Assignment title: Information
ASSESSMENT BRIEF – Assessment 1
Subject Code and Title PROJ6004: Contracts and Procurement
Assessment Assessment 1: Contracts and Procurement Case Study –
Report – Review of new Royal Adelaide Hospital Auditor
General Report (and associated Learning Resources),
including detailed analysis of findings.
Individual/Group Individual Report and Reflection Journal
Length Report Format approximately 2,400 words
Learning Outcomes 1. Critically evaluate the risks associated with
contract and procurement management
approaches and make recommendations to
global project sponsors with regard to ‘best
practice’ in this area.
2. Apply judgement and initiative in the
development of ‘best practice’ contract and
procurement process for global project
management, identifying the external factors
that need to be considered and mitigated for in
every instance.
3. Analyse the responsibilities of the procurement
manager and project manager necessary to
ensure stakeholder satisfaction and successful
project outcomes.
Submission By 11:55pm AEST/AEDT Sunday end of Module 3
Weighting 40%.
There are 4 parts to Assessment 1 and each part is
equally weighted at 10%
Total Marks 40 marks
Context:
General
Procurement and contracts are integral to successful project management. Planning for
purchases and acquisitions, requests for proposal, vendor selection, contract
administration, and contract closure are integral parts of the process. Learning from Case
Studies and benchmarking against better practices, standards and excellence is vital to
understand complexity of issues and successful strategies for procurement and contract
PROJ6004_Assessment_1_Brief Page 2 of 1
management. It will also ensure improved responsiveness to key issues, promote supplier-
client relationships through proactive management of risks and ultimately deliver higher
level of focus on performance-based outcomes.
Specific (Assessment 1 Context)
Assessment 1 is about uncovering complexities in the procurement context generally,
identifying key issues, looking at leadership, governance and key themes that will allow
improved focus, reflection and learning.
Assessment 1 - Individual Report (overall 2,400 Words) based on review Case Study (new
Royal Adelaide Hospital AG Report) and other Learning Resources.
Students are encouraged to look at the Essential and Highly Recommended Learning
Resources and other public documents associated with the new Royal Adelaide Hospital.
However, a careful thorough review of the South Australian Auditor General Report for
2015 is required to understand the contracts and procurement issues that have arisen
during the execution of the new Royal Adelaide Hospital project, ongoing risks
mitigations and lessons learnt that can be applied to other large infrastructure projects.
Assessment 1 aims to encourage a deeper understanding of the challenges faced in large
complex projects – particularly with procurement methods that involve private-sector
finance to deliver complex projects – which is a significant method of procurement
because it can mobilise global financial and procurement capability to innovatively build
public infrastructure and facilities to meet the needs of the growing population.
Students are also encouraged to understand and explore the related organisational
issues, stakeholders and the funding and finance aspects associated with the new Royal
Adelaide Hospital project.
Instructions:
Assessment 1 is designed around the review of a Case Study from a current large-scale
public private partnership hospital project that aims to create a modern health-care facility
in South Australia. This assessment comprises of four parts:
Part A: 800 Words (maximum) Introduction summarising the procurement context (life
cycle journey and where the project is currently), uncover complexities (and key issues),
discuss project environment and organisation aspects, leadership and governance and
how that has influenced the current situation.
Part B: 800 Words (maximum) Identify key risks, mitigations and possible learnings.
Where learnings have wider implications, identify how those learnings may require
changes to roles and responsibilities of key project resources, changes to procurement
briefs or specifications, scope and the procurement process itself. Identify
dependencies and common themes.
PROJ6004_Assessment_1_Brief Page 3 of 1
Part C: 800 Words (maximum) – Summary of key findings and also identify best practices
for procurement and contracts management (in particular PPP procurement) and
explore roles of project and procurement managers in ensuring successful delivery.
Part D: Copy of the Reflection Journal that summarises student’s ideas and thoughts and
key aspects pertaining to Module 1 and Module 2 including any key aspects picked-up as
a result of the review of the Essential and Highly Recommended Learning Resources and
critical self-assessment of how some aspects may apply to student’s current or future
roles. Reflection Journal is expected to have a nominal word limit of 800 words.
Important Note: The research effort put-in by students in Assessment 1 is vital input for
Assessment 2 and Assessment 3 as it will provide actionable information for better
participation in the discussion board as well as within Groups.
It is recommended that students Reflection Journal also cover some of the topics below –
which will help students for Assessment 2:
Typical procurement and financial risks require to be managed for complex projects;
Specific financial risks that remain for the nRAH project to completion (use initiative
and judgement);
Possible mitigation actions and how these relate to better practice guidelines
published by State Procurement Board of South Australia;
Areas for further vendor negotiations and management - to achieve successful
contract completion.
Areas of key accountability for Project Manager and Procurement Manager to
facilitate successful outcomes;
Areas performance-based contracting and its application to nRAH contract
management or completions effort generally;
Possible Issues that can be considered by the Group/Team for Group Report or
Group Presentation;
Possible team/group behaviours that the individuals will display to develop the
Group Report or Group Presentation.
In considering the above, please be mindful of, and reflect on, the findings and the lessons
learnt from the case study and how they can be applied in your own personal development
and professional career. Record these in your Reflection Journal and also highlight any
specific instances where your strengths and limitations as a project manager or manager
have been identified.
Learning Activities and Output:
The learning process will involve the deconstruction of the case study material to answer
questions, examine lessons learnt and highlight issues for further discussion. You will be
encouraged to reflect on your case study findings in order to identify contracts and
PROJ6004_Assessment_1_Brief Page 4 of 1
procurement management best practices which can be applied in the future to significant
projects that you may lead as project manager or oversee in a senior role.
Learning output will be a Report Format for Assessment 1 - using the Instructions noted
above.
Learning Resources:
Resource on APA style:
The URL/page for the TUA referencing guides is
http://onlinelibrary.tua.edu.au/skills/referencing
Resource on report writing:
Victoria University of Wellington (2013). How to write a business report. School of
Marketing and Internal Business and Student Learning Support Service, Wellington,
New Zealand.
http://www.victoria.ac.nz/vbs/teaching/publications/VBS-report- writing-guide-
2013-July.pdf
Resource on writing case study reports
Monash University (2015). Case study report (sample). Learning Support, Language
and Learning Online, Melbourne, Australia.
http://www.monash.edu.au/lls/llonline/writing/general/report/1.xml
Refer to the subject planner and Modules 1 and 2 for other learning resources
specific to Assessment 1.
Assessment Criteria:
Assessment 1 (Parts A, B, C and D inclusive) Individual Report (40%)
Content, audience and purpose (30%)
Knowledge and understanding (30%)
Correct citation of key resources and evidence (20%)
Effective communication (20%)
The Reflection Journal will also be assessed and has a weight of 10% out of 40%. In addition,
students may wish to consider that the audience for the Reflection Journal is the Learning
Facilitator and or the student’s employer or sponsor. Therefore, effective communication of
ideas is vital recognising the audience too. See