Michael O'Brien Email & Phone Number

I currently work for the Office of Government Procurement (OGP), which operates as an office of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, is headed by the Government Chief Procurement Officer, Mr. Paul Quinn, to lead on the Public Procurement Reform Programme by:Integrating procurement policy, strategy and operations in one office;Strengthening spend analytics and data management;Securing sustainable savings.The OGP is here to meet the public sector’s sourcing needs, by putting in place quality solutions that deliver value for money. We realise that different clients have different needs and so we keep our frameworks and contracts as flexible – and as easy to use – as possible to take account of those needs.The OGP takes a balanced approach to delivering value for the taxpayer and and supports SME access to public procurement including by:Undertaking market analysis prior to tendering in order to better understand the range of goods and services on offer; market developments and innovation; what commercial models are available; the competitive landscape; and the specific capabilities of SMEs etc.Setting proportionate eligibility requirements, for example insurance and turnover, to support SME participationBreaking tendering competitions into smaller lots (for example, by sector, region, value etc.) where possible,to actively encourage SME participation and to align with the capacity and capability of the marketplaceActively engaging in a range of events to help foster awareness of and to encourage engagement in the public procurement processSupporting supplier awareness of eTenders, the national tendering platform (etenders.gov.ie)(Ogp.gov.ie, 2018)

Listed skills include Quantity Surveying, Cost Reporting, Construction, Surveying, and 17 others.