Contents
Infrastructure projects span a long period through both the construction and operational phases, and employee skills need to be kept up-to-date. It is reasonable to expect changes in staff, regulation, law and technology over the life of a PPP project.
The goal of contract management team training is to ensure the continuity of knowledge across new staff, strengthen the understanding of the processes already in place for current staff, and develop the skills to be up-to-date with the current industry standards. These goals in return will contribute to the continuity of contract management functions, which is key to successfully managing PPP projects after financial close.
The challenges faced in staff training range from cultural to technical and managerial. In some cases, the project requires a complete transformation of the work culture. For example, this can be the case if an asset, such as an airport, is being run with private involvement for the first time. A change in the work culture will need to occur if the members of the Procuring Authority team are accustomed to more confrontational, fixed-fee type contracts, such as fixed-fee construction contracts, rather than the collaborative environment required for PPPs.
There are two key areas of training that need to be put in place by the Procuring Authority contract management team:
- Project specific training, which covers the PPP contract and processes
- General training on managing PPP projects
Section structure
This section provides guidance on contract management team training. The key elements of successful contract management team training are summarised below and discussed in detail in Subsection 2.2.1 (Guidance):
B. Consider arranging joint training between Project Company staff and Procuring Authority staff
C. Use appropriate external resources to deliver training programs