Outcomes Before Process: When Collaborative Contracts Are Doomed To Fail

Welcome to Uncharted Conversations, a new Navigating Major Programmes series designed to disrupt industry thinking one unscripted conversation at a time. In each episode, the panelists bring their diverse perspectives to the table as self-dubbed industry pirates, adopting a mercenary approach to calling out industry challenges. Up first: collaborative contracts. 

David Ho is the National Leader of Healthcare and Buildings for Accenture. Melissa Di Marco is a Partner and specialist in Project Advisory and Disputes at Accuracy. Shormila Chatterjee is the Vice President of EY. Together, these experienced programme professionals discuss the complexities of collaborative contracting in the infrastructure sector, including often-seen core competency shortcomings and the importance of empowering the right decision makers.

Too often, collaboration is misconstrued as the project goal when it is, in fact, merely one possible vehicle. This conversation delves into market participation, trust issues and risk allocation, and why technical skill shouldn’t top the recruitment checklist. Decision-making, competency, and governance are painstakingly dissected in this no-holds-barred discussion that highlights the problems not with collaborative contracts themselves but with the assumption that choosing this model will fix all the problems. Join these leaders as they explore why the infrastructure industry might be ready for a seismic systemic shift.

Takeaways:

• Why every organization’s first question should be whether they have the skills to manage a collaborative contract.
• The dangers of assuming a collaborative contract will automatically be easier and mitigate risk.
• The need for a strong collection of capable people around the table for any programme model to succeed.
• How systems and governance can be structured with empowerment in mind.
• The soft skills that are essential, and more important than technical experience, for true collaboration.

Quote: 

“The idea ​will ​be ​to enter ​into ​a ​process ​with ​a ​winning ​counterparty. ​We ​can ​call ​them ​whatever ​we ​want, ​development ​partner, ​whatever ​it ​might ​be. But ​that ​period ​of ​dialogue ​and ​iteration,​ ​if ​it ​is ​prescribed ​by ​an ​even ​more ​detailed ​rulebook, in ​my ​mind, ​it ​doesn't ​matter ​if ​the ​end ​of ​that ​rulebook ​still ​doesn't ​have ​a ​fixed ​price. ​All ​you're ​doing ​is ​layering ​on ​a ​set ​of ​rules ​that ​is ​now ​a ​wholly ​dependent ​upon ​the ​behavioural ​interpretations ​of ​the ​people ​playing ​the ​game. ​And ​if ​the ​behavioural ​interpretation ​is, ​I'm ​going ​to ​use ​the ​rules ​to ​my ​advantage ​to ​exploit ​your ​bad ​writing ​of ​the ​rules, ​or ​I'm ​going ​to ​use ​the ​rules ​to ​my ​advantage ​to ​compel ​you ​to ​obey ​no ​matter ​what. ​Then ​forget ​it. ​It's ​not ​collaborative. ​It ​is ​just ​a ​more ​involved ​rule ​book ​​for ​less ​certainty ​of ​outcome.” - David Ho

The conversation doesn’t stop here—connect and converse with our community via LinkedIn:

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• Follow David Ho
• Follow Melissa Di Marco
• Follow Shormilla Chatterjee

Music: "A New Tomorrow" by Chordial Music. Licensed through PremiumBeat.