October 24, 2018
Manitoba Implementing Procurement Modernization Strategy
– – –Innovation to Achieve Cost Savings, Better Results: Fielding
Finance Minister Scott Fielding today announced that PricewaterhouseCoopers Canada (PwC) will assist the Manitoba government in developing and implementing a procurement modernization strategy to achieve better results and cost savings for the taxpayer.
“Manitobans are smart shoppers who expect government to do the same,” said Fielding. “The province currently sources goods and services on a project-by-project basis, which can be costly and inefficient. PwC will help implement a strategy to enable the provincial government to become a ‘smart shopper’ by bundling contracts to reduce costs.”
Manitoba currently issues individual contracts for projects and often goes through separate tendering processes for various goods and services. Reviews in 2012 and 2016 identified the need to modernize procurement services in the Manitoba government as a way to achieve cost savings.
The new approach to procurement is known as category management, which means the province will be able to plan more effectively. One contract can be issued for a particular category of goods or services for several departments, instead of several separate contracts. This allows government to negotiate lower costs through larger purchases of a product or service, as well as better contract management.
The minister noted the Nova Scotia government is currently updating their procurement services in a similar way.
“PwC has been supporting this work in Nova Scotia, which is already seeing positive results,” said Fielding. “In year three of the implementation process, the current savings are more than $25 million per year. Manitoba will benefit from their experience with this type of reform and we expect to see real cost savings while maintaining the quality of services Manitobans expect and deserve.”
As part of the modernization strategy, PwC will support the implementation through transformation governance, staff training, program management, change management support and benefits tracking.
Manitoba proactively discloses all government contracts valued at $10,000 or greater. The information is publicly available on the province’s proactive disclosure website to ensure public confidence that government purchasing is open, fair and transparent.
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