

needs of programme.

• Balance of reviewers with specialist sector skills appropriate for

project with others reviewers from different sectors

• Blend of experienced and

relatively inexperienced

reviewers

• Excellent leadership by

experienced Review team

leaders


LP Reviewer community

• Over 800 experienced and fully accredited

reviewers

• Reviewers drawn from wide range of

professional and sector backgrounds

• Range of experience and seniority

• QA system - 360 feedback system

for continuous improvement


Reviewer career pathway

• Initial training by experienced reviewers

which includes role playing based on

scenarios drawn from real reviews.

• Teams of 4 to allow inexperienced

reviewers to develop in supported

environment

• Carry out 2-3 reviews to become fully

accredited reviewer

• Develop soft skills – team leadership,

verbal and non-verbal communication,

analysis, succinct report writing,

presentation

• Progress from RTM to RTL with

Mentoring by experienced reviewers and

additional Master class training

Probation

RTL

Initial training

day

RTL

Senior RTL

Probation

Reviewer

Accredited

RTM

Senior RTM

Masterclass

training


12

Programme or project

team completes pas

Report delivered to PO

(cc 4ps)

Local Partnerships, PO,

PD & PM agree review

requirements

Local Partnerships

arranges review and

sends out emails

week 0

2 – 4

4 – 6

5 – 7

6 – 8

8 – 10

11 –12

RTL engages with PO

and project team

Local Partnerships briefs

RTL with assessment

summary

Prepare Review

Planning Meeting

Set up Review Team Logistics

Assessment Meeting

PAS

Undertake Review and Draft Report

Feedback (PO, RTL & RTMs)

Lessons learned evaluation

RTL briefs team

Agree key issues.

Confirm “readiness for review”

Agree “readiness for review”

assessment summary produced

Recommendations and delivery

confidence assessment

Review team agree

findings

Final Report

Overview of the Assurance Review Process

Project assessment

spreadsheet


13

Multi-Tasking Essential

Review Team Meeting

PO Update Meeting

PO Report Meeting

Report Template Preparation

Emerging Findings Outline Findings

Typical 3 Day Review


Managing quality of reviews

• LP Review experience – undertaken over 900 reviews in

15 years across a wide range of sectors

• Select strong teams with good leaders carefully

balanced to needs for review

• Utilise the specialist

knowledge and insights

of reviewers in a wide

range of areas


Flexible range of LP assurance products

• LP accredited provider of Gateway reviews in

local and regional space

• Assurance Health checks (bespoke to client

needs) 1-5 days 1-4 person

• Sector specific reviews

• Assurance of Action Plans


Managing though the lifecycle

• Validate strategic concepts

• Review Options

• Procurement stages

• Contract Management

• Assess lessons learnt


Adaptable to all Sectors

• Infrastructure

• Regeneration

• IT

• New delivery structures

• Savings

• Transformation – organisational change


LP Internal Assurance Toolkit

• Strategic relationship with authorities

• Establish assurance at a local level

• LP support to set up a flexible assurance process with

minimum distribution tailored to authority needs.

• Make use of LP extensive body of knowledge,

processes, systems and documents


19

Opportunity to Influence Outcomes

100%

Ab

ilit

y t

o in

flu

en

ce

Business

Justification

Procurement

Strategy

Readiness

for Service

Benefits

realisation Investment

Decision

0% Time

Develop

Business Case

Manage

Contract

Award and

implement

contract

Competitive

Procurement

Develop

Procurement

Strategy


Questions


21

Contact details

Paul Monaghan

Project Director

07747 441 495

[email protected]

For further information

visit www.localpartnerships.org.uk

or call us on; 020 7187 7379

Email: [email protected]

or visit at;

Local Partnerships,

Local Government House,

Smith Square,

London,

SW1P 3HZ