If your suppliers thrive, your residents, learners and service users feel it. This page brings every part of supplier engagement and control into one practical service for public and third sector buyers. We help you attract the right suppliers, develop their capability, set fair and measurable standards, and manage performance through the life of the contract. Use us to guide your team, review what you already do, or run the full outsourced model with independent contract administration. For further guidance, browse our public procurement FAQs.
You get a working system, not a binder. Expectations are clear, evidence is simple to collect, and performance conversations become easier because both sides can see the same numbers. Social value and sustainability targets are built in from day one and are reported through the same cadence as quality and cost.
What you can ask us to do
- Guide and enable: design your SRM and SPM framework, write the playbooks, train your team and sit in on the first reviews.
- Review and uplift: audit current contracts, scorecards and meetings, then rebuild the bits that hold you back.
- Outsource delivery: independent contract administration, supplier performance reporting, quarterly reviews, escalation and recovery plans, and commercial housekeeping.
A simple modular offer
| Module | When to use it | What we deliver | Evidence you keep |
| Supplier engagement and PME | New category or retender where you want better competition and local value | Market sounding plan, supplier brief pack, engagement sessions, summary of insights and risks | Engagement log, supplier list, budget realism note |
| SRM design | You want a relationship model that fits risk and value | Segmentation, meeting cadence, roles, agendas, terms of reference, issue logs | SRM handbook and templates |
| SPM and scorecards | You need consistent, comparable performance data | KPI and SLA set, data map, dashboards, exception rules, variance thresholds | Live scorecards and reporting pack |
| Independent contract administration | You want impartial control of evidence and payments | Document control, payment certification, KPI verification, remedies and incentives administration | Audit trail, payment certificates, change log |
| Supplier development programme | You need stronger bids and delivery capacity in your supply base | Gap analysis, training plan, 1 to 1 interventions, policy toolkits, carbon and social value support | Attendance records, action plans, before and after metrics |
| Escalation and recovery | A supplier is underperforming or at risk | Root cause analysis, improvement plan, commercial options, executive review facilitation | Recovery plan, decision notes, contract variation pack |
Build a supplier base that can deliver
Recruiting good suppliers starts before a notice is published. We plan preliminary market engagement that attracts the right providers, particularly SMEs and VCSEs that can add local value. We set out the opportunity, the likely evaluation approach, the standards you expect and how social value and sustainability will be scored and then measured after award. Suppliers hear the same messages and the record of engagement becomes part of your audit trail.
This is also where development begins. If you want to strengthen local capacity we run light touch sessions on bid readiness, carbon reduction planning, KPI reporting and financial basics. That helps smaller providers present themselves well and deliver consistently if they win.
Segment relationships and set the right cadence
Not every supplier needs a partnership. Some need clear transactions and firm control. We create a segmentation that your managers can use in practice. Typical tiers are strategic, tactical and routine with a critical risk overlay for any supplier whose failure would hurt residents or frontline services.
For each tier we lock in a cadence. Strategic suppliers meet quarterly with executives and monthly at an operational level. Tactical suppliers use a standard monthly or bi-monthly review. Routine suppliers receive scorecards and a periodic check in. Every meeting has a clear agenda, roles and a short action log.
Make performance measurable and fair
We build scorecards that reflect what really matters for your service. Measures are specific, verifiable and tied to evidence that already exists in your systems where possible. We avoid vanity metrics and we keep the set small enough to manage.
Typical building blocks:
- Quality and delivery: completion against plan, right first time, response and resolution times, user satisfaction where relevant.
- Cost control and value: budget adherence, rate compliance, change control hygiene, credit notes and rebates.
- Social value: local jobs and apprenticeships, spend with local SMEs and VCSEs, volunteering hours linked to your plan, all tied to units and baselines.
- Sustainability: fleet and travel emissions, energy intensity, materials and waste performance, specific category standards and a simple carbon plan with monthly metrics.
- Governance: data protection, health and safety, insurances, declarations and modern slavery checks kept current.
We set thresholds for green, amber and red. Exception rules are agreed so that small misses do not trigger noise and real issues receive attention fast. Where data needs a human check, we document how the sample is taken and who signs it off. That protects both you and the supplier.
Independent contract administration that you can lean on
If you want neutral control of evidence, we provide it. Independent contract administration removes tension from routine checks and payments. We collect performance evidence, verify claims, certify payments, apply incentives and remedies that exist in the contract and keep the change log clean. We also run the standing agenda for contract performance meetings and maintain the action tracker so nothing drifts.
This model works well where you need separation of duties, where sums are material, or where a previous contract drew challenge. It also helps when you are building capability and want a steady hand for the first year of a new deal.
Escalation, recovery and commercial levers
When performance slips we act quickly and proportionately. We separate symptoms from causes, agree a realistic improvement plan with the supplier and set short review checkpoints. We use the commercial framework you already have: service credits, withholds, step in rights and ultimately termination if needed. Recovery work is practical and direct. We sit with your managers and the supplier’s leads, fix workflows and clarify responsibilities, then hold people to what they have agreed.
Develop suppliers who will deliver for you
Development should be targeted and practical. We focus on the few things that unlock delivery and value.
- Bid readiness: help suppliers understand your evaluation priorities, write relevant case studies and price accurately.
- Policy and governance: templates and coaching so policies match your contract obligations.
- KPI and SLA reporting: simple measurement methods, evidence folders and monthly reporting discipline.
- Efficiency: basic Lean and value stream mapping for service contracts, easy wins in scheduling, call handling, stock and site logistics.
- Carbon and social value: credible plans with monthly measures that suppliers can maintain, not glossy promises that fail at month three.
You can badge this as your programme. We can deliver it on your behalf across a framework, a DPS or a single contract.
Data you can trust
We map where each KPI lives, who owns it and how it flows into your report pack. Where systems do not talk, we design a lightweight manual route that will not collapse at year end. We document definitions in plain language so that new staff can keep the system running. We also include a short sampling plan so auditors can see that numbers are real.
Quick wins in the first 30 days
- Strip out duplicated or unverified KPIs and keep the few that matter.
- Introduce a single action log with owners and dates across all supplier meetings.
- Align reports with payment cycles so data is not recreated twice.
- Publish a one page charter for suppliers that shows how social value and sustainability will be checked after award.
- Start monthly health checks for critical suppliers that cover finance, resourcing and delivery risk.
A short, real example
A housing provider planned to retender grounds maintenance. Market engagement showed strong local SMEs who could deliver quality and build local jobs if the contract was structured by geography. We helped the buyer set that lot structure, wrote outcome focused KPIs with evidence requirements and prepared a light supplier development pack on pricing, route planning and reporting. After award two local companies mobilised on time, resident complaints fell, and monthly dashboards cut noise in meetings because both parties could see the same facts. Social value jobs targets were reached in quarter two and carbon from fleet routes was reduced through practical scheduling.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between relationship management and performance management
Relationship management focuses on the quality of collaboration and long term alignment. Performance management focuses on delivery against contract measures. You need both. We design them together so meetings cover both the numbers and the forward plan.
Can you moderate our first evaluation and then stay on as contract administrators
Yes. Many buyers ask us to guide evaluation and then provide independent contract administration for year one while internal capability grows.
How do you keep social value and sustainability real
 We pick a small set of measures that link to your plan, define exact units and baselines, and collect evidence monthly alongside KPIs. Contract managers review delivery like any other obligation.
Can you help our suppliers with carbon reduction and reporting
Yes. We run practical clinics that turn broad commitments into route maps, meter reads and fleet data with a monthly run rate.
Do you support escalation and disputes
 We try to avoid disputes by fixing issues early. If escalation is needed we prepare the commercial options, draft notices and facilitate executive reviews with a clear trail.
What does independent contract administration cost
 It scales with the size and risk of the contract. For many clients it is lower than the cost of rework, leakage and disputes that arise without neutral evidence and discipline.