Commercial Impact
The Medicines & Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) set a digital transformation agenda to better support the regulation of medicines, medical devices, and blood components for transfusion in the UK.
MHRA initiated the Application Outsourcing Transition (AOT) project in 2020 against a backdrop of heightened public awareness following a government review that highlighted various shortcomings. MHRA were central to the UK’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic with responsibility for vaccine approvals.
The AOT project was commissioned to replace MHRA’s existing non-compliant application maintenance and support contract with a competitively procured, value-for-money service contract, based on standard government model contracts.
MHRA sought a consultancy partner to augment their technology and procurement skills and appointed Credera to advise on a sourcing and technology strategy to run a competitive procurement. Based on the UK Government’s recommendations, we shaped, designed, and executed the procurement and contracting process, resulting in:
- Cost avoidance in the order of £m by negotiating release of intellectual property from a third-party supplier
- Newly contracted IT services, procured in a fair and transparent process, that exceed predicted cost reductions in delivering impressive operating cost cuts of 70% from day one
- IT service provider selected being a good strategic fit, meeting the MHRA’s spending objectives and has a benefit: cost ratio of over 5:1, with the ability to support the delivery of the Agency’s future platforms
- A five-year compliant contract, based on the UK government’s Model Services Contract, that can be extended up to five years, subject to approvals and forecast benefits to the UK taxpayer in 2027
- A waiver of contract exit costs secured from the incumbent supplier.
We brought a full consultancy skillset to stabilise a position that felt out of control at the outset, where the power was perceived to be in the supplier’s hands. By running the project as an independent third-party, we were able to negotiate with MHRA’s suppliers and bring a more even power balance.
Our independence and government experience also helped embed MHRA into the Department of Health and bring independence to the selection process for the new services.
In tandem, we supported MHRA to update their ways of working to aid transition to their new services. Combined with an upskilled team, MHRA now has a reliable base to deliver future technology transformation in response to the needs of their changing organisation.
The money saved in IT service cost reductions allows MHRA to focus their time, resources, and budget on making the organisational changes they need to transform their future operations in response to the government review.
Our successful delivery of the AOT project enables continued protection of critical safety services and provides a strong foundation for the Agency’s digital transformation agenda.
Making such a difference to an organisation in their time of need was a hugely motivating driver and we are delighted we were able to make a difference to the process and the outcomes.
View the Credera profile in the MCA Members Directory.