The Savviest Procurement of the Year competition is here

The Public Procurement Advisory Unit, located in Helsinki, is once again looking for and awarding the savviest procurement of the year in Finland. We invite and encourage the submission of procurements conducted in 2019 and 2020 to the competition now organised for the second time. The advisory unit grants the award to a contracting unit, which has showed particular skill in implementing a procurement through means allowed by the Act on Public Procurement and Concession Contracts.

The competition is limited to procurements conducted in Finland.
 

Award criteria

Many kinds of procurements can be put forward as entries to the competition. The award is not limited to a specific type of procurement or procurement procedure; however, the procurements must fulfil these two requirements to be eligible for participation in the competition:

1. The procurement has been conducted by a contracting entity as defined by the procurement legislation, and the procurement process has been completed by 31 January 2021.
2. The procurement has been conducted in accordance with the Finnish Act on Public Procurement and Concession Contracts (1397/2016) or the Finnish Act on Procurements and Concession Contracts of Entities Operating in the Water and Energy Supply, Transport and Postal Services Sector (1398/2016), and its value exceeds the thresholds.

In selecting the winner, consideration will be given to aspects indicating an overall success of the procurement process. Examples of aspects that may be considered in judging entries include:

• a novel way of procuring
• good interaction during the procurement process
• impact orientation
• effectiveness
• innovativeness
• agile contract development during the contract period

This list is illustrative and not exhaustive — surprise us! We are looking for a procurement process that has been conducted in an exemplary and insightful way, using the means allowed by the procurement legislation and delivering a savvy, overall successful procurement.

With this award, the Public Procurement Advisory Unit wishes to draw attention to best practices and disseminate information on successful procurements.

Submit your entry in February 2021 at the latest

Anyone who has participated in a Finnish procurement process can submit an entry for the savviest procurement award by sending an informal email to the advisory unit’s general email address below. Write “The Savviest of the Year” in the subject field.

Please attach the following to your email:

• Contact information for the contracting unit or the person in charge of the procurement.
• A short description of the reasons why the procurement in question should be granted the Savviest Procurement of the Year award.

The competition closes on 15 February 2021. 

The Public Procurement Unit will ask you for further information if necessary, so do not hesitate to enter!

The Savviest Procurement of the Year will be awarded during the spring

A judging panel appointed by the Public Procurement Advisory Unit will choose the winner based on the announced award criteria. The panel comprises procurement professionals, and it is representative of the procurement field in general.

The winner will be announced and awarded in spring 2021 in a seminar organised by the Public Procurement Advisory Unit.

Questions?

The Public Procurement Advisory Unit is happy to provide more information on the Savviest Procurement of the Year competition.