I recently joined a think tank on how to apply private company methodologies to improve public administration. I explained that if there is one thing I have learned throughout my career in different corporate and responsibility positions in the private sector, such as the banking sector, it is the importance of automating certain processes in decision making. It’s something I’ve tried to hybridize and copy over my years in the public sector. An example was the bidding of small expenses. Always focusing on creating a more efficient, effective, transparent and sustainable management.
Very briefly, in the banking industry, the attribution system dominates the issuance of loans and the management of the customer’s risk. Since the economic amount of the operation is high, the validation process of the operation in question is more rigorous, the filters are increased and more documentation must be provided. In addition, the higher the amount, the more new actors are added, such as departments and areas equipped with specialists responsible for valuation, oversight, auditing, monitoring and especially issuing positive reports for approval or renewal. This is very similar, if not the same, in public procurement.
In the banking industry, due to the need for agility, historically smaller transactions have been left to the sole and direct decision and responsibility of the director or branch managers of the business and do not need to pass through a new filter or a new filter. to a higher level. for your approval. In Public Administration they can look like expense and small contract. Expenses that can be legally authorized directly by a manager, manager, technician or public official due to the need for speed and urgency.
However, the parallelism between the banking sector and the Public Administration disappears over time as its procedures and processes evolve. If the banking sector is dependent on digitization and automation, the commitment is to more bureaucracy and regulation, although electronic in the public sector. When more “reports, documents and people” are simply necessary in the public sector, and in addition, when regulation is complex (with new amendments to the Public Procurement Law), in the private sector the process is automated and simplified by technology and technology. e.g. innovation using the system scoring.
This technological system has been used for more than ten years in many private sectors, especially in banking. It helps professionals by automating the decisions to approve or reject transactions. Based on specific information, scoring performs an analysis of the customer and the operation, based on a predetermined set of criteria. Then he makes a recommendation. This must be followed, with very justified exceptions.
In the case of a public administration and especially in the processing of small expenditures and contracts (where public procurement is not required), the application of a scoring model will result in greater efficiency in supplier selection, greater efficiency, Total transparency. process and maximum objectivity. Especially with the goods.
Today we already see some examples in Public Administrations such as the University of Murcia promoted by Tomás Jiménez, the coordinator of MetaRed from the Universia Foundation, and it is bringing this to life with the “Clara” app in its petty cash contract system. And with a cooperation agreement with this university, a pilot named Suma Suppliers was successfully tested in Suma Gestión Tributaria in 2018 and 2019.
The tool simplifies the entire process of small purchases to the maximum, reconciles any company, automates purchase requests and notifies suppliers, technicians and interested citizens in real time via an email and mobile app alert.
After all supplier offers have been received, scoring, Completely objective and automatic, it analyzes them and sorts them in order of relevance. And recommends the most suitable offer to the technician, manager or attendant. This must be followed, with very justified exceptions.
Possible variables to include in scoring for automated analysis include price, previous quality and service issues, or potential pending issues with Public Administration. A system that goes beyond price. we are not talking about calling low cost, but the most convenient and objective option. It is about speeding up and eliminating or minimizing value judgment as much as possible. It even envisages the Public Sector Contracts Law norms that avoid possible administrative errors.
In addition, once the most suitable offer has been selected for that small expense or contract, the tool will once again notify all interested parties (suppliers, technicians and citizens) of the result via email and an alert in the app. Likewise, it anonymously displays publicly the highest price, lowest price and average price of all received bids. Everything can be linked to the online transparency portal and updated instantly for all to see.
maybe the model scoring It will be the first step in automating public procurement before it reaches its destination. Smart Contracts and its implementation disruptive technologies such as artificial intelligence, robotics applied to processes (RPA), Big Data or blockchain. Let’s not forget that the main purpose is to create a more efficient, effective, transparent and sustainable management.
Source: Informacion
Barbara Dickson is a seasoned writer for “Social Bites”. She keeps readers informed on the latest news and trends, providing in-depth coverage and analysis on a variety of topics.