GSS25091 - Specialist training and coaching in continuous improvement

Description

The final date and time for the submission of bids is Friday 28th March 2025 at 11:00am. DO NOT apply directly to the buyer. All tender information MUST be submitted through the Jaggaer eSourcing Portal. Summary The requirement is for the training, coaching and certification of Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) staff to develop skills and aptitudes to: • Deliver a suite of improvement projects, further embed a culture of Continuous Improvement (CI) and a mindset shift to improvement proactivity and facilitate the removal of waste in processes. Training provision will focus on key activities that enable the approx. 3,000 workforce to add value to both internal and external customers. • Pilot new ways of working. Redesigning future operating models, project delivery methods and culture to improve the effectiveness of the delivery of products, processes and services, and value to both internal and external customers. Where appropriate, STFC would like to evolve a culture which encourages experimentation, innovation, developing deep trust with their people, generating radical transparency and enabling distributed authority. In these areas, STFC want to train and deploy methods such as business agility and agile methodologies, where appropriate. Procurement will cover all STFC training, coaching and learning in these CI and business agility areas, ensuring consistency of approach between staff in our many departments and directorates. This ensures we can better communicate, share lessons learned and benefits from improvement initiatives, while also enabling staff to work efficiently within many teams. Please ensure you review all attached information to ensure a full understanding of this requirement. All attachments can be found with the Supplier Attachments tab within the Jaggaer eSourcing Portal. This contract will be awarded based on the evaluation criteria as set out in the RFP document. How to Apply UK Shared Business Services Ltd (UK SBS) will be using the Jaggaer eSourcing Portal for this procurement. To register on the Jaggaer eSourcing portal please use the link https://beisgroup.ukp.app.jaggaer.com/ and follow the instructions to register as a supplier. If you are already registered on the Jaggaer eSourcing Portal and wish to participate in this procurement, please use the link: https://beisgroup.ukp.app.jaggaer.com/. Once you are logged into the system you will be able to locate the Procurement you wish to leave a bid on by clicking the ITTs Open to All Suppliers and searching for the reference number itt_1985 or GSS25091. Lot 1: The requirement is to deliver the following training and coaching packages to develop continuous improvement and business agility capability. Ambition: Embedding a culture of CI Lean Six Sigma and Follow-on Coaching - Yellow Belt Providing training to 3 cohorts of 10-12 people, preferably delivered in person at one of STFCs sites (virtual a second choice), and educating the individuals in a framework, tools and techniques, and an effective methodology to lead improvement projects and become the central "engine" for process led improvements across the business. The length of the course will be determined by the supplier (circa. 2-3 days) and delivered over a number of consecutive days. STFC expect the successful organisation to equip the cohorts to be able to: • Use change management and soft techniques to lead change effectively • Apply technical Lean Six Sigma skills to deliver sustainable change (technical skills to be demonstrated to at least Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt standard) • Use Agile project management techniques to ensure pragmatic execution of CI projects with an appropriate sense of urgency (e.g. Kanban and/or Scrum) To effectively support staff in delivering their first projects, post-course coaching support is also required; providing the expertise and building the confidence of the project leaders in delivering their first project effectively. The level of coaching required may differ by size of project, time to complete and experience and confidence of the individual, therefore STFC would like the opportunity to flexibly apply a block of coaching (c.150 hours, or 5 hours per project) within the 25/26 financial year. Lean Six Sigma and Follow-on Coaching - Green Belt Providing training to 10 individuals, preferably delivered in person at one of the STFC sites (virtual a second choice) and educating the individuals in a framework, tools and techniques, and an effective methodology to lead improvement projects and become the central "engine" for process led improvements across STFC. The length of the course will be determined by the supplier and delivered over a number of consecutive days. It is expected that the successful organisation will equip attendees to be able to: • Use change management and soft techniques to lead change effectively • Apply technical Lean Six Sigma skills to deliver sustainable change (technical skills to be demonstrated to at least Lean Six Sigma Green Belt standard) • Use Agile project management techniques to ensure pragmatic execution of CI projects with an appropriate sense of urgency. To effectively support our staff in delivering their first projects, post-course coaching support is also required; providing the expertise and building the confidence of the project leaders in delivering their first project effectively. The level of coaching required may differ by size of project, time to complete and experience and confidence of the individual, therefore, STFC would like the opportunity to flexibly apply a block of coaching (c.100 hours, or 10 hours per project) within the 25/26 financial year. Change management and facilitation skills for staff leading change initiatives. In a VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity) world, where constant change is necessary to keep pace with our collaborators and customers, effective capability to lead staff through change initiatives is key to the success of those changes. This includes knowledge of change management tools and processes and business agility, in addition to effective team working tools and facilitation techniques. STFC are looking for training and guidance on state-of-the-art thinking and how to apply it within the organisation: • The VUCA environment, why we need to manage change • Key enablers (e.g. new behaviours, new ways of thinking, empowering teams, servant leadership, psychological safety, growth mindset, ask versus tell, etc.) • Key techniques (communication, vision, stakeholder engagement, embedding the change) • Frameworks and tools which can help us to apply the thinking (e.g. facilitation techniques, Kanban etc.) STFC want to stimulate intrapreneurial / entrepreneurial mindsets, and to encourage radical change across our organisation. Training should be delivered in person (preference, virtual is acceptable) and it is anticipated for 3 cohorts of c. 10-12 people. Lean Business Agility Overview for Leadership One day virtual/in person training for c.24 senior leaders across the organisation (likely 2 cohorts of 12 people each) to provide them with an understanding of Lean Agile approaches, and enable them to become active ambassadors able to champion projects and support transformational activity effectively, demonstrating themselves the mindset and cultural shift necessary to encourage business agility across what STFC do and how the business works to drive innovative thinking, which allows them to maintain their world leading status. The success of building an appetite for a Lean Agile culture across the organisation depends on the buy-in of these individuals. It is expected that this overview includes case studies and/or presentations from CEOs/COOs at similar organisations who have adopted this approach successfully to build confidence in the approach and what it can deliver. At the end of the course, attendees should understand the vital role of leadership within a Lean Agile organisation to enable a high-performance culture with effective change management, responsiveness to change and a rigorous focus on the critical few priorities. The training should include: • Overview of Lean Agile Thinking • Purpose-driven • Focus on customer • Explore versus exploit - incremental versus radical change • Learning organisations and psychological safety • Leadership and empowerment • Incremental improvement using DMAIC • Breakthrough thinking, deploying strategy, and responding to change (use of objectives and key results (OKRs)) • Continuous engagement and creating the right environment where workers are inspired, and can thrive and create • An introduction to Lean Management Systems • Sponsoring initiatives and measuring outcomes: • Lean Systems Thinking • Linking initiatives to the strategy and measuring success (Business Model Canvas, Value Streams, Strategy Map, Balanced Scorecard, OKRs) Overview of Agile Methods for effective and efficient project delivery - training Some STFC teams (c. 20 people) are trialling the delivery of projects using an agile approach and STFC would like to provide these teams with an overview of the use of Agile project management techniques to ensure pragmatic execution of projects with an appropriate sense of urgency (e.g. Kanban and/or Scrum). This course could be a 1-2-day overview, for relevant certification, such as ICAgile, for each delegate on completion. Overview of Agile Methods for effective and efficient delivery - coaching From previous experience, successful teams have benefitted from coaching from trained and experienced agile scrum masters. Coaching should be tailored to the requirements of the teams, but should typically include: • Introduction of ceremonies, with the coach initially taking on the scrum master role • Individual coaching for the team scrum master and product owner, ensuring the team is well-supported once coaching support ends. • Team working agreements and health checks, ensuring teams are working on the right things, as decided by the team • Support for team members leading experiments with ways of working. • Definition of and collection of metrics such that the coaching intervention is proven to be a success. Expertise in science and technology in the public sector will be beneficial. The level of coaching support required will vary depending on the maturity of the team and the level of intervention needed, to be determined by the coach and the team once the contract has been awarded. However, it should be costed based on 40 days support per team, across 3 teams (120 days total). The 40 days would be deployed over the course of a minimum 6-month period, allowing the team time to adapt to new ways of working, and to evaluate their improvements. Continuous Improvement Lead coaching Many of our CI leads within departments are not CI specialists, rather they have been deployed from other roles to support the strategic implementation of a CI programme, using their knowledge of the departments and networks to achieve effective change. These staff have the local knowledge to effect change but require support and guidance from experts to effectively realise the ambitions of their staff. Individual coaching, deployed flexibly based on individual requirements but based on 1h per working week across 5 staff (230 hours total), should cover topics such as: • How to coach other staff who are delivering or participating in change projects • Creating departmental CI strategies, delivery plans and effective reporting (light touch governance) • Stakeholder relationships, particularly senior leadership • Departmental learning and capability mapping. 5S Workshops and leadership training 5S is a CI methodology that is particularly relevant in STFCs physical workspaces (including labs and cleanrooms). Facilitated support for rapid improvement events is required, followed by ongoing support for the team and leadership to support 'Gemba walks' and 'train the trainer' support to deploy 5S further into the organisation (expected to be 3 days total per team). It is anticipated that will be three 5S initiatives per year, in person at STFCs sites in the UK, 9 days in total. The ideal trainer would have expertise in public sector scientific environments, in addition to relevant industry experience.