Scottish procurement: policy manual

Contract and Supplier Management (CSM)

In discussions with the customer (i.e. the business area) Procurement Officers and DPOs should ensure that all parties, particularly the customer, are clear on ownership of CSM activities and that a contract manager must be appointed. The SPFM requires that the contract manager is a permanent member of staff. CSM guidance is provided in the Procurement Journey.

Before taking on any CSM responsibilities, the mandatory training requirements must be completed: Training Video and Module 1: Essentials. Procurement Officers and DPOs should also familiarise themselves with the Scottish Government Contract Management Handbook, which provides guidance on CSM, and sets out the responsibilities of a contract manager.

The Scottish Government’s Contract and Supplier Management team provide support and guidance on many aspects of CSM to anyone who is managing a Scottish Government contract. There is a cost for this CSM support, full details are explained in the charging guidelines.

To request CSM support, or for further information on this subject, please contact CSMT@gov.scot. However, if your procurement support is provided by either the Central Government Procurement Shared Services Team or More Powers Implementation Procurement Teams, please direct queries and requests for advice directly to your point of contact within these teams.