Simply Change engagement (FOI)

Request

Simply Change engagements with the GoJ

A

What was the purpose or purpose(s) of the engagement with Simply Change between 2019 to date?

B

How many different engagements are there and how many employees are provided for each engagement?

C

Please break down the approximate cost (banded like the p59 report to preserve commercial interest) per engagement.

D

Please confirm the contract length for each engagement including start and end dates.

E

Please provide a forecast expenditure for 2022 for each engagement and confirm the business area and account name funding it?

F

Please provide the tender, business case, commissioning and procurement documents for all engagements with this company?

G

Were local companies invited to submit tenders and how many were shortlisted (include a breakdown for each engagement)?

H

Does Simply Change work for the GoJ under the auspices of, or as part of an engagement with another local company or companies? If so, which company / companies? Please confirm when this engagement started and for what purpose?

I

Confirm if staff employed by Simply Change have received:

i) accommodation expenses and

ii) subsistence whilst on island?

iii) If so, which Job Roles have Simply Change employees been receiving either of these?

J

i) Do Local Companies get accommodation expenses when they are employed for the GoJ?

ii) If not, is this cost factored into the procurement process for off island suppliers?

K

Did the Group Director of modernization and digital and other members involved in the supplier selection process for Simply Change complete a declaration of interest to confirm that they had worked with Simply Change beforehand?

Response

A

For the purposes of all questions in this request the term 'engagement' is assumed to refer to the contract or contract extension with Simply Change.  Simply change have provided a variety of services during their engagement to date which include:

• Short-term interim oversight and leadership of the Corporate Change function
• Change Management support to include, interventions, training and coaching of individuals involved in Change Delivery and Business Enablement across Modernisation and Digital (M&D) and the Corporate Portfolio Management Office (CPMO)
• Implementation and transition support to the M&D Target Operation Model
• Support to enable improvement of processes, development of capabilities and implementation of project delivery frameworks
• Support in the delivery of the Integrated Technology Solution, Microsoft Foundations and Replacement Assets Programmes.

B

There have been multiple contracts or contract extensions with Simply Change.  The initial contract was for an Interim Head of Corporate Change (one person), and all further contracts were for the provision of services with appropriate resources.  The nature of the contract did not specify a number of resources. 

C

The P59 report shows the cost for a six-month period, on a payment basis for all spend over £20k. Simply Change costs are shown in this report.  A table is shown below of total costs in each six-month period (including those which fall below the £20k threshold):

2020 January - June £100,000-£150,000

2020 July - December £350,000-£400,000

2021 January - June £100,000-£150,000

To break down the cost per engagement further would require manual manipulation to create the information.  Therefore, Article 3 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 applies.

A Scheduled Public Authority (SPA) is not required to manipulate and create new data sets, but to provide the requester with information the SPA holds which has been specifically requested.

D

E

The costs of the Simply Change contract in 2022 will be met by business units within Chief Operating office.  This has been forecast to £56,000 per month for a twelve-month (January 2022 – December 2022) period.

F

The Simply Change contract was awarded through a 'Direct Award' process, which does not include a tender.  The documents relating to this process are exempt from release due to the commercially sensitive nature.  As a result, Article 33 (Commercial Interests) of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 has been applied.

G

As detailed above, the Simply Change contract was awarded through a 'Direct Award' process.  As such there was no tender process involving other parties (local or otherwise).

H

The Government of Jersey is engaged directly with Simply Change.

I

i) Accommodation expenses have been funded for Simply Change resources whilst on Island undertaking work in support of this contract, in line with the 'Government of Jersey Travel and Expenditure Policy'.

ii) No subsistence is paid to any Simply Change resources in line with the 'Government of Jersey Travel and Expenditure Policy'.

iii) As detailed above, Simply Change have provided a range of services during their engagement.  This service provision includes support to a number of roles.  Any of these services which have required an on-island presence have seen accommodation expenses funded in line with the answer above.

J

i) The Government of Jersey maintains a specific policy relating to travel and accommodation expenses 'the Government of Jersey Travel and Expenditure Policy' which sets limits for amounts claimable for travel and accommodation expense. The policy claimable limits are considered reasonable by the Government to utilise an on-island hotel for the purposes of business travel. The policy applies to all employees, contractors, and suppliers, whether domiciled on, or off the island of Jersey.

ii) Travel and expense costs are requested from all prospective suppliers as part of our procurement process. For each tender submission or similar proposal received, all costs (including travel and accommodation expenses) are evaluated for compliance with our policy. The Government of Jersey uses the 'Most Economically Advantageous Tender' (MEAT) method to evaluate and award contracts.

K

Providing details of the presence or not of declaration of interests would contain data personal to the subject and contravene Data Protection Principles.  This therefore would be exempt under Article 25 for the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011.

In addition, information relating to declaration of interests is not held centrally and would require manual manipulation to create the information.  Therefore, Article 3 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 applies.

A Scheduled Public Authority (SPA) is not required to manipulate and create new data sets, but to provide the requester with information the SPA holds which has been specifically requested. 

Articles applied

Article 3 - Meaning of "information held by a public authority"

For the purposes of this Law, information is held by a public authority if –

(a) it is held by the authority, otherwise than on behalf of another person; or

(b) it is held by another person on behalf of the authority.

Article 33(b) - Commercial interests

Information is qualified exempt information if –

(b) its disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice the commercial interests of a person (including the scheduled public authority holding the information).

Public Interest Test

Whilst we accept that the public may have an interest in the details of Government of Jersey contracts, we believe the exact details are commercially sensitive and that the release of this data could affect the negotiation of future contracts.