Understanding the Impact of Covid-19 on NZ Public Sector Procurement

In procurement circles, people often “use the terms SRM and contract management interchangeably, but they are not the same thing.” Contract management is all about delivering the services or goods outlined in the contract. In many cases, this is procurement 101. SRM however is “about generating new value that goes beyond what’s written in a contract.” It is about performance and relationship management and “if we focus on that, then we will see value generated through continuous improvement and innovation over time.” This is particularly relevant now because, after events like “earthquakes, floods, security threats, and COVID-19, there is a …

Integrating and Stabilising Platforms to Leverage Future Data, Analytics & AI Capabilities

We want to support the innovation and co-creation of services and experiences for students by creating distinctive, equitable, accessible, culturally attuned and user-shaped experiences across the university. Director of Planning and Information, University of Auckland The second section, as stated earlier, is about using data for the benefit of students. This realisation crystallised during the height of COVID-19, when some students continued to engage with the campus, even whilst the majority of students and staff were at home. “We wanted to understand who was on campus, who wasn’t, and who needed extra support.” Prototypes for understanding student engagement “were rapidly …

IoT in the Public Sector

Essentially the document and the plan have “five priority areas: institutions and governance; infrastructure funding and pricing; housing affordability and supply; climate change, resilience and the environment; and technology change and our digital future.” Although technology is listed separately, in many ways it “runs across all of the priorities, and adapting to technology is essential to lowering costs, improving services and improving infrastructure delivery.” The problem however – which in some ways is a good problem to have – is that “we’re laying down assets that have very long lifespans.” Some are “more than generational, like some of our water …

Implementing human-centred design to achieve better long-term patient outcomes

All of these factors together will “improve, enhance or support our patients more effectively.” The one element that is missing though is “the impact or the involvement of the Whānau (extended family) that patients need.” The value of family and familial support services cannot be underestimated. The “old medical model,” sometimes referred to as ‘the shadow’ is still hanging over some facilities, but “the good news is that we are starting to move away from it.” Some clinicians fear this change because it may “upset the power imbalance” between doctors and patients, giving patients more of a say. As much …

Leveraging data science to lead transformation in the public sector

While many of these issues are unlikely to go away, one way of combatting some of the negative effects is by using open data, which as long as there is access to the internet, is “data that’s available to anyone, anywhere, anytime.” It is generally data that is “collected by or on behalf of government,” but is done so with “people’s privacy, sovereignty and security” protected and in mind. In many ways, “the open data ecosystem is like a public library, which is the original open data service.” Libraries have a range of products “in different formats, with a huge …

Mitigating Cyber Security Risks in Local Government

"Implementing effective information controls and cyber training for staff should be at the forefront of cyber awareness for councils. This requires councils to establish appropriate systems to manage cyber security risk effectively, and to make better and more informed decisions.” Jacqueline Hiddlestone, IT Innovation Program Manager, Canterbury Bankstown City Council (NSW) “Councils need to establish a system to process, identify, analyse and treat cyber security risks seriously. If unaddressed, cyber risks could prevent councils from effectively achieving their strategic, operational and project objectives, as well as their statutory and community obligations.

Defence Communication Systems

In our modern, connected world, the speed and ease of communication greatly matters. Many of us rely on devices and the internet not just for work, but for our entertainment and leisure, and when there are outages or disruptions, they affect us on a visceral level. The stakes are even higher for deployed forces across the Australian army, navy and air force, where reliable and efficient communication infrastructure can have serious safety and security implications. The ASA was created in July 2018. Its purpose is to “transform and grow a globally respected Australian space industry that lifts the broader economy, …

Improving the Operational Efficiency of your Council

Dawn Baxendale began her role at Christchurch City Council in October 2019. Just a few months later the world changed, but before then, in January 2020, the Council revised some of their plans based on the three principles mentioned above. “Those principles were basically critical to help us get through COVID-19.” Many councils, including theirs, decided to undertake a second annual plan after the pandemic began because so many parameters had changed. However, since the first plan was underpinned by those principles and since everyone was on board, “we were able to do it in just five weeks.” The result …