This page provides step by step instructions on how to use the All-of-Government (AoG) GCDO assurance services panel. You may also find additional resources on this page.
The focus of this step is on the participating agency defining the specific objectives and scope of the engagement, including key dates and deliverables.
Start by ascertaining the type of assurance services that you need to source from the GCDO panel:
For more detailed information on the assurance services available under the GCDO panel, refer to the GCDO assurance services guide on the GCDO website.
The focus of this step is on selecting a provider who meets your specific requirements.
A participating agency can choose to source a provider from the GCDO panel directly, undertake a secondary selection process or simply complete Part A of the Consultancy Services Order (CSO) and issue this to one or more providers.
In making this decision consider the budget, timeframes, specific nature of the requirement and any existing or past relationships, as well as any internal financial delegations and processes your agency may have.
The CoE has developed a secure web based Online Panel Directory for participating agencies to use to search, filter, compare and shortlist providers based on their needs without needing to refer to multiple places. Search criteria include:
As the Online Panel Directory contains commercially sensitive provider information, only agencies participating in the AoG Consultancy Services contract can access it. You should contact your approved agency Procurement representative to obtain the login details for your agency.
You may require the provider(s) to send you a proposal or complete a draft Terms of Reference (ToR) to help you make your selection, or simply ask them to complete Part B of the CSO.
Note: The GCDO CoE has already completed a robust procurement process to select the GCDO panel providers, so there should be no need to test the entire panel each time you have a requirement. You do not need to advertise your requirements on GETS.
When selecting a provider it is important to choose a provider who has been approved to deliver the relevant GCDO assurance services category. In addition, you may wish to identify a specific Lead Reviewer or alternatively leave this to the discretion of the provider. Lead Reviewers are practising subject matter experts who meet the GCDO’s quality criteria. Only approved Lead Reviewers are able to deliver GCDO assurance services.
Quality ratings for providers and Lead Reviewers are specific to the delivery of GCDO assurance services and are updated at the end of each contract quarter.
The ToR (or equivalent document) must comply with GCDO’s quality standards and be approved the Senior Responsible Owner (SRO) accountable for the digital investment, or acceptable alternative (e.g. Head of Internal Audit, Head of relevant Enterprise Portfolio or Programme Management Office (EPMO or equivalent). The provider may not commence the engagement until this approval has been given.
If the engagement relates to a high risk/high value digital investment, you must provide a copy of the draft ToR to the GCDO CoE for a quality review.
For more detailed guidance on how to create a ToR that reflects the complexity and risk of your investment refer to the GCDO's assurance engagement terms of reference.
Once you have made your selection, you should complete a CSO (If you have not already done so) to be signed by both your agency and your provider of choice.
We recommend that you use the CSO as the high level contract and refer to supporting documents (eg statement of work / ToR) in Parts A and B.
A key objective of the GCDO panel is to improve the quality of assurance reports provided to agencies.
Providers must ensure that assurance reports are provided in a timely manner and meet the GCDO’s quality standards. These include assessing ‘Delivery Confidence’ and prioritising recommendations.
The assurance report must be signed off by the SRO and the Lead Reviewer. If the engagement relates to a high risk/high value digital investment, you must provide a copy of the draft assurance report (version issued post factual accuracy check) to the GCDO CoE for a quality review.
For more detailed guidance on the GCDO’s Report Rating System (if you don’t have your own) and what to look for when reviewing the quality of an assurance report refer to GCDO’s assurance report executive summaries.
Providers must issue an agency satisfaction survey within 10 business days of the final assurance report being provided. When you receive this survey it is important that you complete it promptly.
If the overall survey result is below 3 (out of 5) the provider must notify the GCDO CoE within two business days. In this situation, the GCDO CoE will debrief with the provider and the participating agency to determine the root cause of the survey result and work with the parties to resolve any quality issues.
Provider and Lead Reviewer quality ratings are updated annually by the GCDO CoE based on the average result of agency satisfaction surveys.
Your provider is required to send you a survey to complete within 10 days of the engagement being completed. It is important that you complete this so that we can continue to monitor the performance of the panel. Please get in touch with us if you have any questions.
Provider performance All-of-Government contract survey
End of processAn agency login is required to view this content.
This section contains information which may be commercially sensitive and should not be shared publicly.