Orienting Toward Outcomes – Results-Driven Approaches to Contract Management

We’ve all been there. You reach the end of a months- or years-long procurement process and breathe a huge sigh of relief once the contract is signed. You can finally check this task off your list.

It’s then tempting to take a “set it and forget it” approach and assume that because you’ve hired such a qualified vendor, they’ll be able to meet your objectives and complete the full project scope on time and within budget. You may only feel the need to worry about compliance activities, such as paying invoices or checking that insurance certificates are valid. Even if you are meeting regularly with your vendor, those meetings may feel more like a one-sided report-out than an opportunity for collaboration and creative problem solving.

But seeking continuous improvement through contract management is crucial to realizing the outcomes you set forth in your solicitation. Without strong contract management practices, you could see incomplete or unsatisfactory service, missed deadlines, unfulfilled deliverables, and unspent sums. Or, you might see service delivery occurring inequitably, with the vendor providing better service to some neighborhoods than others – potentially reinforcing historic inequities. Managing toward outcomes enables you to monitor whether the goods or services that your
government procures have a real impact on residents in need.

In this how-to guide you will:

• Understand strategies for shifting your contract management approach from a compliance orientation to one centered on performance improvement.
• Build your toolbox of management strategies to achieve contract objectives, while mitigating risks.
• Learn new ways to work collaboratively with your vendors, from early kickoff meetings to contract closeout.

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