Large scale pensions administration procurement

Exit management within the Future Services Programme

Cabinet Office had a number of business-critical workstreams in place to ensure the successful delivery of two key projects within the Future Services Programme (FSP). These entailed the transition of the Civil Service Pension Scheme (CSPS) and Royal Mail Statutory Pension Scheme (RMSPS) Pensions Administrative Services to new contracts with the collective value of in excess of £350 million. The migration of the RMSPS contract required a migration and technical re-platforming of the incumbent supplier as they were successful in securing the new contract following a competitive tender. The Cabinet Office asked Lumera Acuity to provide an experienced exit manager to manage these workstreams and ensure the smooth running of the transitions.

Effective programme management and stakeholder engagement

We worked with the wider Pensions directorate to understand the incumbent supplier’s pipeline of work and implement an effective prioritisation, commissioning and monitoring process that protects BAU, key programme delivery and exit activities. By working alongside the Transition and Commercial Leads, we ensured the aims of the clearly identifiable and deliverable were shared with the new supplier, where appropriate. We also provided insight and information to the relevant steering boards, so the service was managed holistically, ensuring coordinated and aligned decision making.

Stakeholder engagement is key to the success of any project and we worked with the Government Major Contracts Portfolio (GMCP) for the CSPS and RMSPS Gold Level contracts, to ensure that Government Commercial functions were effectively engaged throughout the transition and migration to service operations. We helped the Programme Director and Pensions Senior Leadership Team to develop the commercial delivery structure within the GPG Pension Target Operating Model and reported to the FSP Board, CSPS Board and other governance groups as appropriate.

We also represented the FSP in engagement events, including Pension Practitioner and Data Group and Regional Employer Forums and provided commercial and contract management education and awareness training for the Pensions Team.

We were able to establish an effective exit management regime across two exits in a complex environment. Our professionalism and emotional intelligence in the role ensured the incumbents and the new provider worked effectively to deliver their responsibilities. We were able to negotiate fair and appropriate costs, ensuring value for money for the FSP with some significant reductions in exit costs.

Our concise and timely programme management of exit activities ensured the Exit planning and delivery didn’t hold up progress of the FSP, allowing it to run smoothly and to schedule. Lumera Acuity’s technical support through the application of industry knowledge and expertise led to the reduction and mitigation of risks throughout the transition.