Awarded to Public Digital

Start date: Wednesday 12 August 2020
Value: £112,000
Company size: SME

Centre for Digital Public Services Limited

Knowledge Hub - rapid discovery/alpha

30 Incomplete applications

28 SME, 2 large

52 Completed applications

47 SME, 5 large

• Published: Monday 22 June 2020
• Deadline for asking questions: Monday 29 June 2020 at 11:59pm GMT
• Closing date for applications: Monday 6 July 2020 at 11:59pm GMT

Overview

• Summary of the work: We are looking for a supplier to help develop and build a MVP Knowledge Hub for the Welsh public sector staff to have a wider and deeper understanding of:; * curated and shared current digital transformation activities; * best and worst practice; * common service standards around digital transformation
• Latest start date: Saturday 1 August 2020
• Expected contract length: Up to six months
• Location: No specific location, for example they can work remotely
• Organisation the work is for: Centre for Digital Public Services Limited
• Budget range: Up to £120,000 plus VAT

About the work

• Why the work is being done: The Centre for Digital Public Services is a new arm's-length body funded by Welsh Government that aims to transform the design and delivery of digital public services in Wales.; ; We are looking for a supplier to work with us to help us understand the user needs of public sector leaders and staff in terms of their knowledge around digital and innovation projects and common service standards and to help develop an MVP or alpha of a product to curate and share that knowledge.
• Problem to be solved: We are looking for a supplier to help us understand the needs of all public sector staff across Wales helping them to have a wider and deeper understanding of:; * current digital transformation activities in Wales and elsewhere; * examples of best practice (and worst practice); * an MVP product to curate and hold this information; * cross sector service standards around digital transformation in a Welsh context.; ; There are other examples of knowledge hubs in Wales and these should be explored as part of this work.; There is a need to test existing service standards and whether these are appropriate and could be signed up to across the Welsh public sector.
• Who the users are and what they need to do: The devolved Welsh public sector including Welsh Government and its organisations, NHS Wales and Local Government.
• Any work that’s already been done: The Centre is still being set up to deliver the alpha phase so work has not started on this requirement and there is no incumbent supplier. A high-level discovery was done last year which identified a number of themes. ; ; See https://docs.google.com/document/d/10xx4Iz8fY5MTGQv4rcaXn017HhcrQz1GYqFF7YkrEjg/ for more information on the background to the creation of the Centre.
• Existing team: The Centre is being established. There is a:; * Chair of the Centre; * Business Director; * Programme Delivery Manager (being appointed); The Centre and the team will be expected to work with:; * other suppliers; * the devolved Welsh public sector including local government, NHS Wales and Welsh Government; * external organisations based in Wales
• Current phase: Alpha

Work setup

• Address where the work will take place: The Centre for Digital Public Services has an all-Wales remit. We expect that this team can be delivered remotely for the foreseeable future making extensive use of video conference technologies. Depending on guidance and circumstances during these unprecedented times, the Centre plans to take physical office space in Ebbw Vale, South Wales. The Business Director and Chair are both based in South Wales.
• Working arrangements: We expect this work will be done remotely for the foreseeable future. Should official guidance change during the duration of this engagement, you may be expected to attend meetings across Wales.
• Security clearance: At minimum a security clearance at Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) will be required.

Additional information

Skills and experience

Buyers will use the essential and nice-to-have skills and experience to help them evaluate suppliers’ technical competence.

• Essential skills and experience:
  • have experience of having successfully delivered rapid discoveries/alpha projects
  • have experience of defining and structuring a Minimum Viable Product (MVP)
  • have experience of working on agile projects as part of a multidisciplinary team
  • have deep experience of digital transformation work in public and private sectors around the world
  • have experience of coaching and supporting senior public sector leaders to understand ‘digital’ and transformation
  • have experience of producing tools or products which help people understand digital transformation
  • have experience of managing successful delivery within a complex multi organisation landscape
  • have experience of developing standards and principles to support and underpin service delivery
  • have experience of prototyping and testing with users and stakeholders
• Nice-to-have skills and experience:
  • evidence of having successfully delivered a discovery/alpha using remote collaboration and communication tools
  • evidence of how you work in the open
  • evidence of having worked with local or national governments

How suppliers will be evaluated

All suppliers will be asked to provide a written proposal.

• How many suppliers to evaluate: 5
• Proposal criteria:
  • Your proposed team and their roles
  • Your approach and methodology
  • How your approach will help us meet our needs
  • Your proposed timeframes
  • Costs
  • Your approach to risks and the mitigations
  • Cultural fit (see criteria below)
  • Case study (as part of your presentation) of having supported digital transformation with a local or national government
• Cultural fit criteria:
  • Work as a team with our organisation and other suppliers
  • Be transparent and collaborative when making decisions
  • Share your work frequently, openly, honestly and constructively challenging preconceptions
  • Challenge the status quo
• Payment approach: Capped time and materials
• Additional assessment methods:
  • Case study
  • Presentation
• Evaluation weighting:

  Technical competence

  60%

  Cultural fit

  20%

  Price

  20%

Questions asked by suppliers

• 1. The DOS brief states the desire to "run an 8 week rapid discovery/alpha" – is the 8 weeks to cover both Discovery and Alpha phases? Will you be following UK Gov GDS?: This outcome does not make reference to an 8 week rapid discovery/alpha.
• 2. Please could you clarify what is meant by "evidence of how you work in the open"?: Please refer to the Government Design Principle and the Service Standard.
• 3. How many members do you expect to support your discovery?: We expect suppliers to suggest their team shape and size at proposal stage to demonstrate their approach to this work.
• 4. Is there any flexibility on the budget to cover a full 6 month period in the event you might need more experts?: The budget is as stated and the project is timeboxed to this period of time. If we require further supplier expertise, we would go back to market for a new outcome.
• 5. 1. Who’s in the incumbent and how long they have been the incumbent?2. Who is on the panel?: There is no incumbent supplier. The Centre for Digital Public Services has only just been established.; ; A panel has not yet been finalised but is expected to include the Centre's Business Director, the Programme Delivery Manager and other representatives from different parts of the Welsh Public Sector.
• 6. Are public sector staff currently gaining and sharing knowledge about digital transformation, and if so, how? When are they doing this (ad-hoc, weekly, etc)? What platforms are they currently using (email, video chats, messenger etc.)?: These questions will form part of the discovery work.
• 7. We understand that the Knowledge Hub is intended to help public sector staff gain a wider and deeper understanding of digital transformation through a mapping of ongoing activities, best practices, service standards, etc. What will the hub offer that isn't currently happening? How have staff said that they will use a hub like this?: These questions will form part of the Discovery work.; We spoke with many public sector staff across Wales during the Discovery phase of CDPS and the need for a Knowledge Hub was one of the findings.
• 8. Any specific technology / requirements that must be considered for MVP?: No
• 9. You've specified a 6 month contract. Is there an issue if the works runs for a shorter, more concentrated period of time? Do you have minimum and maximum timescales in mind?: The contract is up to six months in length to deliver the required outcomes. Our aim is ensure good quality outcomes are delivered.
• 10. You say "There are other examples of knowledge hubs in Wales and these should be explored as part of this work." – have you established contact with these other hubs or do you expect the supplier to do that? How many are there?: We are aware of a number of other hubs, such as Hwb, Academi Wales and a one that was used by Local Authorities. We will provide contacts where we can but we expect the supplier to complete a thorough discovery.
• 11. Do you have a specified or preferred technology solution for the hub or is identifying a solution part of this work?: As we have not yet completed discovery or any other work on this, we have no preconceived ideas around technology or solutions.
• 12. Our existing product is in broad use for best practice sharing and collaboration across the UK public sector and is built following extensive and continuous user research and feedback from public sector members to form its ongoing development roadmap. Would you consider re-using and building on an existing, proven product?: We haven't made any decisions about platforms or technologies. The right decision will be made based on the needs of users as discovered in this research. Please note this outcome is for a team of people, not a product.
• 13. To what extent do you expect to follow the discovery and alpha processes in the GDS Service Manual? Or are you open to different/hybrid methodologies?: We are guided by the principles developed by GDS. However, we are looking to deliver this much more rapidly than a traditional discovery followed by alpha process.
• 14. Does the work include interviewing a selection of public sector staff to understand their needs?: This is a discovery project so research with potential users is required.
• 15. Is there any more information on the knowledge hubs that already exist? Has any work already been done to assess the suitability to re-purpose these for this work?: We are aware of a number of other hubs, such as Hwb, Academi Wales and one that was used by Local Authorities, but we do not currently have detailed knowledge of the content of these platforms or their suitability to be re-purposed. We will provide contacts where we can but we expect the supplier to complete a thorough discovery.