Buying technology in government
Why it matters
Governments worldwide spent roughly $5.5 trillion on technology procurement.
These purchases serve critical government functions that directly affect how citizens experience their government, from applying for a permit through an online system or getting unemployment benefits.
Many technology purchases involve diverse user needs, large budgets, long timelines, and complex requirements. This often leaves large incumbent businesses working with public agencies, resulting in rigid contract terms at a higher cost for lower-quality services. Combined with limited government capacity to actively oversee implementation, citizens pay the price for outdated and cumbersome systems.
In sum: Buying technology in government is overdue for improvement.
Human-centered procurement technology
We can help you with:
We support governments with high-priority technology procurement by making it strategic, effective, and human-centered. We help governments adopt agile and modular approaches to buying or building IT.
RFx development and market research
To support better outcomes and value for money. This usually involves user-research, market research, RFI and RFP developments and generating buy-in from needed stakeholders.
Systemic technology procurement reforms
To institutionalize better IT procurement practices through improving processes, templates, regulations and change management practices
Acquisition/procurement strategies
To design, purchase and roll out of large high-priority IT procurements. Through co-creation across departments and shoulder-to-shoulder work, we facilitate the development of a strategy from market research through contract implementation.
Data analysis and visualization
To enable strategic decision-making in budget allocation, monitor progress towards outcome and spending, and share information with residents in helpful ways.
Sector specific expertise
Within IT procurement, we have expertise in specific sectors:
- AI: Assisting governments to buy and use fast evolving AI technology in effective and responsible ways.
- Safety net technology: Enabling governments to large benefit procurement through agile and modular approaches that focus on outcomes and people.
- Digitalization of government back-to-office functions: Making government technology for procurement, budgeting, investment projects more user-friendly, data-driven and strategic.
Some recent examples of our work include:
We helped Mexico City (CDMX) in adopting a completely new approach to one high priority technology procurement – the digital and physical infrastructure of their bike share system. We helped them align the key stakeholders around a co-created procurement strategy. This included user research to be responsive to public needs, conducting RFIs to understand pricing, writing an outcome focused RFP and using new procurement methods and new contracting vehicles. As a result of our support, CDMX got bids from coalitions of vendors that had never worked together before, and the bike share system nearly doubled in size – all at half the original cost! Based on what they learned with us, CDMX has replicated this approach for other key procurements.
OCP guided the Secretariat of Administration of Nuevo Leon through a comprehensive modernization process for the technology that runs state procurement. We supported Nuevo Leon in drafting regulatory reforms to simplify procedures, eliminate unnecessary requirements, regulate conflicts of interest, and mandate open data publication by default. We co-created requirements based on user-research and market research and aligned and trained state employees on these important steps in IT procurement.
OCP works actively with the Aspen Institute and Code for America to support US states in transforming the way they buy the technology that supports the US’ social safety net. Despite the $4 billion invested annually in the operation and maintenance of these systems, the technology underlying public benefits delivery often fails to meet the needs of applicants and caseworkers. We engage and convene civic tech non-profits, philanthropy, and state government partners to promote the use of modular, outcome-driven procurement processes that strengthen safety net programs and advise states on the specific procurement strategies they should adopt to bring benefits delivery into the 21st century.
A small selection of helpful resources
- Bringing a human-centered approach to government procurement technology. This brief explains why procurement and procurement technology matters, shares our vision for human-centered procurement technology, and describes what needs to happen next. By Open Contracting Partnership
- Buying greener technology in the UK, Get practical tools for adopting environmentally responsible practices in hardware and software procurement. Developed by PUBLIC in collaboration with Crown Commercial Service, and funded by OCP’s LIFT accelerator program.
- De-risking Guide, This guide was written to give government tools to lower the high risk of failure for technology projects. It addresses two main challenges — how to choose a software solution and how to work with a vendor to build quality custom software quickly. 18F
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