Engage relevant departments

Engage relevant internal stakeholders before the tender is issued

Once your department or city has defined what it will be procuring, it is important to engage the department and staff who will be involved in the procurement process, as well as those managing the contract, and the product or service. Identify the procurement officers that will prepare the documents and discuss with them what the requirements and criteria for the contract should be. Engaging the departments and colleagues who will be managing the relationship with the supplier(s) and overseeing the asset, product, or service that is being procured can support the embedding of circular economy principles throughout the contracting period and at the end-of-use phase.

Questions to consider:

• Have you identified and engaged the relevant departments and staff members? + Who are the strategic sourcing staff that you can engage? + Whose expertise is needed for the development of the criteria and requirements? Have you identified the different roles and responsibilities across the procurement process? (e.g. preparing the tender documents, managing the contracts with the supplier(s), managing the assets and products throughout their use-cycle, ensuring that the tender meets the expected outcomes) + How can you encourage collaboration and cooperation between the different departments throughout the procurement process?

• How can you encourage collaboration and cooperation between the different departments throughout the procurement process?

Example

The Checklist for Implementing Green Public Procurement (GPP) in Bhutan has been designed as part of the GPP Bhutan project to help the Bhutanese public procurers and policymakers get started on purchasing green and sustainable goods and services. The checklist aims to help procurers ask the right questions from colleagues, suppliers and end users to ensure that procurement processes are being gradually improved to encompass value-for-money across the lifecycle.

Resource

• The Building Procurement Strategy learning module by the Urban Agenda for the EU provides a guide on the roles and responsibilities of city officials across the public procurement process.