Beta for Official Development Aid Financial and Programme Reporting Transformation Digital Service

Tender description

Why the Work is Being Done The current tool for collecting ODA financial and programme spend information is not fit for purpose. ODA is open to scrutiny by the media, DFID, Cabinet Office, HMT, Publish What You Fund, Ministers etc., and poor quality of reporting can be detrimental. Data and reporting requirements are increasing - new ODA Transparency commitment, as well as more information required to fulfil portfolio and fund management functions. There is a huge operating burden, the current system (excel) is lacking stability, and accuracy of data is compromised due to poor version control and confusing nature of the tool. Problem to Be Solved Programme managers in various organisations need to easily and efficiently report on their programme and financial information into one place, that can be one version of the truth, addressing version control issues. Data should be easily extracted and manipulated in various ways, as soon as it is reported (by country/organisation/theme etc). Users should be able to access a dashboard style view of spend respective to their organisations or country spend, for comparison and strategic awareness. Data extraction/report outputs should be possible for various reporting organisations with varying and specific information requirements. Who Are the Users As a reporting officer: 1. I need to know what data to provide, when to provide it, and see guidance, so I can provide correct and timely information. 2. I need to access the latest version of previous data so that I update the right data. 3. I need to see which programmes have been added/removed. As a knowledge and information manager: I need to share reports with peers, for knowledge transfer and informing senior management. As a programme manager, I need to analyse and report on spend data, so I can mitigate risks, and produce reports. Early Market Engagement Work Already Done We have completed a Discovery and Alpha phase. This involved: - Running user experience workshops to understand the user journey. - Liaising with other ODA spending government departments and teams, and assessing whether there are any existing reporting systems we could use. - Worked with a contractor to develop an Alpha prototype for a reporting service, adhering to the Digital Service Standard. - Tested prototype solutions with a small group of users. - Passed the Alpha Service Assessment. Existing Team We work across two teams: ODA team in BEIS, London - ODA Policy and operations Research Management Team in Swindon - programme managers working on day to day management of funds/reporting. This will require regular travel to our Swindon office to meet key users/stakeholders and work with the product owner. There will be a dedicated person working on ODART from one of the teams, but regular engagement will be necessary with multiple individuals within each team for user engagement, checking the development of the prototype, tracking progress etc. Current Phase Beta Work Location The supplier can work from their own premises or remotely. Interactions with the client team and partner organisations will between Central London and Swindon offices, and may require some travel to one of our delivery partners based in Exeter. Working Arrangments Travelling between London and Swindon offices for user engagement, due to a wide range of users located in different organisations. The supplier team should be available to participate in weekly catch-ups in central London or Swindon. We expect face to face interactions between client and users (approx. 16 teams) across central London, Swindon and Exeter, plus regular show and tells, and development updates to ODA stakeholders. Security Clearance No security clearance required as supplier will not be based in BEIS offices. Additional T&Cs Skills & Experience Have experience in delivering a financial and programme management and information dashboard service to be used by multiple organisations or businesses. Have experience of meeting multiple organisations' requirements for secure online access to a cloud delivered service. Have experience in delivering an agile project, adhering to and prioritising user needs, and presenting effective data visualisations. Have experience of transitioning services/data from physical infrastructure to cloud Have experience of successfully transitioning of projects into a live service environment within a government department within the last 12 months Have experience of meeting the Government's Digital Service Standard, with every service team member having knowledge of or having completed the Digital Service Standard Assessment in the last 24 months. Nice to Haves Have evidence of experience of working with user groups that store information in different operating environments, for example MS Office 365, Google G-Suite, and various databases. No. of Suppliers to Evaluate 5 Proposal Criteria Proposed approach and methodology Demonstrating an understanding of our requirements Estimated and credible time-frames for the work Identifying risks and dependencies, and offering approaches to manage them Demonstrating value for money How the approach or solution meets user needs Cultural Fit Criteria Work as a team with our organisation and other suppliers Be transparent and collaborative in decision making, user acceptance, and transferring knowledge Take responsibility for their work Share knowledge and experience with other team members Can work with clients with low technical expertise Demonstrate very high quality interpersonal communications, especially showing sensitivity to established relationships and competing pressures. Be adept at applying agile methods in the context of more traditional working practices Payment Approach Capped time and materials Assessment Method Written proposal Work history Presentation Evaluation Weighting Technical competence 60% Cultural fit 10% Price 30% Questions from Suppliers Budget range the guide budget range is £1-1.3m (excl. vat) for private and public beta. this budget is including the cost for accessibility audit and penetration testing. please note, £595k is available for beta private only. the second half of the funds will be released after successfully meeting the government digital service standard for beta. all travel, subsistence and other expenses must be included in the overall cost. applicants should supply day rates for each role, with details of management processes and mitigation for poor service delivery, staff handover, turnover, quality maintenance and corrective actions.