Cross-country learning in public procurement: An exploratory study
| Pages | 449-482 |
| Date | 01 April 2017 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JOPP-17-04-2017-B001 |
| Published date | 01 April 2017 |
| Author | Kimberly Nijboer,Shirin Senden,Jan Telgen |
| Subject Matter | Public policy & environmental management,Politics,Public adminstration & management,Government,Economics,Public Finance/economics,Texation/public revenue |
JOURNAL OF PUBLIC PROCUREMENT, VOLUME 17, ISSUE 4, 449-482 WINTER 2017
CROSS-COUNTRY LEARNING IN PUBLIC PROCUREMENT:
AN EXPLORATORY STUDY
Kimberly Nijboer, Shirin Senden, and Jan Telgen*
ABSTRACT. All countries use public procurement to some degree to further
policy objectives such as sustainability, innovation, fighting fraud and
corruption, value for taxpayers’ money etc. Countries may learn from past
successes and failures in other countries while implementing these policies:
cross-country learning. In this exploratory study, we inves tigate cross-country
learning across two frequently used policy areas: sus tainability and
innovation. A threefold methodology was used that consisted of (1) an
extensive review of scientific literature complemented by (2) a thoroug h
examination of policy documents and (3) i nterviews with leading public
procurement experts from 10 countries including both developing and
developed countries. The m ain findings indicate that there is no hard
evidence for cross-country learning. Even if cross-country learning would
exist, the lessons learned seem to remain largely implicit.
INTRODUCTION
Public procurement is commonly seen as a way to achieve policy
goals. According to a report released by the International Research
Study of Public Procurement (Knight, Caldwell, Harland, & Telgen,
2004), public procurement is increasingly viewed as more
encompassing than a means of saving money for governments. In
fact, public procurement is more and more associated with being a
lever of social reform. In the European Union, the Treaty of Lisbon has
---------------------------------
* Kimberly Nijboer, MSc Business Administration at the University of
Twente, and Shirin Senden, MSc Finance & Investments at the
Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University, performed this
study as part of the BSc International Business Administration,
Department of Technology Management and Supply, University of Twente.
Jan Telgen, Ph.D., is Professor, Departmen t of Technology Management
and Supply, University of Twente. His research interest is in supplier
selection and developing public procurement professionalism.
Copyright © 2017 by PrAcademics Press
450 NIJBOER, SENDEN & TELGEN
addressed the increased need of incorporating the social and
environmental aspects of public procurement (European Parliament,
2010). Examples of such policy goals are sustainability and
innovation, which both seem to be well-established and widely
accepted policy goals that may lead to value creation for society.
The ways of implementing these policy goals through public
procurement vary per country. They may be implemented, e.g.,
through specific laws or regulations, or the government may use its
own procurement volume ‘to lead by example’. Furthermore, not all
countries implemented their variant at the same time. This means
that there is ample opportunity for cross-country learning: a country
can learn from the experiences of other countries (both good and bad
experiences) when implementing public procurement policies.
Here, we investigate to what extent cross-country learning exists
in practice. We do so by considering two policy areas: sustainability
and innovation. A threefold methodology that combines theory and
practice was used in this study that consists of: (1) an extensive
review of the literature, complemented by (2) a thorough examination
of policy documents and (3) interviews with leading public
procurement experts and practitioners from various countries.
The paper is structured as follows. First, we consider public
procurement and the rise of sustainable and innovative public
procurement goals. Next, the threefold methodology of the study is
discussed in depth. Then, we present the results of each of the three
parts of the study. We conclude with a discussion on the outcomes of
the study.
PUBLIC PROCUREMENT POLICIES: WHY DO THEY MATTER?
This section will outline the economic, social, and environmental
relevance of public procurement policies and will review how issues
of sustainability and innovation have been integrated into public
procurement.
Public Procurement and Its Wider Impact
For the purpose of this study, it is important to define the key
concept of public procurement. In general, public procurement can be
seen as public spending for works, goods, and services.
Governments, of course, regulate the way public procurement is
CROSS-COUNTRY LEARNING IN PUBLIC PROCUREMENT: AN EXPLORATORY STUDY 451
executed by their laws and regulations. Through these, they may even
require certain secondary goals to be taken into account in public
procurement (as did the EU). These rules and regulations may have
wider applicability than the direct government spending alone.
It is worth noting that government spending is huge. In Europe, it
is estimated that almost €2 trillion is spent on public procurement on
an annual basis (European Commission, 2011; Procurement of
Innovation Platform, 2014). In general, approximately 15-20% of the
GDP and 40-90% of the public budget is spent on the procurement of
goods, services, and works (European Commission, 2016). Due to the
sheer magnitude of these budgets, national governments can use
their market power to achieve financial, social, and environmental
outcomes directly, but also to stimulate the entire marketplace to
produce and consume more sustainably and innovatively (ICLEI,
2007). Therefore, public procurement policies that encourage
governments to engage in sustainability and innovation have become
more and more important to address both technical developments
and socioeconomic challenges (Office of Government Commerce,
2011; Rolfstam, 2013; Lember, Kattel, & Kalvet, 2014; Procurement
of Innovation Platform, 2014).
Achieving ‘value for money’ in public procurement, in terms of
price and quality, is often mentioned as the primary goal, whereas the
contribution to other policy goals is referred to as a secondary goal.
Sustainable and Innovative Public Procurement Policies
Sustainable and innovative public procurement policies can be
implemented at multiple levels, both on the national level as well as
on various local or organizational levels. The focus of this study is on
national governments. The implementation of these public
procurement policies can create benefits for national governments in
multiple ways. First of all, they can create financial benefits.
According to the UK’s Office of Government Commerce (2011),
implementing public procurement policies on innovation is a way to
achieve value for money by optimally combining life-cycle costs and
quality to meet public needs. Sustainable public procurement policies
can also result in cost effectiveness, especially when the whole-life
costs are taken into account (ICLEI, 2007; United Nations, 2008;
European Commission, 2011). Next to these economic advantages in
terms of cost savings, sustainable and innovative public procurement
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