Contractual notices

NHS England – Creating Commercial Contract Management Control Across a National Supplier Portfolio

Client Types Buyer
Life Cycle Stage In-Life Management & Governance
Sectors Health, Public Sector & Government
Undermasthead Shape

Pain point:

“Inconsistent documentation and governance of our contracts is exposing the organisation to commercial risk.”

When documentation is incomplete and contract clauses are interpreted inconsistently, organisations struggle to defend claims, manage change effectively or demonstrate compliance. This can lead to disputes, delayed decisions, audit risk and unnecessary commercial exposure.

See how Clear established a central contract management and supplier governance capability to reduce commercial risk, resolve supplier disputes and strengthen long-term commercial control.

Commercial Outcome

  • Established a central contract management and supplier governance capability overseeing £11bn of annual non-clinical procurement spend
  • Reduced commercial risk and supplier disputes through clear obligation management and structured governance processes
  • Improved financial control, budgeting accuracy and purchase-to-pay discipline across a large supplier ecosystem
  • Embedded sustainable contract management capability, systems and trained personnel within NHS England
  • Implemented a Kraljic Model segmentation analysis of the supplier base and a proportionate reporting, tiered supplier relationship management approach and contract management toolkit across the commercial contract lifecycle

Situation

NHS England manages approximately £11 billion of annual non-clinical procurement spend across more than 25,000 suppliers. Historically there was no centralised contract management capability, resulting in fragmented governance, limited visibility of contractual obligations and inconsistent supplier management.

Disagreements with suppliers frequently arose where contractual commitments, dependencies and variations were unclear, particularly where services were already being delivered without formal governance processes in place.

NHS England engaged Clear Consulting to implement a centralised contract management and supplier relationship management capability, supported by systems, processes and governance frameworks that would provide control, transparency and improved commercial outcomes.

Objectives

  • Establish a central contract management and supplier governance function
  • Implement structured purchase-to-pay governance and financial monitoring processes
  • Develop a contract register and obligation management framework
  • Improve supplier performance monitoring and reporting
  • Introduce proportionate contract management based on supplier risk and strategic importance utilising a Kraljic segmentation model

Services

Contract Governance and Capability

  • Established a central contract management function and governance framework
  • Implemented the Contract Management Toolkit including templates, processes and reporting mechanisms
  • Developed structured obligation management and dependency tracking

Systems and Financial Control

  • Defined requirements and supported implementation of a cloud-based contract register and contract management system
  • Implemented budget monitoring and spend forecasting processes
  • Introduced purchase-to-pay automation and invoice reconciliation controls

Supplier Management and Segmentation

  • Developed supplier segmentation based on risk and strategic importance using the Kraljic Matrix
  • Implemented proportionate supplier governance, performance reporting and dashboard monitoring
  • Established KPI and SLA monitoring processes

Commercial Risk and Dispute Management

  • Introduced change management governance and contractual notice processes
  • Supported claims analysis, dispute resolution and contract renegotiation

Capability Development

  • Delivered training for finance, procurement and operational teams
  • Supported recruitment and onboarding of permanent contract management personnel
  • Provided knowledge transfer to ensure long-term internal capability

Achievements

  • Established a fully operational contract management and supplier governance function for NHS England non-clinical procurement
  • Implemented structured contract management systems, processes and performance reporting frameworks
  • Reduced supplier disputes through improved obligation management and governance
  • Strengthened financial control through improved purchase-to-pay processes and budgeting oversight
  • Implemented risk-based supplier segmentation enabling proportionate contract management across 25,000 suppliers
  • Developed internal capability through training, recruitment and knowledge transfer

Inconsistent documentation and governance of our contracts is exposing the organisation to commercial risk.

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