• The department’s policy on the selection of consultants
• Summary of consultancies
• Details of consultancies

The department’s policy on the selection of consultants

The department engages individuals and companies to provide professional services under contracts for service, taking account of the skills and resources required for the task, the skills available internally and the cost-effectiveness of these options.

Consultancy services are one particular type of service delivered under a contract for services. They are distinguished from other contracts for services by the nature of the work performed. A consultant is an entity, whether an individual, a partnership or a corporation, engaged to provide professional independent and expert advice or services.

Consultants are typically engaged to:

• investigate or diagnose a defined issue or problem;

• carry out defined research, reviews or evaluations; or

• provide independent advice, information or creative solutions to assist the agency in management decision making.

By contrast, other (non-consultancy) contracts for services will be more restrictive in the degree of latitude afforded to the contractor. These types of contracts may be characterised by a clear and tight specification of the form of product or service to be produced; or by a set of specific requirements as to the manner in which work is to be performed.

The decision to engage a consultant is made by programme managers in accordance with the department’s Financial Management Manual (Section 6: Procurement) and the Procurement Manual.

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Summary of consultancies

Table 48 summarises, by organisational structure, the number of consultancies providing services for the department in 2002-03 and the total expenditure on them, regardless of the year in which the contract was let.

Table 48: Summary of consultancies

Source: Departmental records. This information is subject to revision.

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Details of consultancies

Table 49 provides details of consultancy contracts let in 2002-03 by the department and the value of the contract over its entire life. Contracts with a value of less than $10 000 have not been included, in line with Annual Reporting requirements of the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit.

Table 49: Consultancy contracts let in 2002-03

Group	PRN Ref	Contract Number	Consultant	Description	Contract Value ($)	Reason for Consultancy (Code A)	Tender Arrangements (Code B)
AEI Group	PRN03107	2471	Australian Council for Education Research (ACER)	Develop an aptitude test for use with international students entering the school sector	212 290	SS	4
AEI Group	PRN02553	1982	David Back Pty Ltd	Market testing of commercial relevance of International Group’s products and services	10 810	SS	2
AEI Group	PRN02744	2131	Department of Education and Training	China/Australia sectoral studies group contributions towards TAFE costs for IT group	11 000	SS	2
AEI Group	PRN02747	2134	Department of Education, Training & Employment, South Australia	China/Australia sectoral studies group contribution to TAFE placement for tourism	11 000	SS	2
AEI Group	PRN02969	2272	Horne, Robert	Under AusAIDS's education period contract for the review of the Australian Development Scholarships (ADS) stipend	30 000	SS	4
AEI Group	PRN02169	2332	National Centre for Vocational Education Research Ltd (NCVER)	Conduct research to define, quantify and characterise Australian vocational education and training offshore and to enumerate the students who enrol in them	83 908	SS	4
AEI Group	PRN02370	1837	RMIT University	Study on strategies for overcoming barriers to trade in education and training services	25 141	SS	3
AEI Group	PRN02941	2453	TAFE Global Pty Ltd	Thailand vocational education and training amalgamation project	105 808	SS	3
AEI Group	PRN02741	2130	TAFE NSW - Southern Sydney Institute	China/Australia sectoral studies group: contribution towards TAFE costs for four China participants - auto group	11 000	SS	2
AEI Group	PRN02745	2132	TAFE Queensland	China/Australia sectoral studies group: contribution towards TAFE costs for horticulture group	11 000	SS	2
AEI Group	PRN02946	2488	University of Western Sydney	SEAMEO-Australia project - development of ICT implementation plan	76 991	SS	3
AEI Group				Sub-Total	588 948
Corporate Strategy Group	PRN02875	2376	Batey Kazoo Communications Pty Ltd (trading as Batey House)	Creative agency for New Apprenticeships campaign advertising 2003	871 324	SS	2
Corporate Strategy Group	PRN02549	2642	Hill and Knowlton Australia Pty Ltd	Provision of public relations services for the announcement of the national waste repository	71 788	PA	2
Corporate Strategy Group	PRN02495	1983	Indigenous Employment Specialists	Provision of training services to DEST staff who deliver Indigenous programmes	49 920	SS	4
Corporate Strategy Group	PRN02633	107	P3 Pty Ltd	Independent consultancy service to assist with the new printing RFT	10 000	PA	3
Corporate Strategy Group	PRN02815	2184	Peter Grills	Investigation of an anonymous complaint	38 201	IS	3
Corporate Strategy Group	PRN02923	125	Universal McCann	Media buy for New Apprenticeships campaign 2003	3 606 815	PA	2
Corporate Strategy Group	PRN02854	2303	Worthington Di Marzio Pty Ltd	Market research for New Apprenticeships campaign 2003-2006	209 740	SS	2
Corporate Strategy Group				Sub-Total	4 857 788
Higher Education Group	PRN02695	2163	Australian Government Actuary	Provide actuarial advice on HECS, PELS, higher education superannuation and other matters as required	1 196 515	SS	4
Higher Education Group	PRN03276	2473	Australian Institute for Commercialisation Limited	Develop and distribute the 2003 National Survey of Research Commercialisation for the years 2001 and 2002, collect data, undertake data analysis and draft the report under the direction of DEST and a steering committee	97 691	SS	4
Higher Education Group	PRN03105	2377	James Cook University	The Doctoral Curriculum: Needs and Directions in Research Training - follow-up study and recommendations for reform	121 000	PA	4
Higher Education Group	PRN03280	2476	John Yencken, trading as Karingal Consultants	Produce a study of incentives provided by Go8 and ATN universities to research staff to commercialise the outcomes of their research	30 360	IS	3
Higher Education Group	PRN02909	2334	Regional Knowledge Works	Conduct research and develop resources to enhance the 1999 publication Benchmarking- A Manual for Australian Universities	77 000	SS	3
Higher Education Group	PRN03157	2635	University of Technology Sydney	Conduct research on Australian academic salaries, 1976-2002	16 500	PA	4
Higher Education Group				Sub-Total	1 539 066
Indigenous Group	PRN02192	1934	AAAJ Consulting Group	The provision of a qualitative reporting support service for education providers who are delivering initiatives under the National Indigenous English Literacy & Numeracy Strategy (NIELNS)	43 380	PA	3
Indigenous Group	PRN02473	2054	Australian Council for Education Research (ACER)	Evaluation of the University of Canberra programme for advanced literacy development, the Scaffolding Literacy Programme with Indigenous Children in School	77 922	IS	3
Indigenous Group	PRN02414	2091	Bruce Callaghan and Associates	Review of independent Indigenous vocational education and training providers	38 236	IS	1
Indigenous Group	PRN02620	2036	Carlyle Consulting Pty Ltd	Implementation of business management improvement plan at Worowa Aboriginal College Inc, Healesville, Victoria	34 400	SS	4
Indigenous Group	PRN03052	2307	Carlyle Consulting Pty Ltd	Consultancy Services at Worawa Aboriginal College to oversee the operations until the appointment of a new Principal and then to support the new Principal and board of management	41 400	SS	4
Indigenous Group	PRN02622	2124	Lantern Consultancy	Writing, editing and proof-reading of the National Report to Parliament on Indigenous Education and Training, 2001	19 000	PA	4
Indigenous Group	PRN02246	2149	National Curriculum Services	Consultancy for What Works professional development package workshop project	1 492 150	PA	1
Indigenous Group	PRN02384	2022	Northern Territory University	Review of Indigenous education consultative bodies and Indigenous support units	67 595	IS	1
Indigenous Group	PRN03010	2281	REDinC	To produce a draft and final Strategic Directions Paper on directions in Indigenous education and training	10 230	SS	4
Indigenous Group	PRN03252	2463	REDinC	To develop a research paper: Strategic Directions Paper on Indigenous education and training	10 230	SS	3
Indigenous Group	PRN02392	2067	Sunshine Orange	Conduct financial audit of Yipirinya School	16 500	SS	4
Indigenous Group				Sub-Total	1 851 043
Information Services Group	PRN02696	2108	Clauden Pty Ltd	IT consultancy advisory services	22 000	PA	4
Information Services Group				Sub-Total	22 000

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