Digital Professional Services, Technical Expertise and Rapid Resource Deployment

Ofgem will engage the Supplier to provide a managed service for the provision of digital specialists and consultancy resource. The Supplier shall provide individual experts and highly skilled project teams on a fixed delivery model, and be able to manage, deliver and assume responsibility for the outcome of various projects / programmes / requirements. The nature of requirements will include 'Statement of Works' (SOW) consultancy and professional services to research, test, design, build, release, iterate, support, project manage or retire digital services.

It is also expected that the Supplier will aid Ofgem in its efforts to resolve the in-house technical skills gap through both the upskilling of existing staff members in digital capabilities. Specialist resource (individuals or teams) will be required to complete individual milestones or specific project deliverables related to the programme(s) of work. These will be communicated by Ofgem's contract manager via a SOW on an individual project basis.

It is a mandatory requirement for Ofgem that every specialist(s) onboarded via this engagement must be Baseline Personal Security Standard (BPSS) Certified and, in special cases (Ofgem to advise if applicable to the role and circumstances), Security Clearance (SC) approved.

It is envisaged that Ofgem will appoint either a single provider or multiple providers (potentially up to 3), who are able to deploy highly skilled project teams or individuals to deliver against a defined set of requirements, within an agreed and signed ‘Statement of Work’ (SOW) along with clear delivery and payment milestones for individual programmes / projects / requirements.

The nature of requirements will include, but not be limited to, consultancy and professional services, to research, test, design, build, release, iterate, support, project manage or retire digital services.

As part of the requirement, Ofgem will be looking to deploy specialists for short, medium, and potentially longer-term assignments in areas such as:

• User experience and design
• Performance analysis and data
• Security
• Technical service delivery
• Software development
• Infrastructure
• Support and operations
• Testing and auditing
• User research
• Project Management
• IT engineering, including technical leads and DevOps
• Supplier and procurement management (Working with Ofgem’s Procurement and Digital Commercial Teams)
• The tenderer may be expected to sub-contract outside resource where they are unable to directly deliver Ofgem's requirements due to technical speciality or within a reasonable timescale.

Ofgem would expect all services within the contract to be delivered “off-payroll”, outside of IR35.

Tenderers should expect to provide their own equipment, but may be required to use Ofgem equipment or a VPN solution in order to securely access and update sensitive documentation and content.

Indicatively, one commercial option being explored would be to benchmark pricing using day-rate cards for individuals against day rates based on the above job roles using the following skills framework:

• Follow
• Assist
• Apply
• Enable
• Ensure/Advise
• Initiate/Influence
• Set Strategy/Inspire

Ofgem also require tenderers to propose innovative ideas and solutions to help resolve the in house permanent skills gaps. This will be a scored part of any future tender.

The purpose of this PIN notice is to engage early with the supply market, to enable Ofgem to better define our requirements and approach the market with an appropriate tender specification which will enable Ofgem to achieve quality outcomes, value-for-money, and a partnership(s) with a supplier(s) who share common values and goals. Additional information: Please note, for all potential areas within this section, the scope/specification may be subject to change based on the market engagement.