Contract Handover Guideline

When a handover is required

A contract handover should take place where a contract developer’s role has concluded, and a contract manager takes responsibility for ongoing contract management or when there is a change of contract manager.

The Department of Finance (Finance) facilitates goods and services and community services procurements on behalf of most agencies where the estimated contract value is equal to or greater than $250,000 (GST Inclusive). If Finance was involved in the procurement process, Finance staff must hand over the contract to the agency’s nominated contract manager and/or primary Finance contact.

Where an agency conducts its own procurement process, a handover will be required where the person managing the contract is different to the person who developed the contract.

Contract handover process

Ensure that the handover process chosen is commensurate with the value and risk of the contract, as well as the level of experience that the contract manager has. For example, the handover of a low value, low risk contract will be much simpler than a high value, high risk contract. For higher risk contracts, it is strongly recommended that the contract manager is part of the contract development process. The contract developer should also meet with the contract manager to discuss the contract and their contract management responsibilities during the contract handover.

The contract management phase begins once the contract has been awarded. It is important that contract managers are equipped to effectively manage the contract following contract award.

Below are some suggested steps to help the handover process run as smoothly as possible. These steps should be taken by the contract developer or the exiting contract manager.

1. Understand the contract manager’s experience

Understanding the level of experience a contract manager has in managing similar contracts will help to facilitate handover discussions at the appropriate level.

Contract managers with less experience or those who want a refresher should be directed to the following resources:

• Section E of the WA Procurement Rules
• Western Australian Contract Management Framework Principles
• Finance’s general contract management training offerings
• Finance’s contract management training offerings for community services practitioners (if applicable)
• contract management guidelines; and
• any internal agency specific frameworks and guidelines.

2. Schedule a handover meeting

The handover meeting should take place as soon as possible after contract award or when the contract manager is changing. If possible, a meeting invite should be sent before contract award to lock in a date with the contract manager. If unsure about the contract award date, send out a placeholder and confirm the date later.

A meeting may not be required for the handover of low value, low risk contracts.

3. Gather contract handover documents

1. Identify the contract documents that need to be handed over and have them ready to send. The documents must be the final and, if applicable, signed versions. It may be useful to save all the handover documents in one folder to make sure that nothing has been missed.
2. Documents should then be sent to the contract manager prior to the handover meeting (where a meeting is required).
3. Populate the Contract Handover Checklist to the extent possible for finalisation at the handover meeting.

Contract management practice resources

There are a range of practice resources available to support contract managers in their role. It’s a good idea for contract managers to familiarise themselves with these resources prior to the contract management phase.

The Contract Management Guidelines provide practical tips and information on how to effectively manage a contract. Other helpful documents include:

• Western Australian Contract Management Framework Principles 
• Red Flags During Contract Management.  

These should be read prior to the contract management phase and referred to as needed throughout the life of the contract.

To support effective contract management, there are a suite of Goods and Services and Community Services templates which assist contract managers in undertaking contract management tasks including contract transitions, variations, extensions, and reviews.

Agencies may also have their own contract management resources, processes, and procedures to support contract managers.

For new contract managers or contract managers who want a refresher, there are two free training courses available:

• The Introduction to Contract Management training is delivered online and consists of five modules which introduce the fundamentals of contract management.
• The Contract Management Essentials training is a one-day, face-to-face or online workshop and builds on the topics covered in the online module.
• The Contract Management Essentials for Community Services Practitioners training is a one-day, online workshop specifically for officers who are involved with community services procurement and contract management.

All relevant contract documents need to be sent to the contract manager prior to the handover meeting (where a meeting is required) to give them time to read the documents and prepare any questions for the meeting. The documents should be sent electronically unless it is impractical to do so, in which case the hard copy original should be handed over.

The following documents should be sent to the contract manager:

• Relevant Conditions of Contract
• Request document and any addenda
• Respondent’s Offer
• Evaluation Report
• Contract Award Letter
• Contract Management Workbook
• Contract Management Plan templates
• Risk matrix (if this is a standalone document)
• Certificates of currency
• Documents that could be required for audit purposes such as ‘unsuccessful’ letters, advice from the State Solicitor’s office, tender validity extension letters, tender clarification emails etc.
• Negotiation log clearly identifying final position agreed
• Security Instruments (such as bank guarantees or insurance bonds)
• Other documents (if applicable): Procurement Plan, Service Level Agreements, Conflicts of Interest declarations, records relating to monitoring KPIs

If a handover discussion or meeting could not be conducted, document the reasons why on the Contract Handover Checklist.

Ensure that the chosen method of distributing the documents is safe and preserves the confidentiality of the contract documents where required. If unsure, please contact your ICT department for advice.

The table below list the items that should be discussed with the contract manager.