Quality management: a strategic guide for delivering value proposition in public procurement

Quality Management in the Public Procurement Process is one of the key elements that require effective and efficient integration and management in providing public infrastructure development as well as procuring public goods and or services. Procurement quality management includes the processes and activities of the procurement entity that determine quality policies, objectives, and responsibilities so that the procurement project will satisfy the needs for it was undertaken. Procurement Quality Management uses policies and procedures to implement, within the project’s context, the entity’s quality management system and, as appropriate, it supports continuous process improvement activities as undertaken on behalf of the Assembly. Implementing value for money and ensuring that scarce public funds are well spent and that important public projects are carried out in qualitative and quantitative manner require quality management within the public procurement process. Procurement Quality Management works to ensure that the project requirements, including products requirements, are met and validated for the Assembly.The objective of this study was to find out, challenges, relevant elements and effects of quality management in the public procurement process within Cape Coast Metropolitan Assembly: A sample size of sixty, (60) from the sample frame were used for which questionnaires as research instrument were used to collect data for analysis. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistic, frequency distribution and one sample t-test for data presentation and interpretations.It has been found from the study that CCMA often faces challenges such as frequent change of specifications, lack of accountability, inadequate competition and acceptance of goods of inferior quality, defective formulation of specification resulting in frequent change of specifications after invitation of bids, inefficient system of technical evaluation which normally leads to single source selection, improper financial evaluation and frequent misuse of special procedures among others which does create value. From the study, variables such as materials and processes in project implementation, level of competitiveness among bidders in providing quality tenders and works, people and skills for project implementation, training and methods in implementing the project quality and review of the Annual Procurement Process, has been found to play integral part in quality management in the public procurement process. It has been found from the study that the CCMA are affected bycost of poor quality (cost of conformance) e.g. build a quality procurement project or product through training, document processes, equipment and time to do it right, (appraisal costs) e.g.through testing, and inspections. As well as the cost of nonconformance through both internal (poor quality found by rework and scrap) and external (poor quality found by the public through liabilities, lost of business and warranty work) by the public procurer. To improve performance, various recommendations were however made for the Assembly to improve their public procurement process.

Source: KNUST