Public Procurement as an organizational process is ever evolving. The vast number of organizations involved in various sectors and industries are identified by different needs. Organizations, therefore focus on improvising the procurement process and formulate practices which suit their needs. The effectiveness of procurement practice depends upon various factors and also upon the kind of organization. A good practice is not only a practice that is good, but a practice that has been proven to work well and produce good results, and is therefore recommended as a model. It is a successful experience, which has been tested and validated, in the broad sense, which has been repeated and deserves to be shared so that a greater number of people can adopt it. Good practices in public procurement refer to the set of practices adopted by an organization to ensure transparency, fairness, economy, integrity, efficiency, and value for money.

Public Procurement Management

• Establishing a Governing Council for Public Procurement

  A governing council gives direction and helps in aligning the supply chain strategy with the company's overall strategy. The governing council for supply chain should include the official in-charge of the supply chain of the organization and the executives such as Chief Executive Officer, Chief Operation Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Vigilance Officer, or other(s) business unit managers and other organizational personnel involved in the process of public procurement. Ideally, the council should hold meetings regularly. The existence of such a council and its regular meeting shall ensure commitment of the high echelons of management towards efficient procurement.

• Personnel Management for Public Procurement

  Organizing the procurement process effectively can ensure benefits to the organization in ways more than one. However, channelizing the resources for this purpose requires resources in terms of time, money, and especially labour. Procuring agencies need to develop the indigenous strategy. An important step in this regard is personnel management the organization should ensure that the procurement department has the requisite human resource. In addition to this, it is equally important for the organizations to train their employees for efficient procurement. Furthermore, while some organizations are best served by embedding proficient procurement managers other companies, may be served by the more centralized operation. For few organizations, a hybrid approach mixing the benefits from the two strategies shall prove helpful. The organization should ensure personnel management for making the public procurement process transparent, fair, economic, and efficient.

• Use of Suitable Technology

  Though technological intervention is an important tool for enhancing the procurement process, the organizations should fore mostly review and identify the areas which need improvement. Once the needs have been assessed, commensurate tools should be used. In addition to technological intervention, companies should also focus on training their employees for using the tools and software. Another important step which companies can adapt to ensure transparency in public procurement is a use of electronic procurement portal. The Government has shifted most of its procurement to the electronic portals such as Government e-marketplace, Central Public Procurement Portal, etc. Electronic procurement is one of the good practices the organizations can adapt to ameliorate the procurement process.

• Transparency in Public Procurement

  Public procurement involves the money collected from the public at large. Therefore, the procurement officials have two-fold obligations – first, to ensure value for money for the procuring organization and second, to ensure that the money is used with integrity, in an efficient and judicious manner. In addition to this, it is also important for the Government to ensure that no supplier is prejudiced and each one is given an equal opportunity. This calls for the need of transparency in the procurement process.
  
  a) This guide provides government officials, businesses and civil society with a practical introduction to the risks of corruption in public procurement. It outlines key principles and minimum standards which, when respected, can protect public contracting from corruption.
   https://www.transparency.org/whatwedo/publication/curbing_corruption_in_public_procurement_a_practical_guide
  
  b) National Institute of Government Purchasing’s global best practices provide definitions, context, and guidance on relevant public procurement topics. They result from collaboration by and input from content experts and are subject to public review. Our goals are :To provide useful and applicable guidance for public procurement professionals and  other is to elevate the procurement profession.
  http://www.nigp.org/home/find-procurement-resources/guidance/global-best-practices
  
  c) “Integrity Pacts” are a tool developed by Transparency International for tackling corruption in public procurement. They have been applied in many countries around the world for over 20 years. There are even countries in which the use of the Integrity Pact has become part of the law or governmental procedures, such as in India or the “Social Witness in Mexico.
  https://www.transparency.org/whatwedo/publication/integrity_pacts_a_how_to_guide_from_practitioners
  
  d) The 10 Anti-Corruption Principles for State-Owned Enterprises help state-owned enterprises (SOEs) to implement anti-corruption programs based on the highest standards of integrity and transparency.
  https://www.transparency.org/whatwedo/publication/10_anti_corruption_principles_for_state_owned_enterprises
  
  e) Of all government activities, public procurement is most vulnerable to corruption. As public procurement is a key economic activity of governments - estimated at around 15% of GDP, this has a Major impact on how taxpayer's money is spent. This publication offers practical insights into how the profession of procurement is evolving to cope with the growing demand for integrity, drawing on the experience of procurement practitioners as well as audit, competition and anti-corruption specialists.
  http://www.oecd.org/gov/ethics/integrityinpublicprocurementgoodpracticefromatoz.htm
  
  f) This compendium lists illustrative check-points in public procurement for ensuring fairness, equity and transparency. These checklists are illustrative. There could be certain specific cases, which may involve other areas requiring more focused attention. Such areas need to be determined on a case to case basis. The compendium is intended to serve as a guide to both executives dealing with procurement as well as vigilance officials.
  cvc.nic.in/checkpoints-for-stages-of-public-procurement.pdf
  
  g) This document provides insights into how integrity can be increased and corruption minimized in the procurement process. The various tools are discussed in details alongside good practices adopted in other countries.
  http://www.oecd.org/gov/ethics/Corruption-in-Public-Procurement-Brochure.pdf