NAO blog

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Right data, right place, right time

• Posted on July 16, 2019 by Yvonne Gallagher

  

  Have you ever had the frustration of having to provide the same information about yourself to different government services? Have you ever had to make decisions without information about what does and doesn’t work? Data is fundamental to delivering public services, improving systems and processes, and supporting sound decisions – but accessing accurate data is far from easy. Drawing from our recent report, Challenges in using data across government, I highlight here some of the difficulties, their implications and ways they can be addressed.

  more… Right data, right place, right time

  Tagged with: Behaviour change  Business operations  Cross-government  Customer service  Digital transformation  Forecasting  Fraud and error  Good practice principles  Information management  Information sharing  Innovation  IT  Performance measurement  Public sector reform  Regulation & consumer protection  Risk management
  

Major programmes – what are we learning?

• Posted on July 4, 2019 by Sandy Gordon

  

  Since we first published our Framework to review programmes in 2017 there has been no let-up in NAO reports on major projects and programmes, most recently on Crossrail, the Emergency Services Network and the Stonehenge by-pass road. From the need to manage the risks of untried approaches to signs warning of unrealistic cost estimates, this blog highlights some of the themes emerging from our recent work on major programmes, which have been incorporated into our updated guidance.

  more… Major programmes – what are we learning?

  Tagged with: Civil service capability  Contract management  Forecasting  Good practice principles  Infrastructure  Investigations  Major projects  Performance management  Project management  Public sector reform  Risk management
  

Cloud services: asking the right questions

• Posted on June 27, 2019 by Yvonne Gallagher

  

  ‘Cloud services’ can bring cost and performance benefits. But they can also bring new challenges and risks. To help leaders oversee decision-making and implementation of cloud services, we recently published ‘Guidance for audit committees on cloud services’. The magazine, Public Sector Executive, invited us to outline the issues in the article The National Audit Office’s guide to cloud services and has kindly allowed us to reproduce it on this Blog.

  more… Cloud services: asking the right questions

  Tagged with: Audit Committees and Boards  Business operations  Cross-government  Cyber security  Digital transformation  Good practice principles  Information management  Innovation  Public sector reform  Risk management  Skills
  

Getting contracts right and responding if they go wrong

• Posted on May 22, 2019 by Emma Willson

  Billions of pounds of cost increase due to contractual change, delays introducing communication networks for our emergency services, potential strains on Army personnel – our recent reports illustrate the huge importance of getting contracts right, and what organisations need to do if they go wrong. They also reinforce the principles discussed in previous posts in our Contract insights series: the great value of information and the crucial need to act intelligently, get risk allocation right and take sufficient time to plan upfront for all scenarios. more… Getting contracts right and responding if they go wrong

  Tagged with: Contract insights series  Contract management  Good practice principles  Major projects  Performance management  Project management  Public sector reform  Risk management
  

Local government in 2019: a pivotal year

• Posted on February 13, 2019 by Abdool Kara

  2019 will be a pivotal year for local government in England. Numerous difficult and open-ended questions need rapid resolution, at a time when government focus and capacity is directed elsewhere. Drawing on a number of our recent reports, here I explore some of the challenges facing the sector, from budget cuts and growing social care demands, to local service funding reforms and new risks from local government commercialisation. more… Local government in 2019: a pivotal year

  Tagged with: Brexit  Financial sustainability  Health  Local government  Public finances  Social care  Young people
  

The power of information for contracts

• Posted on October 1, 2018 by Iain Forrester

  From the collapse of Carillion, to failures within Capita’s £1 billion worth of public contracts, recent NAO reports starkly reiterate the importance of information in managing contracts. As the Comptroller & Auditor General said in his post Risks, resources and government-supplier relationships, government ‘needs to assess the financial health and sustainability of its major contractors and use this information to protect the public interest’. Here we outline the crucial role of information throughout the commercial lifecycle. more… The power of information for contracts

  Tagged with: Contract insights series  Contract management  Cross-government  Customer service  Good practice principles  Information management  Performance management  Risk management
  

Adult social care at a glance

• Posted on August 6, 2018 by James Beveridge

  Over the past month we have seen widespread celebrations for the 70th birthday of the NHS, with the Prime Minister announcing new funding for a service that is both highly respected and at the forefront of voters’ concerns according to Ipsos MORI research. But many people don’t realise that 2018 also marks the 70^th anniversary of the birth of the welfare state and social care as we know it, or – as our recent publications show – as we think we know it… more… Adult social care at a glance

  Tagged with: Financial sustainability  Health  Local government  Public finances  Public sector reform  Social care
  

Risks, resources and government-supplier relationships

• Posted on July 17, 2018 by Amyas Morse

  Hundreds of major change programmes, increasing demands on and expectations of public services, productivity challenges – and the massive task of leaving the EU. In the face of such demands on skills and capacity, Sir Amyas Morse, Comptroller & Auditor General, spoke recently to the Whitehall and Industry Group (WIG) about why the public sector needs private and third sector skills, experience and capacity more than ever. The NAO Blog summarises Sir Amyas’s talk about some of the current key priorities and what is needed to make the relationship mutually successful and in the best interests of people and public services. more… Risks, resources and government-supplier relationships

  Tagged with: Amyas Morse  Brexit  Contract management  Cross-government  Digital transformation  Financial sustainability  Major projects  Private sector  Productivity  Project management  Public finances  Risk management  Skills
  

Successful transformation: voices of experience

• Posted on June 29, 2018 by Max Tse

  Evolution or revolution? Inventing new services or transforming old systems and processes? Transformation programmes are complex, ever-changing and face numerous barriers; so what does it take to be one of the minority of transformation projects that succeed? How can organisations’ Boards improve the chance of success? And what does transformation have to do with wagon trains? more… Successful transformation: voices of experience

  Tagged with: Audit Committees and Boards  Behaviour change  Cross-government  Customer service  Digital transformation  Employee engagement  Good practice principles  Impacts  Information management  Major projects  Public sector reform  Risk management  Skills
  

Being honest: award-winning annual reports

• Posted on March 29, 2018 by Kate Mathers

  How do you make complex departmental annual reports easily understandable? Do you clearly outline your goals and achievement of them? Is it easy for the public to understand your organisational risks and their management? Being clear, concise, honest and open in annual reports is a real skill. To inspire creativity and usability, our yearly guide to good practice in annual reports this year presents examples from both the public sector organisations we reviewed in the Building Public Trust Awards, and some of the private and third sector examples highlighted in other categories. more… Being honest: award-winning annual reports

  Tagged with: Accountability  Audit  Business operations  Cross-government  Good practice principles  Information management  Performance management  Public finances  Reporting  Third sector