Last edited 16 Dec 2020

Opportunity framing workshop

The Construction Playbook, Government Guidance on sourcing and contracting public works projects and programmes Version 1, produced by the Cabinet Office and published in December 2020, is focused on getting projects and programmes right from the start. Its principles and policies are intended to transform how public works projects and programmes are assessed, procured and managed. It is a ‘compact’ between government and industry, setting out how they will work together in future.

In relation to opportunity framing workshops it states:

‘We should bring together people with functional delivery expertise at a time when the ability to influence changes in strategic planning and project design is relatively high and the cost to make those changes is relatively low.

‘Any new central government initiative that is likely to result in a major project should go through an opportunity framing workshop (building on former ‘Project Validation Reviews’ or PVRs) to achieve this.

‘The purpose of these workshops is to:

‘create alignment and clarity between the project team, decision makers and key stakeholders on the opportunity of the project – the purpose, intended outcomes and scope
‘build a shared understanding of the requirement
‘identify critical success factors and associated risks and opportunities
‘determine scope of effort required to deliver and understand any capacity or capability gaps that may impede delivery

‘Getting all teams on the same page from day one puts us in a position to make good decisions right at the start and ensures we are focused on how we will drive better, faster and greener delivery and improved outcomes.

‘The standards that people should work to are specified within government functional standards including GovS 008 Commercial, GovS 002 Project Delivery, GovS 004 Property and GovS 006 Finance.’

For more information see: The Construction Playbook.