Guidance

The Contract Management Capability Programme 2022/23 - About the programme (HTML)

Updated 18 April 2024

About the programme

Managing central government contracts effectively is vital in order to deliver value for money, efficiency, levels of service, and the the outcomes that citizens and the Government expects.

Launched in 2018 to provide training, development support and accreditation for contract managers and other contract staff, Contract Management Capability Programme:

• Sets the baseline and standards for improved contract lifecycle management
• Has been developed in collaboration with central government department and wider public sector peers, subject matter experts, the World Commerce & Contracting Association and the Chartered Institute for Procurement & Supply
• Is accessible digitally to bring the convenience of online learning and group sessions so can be accessed from anywhere, at a time and a place that suits you - and across a range of devices
• Offers personalised learning to ensure that individual learning needs and requirements are met, with dedicated Learning & Development Managers for one-to-one support, flexible modules to help balance learning with workload, coaching sessions
• Enables access to good practice resources and a network of like-minded learners, and post-learning support.

Why training & development and accreditation is needed

• Everyone remembers what happened with Carillion
• Over 60 contracts have been called-in for serious financial issues
• £180 million had to be repaid by G4 and Serco after over-billing
• 73 contracts have needed to be reviewed against the government framework
• Five contracts have been referred to the police and Serious Fraud Office

Contract management professionals are expected to:

• Spend taxpayers’ money effectively
• Provide the public with value for money….
• Manage contracts capably and efficiently….
• Have the right combination of contract management understanding, skills and knowledge…

The benefits for learners

Learners will experience a programme that is:

• Contemporary - launched in October 2018, and continues to evolve
• Flexible and agile - learning and accreditation is carried out online, both individually and group sessions
• Focused - WorldCC and CIPS are contemporaries, but these aren’t specifically central government-focused
• Tailored - the learning is shaped around examples from the workplace

Learners will benefit from:

• A programme which focuses on the principles and fundamentals of contract management
• A natural journey between accreditation courses and pathway courses
• Enhanced technical knowledge and interpersonal skills
• A skills uplift - which has already been seen amongst previous learners
• Experiential learning which will help to put the principles into practice
• Individualised learning - at your own pace
• CPD-endorsed courses, and personal development time credits

The benefits for organisations

The benefits for organisations:

• The programme is flexible and learners can tailor their learning around their circumstances and workload
• Some of the programme is fund, meaning no cost to learners or organisations
• Sessions are tailored and will cover the different challenges that group members from different backgrounds and situations will face, so they will be relevant and engaging.

Since the programme began, there have been demonstrable benefits for organisations of:

• Enhanced technical knowledge and a skills boost for those learners managing contracts or suppliers to demonstrate back on their workplaces
• Greater efficiencies through having fully-trained, confident and skilled individuals in place
• ing provided through more informed and timelier contract management decision-making
• Higher quality services leading to more satisfied service users
• A demonstrable statement of intent and commitment to setting and maintaining contract management professional standards by having qualified staff in place
• People sharing good practice with each other across the sector in communities of practice.

Don’t just take our word for it. Here’s the evidence….

Programme successes…

• Over 15,000 Foundation accreditations from central government and the wider public sector
• Skills uplifts in every category at Practitioner & Expert - 70% from ‘improving’ to ‘skilled’ - Over 1,000 accreditations at Practitioner & Expert level
• 99% of learners said that the coaching that was provided “added value”
• Learners from 600 different public sector organisations now enrolled on to the programme Accredited contract managers led the major Covid-19 vaccines roll-out
• Over £750m of financial and delivery benefits were enabled in the very first year

Successful learners…

Your self-confidence in understanding contract management terminology inspires confidence in others that you know what you’re talking about…” Patrick Murray, FCDO

It really helped me grow as an individual. The number of times in my contract management experience I’ve picked up things I’ve learned from the sessions and applied them…” Henry Prudden, NHS Blood & Transplants

It was about utilising my existing skills and developing contract management skills so it was invaluable for me…” Ima Orosei, Cabinet Office

The journey to accreditation

1. Learner Enrolled on programme

2. Foundation Training

3. Complete Foundation Assessment

4. Achieve Foundation Accreditation

5. 360 Diagnostic questionnaire will determine the best learning journey

6. Complete Beyond Foundation Training

7. Practitioner Programme

• Expeditated Practitioner and Expert learning route dependent on 360 diagnostic result and discussion

8. Workshop 1-8 - SME led virtual workshops with pre-work to be completed ahead session attendance

9. Workshop 9-16 - SME led virtual workshops with pre-work to be completed ahead of session attendance

10. Practitioner Accreditation

11. Expert Programme

12. Workshop 17-24 - SME led virtual workshops with pre-work to be completed ahead of session attendance

13. Expert Accreditation

Courses and progression

Foundation

The baseline programme, which covers the fundamental principles of contract management, has enabled 15,300 professionals to become accredited, with a further 10,000 now on their way to accreditation.

Beyond Foundation

This concise and essential ‘pathway’ course towards the higher technical accreditations has armed many hundreds of learners with the pre-requisite skills, ready to move forward to Practitioner and Expert.

Practitioner

This now nationally-recognised and CPD-endorsed accreditation programme has over 150 successful completions, another 330 delegates on their journey currently, and a further 340 people ready to start.

Expert

The programme’s strategic level qualification has now seen over a hundred completions, with a further 240 delegates working towards accreditation and another 110 about to embark on this stage.

Senior Responsible Owner

The newly-reinvigorated executive-level development programme rolls out from 2023, with senior transformational leads already signed up to participate, and more sign-ups in the pipeline.

Foundation

The programme

Foundation is a flexible, online learning programme for anyone working on a lower value, lower complexity, or lower risk, contract. It is a pre-requisite of entry to the Practitioner or Expert programme.

The wide appeal of this programme is:

• It is ideal for contract managers and anyone working on a government or public sector contract for the majority of the time or just some or the majority of the time
• It provides a broader understanding of the principles of contract management
• The focus is the skills and knowledge needed to work on government contracts

The modules

• Design & ongoing Development
• Procurement & Mobilisation
• Managing contract delivery
• Change control
• Stakeholder engagement
• Risk management

Beyond Foundation

Background

As Foundation is a baseline, there can sometimes be a skills ‘gap’ upwards to the more technical and strategic elements of Practitioner or Expert accreditations. Beyond Foundation bridges that gap - focusing on the essential contract management principles and the softer, interpersonal, skills.

An essential pathway

The programme is a pathway programme. Based on the technical elements of the Contract Management Professional Standards, it has a dual purpose:

• to arm you with the insight needed to progress on the more technical practitioner or expert programmes
• to act as a refresher and top-up skills and knowledge ready for success at practitioner-or expert-level accreditation assessment (or re-assessment)

The modules

There are nine, self-contained, stand-alone modules:

Design & ongoing development, Procurement, Mobilisation, Financial control, Performance management, Managing change, Exit and transition, Stakeholder engagement, and Managing risk.

Practitioner

The programme

A technical contract management qualification, the course has been designed for anyone who manages a supplier or contract as part (or all) of their role, working on medium profile, medium-value (Silver) contracts - with the supplier relationship being medium or high risk.

The structured learning programme comprises 15 modules. It features subject matter-led online workshops, complemented by a couple of Q&A ‘drop-in’ sessions. These are held over 24 weeks.

The modules

Contract design, procurement, mobilisation

• Business case
• Contract finances
• Initial risk and regulations
• Mobilisation plan (including resourcing)
• Contract literacy
• KPIs and management
• Information and reporting
• Stakeholder management

Contract delivery, change, exit & transition

• Payment mechanisms and their KPIs
• Contract implementation
• Contract operations (1) & (2)
• Contract performance & managing disputes
• Contract exit and transition
• Programme summary, preparing for assessment

Expert

The programme

Expert is a nationally-recognised, strategic level development & accreditation programme, with 23 modules (with eight further strategic modules topping-up the initial Practitioner programme modules).

Suitable for anyone who works on large (gold) higher-profile, higher risk contracts as part of their role, it is a blend of individual learning, subject matter-led online workshops, online group discussion, and Q&A ‘drop-in’ sessions.

The modules

Technical skills

• Business case
• Contract finances
• Initial risk and regulations
• Mobilisation & resourcing
• Contract literacy
• KPIs
• Information & reporting
• Stakeholder management
• Payment mechanisms & KPIs
• Contract implementation
• Contract operations
• Contract performance & managing disputes
• Contract exit and transition

Strategy

• Portfolio contract anagement
• Horizon scanning
• Strategy and political insight
• People & networks
• Strategic models
• VMOST & SWOT
• Preparing for assessment

Strategy

The programme

From 2023, this new and dynamic high-level strategic development programme of five concise, stand-alone, half-day modules will help senior level professionals make effective contract-related judgements and decisions, to ensure contracts are well-managed and achieve project, policy or business objectives.

These are subject matter expert-led sessions, with individual learning & peer discussion mix.

Module one is the baseline and suitable for all experienced professionals as a development opportunity, with modules two to five for senior responsible owners.

The modules

A programme of stand-alone modules:

• Contract management as a senior responsible owner
• Posing the right questions
• Teams and governance for contract management
• Assessing trade-offs (arising from crisis or policy)
• The specific challenge of contract transitions

Course costs

Course	Cost to the organisation	Details
Foundation accreditation	£0	Fully funded, Zero cost to the organisation
Beyond Foundation	£0	Fully funded. Zero cost to the organisation
Practitioner accreditation	£6,100	-
Expert accreditation	£7,700	-
Senior Responsible Owner	£0	Cost of £501 is off-set. Zero cost to the organisation.

The essentials

Entry pre-requisites

Foundation has no pre-requisite, but the Practitioner and Expert courses require a Foundation level accreditation.

For non-accreditation courses; Beyond Foundation is a pathway upwards after the Foundation accreditation, and Senior Responsible Owner is pitched at those in a senior and strategic role.

Delivery method

All courses are carried out online. A suitable broadband internet connection is needed, along with suitable audio to listen and participate.

Entry criterion

Entry requires nomination by line manager and Senior Transformational Lead. Foundation level is self-nominated with line manager approval.

Contact

For more information about the programme, and how to register, contact our team at cmta-team@cabinetoffice.gov.uk