Economist John Kay has highlighted the importance of 'distinctive capabilities' in establishing competitive advantage. The correlation to contracting and commercial terms is immediately evident – not least because he sees these capabilities being delivered in the context of external relationships.

"Distinctive capabilities are a relevant factor of an organization's resources. Companies with distinctive capabilities have attributes, which others don't have and cannot replicate. There are three distinctive capabilities which a company can possess to achieve competitive advantage through relationships:

• Architecture: It is a structure of relational contacts within or around the organization with customers, suppliers and with employees
• Reputation: This includes customer's own experience, quality signals, guarantee, word of mouth spreading, warranty, association with other brands and staking the reputation, once it is established
• Innovation: Provided that the innovation is translated to competitive advantage successfully."

There is, of course, a counter-side to this position – which is that contracts and the contracting process can distinguish an organization for its negative capabilities. In other words, if contract terms and approaches to negotiation are risk averse and seeking to limit commitment, they damage architecture, reputation and innovation.

So distinctive capabilities are created through contracting and commercial skills – but require a real shift in attitudes to risk.

Increasingly, the winners in the marketplace are those who consciously endeavor to meet – rather than resist – market aspirations. Often that means a need to consider how to embrace levels of risk that were previously unthinkable. For example, in industries such as telecoms or oil and gas, clients are demanding ever more onerous terms from their suppliers. Rather than resist, there will be some who start to 'think the opposite' – in other words, how can we accept these risks? The answer will often be to take on greater responsibility and control, to reduce the extent of dependency on the customer's capabilities or actions.

This was the revolution that happened to much of the IT industry, when it moved from supplying products to undertaking long-term outsourced services. Initially reluctant to accept increased liabilities, the industry has steadily realized that many perceived risks are actually a phantom and that many others can be effectively controlled through appropriate forms of governance. The best suppliers have focused on improving their capabilities – including their contract management skills – so that they can offer distinctive commitments.

This thinking is just one more illustration of why contracting and commercial skills have become so important – and why, as practitioners, our attitudes must shift from a focus on protection and avoidance to instead being a force for creativity and enabling.

The UK government is at the forefront in its recognition of the importance of contract and commercial management. It is leading many private sector organizations in its efforts to transform. On March 23rd, the powerful Public Accounts Committee of the UK Parliament issued its review of progress. Here is IACCM's perspective on that report.

The Public Accounts Committee has rightly identified the need for 'transforming contract management'. The challenging environment for delivering high quality and affordable public services necessitates far greater focus on integrated commercial competence and contract management capability. The committee highlights continuing gaps and urges an increased sense of urgency and control.

The scale of change implied by this ambition must not be underestimated. Private sector organizations face a similar dilemma and in many cases are not demonstrating great success in their change initiatives. Essentially, today's business is struggling to adapt to a networked world in which digitization is now fundamentally disrupting trading relationships, business capabilities and the terms of trade. Contract management sits at the nexus of these forces and is transforming from a largely administrative task to a dynamic role that orchestrates change and makes sense of market volatility.

In its March 23^rd report on the state of contract management in the UK government, the Public Accounts Committee observes:

"While government has made encouraging progress in some areas, the pace of change is disappointing. We expect the Cabinet Office to raise its game, be more assertive and challenge those departments that are lagging behind, as well as supporting them where necessary. Given the increasing scale and complexity of government's contracts, departments need to focus on the governance, systems and assurance frameworks around their major contracts, as well as recruiting more commercial staff. The government also needs to tackle the longstanding problem of a civil service culture that does not place enough value on commercial expertise. We expect the Cabinet Office and individual departments to accelerate the pace of change and be able to demonstrate tangible improvements by the end of this parliament, so that we see a civil service which is first rate at managing commercial contracts."

IACCM's unique experience in this field leads to the following observations.

The issue of assertiveness and challenge is a valid criticism. Contract management is a pervasive discipline with a myriad of stakeholders and interested parties. It is not simply about overseeing the performance of a signed agreement; it is essentially about ensuring that the agreement is fit for purpose. Many government contracts quite simply are not fit for purpose and there appear to have been limited efforts to challenge the historic models or their suitability.

When it comes to competence, there have indeed been efforts to assess contract management capability at a departmental level, but I would suggest that the model being used is timid and outdated. The assessment framework that has been deployed is almost 10 years old and it does not reflect the dramatic change in environment and needs that followed the financial crash and the massive re-think in public service delivery models. Departments are being tested for their ability to manage the past, not the future.

Some of the work that has been undertaken on skills is truly world-leading. However, it needs to move at a faster pace and the tone needs to impart a greater sense of urgency to individuals. Existing commercial staff will become an impediment to change if they are not energized and excited about the opportunities ahead and if they are not engaged in new ways of working that include the requirement to raise their skills. Too often, contract management is being seen as a sub-element of Procurement; this is a fundamental mistake and prevents rapid progress.

The Committee is mistaken in its apparent belief that increased recruitment is the answer and the Cabinet Office is similarly wrong to cite pay as the primary issue. While selective recruitment will assist, the real problem is a general lack of candidates with the skills that are needed. Industry is facing a similar challenge because there has been insufficient investment in these core competencies. Therefore, an urgent focus on skills development and training is critical, as well as more focus on implementing tools that will support commercial capability and efficiency.

Several departments have increased their focus on 'contract owners' and their accountability for driving performance and achieving outcomes. This is an insightful approach and there has been excellent work in designing and defining the program. Many of these contract owners are commercially astute and ready to challenge outdated contract and commercial practices. However, they need greater support and more opportunities for mentoring.

It is especially interesting to note that, while technology is fundamental in creating this challenge, there is no mention of it in the report. This is a massive omission and should be a core focus of any improvement. For example, last week the head of the US Armed Services Committee concluded that contracting today is so complex that it demands the application of artificial intelligence. Such vision is a glaring omission in the report and appears to be absent in a substantive way from the plans of the Cabinet Office. Without creative use of technology, the task of transformation will prove overwhelming and it will fail.

In conclusion, contract management transformation demands sustained executive focus and courage in the vision of what it must become. Given our experience at IACCM, the scale of change implied by this transformation will be achieved only through a fully integrated plan led and overseen by powerful executive sponsors. Right now, while there are some excellent individual initiatives, there is no evidence of a coherent master plan accompanied by a clear and well-communicated sense of future mission and purpose. To succeed, transformation demands a spirit of enthusiasm and excitement over what lies ahead. Instead, there is a real risk that the move to increase commercial skills and contract management capability becomes seen as an imposition and a threat."

IACCM's theme for its 2016 conferences is 'transformation'. We understand the challenge this represents for so many organizations and individuals; hence our focus on the practical steps that can be taken to drive progress and create that sense of excitement in what can be achieved. For details of the conference series (Europe, Americas, Asia and Australia) visit https://www2.iaccm.com/events/