Private sector expertise in the public sector could be a winning combination |
Private sector expertise in the public sector could be a winning combination, says Deloitte
Johanneburg, September 2011- Modifying institutionalised barriers between the public and private sectors, particularly in complex and challenging areas of government, could stimulate new sustainable delivery efforts that would benefit the nation, says Deloitte.
Although the private sector is poised to help government with its efforts to deliver key services, its potential in the Public/ Private Partnerships (PPP’s) arena are being restricted by regulations that made it difficult for private initiatives to be accepted and launched within the public sector, said Nazeer Essop, the recently appointed Head of Public Sector activity at Deloitte.
“We need to take cognisance of some of the lessons that the private sector has learned from addressing challenges around job creation, service delivery, education and health,” says Essop.
The lessons involved creating structures that were responsive to specific needs.
“The private sector has learned, often to its cost that identifying a business need has to be accompanied by the development of a structure that has the ability to quickly assess, cost and initiate a project”.
“Failure to act quickly and decisively can mean that a major opportunity is lost. If a project stalls, the impetus is lost, project parameters shift and the process has to begin from scratch-the result is lost opportunities and the incurring of unnecessary costs.
“If some operational constraints against the formation of Public/Private Partnerships are removed, delays that ultimately have an impact on the delivery of services could be effectively removed. Utilising skills from both sectors would focus skills available further enhancing delivery capabilities.
“If barriers to entry, which are centered on acceptance of unsolicited project bids from companies like Deloitte, were modified high-impact initiatives could be launched with short-term and long-term, measurable benefits for the nation as a whole.
“These contributions could cover the ambit of government activities from IT, finance, procurement, human resources, risk management and across broad-based consulting services. They could even be extended to include seconding people with vital skills from the private sector to capacitate and skill up the public sector on a project basis, the solution is working with Government and not for Government”. Essop said.
