Procurement is also available as a service

In 2018, we piloted a new comprehensive service for procurement units that do not have sufficient resources or expertise for a variety of procurement tasks. The procurement as a service concept consists of a variety of actions related to the organisation and implementation of procurement. An agreement on the actions to be included in the service is made on a case-by-case basis. 

“The service was customised based on customer needs together with the Financial Stability Authority and the VATT Institute for Economic Research,” explains Pauliina Lautiainen, the development manager who implemented the productisation and pilot project.

The goal is to make procurement in organisations more systematic and efficient. Service needs were identified in the following tasks:

• Preparation of a procurement plan, assessment of different implementation methods and determination of schedules
• Preparation of preliminary reviews, market surveys and information requests on procurement projects
• Implementation of tendering
• Support for contract procedure and supplier cooperation
• Generation of analysed information on procurement and recommendations on good practices and opportunities to boost the efficiency of operations
• Preparation and maintenance of up-to-date procurement guidelines
• Training and coaching responsible persons on issues ranging from procurement planning to contractual management, and acting as a partner in development work
• Support for the implementation and fluent use of the Handi service

“Offering procurement as a service requires a profound understanding of the customer’s industry and substance. Our goal is to offer as ready-made solutions as possible. The customers can select the solution that best suits them,” explains Anne Sores, the development manager in charge of the service.

The main target group are small customers that do not have their own procurement resources.

The assignment usually starts with a survey of the current status and determination of the roles of Hansel and the customer. Hansel’s tendering unit and the Minikisa team support the development manager, who is the customer’s main contact person during the cooperation. In practice, procurement as a service means that Hansel’s entire expertise is available for the customer to use.

The procurement as a service product was developed as part of the key project on digitalising public procurement or Handi.