Peak's new Probity and Assurance Office

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Published: 28th September 2023

As experts in procurement and project delivery through our existing Procurement Office and Professional Advisory services, we’ve now extended our services to include Probity and Assurance services. Our experience and understanding of probity, government procurement, and project delivery processes places us in the best position to deliver these services to you. We also understand the long-term reputational damage that probity and assurance breaches can bring to a project and an organisation and how to avoid these risks. In our article 'Why is Probity important' we discuss council's compliance with the Local Government Act (2009), including the inter-linked sound contracting principles of part 3 s104(3), and about why probity and assurance in procurement and project delivery is important.

The Crime and Corruption Commission Queensland defines probity as evidence of ethical behaviour in a particular process. Probity is about ensuring there is a defensible process that can withstand internal and external scrutiny.

Assurance in project management and delivery, is a risk management tool that can be described as analysing practices/processes to ensure they are fit to deliver the project according to scope, budgets, timeframes and overall objectives.

Peak’s Probity and Assurance Office service recognises that procurement and project delivery are important functions of all local governments. Establishing services for our clients that are critical to business success in these key management areas demonstrates our commitment to delivering services that provide value and tangible outcomes.

Here’s a quick summary:

Probity (in procurement) services	Assurance (in project delivery) services
Focused on procurement and transactions. Provides independent scrutiny of a procurement process and expresses an objective opinion as to whether the prescribed probity requirements have been adhered to. Assists in ensuring adherence to an agreed and required procurement process.	Focused on project delivery. A layer of governance and assurance support that sits alongside and complements Council’s project delivery function. Provides independent review of a program of projects and expresses opinion as to status of project health and key delivery risks and recommendations for improvement. Provides an ongoing project assurance monitoring service.

Our Probity and Assurance team members (below) are accomplished and highly experienced Local Government leaders with over 140 years’ combined experience in procurement, project delivery, probity and assurance consulting. Their extensive experience provides you with assurance pertaining to corrupt or dishonest conduct and safeguards against internal and external scrutiny through managing the probity process.

Reasons to use an independent probity and assurance service:

Application of best practice to the procurement and project delivery process.
Assists in achieving intended outcomes.
Pre-empts possible compliance and conflict issues.
Minimises potential for complaints by having an independent third party monitor the process.
Gives stakeholders, including suppliers, confidence in the process.
Contributes to accountability and transparency of processes.
Assists in ensuring overall objectives are met.
Ensures decisions are documented and defensible.
Minimises the risk of costly legal challenges in the future.
Runs seamlessly in parallel with finance and infrastructure / asset functions.
Provides funders and other stakeholders with confidence in relation to time, budget and quality.

Our probity and assurance specialists have in-depth knowledge and extensive experience with the procurement and project delivery processes in the public sector, particularly with politically sensitive, complex, or multi-stage procurement processes and project delivery. This service is provided to allow you to access experienced resources to assist manage enterprise-wide risks associated with delivery of increased portfolios of capital and/or operational projects.

Our experienced and dedicated Project Probity and Assurance team can provide you with an impartial view of project delivery and procurement activities, advise that the relevant probity and assurance issues have been adequately addressed, that the integrity of the process is sound, and that the project delivery and procurement evaluation recommendations are defensible.

If you'd like to know more about our Probity and Assurance Office, please contact Director of Consulting Services, Brian Jackson.