Contract

VEAT Notice Intention to award a public services contract for provision of HE specific research, best practice & market insights consultancy.

  • The University of Keele

F03: Contract award notice

Notice identifier: 2024/S 000-016214

Procurement identifier (OCID): ocds-h6vhtk-03b7fc

Published 22 May 2024, 4:06pm



Section one: Contracting authority

one.1) Name and addresses

The University of Keele

Innovation Centre 1, The University of Keele, Keele, Staffordshire,

Keele

ST5 5NB

Contact

Darren Pearce

Email

d.pearce@keele.ac.uk

Telephone

+44 1782734124

Country

United Kingdom

Region code

UKG24 - Staffordshire CC

Companies House

Company number RC000655

Internet address(es)

Main address

https://www.keele.ac.uk

Buyer's address

https://in-tendhost.co.uk/universityofkeele/aspx/Home

one.4) Type of the contracting authority

Body governed by public law

one.5) Main activity

Education


Section two: Object

two.1) Scope of the procurement

two.1.1) Title

VEAT Notice Intention to award a public services contract for provision of HE specific research, best practice & market insights consultancy.

Reference number

KU/443/EE/MB/2023

two.1.2) Main CPV code

  • 79400000 - Business and management consultancy and related services

two.1.3) Type of contract

Services

two.1.4) Short description

Intention to award a Public Services contract under Regulation 32 (2) (b) (iii) of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 for the provision of higher education specific research, best practice and

subject specific market insights consultancy. The services works will be delivered on a 36 month contract.

The Negotiated Procedure without Prior Publication is being followed and is justified under Regulation 32 (2) (b) (iii).

two.1.6) Information about lots

This contract is divided into lots: No

two.1.7) Total value of the procurement (excluding VAT)

Value excluding VAT: £343,622.50

two.2) Description

two.2.3) Place of performance

NUTS codes
  • UK - United Kingdom

two.2.4) Description of the procurement

The University requires a consultancy service with extensive expertise in the global HE sector, providing wide ranging benefits. Market insight reports tailored to subject areas combining demand information related to subject interest and economic activity. Extensive partnerships allowing insight across the UK & global HE sector. Wide-ranging networking activity. Ability to provide activity specific expertise for a wide range of professional service and academic activities, supporting ongoing development and project activity, with extensive understanding through bespoke research.

two.2.5) Award criteria

Price

two.2.11) Information about options

Options: No


Section four. Procedure

four.1) Description

four.1.1) Type of procedure

Award of a contract without prior publication of a call for competition in the cases listed below

  • The services can be provided only by a particular economic operator for the following reason:
    • protection of exclusive rights, including intellectual property rights

Explanation:

EAB provide a holistic and unlimited partnership that combines research and consulting to help higher education leaders respond to their greatest challenges and move strategic initiatives forward. Keele will gain access to 15+ years of ongoing and wide-ranging research on every major functional domain in higher education. This includes proven best practices and detailed solutions surfaced from peer institutions and syntheses of higher education data, research, and information into easily digestible, action-oriented resources focused addressing specific goals and challenges.

EAB ensures impact and ROI by assigning an individual Strategic Leader who learns your organisation and culture to steer your team to the right answers and resources. This expert is

responsible for facilitating change management, providing decision support, and convening cross-functional teams on subjects of strategic importance.

This combination of research and unlimited holistic expert support is unique and unavailable elsewhere. Further evidence of the specific unique characteristics of partnership are

provided here:

- EAB is the only organisation that provides original best practice research and unlimited strategic support that is cross-functional and comprehensive across the full range of issue areas in higher education, including academic affairs, enrolment management, student affairs, online and professional education, business affairs, information technology, estates, the research enterprise, and advancement, as well as the broader educational ecosystem.

No other vendor to our knowledge has expertise that is solely dedicated to Higher Ed and spans the entire campus that can be used for any and all strategic priorities.

- EAB is the only organisation that combines cutting-edge best practice research, implementation support, and consultative services at a fixed rate and without limitations. EAB partnerships provide unlimited access to and utilisation of these services, eliminating costs beyond the annual partnership fee or single project. EAB is uniquely positioned to achieve such economies of scale as a result of the vast resources and expertise at its disposal. Typical vendors charge based on the number of projects or time spent with the University. Because of EAB's unlimited model it provides a scale of economies for partners not possible with any other vendor.

- In addition to global best practices, EAB also provides custom market insights research projects on demand for our partners. EAB's has a proprietary partnership with a real-time labour database that allows for unlimited analysis for employer demands down to the skills level to help inform curricular design. This is then combined with student demand data as well as a robust competitive curriculum review to provide detailed and

comprehensive market intelligence reports fully customised to the individual partner needs. No other vendor to our knowledge has the ability to combine global best practice research with custom market intelligence reports.

- EAB has the largest global network of Universities across the world providing the opportunity to have a truly global perspective to ensure partners have access to the best solutions and innovations from anywhere in the world. This also enables networking and formal partnerships not available through traditional partners.

four.1.8) Information about the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)

The procurement is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement: Yes

four.2) Administrative information

four.2.1) Previous publication concerning this procedure

Notice number: 2023/S 000-009554


Section five. Award of contract

Contract No

KU/443/EE/MB/2023

Title

VEAT Notice Intention to award a public services contract for provision of HE specific research, best practice & market insights consultancy.

A contract/lot is awarded: Yes

five.2) Award of contract

five.2.1) Date of conclusion of the contract

17 April 2023

five.2.2) Information about tenders

Number of tenders received: 1

The contract has been awarded to a group of economic operators: No

five.2.3) Name and address of the contractor

EAB UK, LLC

2445 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20037

Washington DC

Country

United States

NUTS code
  • US - United States
Companies House

FC036956

The contractor is an SME

No

five.2.4) Information on value of contract/lot (excluding VAT)

Total value of the contract/lot: £343,622.50


Section six. Complementary information

six.4) Procedures for review

six.4.1) Review body

High Court of England and Wales

Royal Courts of Justice, Strand

London

WCA2 2LL

Country

United Kingdom