PCD 1774 Met Business Services ITT

This paper seeks approval for the progression of the programme for the Met Business Services function which includes the systems and transactional services associated with finance, human resources and procurement.  In addition, the programme has incorporated the replacement for the existing Computer Aided Resource Management (CARM) system which deals with officer deployment functions.  

In order to progress the project approval is sought to initiate procurement and issue an invitation to tender with a view to carrying out the procurement during 2025 and to bring a full business case to MOPAC in September/October 2025. The paper also seeks approval for £9,000,000 of funding to support the procurement process, simplify processes and prepare for the system build. 

The Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime is recommended to:   

1. Approve in principle the release of an ITT for a vendor to implement Oracle Fusion, a CARMS (Rostering Management System) replacement and thereafter provide ongoing run services, replacing the current SSCL contract for Finance, HR and Commercial services. We are requesting that MOPAC delegate final approval of ITT release to MPS Commercial, who will provide quality assurance. 

2. Approve the release of Internal Programme Costs of £9,000,000 for FY2025/26 to support the procurement process, preparation for system build, process simplification and delivery of quick wins. These funds have been provisioned in the MTFP based on the previous submission. 

PART I - NON-CONFIDENTIAL FACTS AND ADVICE TO THE DMPC 

1. Introduction and background  

1. The existing contract for the HR, Finance and Procurement system and services with SSCL will expire by September 2027.  The existing Computer Aided Resource Management (CARM) system is old, slow, has poor processes, and lacks effective integration with other systems. Since 2019 two attempts to re-procure it have failed.  

2. Issues for consideration 

1. The proposal in this paper is to issue an invitation to tender (ITT) for the provision of an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system and a Rostering Management System (RMS), and the services to manage and operate them. 

2. The MPS is proposing that the ERP system upon which the procurement will be based should be a new Oracle Fusion ERP system.  The current ERP is based on the Oracle R12 system which will soon be out of support, and the continued use of an oracle based system is expected to provide benefits over and above replacement by another system. Further detail is set out in the restricted section of this paper.  

3. The MPS has considered the scope of the services to be provided by an external provider and which services would be better provided in-house.  Currently the range of services targeted for re-insourcing include control and management of the recruitment process, reporting and analytical services, and complex HR Case Management amongst others.  Some targeted insourcing may begin in 2025, where possible, under the constraints of the existing contract. 

4. The MPS has engaged with TfL and other police forces to consider opportunities for collaborative procurement. In order to collaborate all parties would need to operate the same instance of the Oracle system.  TfL currently operate a SAP system.  The procurement process will include the facility for other police forces to join the system and services if using the same instance of Oracle, and via a contract with MPS. 

5. In order to reduce costs and benefit from simplification the MPS will adopt the standard ‘out-of-the-box’ functionality as far as possibly, with changes to the MPS process and policies where needed. 

6. The replacement of the Computer Aided Resource Management system (CARMs) has been incorporated into the wider Met Business Services (MBS) programme due to the inter-action of managing officer and staff duties/rosters and the financial and human resource management functions.  Combining the ERP and Roster Management will enable greater efficiency in the deployment of “the right people to the right place at the right time”, deliver internal programme synergies and savings, and create a product more attractive to the market.  The development of the RMS may be fast-tracked to meet operational needs. This will be assessed further during the procurement. In parallel with the procurement MBS will on-board external SMEs that have delivered similar rostering projects across a number of sectors. MPS will work to finalise a recommendation on a new Duties Strategy ahead of contract finalisation, with a planned delivery date no later than August 2025. 

7. The anticipated benefits of the new systems and services are that there will be improved user experience and financial benefits from 2027 onwards, supporting the New Met for London ambition of “fixing the foundations” – particularly simplifying processes, removing siloes and driving end-to-end services and accountability. In parallel to the procurement and build, MBS will be leveraging the pre-work in preparing for the migration to deliver much needed end-to-end process and data service improvements as ‘Quick Wins’ before 2027. 

3. Financial Comments  

1. This paper seeks approval for the release of £9,000,000 to support the procurement process, preparation for system build, process simplification and delivery of quick wins during 2025/26. The MPS assure that these funds have been provisioned in the Medium Term Financial Plan (MTFP).  

4. Legal Comments 

1. The Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (“MOPAC”) is a contracting authority as defined in the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (“the Regulations”).  All awards of public contracts for goods and/or services valued at £214,904 or above shall be procured in accordance with the Regulations. This report confirms the value of the proposed contract exceeds this threshold.   

2. The Directorate of Legal Services assures that the MOPAC’s route to market is compliant with the Regulations. 

3. The MOPAC Scheme of Delegation and Consent provides the Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime (“DMPC”) has delegated authority to approve:  

• Business cases for revenue or capital expenditure of £500,000 and above (paragraph 4.8); and 

• All requests to go out to tender for contracts of £500,000 or above, or where there is a particular public interest (paragraph 4.13).  

5. Commercial Issues  

1. This proposal seeks the approval to go to the market for the implementation of both a new rostering management system and a new Oracle Fusion Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system, and to provide out-sourced services for transactional functions relating to finance, HR and commercial. 

2. The proposed route to market is via a Invitation to Tender. 

3. The MPS assure that in terms of delivering the London Anchor Institutions’ Charter the establishment of Met Business Services in Kilburn and the Delivery Model Assessment (DMA), there are identified targeted services for re-insourcing and bringing back to London. These include control and management of the recruitment process, reporting and analytical services and complex HR Case Management amongst others.  The evaluation of bidders will include a weighting of 10% for social value. 

6. GDPR and Data Privacy  

1. MOPAC will adhere to the Data Protection Act (DPA) 2018 and ensure that any organisations who are commissioned to do work with or on behalf of MOPAC are fully compliant with the policy and understand their GDPR responsibilities.   

2. The MPS assure that a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) has been completed for this programme which will be reviewed with the DAPIAN Team throughout the programme duration.  The programme will ensure privacy by design approach, which will allow the MPS to find and fix problems at the early stages of any project, ensuring compliance with GDPR. 

7. Equality Comments  

1. MOPAC is required to comply with the public sector equality duty set out in section 149(1) of the Equality Act 2010. This requires MOPAC to have due regard to the need to eliminate discrimination, advance equality of opportunity and foster good relations by reference to people with protected characteristics. The protected characteristics are: age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation. 

2. The MPS assure that these proposals do not change any aspects relating to equality or diversity, although improved control over the recruitment service and better reporting and analytical services will enable MPS more easily to deliver their commitments.  

8. Background/supporting papers 

• Appendix 1 MPS Report - MBS ITT Release