Public Sector Supply Chain Governance Training Course

Course overview

Public-sector supply chains operate under requirements that private-sector teams do not face to the same extent: transparent competition, delegated authority, auditability, public value, supplier integrity, continuity of essential services, and scrutiny from regulators, elected officials and citizens. Procurement and supply chain professionals must make timely decisions while maintaining an evidence trail that can withstand challenge. This course addresses the governance gaps that lead to weak specifications, unmanaged supplier risk, poor contract controls, conflicts of interest, non-compliant variations and disruptions to critical goods and services.

Participants examine how to build governance across the full public-sector supply chain lifecycle, from demand planning and sourcing strategy to contract administration, supplier performance and close-out. They learn to establish decision rights, design procurement controls, assess risk using risk registers and heat maps, evaluate bids with defensible scoring models, apply segregation-of-duties principles, manage conflicts and gifts declarations, and create supplier performance dashboards. The course also covers sustainable and social-value requirements, emergency procurement controls, open-contracting transparency and governance of framework agreements.

Teaching combines instructor-led analysis with public-sector cases, procurement-file reviews, group decision panels and practical document-building exercises. Participants work through a simulated procurement and supply disruption scenario, testing governance decisions against audit, fairness, value-for-money and continuity requirements. Each participant leaves with a tailored Public Sector Supply Chain Governance Action Plan, including a governance map, control register, supplier-risk approach, escalation routes and 90-day implementation priorities for their organisation.

The programme is designed for experienced procurement, contract management, logistics, finance, audit and operational leaders who influence public expenditure or manage suppliers delivering public services. It is suitable for national, regional and local government, public agencies, healthcare bodies, education institutions, utilities and state-owned enterprises.

Course objectives

By the end of this course, participants will be able to:

• Map supply chain decision rights using a RACI matrix and delegated-authority schedule
• Design procurement controls that create an auditable trail from requisition to contract close-out
• Build a supplier risk register with probability, impact, ownership, treatment and escalation fields
• Apply weighted evaluation models and moderation records to defend supplier award decisions
• Create contract governance plans covering milestones, variations, approvals, disputes and reporting
• Develop supplier performance scorecards using service, cost, quality, resilience and compliance measures
• Assess conflicts of interest, gifts, related-party risks and segregation-of-duties control failures
• Produce a 90-day public-sector supply chain governance improvement plan for a live work area

Benefits of attending

Target competencies

Who should attend

• Procurement Managers — who must establish compliant sourcing and approval controls across procurement categories
• Contract Managers — who need defensible methods for governing supplier performance, changes and remedies
• Supply Chain Managers — who manage continuity, supplier risk and operational delivery for public services
• Procurement Officers — who evaluate supplier bids and must defend award decisions
• Internal Auditors and Compliance Officers — who test procurement controls, conflicts and documentation quality
• Finance and Budget Managers — who oversee delegated spending authority, value-for-money and expenditure assurance

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should have practical experience of public procurement, contract administration, supplier management or operational supply chain work. They should understand the basic procurement lifecycle, including specification development, tendering, evaluation, award and contract management, and be comfortable reading procurement documents, supplier reports and spreadsheet-based data. Familiarity with their organisation’s financial delegations, procurement policy and approval routes is helpful. Participants should bring a laptop with spreadsheet software if attending live online or if permitted in the classroom. Legal qualification, audit certification, advanced statistics and prior use of Power BI are not required.

Training methodology

The programme uses instructor-led briefings to establish governance principles, followed by hands-on work with realistic public-sector procurement records. Participants analyse a tender evaluation file, construct a supplier risk register, test approval and segregation-of-duties scenarios, and conduct a mock contract performance review. Small groups compare decisions against fairness, transparency, value-for-money and continuity criteria, then receive facilitator feedback on evidence quality and control design. On the final day, each participant converts course outputs into a prioritised 90-day implementation plan for a current procurement or supply chain governance challenge.

Course outline

Day 1: Public-sector supply chain governance foundations

• Public value, accountability and value-for-money obligations
• Supply chain governance across planning, sourcing, delivery and close-out
• Governance structures, decision rights and delegated authority
• RACI matrices for procurement and contract management
• Segregation of duties and approval-control design
• Procurement file standards and audit evidence trails
• Governance maturity assessment for public-sector supply chains

Workshop: Participants map the governance structure for a public-service procurement and produce a RACI matrix with approval gates and evidence requirements.

Day 2: Ethical sourcing and defensible procurement decisions

• Conflict-of-interest identification and declaration controls
• Gifts, hospitality and supplier-contact governance
• Competition, equal treatment and transparent evaluation principles
• Weighted scoring models and evaluation-criteria calibration
• Evaluator guidance, moderation records and consensus scoring
• Managing clarifications, negotiations and bidder communications
• Emergency procurement controls and post-award justification

Workshop: Participants evaluate a mock tender using a weighted scorecard and produce a moderation record that documents a defensible award recommendation.

Day 3: Supplier risk, resilience and responsible supply chains

• Supplier risk taxonomy for public-sector supply networks
• Risk registers, heat maps and risk ownership
• Criticality analysis and dependency mapping
• Financial health, capacity and subcontractor due diligence
• Business continuity planning and supply disruption escalation
• Sustainable procurement, social value and modern-slavery controls
• Framework agreement risk and call-off governance

Workshop: Participants create a supplier risk register and continuity response plan for a disrupted critical-service supply chain.

Day 4: Contract governance and supplier performance assurance

• Contract governance plans and meeting cadences
• Key performance indicators, service levels and outcome measures
• Supplier scorecards and performance-dashboard design
• Managing variations, extensions and scope change approvals
• Issue logs, corrective action plans and escalation routes
• Commercial remedies, service credits and dispute management
• Contract close-out, lessons learned and benefits realisation

Workshop: Participants build a contract governance plan and supplier scorecard for a public-service delivery contract with declining performance.

Day 5: Assurance, transparency and governance implementation

• Three-lines assurance model for procurement and supply chain controls
• Internal audit testing of procurement and contract controls
• Open Contracting Data Standard and disclosure readiness
• Management information for boards and senior responsible owners
• Root-cause analysis of procurement control failures
• Governance maturity roadmaps and prioritisation methods
• Change management for adopting new supply chain controls

Workshop: Participants present a 90-day governance action plan containing a control register, reporting dashboard outline, accountable owners and implementation milestones.

Tools & standards covered

Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Power BI, Open Contracting Data Standard, ISO 37001 Anti-bribery Management Systems

A typical training day

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in the East Africa Time zone, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

How you can take this course

Certification

Participants who complete the full five days receive the Skillset Development Certificate of Completion, stating the course title, course code, dates and delivery format — suitable for professional-development records and employer reimbursement.

Frequently asked questions