How to demonstrate social value as a small supplier to the public sector

Social value has become a big part of the conversation around public sector procurement.  The government’s latest procurement policy means social value is explicitly evaluated in all central government procurement exercises, focusing on suppliers’ contribution to Covid-19 recovery, tackling inequality and fighting climate change as well as equal opportunity and employee wellbeing.

A recent example of this happening in practice is the new Digital Specialists and Programmes Framework (DSP). The framework, which will be used to find suppliers to support digital transformation across government and has a potential value of £4 billion over six years, had a major emphasis on social value. Lot 2 of the framework awarded 60 percent of the marks on social value alone, with a lower but still significant 20 percent for lot 1.

These expectations have shifted the landscape for every supplier. There is a recognition that SMEs and what they can offer will not be the same as the larger suppliers – with a focus on quality not quantity. That recognition is inherently a good thing, and a handful of genuinely smaller independent suppliers made it onto the DSP framework.

As the ones setting and evaluating this new criteria, there is definitely an opportunity for the government and public sector organisations to change the culture of tech suppliers. So, what is it like for a smaller supplier to shift its approach in response to social value policy from above? How do you demonstrate that value to the public sector and to citizens? And does this represent a permanent change to the way we deliver public services?

Changing your approach

This shift in expectations has changed how suppliers need to think about their services, not just how they sell them but how they can use their success to create social value. In my view, all the changes that this is driving within supplier organisations are good.

We’re increasingly asked about employee wellbeing as part of procurement exercises. For me the change starts here. If you’ve got teams who have been stressed, overworked and under rewarded, how effective are they going to be on the ground, delivering vital digital services? Happier teams are more productive teams, and we are taking care of our people in an increasing number of ways including the recent introduction of mental health first aiders.

We should be well beyond questioning whether better representation of underrepresented groups is a good thing or not. More representative supplier teams build more inclusive, accessible and robust services. The appetite is there, and the mandate has been added. It can take years for change to happen organically, and sometimes a nudge is needed.

Ways of maximising social value

Once you’ve understood why your approach needs to change, how do you become an SME that demonstrates social value to the public sector?

It’s often many small parts that make up the sum of social value within an organisation. Things like flexible working, investment in line management and learning and development, and clearly signposted wellbeing support for a dispersed workforce. Recruitment processes can be changed to reduce the potential for bias by anonymising applications, targeting job adverts where less represented people are more likely to see them, and placing more emphasis on how someone responds to real life challenges than on which university they went to (if they went at all).

All suppliers to the Government on the DSP must have published carbon reduction plans and commit to net zero by 2050, and we should arguably be much more ambitious than that. Adopt and use policies, approaches and tools that make sure you are creating genuinely inclusive public services. Some of the things we do serve the most vulnerable or excluded people in society, and if we don’t make sure that we understand their needs, then we’re not going to get it right.

Is this long-term?

Now that this is mandated, I can’t see it being undone. There is a big political appetite across the public sector to perpetuate a cultural shift towards adding greater value for communities and the environment. Being ready to respond to changing needs in the public sector is vital. At dxw, we are constitutionally committed to creating social value as an employee-owned business. We’ve written a legal obligation into our deeds to run the company in the best interests of our current and future staff, and of the people we build and run services for.

Social value is now a fact of life in all government procurement opportunities. Public sector organisations should demand more, and tech suppliers will need to deliver.  That means continuing to evolve HR and recruitment policies, and adapting internal processes and ways of working.

If the government is serious, and the signs so far are that it is, it can drive how suppliers operate in response to an ever-growing need for more compassionate and sustainable public services.