Evidence or Influence Why are suppliers winning …Evidence or Influence – Winning our work ‘I...

Evidence or Influence Why are suppliers winning our work?

Rob Tufekcic Queensland Rail Probity Advisor

Brief

• Context

• Identifying buying influences

• Tactical mechanisms

• Supplier use of strategies

• Risks

• Protective measures

Evidence or Influence – Winning our work

Queensland Rail Procurement context

Queensland Rail with some 6,500 kilometres of railway track, over 5,800 employees

and assets of $6.9 billion, is one of Australia’s largest rail transport providers.

Queensland Rail services 216 stations, with a fleet of passenger trains, across its

Citytrain network, with more than 50 million passenger trips each year.

• Strategic approach to procurement

• Focus on achieving value-for-money

• Whole-of-life-basis and generating benefits for all stakeholders

• Statutory Authority which relies on public money

• State Procurement Policy, related legislation and internal policies guide our behaviour in

procuring goods and services.

• Reliance on a range of Evidence Based Procurement methods

• Regardless of the method, the procurement must be demonstrably; fair,

transparent, and accountable



‘I am going to get people in your

organisation to spy for me, to provide me

information and insights into your

procurement activity…

they will act as my agent and influence the

outcome so I win your tenders.’

25 year Army career, 22 years full time, 3 years Reserves

12 years with Intelligence Corps

Manager Intelligence Operations

• Intelligence Analysis

• Counter-Intelligence

• Human Source Operations (Agent Handler)

Probity Advisor Queensland Rail, 3 years

Enterprise overview, procurement involvement, investigations

• Recognition of tradecraft used by sellers

• Review of Miller Heiman Strategic Selling

• Identification of the Intelligence gathering mechanism



When people know it’s the wrong thing to do

http://www.google.com.au/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjkwNKKq5bUAhXEnZQKHT9FB_4QjRwIBw&url=http://www.news.com.au/national/nsw-act/crime/former-nsw-minister-eddie-obeid-sentenced-to-five-years-in-prison/news-story/20c884bf93c205a6fbb2eab460848158&psig=AFQjCNF5tK1WmmnaG_QZfVXlMmloBdJ5SA&ust=1496189685338142


When people think its ok to play by a different set of rules


If I attend a course, it must be the right thing to do

(https://www.millerheimangroup.com/sales-ready/)


Context Evidence Based Procurement

Business Case

Procurement Strategy

Open Tender Tender

Response Tender

Evaluation Contract Award


The challenge Evidence Based Procurement Influence Based Selling

Evidence Influence

Business Case

Procurement Strategy

Open Tender

Tender Response

Tender Evaluation

Contract Award


How does it work

‘Blue Sheet’ The Strategy

Procurement activity is identified

‘Blue sheet’ Strategy tool is enacted

Strategy drives tactics

‘Green Sheet’ The Tactics

Green Sheet guides interaction with buyers

All interactions are planned

Outcomes are recorded and feed into strategy

http://help.saleswebserver.net/MillerHeiman/MHblue/ecoaching-title-locatons.jpg

Evidence or Influence – Winning our work Evidence or Influence – Winning our work

Miller Heiman Blue Sheet - Strategy

Internal Planning mechanism


Identify the buying influences

What is their role

What is the level of influence

“If you can’t get to the buying influence you want, you just go above them”


Information is collected which

informs the supplier of

individuals preferences.

“we are allocated a person in the buyer organisation and are tasked to collect

information from them”

“when we know a preference we can tweak the bid towards their outcome”


Any information gained is

checked to confirm its

accuracy

“we’ll use trusted people to find out what the influences position is”


“A sales person will tell you whatever you want to hear to make the sale”

Their position is examined and based on

their findings additional tasks will be created


Influence Based Selling – The buying Influences

• Economic Influence

• Technical Influence

• User Influence

• Inside Coach/Champion


IBP

Buyer

Cabinet

Minister

CEO

ELT

SLT

SLT

SLT

ELT

SLT

SLT

SLT

ELT

SLT

SLT

SLT

ELT

SLT

SLT

SLT

Ministers Office

Board of Directors

Company Secretary

>$ X

>$ X

>$ X

>$ X

<$ X

Economic Influence

Economic Influence The person who makes the final approval, who controls the spend.


IBP

Buyer

Technical – Can say no, based on requirements

User – Will have a long term stake in outcome

Cabinet

Minister

CEO

ELT

SLT

SLT

SLT

ELT

SLT

GLT

Team

Team

GLT

Team

Team

Team

GLT

Team

Team

Team

Team

SLT

GLT

Team

Team

Team

GLT

Team

Team

SLT

GLT

Team

Team

Team

Team

Team

GLT

Team

Team

Team

ELT

SLT

SLT

SLT

ELT

SLT

SLT

SLT

Ministers Office

Board of Directors

Company Secretary

Technical and End Users

Technical

User


IBP

Buyer

Technical – Can say no, based on requirements

User – Will have a long term stake in outcome Cabinet

Minister

CEO

ELT

SLT

SLT

SLT

ELT

SLT

GLT

Team

Team

GLT

Team

Team

Team

GLT

Team

Team

Team

Team

SLT

GLT

Team

Team

Team

GLT

Team

Team

SLT

GLT

Team

Team

Team

Team

Team

GLT

Team

Team

Team

ELT

SLT

SLT

SLT

ELT

SLT

SLT

SLT

Ministers Office

Board of Directors

Company Secretary

Technical and End Users

Technical

User


Inside Coach

…Gives information that is unique…

…provides information you cannot get normally…

…Provides insights…

…an inside salesperson…is someone in the buying organisation who does

some of the selling for you…

…Turning your Economic Buying Influence into a coach significantly reduces

the risk of the sale being vetoed late in the game…

If there is someone in the account Coaching you, then there is probably someone

Coaching your competition as well.

https://ackbury.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/strategic_selling_primer_and_notes1.pdf


An individual who acts in the interest of an adversary without open declaration of

allegiance and attempts to exercise influence covertly, but is not necessarily

gathering intelligence or compromising classified material, is known as an agent of

influence (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agent_of_influence)

Inside Coach

Terry is almost at a stage that he is coaching us, and is already ‘strongly

recommending’ the position we should take in some areas. To give some further

context, Terry admitted today with a grin that he was once a ‘long time IBMer’. He

has stated that ‘IBM is grossly under-represented on this engagement’ and that

what the CorpTech program needs is a ‘significant increase of involvement by IBM’. (Queensland Health Payroll System Commission of Inquiry Report, 31 Jul 2013, The Honouralbe Richard N Chesterman AO

RFD QC)


An individual who acts in the interest of an adversary without open declaration of

allegiance and attempts to exercise influence covertly, but is not necessarily

gathering intelligence or compromising classified material, is known as an agent of

influence

Influence Based Selling – Collection – Inside Coach

Espionage is the collection of information by people either in a position of trust for

the adversary, or with access to people with such access. The process of recruiting

such individuals and supporting their operations is the HUMINT discipline of agent

handling. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Espionage)

Project number B37657 Meeting date 9 November 2016

Project name ARTC Inland Rail Technical and Approvals

Consultancy Services Recorded by

Meeting/subject Aurecon AECOM Strategy and Engagement Total pages 1

Item Time Discussion topic Speaker

4.00pm Assemble at XXXXXXX Brisbane office XX XXXX Street (XXXX Place)

Introducing teams and our strategic /engagement focus XX/XX

How to win

1. Drivers

Key Client drivers / what does success look like for the client

Key Project drivers / what does success look like for the

project (these may be the same since the client is essentially

the project)

o Who is on the review panel – How can we appeal to them, what’s

there personality type, how do we get them on our side

o Anything we have missed…..

o Develop combined list of points to address as part of bid which

cover the above

2. What are current Pain Points – Can we solve any of these.

3. Value adds/smarts – Program, XXXXX, XXXXXX

XX/XX

5.00 What’s next XX/XX

Actions – review / summarise


The How - Tactics


The How - Tactics

Cover story Information Requirements


The How – The cover story Information is obtained from our people through interaction

Every interaction is planned and recorded

• Phone catch-ups

• Coffee Catch-up

• Business as usual meetings

• Contract Management meetings

• Meetings to demonstrate ‘innovation’

• Seminars

• Trade Shows

• Site visits

• Supplier Presentations

• Changes to capability and capacity

• Social situations

• Invitations to sporting events

• Pipeline planning meetings

• Industry briefs

• Relationship development


The How – Getting Information Elicitation is a salespersons tool

Unconscious participant Vs Conscious participant

Non-verbal (Behavioural Symptoms Analysis)

• Assumed knowledge -You confirm their assumption

• False assertions -You correct the assertion

• Good Listener -You waffle while they guide

• Leading questions -The answer is in the question

• Opposing view -You both argue the point

• Reported facts -Its in the open domain

• Macro to Micro -High level, impact on your project

• Bracketing -They give extent – you correct

• Extreme stories -You compete with the seller

• Silence -You need to fill a silence

• Show of knowledge -They talk through the process

• Trusted associate -Someone you share all with

• Volunteer information -Information is given freely

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Inward Email Traffic related to a procurement activity


0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Inward Email Traffic related to a procurement activity

Tender

Release

Contract

Award



How common place is this in the market

‘Everybody uses this or similar systems’ – Former BDM now at QR ‘Everything you have described is exactly as I was taught’ – Former ICT sales rep now at QR ‘If you don’t have the influence in place, you don’t bid’ – Former sales rep at QR


The risks • Our people

• Our outcomes

• Our obligations

• Our negotiating power

• Competition

• Our reputation



Protecting the process protects our people

Existing controls

• Evidence based procurement processes

• Information Security policies and procedures

• Confidentiality obligations

• Identification and management of Conflicts of Interest

• Interaction controls during tender processes

• Robust Probity and Evaluation Plans



Protecting the process protects our people

Additional controls

• Educating our people – General awareness, specific briefs

• How the process works/what it will look like

• How to recognise supplier elicitation opportunities and techniques

• Considerations when interacting with suppliers

• Challenging suppliers to focus on evidence

• Clearly stating our expectations to suppliers in procurement

• Analysis of communication to identify use of strategies

• Calling out methods and tactics when identified



• Awareness of activity

• Understand how it may be applied to your procurements

• Communication of expectations to suppliers

• Evidence not influence will win the work

• Analysis of behaviour to identify use of the methodology

• Challenging the use of the methodology when it is observed


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