Author Archives: John Tizard

Public procurement should be proportionate to risks – not fuel insatiable bureaucratic appetites

They should safeguard public interests and ensure public value, which should include ensuring value for money is secured. They should also guarantee probity and ethical standards. And they should, in my view, promote wider public policy including social, economic and environmental goals. They are also vital for ensuring equity, fairness and, where appropriate, competition between… Read More...

Successful Boards Avoid Artificial Consensus – They Celebrate Diverse Opinions And Robust Debate

After some thirty years serving on a multitude of boards across all sectors, my advice is – don’t obsess about always needing to reach a consensus, and never fudge decisions. I have served, advised and answered to more boards than I can now recall for over thirty years – boards in the public, charity and… Read More...

Charities And The VCS Should Get Back To Basics – Pressing Their Case Fearlessly Not Impersonating Outsourcers

One of the attributes that separates charities and the voluntary and community sector (VCS) organisations from other sectors is that they are driven primarily by their mission – by their cause. Indeed, many were founded by individuals, with a passion for a specific cause: wanting to address social, economic and environmental wrongs; wishing to create… Read More...

Casual Use Of Language Can Dilute Values Especially In The VCS

Many in the voluntary and community sector instinctively and ideologically reject the neo-liberal love of markets and competition, especially in public service delivery; and its consequential greater inequality and less social collectivism And many who work in the public sector as well as self-described ‘progressive’ politicians share this position. This is broadly understandable as they… Read More...

Reach out to volunteers

Local authority leaders should foster and develop strong relations with the local voluntary and community sector and view its member organisations and their staff, volunteers and supporters, as natural allies, writes John Tizard. As former vice-chair of the National Association of Voluntary Community Action, I hear too many reports about local authorities failing to connect… Read More...

John Tizard: Procuring from the VCSE is different from procuring from major corporates

How often do I hear from voluntary and community organisations and small social enterprises (VCSE) that they are scarred and damaged by incredibly bureaucratic public procurement processes? The short answer is “far too often”! I find this both disappointing and frustrating. The position has with a few honourable exceptions changed very little over the last… Read More...

For The Sake Of Places And Communities Local Government And VCS Must Be Together

The last few years have not been easy for either local government or the voluntary and commumity sector (VCS). And it is not going to get any better for quite some time. Government continues committed to austerity and cutting local government funding. Brexit will leave social and economic scares. Social cohesion is threatened in a… Read More...

Opportunity to showcase progressive public procurement

I am delighted to be a judge for the National Government Opportunities (GO) Excellence in Public Procurement Awards 2017/18 (National GO Awards). Having judged these national awards on several previous occasions, I am expecting to evaluate some exciting entries. If past years are anything to go by, I expect that I will be disappointed when… Read More...

Public procurement professionals can make their mark in 2017

There can be no doubt that 2017 will be a tough and challenging year for the public sector, especially local government and the NHS. This means challenges and hopefully opportunities for procurement professionals across the public sector. There will be less money with further and deeper cuts to expenditure and services. Over the last decade… Read More...