1. What are delays in the procurement process?
Delays in the public procurement process are any constraint that prevents procurement events from taking place in accordance with the procurement plan and schedule.
2. What causes delays in the procurement process?
Some common causes of delays in the procurement process are:
- Failure to properly plan all procurement events and to use the appropriate procurement method.
- Requesting entity fails to submit procurement requests on time consistent with the procurement plan and schedule.
- Technical specifications, scope of work or terms of reference prepared later than scheduled.
- Procuring Entity receives incomplete technical specifications, scope of work or terms of reference.
- Evaluation panel not formed in time to begin the evaluation process as scheduled.
- Evaluation Panel taking more time than allotted to evaluate bids or proposals.
- Protracted contract negotiations.
- Reviewing and approving authority taking more time that allotted to review and comment on documents sent for approval.
3. Why is it important to avoid delays in the procurement process?
Avoiding delays in the procurement process not only saves time and money, it also permits the timely award of contracts. A delayed contract award could cause a chain reaction of delays on other dependent procurements. This is especially important in project procurement management because it could delay the completion of the project.
4. Who is responsible for avoiding delays in the procurement process?
All stakeholders: the procuring entity, evaluation panel members, approving authority, requesting entity, etc., involved in the bidding, evaluation and selection phase are responsible for making every effort to avoid delays in the procurement process. No single department can do this. It has to be a collaborative effort.
5. What can be done to minimize delays in the procurement process?
To minimize delays in the procurement process it’s important to ensure:
- A realistic determination is made of the availability of a market to satisfy the need.
- The appropriate procurement method is assigned to the requirement because this is important for estimating the procurement lead-time.
- The need for external assistance to prepare the technical specifications, scope of work or terms of reference of the requirement has been considered.
- An evaluation panel with the proper technical skills is identified, selected and approved early enough and is available to begin the evaluation process on schedule.
- The approving authority will be available and is committed to reviewing and approving procurement documents within an agreed timeframe.
What are your thoughts on delays in the public procurement process?
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6 thoughts on “Five Questions on Delays in the Procurement Process”
Hello,
If before the agreement stage the tenderer complaints then is Validity period of tender stop /freezing/ ? Because while authorized person making decision about this complaint the Validity period of tender about to expire /assume that although authorized person already extended Validity period of tender/
The validity period never stops. But this depends on the governing procurement rules and what’s stated in the bidding documents. B efore the end of the bid validity period, you’ll need to request an extension of bid validity which the bidder is at liberty to grant or not, and without penalty.
Dear Jorge,
What are the basics and important documents used in initial stage of procurement?
Joseph, It really depends on the procurement method used, and the specific procurement category in question. You’ll also have to define what you mean by “initial stage”. The following post might help: Procurement Requisition Processing. Let me know if it answers you question.
Mr, Jorge Lynch,
I respect in great deal what you stated in your 5 Questions on Delays in the Procurement Process. They are well said but my observation has been that delays in the contracting process is mainly linked to human irresponsibility and a lack of dedicated evaluation panels which can easily prolong the delivery date of the technical and commercial evaluation report, which causes a chain reaction of delays; such as bids validity expiration and bid bond expiration as well. These delays cause an increase in the cost of bidding of the Bidders. We can build the best procurement systems, (policies and procedures) but human beings are the drivers of such system.
We can discuss the subject further.
Regards
Eng. Mohamed Salem FAITOURI
Mabruk Oil Operations – NOC-TOTAL
Tripoli, Libya
Thank you, Eng. Faitouri, I’m in total agreement with you, people determine the success of any system. That’s why continuous capacity development is important to ensure procurement practitioners fully understand their responsibility, the work they have to do, and their role in the procurement process. You may be interested in the following research study (http://econ.lse.ac.uk/staff/bandiera/bpv0208.pdf) on active and inactive waste in Government, which revealed that most waste in public procurement is due primarily to inefficiencies in the system which are directly related to training and development, inappropriate skills set, and waste and abuse not related to corruption. Am willing to discuss this or other related topics further with you.