Agile and Digital Transformation Coach - PS/17/99

Tender description

Summary of the work Lead an Agile & Digital transformation and provide coaching, mentoring and training to help a team of around 250 master the Agile, Lean and Scientific Methods that will enable them to deliver digital services at pace. To develop at least 3 permanent members of staff to become competent Agile Coaches. Specialist role Agile coach Expected Contract Length 6 months with potential to extend for a further 6 months Latest start date Monday 5 June 2017 Maximum Day Rate Up to £750 per day (this is inclusive of T&S) Early Market Engagement This is one of two similar requirements for an Agile and Digital Transformation coach. The IT Service Creation team needs to be able to deliver digital services at a much greater pace than they currently do. The services they develop must have a much lower cost of operation than they currently do. The basic operating model for IT Service Creation has been asserted and we’re now beginning to prove that it will work. (Please copy and paste the following link into the search bar to view operating model - https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B9G9nVLumMafUTNheEFSQVhsajQ/view?usp=sharing). This has exposed a substantial gap in knowledge and experience around Agile, Lean and Scientific methods. We intend to have around 15 Engineering squads, each of which is responsible for a particular product or set of services, and 4 Portfolio teams that lead cross squad initiatives to deliver business outcomes. Who Speclialist Work With Primarily the IT Service Creation team in DVLA (which includes Delivery Managers, Business Analysts, Software Engineers, Infrastructure Engineers and Testers) but also the ITS Senior Management Team and the DVLA Executive Team. Reporting progress to Senior management on a weekly basis. What Specialists Work On The IT Service Creation team must learn and master the values, principles and practices that are used by world class Web development companies. This will include Agile, Lean and Scientific methods. Key pivots will include managing Products rather than Projects, managing for business outcomes rather than task completion, using experiments and data rather than big up front specs and empowered teams that make decisions rather than a command and control structure. The IT Service Creation Senior Management Team is leading the changes. This includes the Heads of Software, Infrastructure, Quality Engineering, Portfolio & Program Management and Business Analysis. Skills & Experience • Proven track record of delivering substantial productivity improvements in complex organisations by successfully embedding the culture, principles, values and practices that underpin Agile, Lean and Scientific methods • Experience of establishing high performing Engineering squads that can safely release valuable software at will to the web for millions of users using techniques like A/B testing and Blue/Green deployments • Proven track record of establishing effective governance & management systems enabling product delivery at extreme pace. Expertise in transitioning from Project to Product Management and operating Agile at scale • Proven track record of developing deep and sustained Agile, Lean and Scientific method expertise in the client’s permanent staff • Proven track record of educating and influencing senior stakeholders to enable them to provide effective support for the transition • Proven track record of managing large and complex transition programmes • Demonstrable and proven mastery of applying Agile and Lean at scale • Proven experience balancing multiple, and often conflicting, priorities and dealing with ambiguity Nice to Haves • Experience of applying the GDS Service Manual to deliver digital services • Experience of the especial requirements of government around managing IT investments and a proven track record of meeting these in the simplest manner possible • Sound experience of using data to make decisions • Experience of ITIL and PRINCE 2 • Certified Expert in Agile Coaching • Certified Scrum Master or Certified Product Owner Work Location DVLA, Morriston, Swansea, SA6 7JL Working Arrangments We will expect the Specialists to be on site 5 days per week though we can be flexible with regards to start time on Mondays and departure time on Fridays to enable travel. Security Clearance Minimum baseline personnel security standard (BPSS) Additional T&Cs We currently see this role as sitting outside of IR35, as the candidates would not hold a fixed office position and will not have direct day to day direction or supervision. No. of Specialists to Evaluate 10 Cultural Fit Criteria • Able to form effective relationships with people of all seniorities and job types • Self-starters who inspires others to action • Strong bias to shape and simplify systems rather than to accept and operate systems • Excellent communication and influencing skills • Confident but humble, with an ability to listen carefully, challenge the status quo, and advocate for digital delivery in a clear and constructive manner Evaluation Weighting Technical competence 60% Cultural fit 20% Price 20% Questions from Suppliers 1. T&S Information: T&S charges only apply for staff that commute over a 75 mile journey in each direction. This is based on the distance that would be reasonable to expect a person to commute to the principal location(s). T&S is only applicable at the following maximum rates (excluding VAT): i. For T&S including travel but no overnight stay: Suppliers plain day rate plus £45.00. ii. For T&S including overnight stay: Suppliers plain day rate plus £90.00. 2. Is there an incumbent in this role? No there is no incumbent in this role. 3. Please confirm IR35 Status for this role. We currently see this role as sitting outside of IR35, as the candidates would not hold a fixed office position and will not have direct day to day direction or supervision. 4. The maximum day rate states "Up to £750 per day (this is inclusive of T&S)" however there is additional information provided which states there is a T&S allowance in addition to the day rate. Should we ignore "this is inclusive of T&S" ? The information regarding the T&S element shows what rates can be received when staying over night or travelling, providing the individual is situated over 75 miles. £750 is the maximum day rate and this would include any T&S if applicable. 5. To be clear, if a specialist is located more than 75 miles from Swansea and stays overnight, will the £90/day T&S allowance be in addition to their day rate? Yes the £90 will then be applicable, however DVLA can pay up to a maximum of £750, which will include any T&S. 6. T&S, this is different from previous roles by DVLA where the £90/day T&S allowance was in addition to the day rate, even if the max day rate was submitted. The latest response indicates for specialists located 75+ miles and staying overnight, the max rate is effectively £660/day with T&S of £90/day. In other words £750 including T&S. Why was "T&S Information" even provided if the day rate is inclusive of T&S? We would urge DVLA to allow the T&S allowance to be in addition to the day rate, as stated in "T&S Information", irrespective of what day rate is submitted. The T&S element was highlighted to show how much T&S would be paid on such occasions where an individual is located over 75 miles away. This was not included in the original advert, so to ensure transparency, this was provided so everyone looking at the advert was aware of the T&S rates, prior to submission. 7. DOS call-off contracts, by default, allow for extensions for up to 2 years. Is there a specific reason it is stated "6 months with potential to extend for a further 6 months" or could this role be extended for up to 2 years? The requirement is to deliver a specific piece of work which at this time we have anticipated will take 6 months though we acknowledge this is an estimate which is why the requirement is for a six plus six month extension. 8. We find the maximum day rate stated, which is inclusive of T&S, to be low given the level of skills and experience required. However suppliers are allowed to exceed the maximum day rate when applying for DOS specialist roles. The buyer can choose to exclude applications over the maximum rate or allow them to progress to shortlisting evaluation. Normally on DOS we find they are excluded. Will DVLA also be excluding applications that exceed the maximum day rate? Suppliers will be filtered out by CCS if they fail to meet the requirements. Should any supplier be present on the download, they will be filtered out manually, based on not meeting the requirements. 9. It was stated, "The T&S element was highlighted to show how much T&S would be paid on such occasions where an individual is located over 75 miles away. " Please correct us if we're wrong, but DVLA will not be paying any T&S as it is stated the day rate is to be inclusive of T&S. Please can you confirm whether the day rate we submit on application should, or should not, be including any T&S. The maximum DVLA can pay an individual is £750. If an individual is located over 75 miles, then the actual day rate will be £660 + £90 T&S, which totals £750. You can stipulate a day rate and if T&S is applicable, however this should not exceed £750. A supplier/individual will not be considered if their rate (whether T&S is applicable or not) exceeds £750. 10. As stated, this PS/17/99 is equal to PS/17/100. As we can offer two (or more) specialists suitable for the roles, should we respond to both separately or is it enough to indicate the availability of multiple specialists in one response? Please treat these as separate adverts and apply to both. Individuals will not automatically be evaluated for both adverts, if the supplier only submitted against one. 11. In response to, "You can stipulate a day rate and if T&S is applicable, however this should not exceed £750." The application process only allows suppliers to submit a day rate (number), we cannot state anywhere whether T&S is applicable. So do you want the day rate we provide to be including T&S or not? For equality of pricing evaluation, it is important all suppliers do the same. Yes, include any T&S claims in the final figure. This way, we can evaluate on the whole cost which ensures a consistent approach. 12. Does the DVLA evaluation have a preference between suppliers providing one in-depth piece of evidence throughout, and suppliers providing several different experiences. In short, how does the DVLA read this? "You should only provide one example for each essential or nice-to-have requirement (unless the buyer specifies otherwise). You can reuse examples across different essential or nice-to-have requirements if you need to." DVLA do not have a preference between suppliers providing one in-depth piece of evidence throughout, and suppliers providing several different experiences, though the evidence provided (in either format) needs to tie back to and address each individual essential and nice to have requirement. 13. We have Agile Coaches in our team who are seasoned professionals in coaching and training. Your requirements include: "Proven track record of managing large and complex transition programmes" and "Proven track record of establishing effective governance & management systems" which have nothing to do with Agile coaching at all. Are you looking for an Agile Coach or a Transformation Lead here as it appears that you are trying to find two roles with one appointment? We are looking for an Agile Coach with experience of large and complex transition programmes. 14. We've been addressing similar challenges within our own organisation over the past eighteen months and have developed a suite of dedicated learning material, including a blend of classroom and online support to train over 200 people in agile, lean and scientific methods. Alongside this we've built a dedicated agile community to provide continual support, coaching, challenge and access to global leading practice. We would like to have the opportunity to provide this as a service to you, within your budget, and to meet the outcomes you are looking to achieve. Is it possible to submit this directly as a proposal? The current requirement only relates to a specialist, so a proposal will not be required in this instance.