The University of Edinburgh | The University of Edinburgh - … · 2018-12-10 · Procurement at the University of Edinburgh. £353million influencable spend for 2017/2018. £1.5billion

Community Benefits in ProcurementScottish Universities Finance ConferenceWorkshop 6

23 November 2018

Workshop Agenda

• Procurement and Community Benefits overview• Strategic Context and the City Region Deal• UoE approach so far—Key areas• Challenges with CB• Progress so far and emerging opportunities• Further questions and discussion

23 November 2018 | University of Edinburgh Finance Department | 3

Live poll and discussion

Smart phones/PC: wifi eduroam EASE login

Please go to www.slido.com and enter code D671


Public Procurement

Value for Money when spending public funds

Governed by EU and WTO … probably(?) no immediate Brexit change

Main requirement, competitive tendering through single Scottish EU register


Community Benefits Requirements in Procurement• Contract clauses requiring suppliers to achieve additional benefits or value in addition to

the main purpose of a public contract– E.g., apprenticeship, training or targeted recruitment commitments as part of building works contracts – Legal requirement in Scotland, called “social value” in England, guidance suggests links to strategic

priorities– EU Rule—not prescriptive, says these can be innovation, social, economic, employment or environment

related

• UoE CB Policy—focus on:– Exploring wide range of activities in line with strategies and capacity– Leveraging to deepen connections between UoE, industry and all of our communities – Community engagement, inclusive growth– Student experience, employment and skills– Research & Innovation


Examples of potential CB requirements in public procurement (not exhaustive)

• Paid or course credit student internships with supplier• Apprenticeship commitments• SME spend commitments by supplier• Support for third sector organisation or social enterprise• Commitment to training hours for young people,

community members or students• Co-creating research, or incorporating research into

projects, or collaboration on Living Lab activity


https://www.edinburghlivinglab.org/

Slido.com test question

What do you think so far about community benefits/added value in public procurement?• Sound’s great…sign me up!• I’m interested…tell me more• I am sceptical about the relevance to my

work and whether this is a priority for the University


Procurement at the University of Edinburgh

£353million influencable spend for 2017/2018

£1.5billion capital plan

Procurement is full strategic partner beyond “commercial/cost function”

Focus on sustainable procurement and fair trade23 November 2018 | University of Edinburgh Finance Department | 9

UoE Commitments

Strategic Plan—Impact for Society• Contributing Locally• Influencing Globally• Building ties with

industry• Digital transformation


UoE Commitments Continued


Community Engagement StrategyHeadline Commitments include:• Widen access to UoE

Research• Strengthen Community

and University Relations• Encourage collaborative

working• Open up our buildings for

the wider public• Also: figure out what

we’re doing!

CB development: Key Partner Examples

Edinburgh Innovations

Research Support Office

Careers Service

Social Responsibility and Sustainability Department

City Region Deal DDI Programme Team

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Research Support Office The Research Support Office provides comprehensive information, services and support to members of the University of Edinburgh research community in their pursuit of funding. “We help develop research projects at any scale, from small awards to complex interdisciplinary bids. This includes horizon scanning, guidance on research funders, advice on targeting the right opportunities, identifying pathways to impact, developing the bid and dealing with contractual matters upon award.” Edinburgh Innovations Edinburgh Innovations is the innovation management service for the University of Edinburgh. “With partners, we explore opportunities, build ideas and deliver results for industry and the University of Edinburgh. We do this by promoting the research, technology and facilities at the University and use our expertise to manage and develop industry partnerships.”

City Region Deal Data Driven Innovation Programme

£1.3b deal signed Aug 2018, UoE leads innovation component DDI Programme

Opportunities for industry partners, across five TRADE themes:

– Talent– Research– Adoption– Data– Entrepreneurship

Presenter

Presentation Notes

City Region Deal and Data Driven Innovation (DDI): The University of Edinburgh is leading the Data Driven Innovation Programme as a key partner of the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal. The DDI programme will entail numerous projects around a number of areas related to research, innovation, adoption and social inclusion. As this procurement relates to the data infrastructure of the University, the University wishes to discuss opportunities with bidders to participate in the DDI Programme emerging activity through CB and partnerships.

The City Region Deal

Major capital spend and integrated Skills programme including Digital Skills Gateway led by UoE

Inclusive growth agenda: major component joined up approach to procurement CB between partners—looking at “anchor institution approach”

Discussion: What would you like to see here?


Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal Data Driven Innovation Programme

What does DDI/City Deal mean for :

Our communities?Our students and staff?

What does real inclusive growth look like


Supplier Benefits: Student experience/employment

UoE Careers Service, key partner

Opportunity to enhance the student experience

UoE Area Examples– Graduate employment opportunities – Internships, including “challenge based”– Emerging DDI Skills Gateway– Girls in Tech

Suggestions, activities, priorities and capacity?

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Potential Engagement Activities Employment opportunities Paid Internships, industry placements, or work experience Opportunities for Widening Participation students and recent graduates Attendance at University Careers Fairs Involvement in Careers Service information and skills sessions to inform and inspire students re developing a career in their organisation or sector Encourage University alumni working in their organisation to connect with the University and support students looking to start their career Inputs into the emerging DDI Skills Gateway (see overview)

Supplier Benefits: Community Engagement/Impact

UoE Community engagement activity– Youth engagement activities, including those related to

Widening Participation (e.g. Access to the Professions)UoE Area Examples

– DDI School Engagement Programme– Digital Ambassador programme – Homelessness Health and Inclusion Centre– Ask our third sector and community members!

Suggestions, activities, priorities and capacity?

Presenter

Presentation Notes

This is a non-exhaustive indicative list. Targeted recruitment, apprenticeships and work experience opportunities for younger, older, disadvantaged or disabled workers, or other target groups Youth engagement activities, including those related to Widening Participation Funding or equipment for joint initiative, flagship project or third sector Opportunities for social enterprise Inputs into the emerging DDI Skills Gateway (see overview) DDI school engagement Ways to contribute Improving access to technology in schools Although some schools in the city region have excellent technology resources, we know this is patchy. Many schools face difficulties in accessing wifi, and some are stuck with computers as old as the pupils! We want all children to have access to the technology they need to help them learn, no matter which school they go to or whether their family can afford to buy them a laptop. We need more forward looking initiatives like the Equipped for Learning scheme at Newbattle Digital Centre of Excellence in Midlothian where the school undertakes to provide technology (and home internet access) for all their pupils, through loans and subsidy arrangements. We welcome hardware gifts, technical advice and monetary donations to make this possible. Teacher education To make a sustainable change in schools, we have to invest in high quality teacher education. Teachers are highly skilled professionals who can transform children’s lives and will keep doing so over their professional lifetimes. This is why we have chosen to focus Data Education for All in schools; teachers make a lasting impact far beyond one-off and extra-curricular activities. Many teachers do not currently have subject expertise relating to data and will need professional learning courses to help them get started. We will launch professional learning networks for teachers, and offer face to face and online courses to help them develop their knowledge, both about data and how to teach children about data. We welcome monetary contributions to sponsor teachers to take part in courses. Volunteers in schools There is a shortage of qualified computer science teachers in Scotland (and elsewhere). We are working with government to address this in the longer term, but in the meantime volunteers from the IT industry can make a huge difference by helping out in primary school and secondary computing classrooms. This is most effective when the volunteers first take part in an induction about the school curriculum and approaches to working with children. We appreciate individual volunteers in the IT industry and companies who allow their staff to spend time helping in schools. JR to get more details of this scheme from Midlothian colleagues

Supplier Benefits: Environment


Procurement Co-lead successful grant bid with ECCI, SRS and Estates to support our construction suppliers to create Data Driven Innovation and decarbonisation innovation business cases related to the Built Environment, we have bid to upscale this work to leverage procurement relationships to embed innovation and meet our Zero by 2040 carbon ambition

Supplier Benefits: Research and InnovationUoE capacity and benefits for industry engagement on R&I, e.g.:

– Sponsoring/co-funding academic research – Sponsoring student research (eg Phd sponsorship)– Joint research projects through Innovate UK or Industrial Strategy Challenge

Fund– Sponsorship of Studentships

Formal benefits vs. opportunities to build tiesDDI links and City Region Deal centres, including Bayes

Suggestions, activities, priorities and capacity? Any link to your activity?

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Industry Engagement Opportunities This list of activity that the University currently engages in and may be able to facilitate and support is indicative only and not exhaustive. Sponsorships of studentships Industrial placements and internships (students and staff) Sponsoring or co-funding an academic or student researcher Initiate joint research projects, including through joint funding bids, e.g., through Innovate UK or the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund Collaborative partnership or knowledge exchange, including horizon scanning or identifying pathways to impact Participate in an AIMday – Academic Industry Meeting Days are events for company and supply chains to engage with Academics around pertinent topics (see this short video for an overview) Participation in Executive Education – participate as students or as course providers in exciting customisable programmes ranging from two day masterclasses to MBA level courses Become a trusted partner through provision of industry insight, as bid partners, by opening up links to other industry partners, opening access to research or shared data sets, or collaborating on the HR side of business, etc. Mentoring of start-ups and spin outs, evaluation of IP portfolio (where appropriate), market intelligence (from their expert knowledge of their markets) Free prototyping and access to unique test environments Consideration/Investment of spin out start-ups relevant to current business Aspiring CEOs access support or training before spinning out, start-ups could become part of supply chain, or be brought into current business, etc. Areas related to Digital Infrastructure This list is indicative only and non-exhaustive. The School of Informatics is among the top five schools in the world in the fields of computation, information and cognition, with significant capacity to provide innovation for industry. The Bayes Centre focuses on data science and artificial intelligence, and aims to be a world leader in Data-Driven Innovation The Moray House School of Education’s Centre for Research in Digital Education provides excellent research on critical issues from digital cultures, to children and technology, and the “Data Society”. Many schools across the University feature Data-Driven Innovation in their leading research, for instance the School of Engineering and the School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, and can engage on any number of important topics for industry like the internet of things, innovation in data infrastructure, and planning the learning and teaching spaces of the future, among many others.

Challenges overview


Challenge: Value for Money

Example, UoE Estate: 550 buildings, half of budget needed is available—every pound counts—additional CB requirements could cost more

On the other hand: We are growing—can we demonstrate genuinely inclusive economic growth? What about our reputation?Discussion: how could we deal with this?


Challenge: Ad Hoc activity

What impact do one-off activities actually have?

Is it worth the effort to engage suppliers, community and other players in a “joined up approach?”


Challenge: multidimensional problems, lack of expertise or community input

Solutions to problems are complicated, and evidence-based, consultative approaches are needed—but often don’t fit into project timescales.

How do we address this problem?


Challenge: Reporting

How do we measure social impact quantitatively?

How do we tell a coherent, qualitative narrative or story?


Challenge: Implementation and resourcing

Who’s job is it to plan and deliver these? Procurement? Do we need extra staff? Is it worth the time/effort?

How could we address this?


Addressing challenges: what we’re doing


• We’re working with City Region Deal DDI team and across University to identify activity that aligns with the key priorities

• Working with City Region partners to explore a joined up approach and learning from our partners

• Focusing efforts on ensuring CB commitments from suppliers are implemented and reported

• Aiming for CB to contribute and complement to emerging integrated reporting, social impact and inclusive growth measurement approaches

• Work is on-going, but in October, the University was recognised with a Government Opportunities award for its work in Scotland to develop community benefits in procurement

Questions and discussion


Thank you!


Documents

The University of Edinburgh | The University of Edinburgh - … · 2018-12-10 · Procurement at the University of Edinburgh. £353million influencable spend for 2017/2018. £1.5billion