From its enormous wealth of experience and knowledge within it’s members, and with various different network and service delivery types represented, HTMA is in a unique position of being able to contribute to the industry debates on collaboration.  Much of what the industry is striving for echoes HTMA’s own vision and strategy, as Nick Goddard recently explained to delegates at The Future of Local Transport Delivery roadshow in London.

Collaborative contracts and Partnering is a huge subject with many aspects that can be debated and discussed.  When we see the word ‘collaboration’, we probably immediately think of those we are accustomed to between organisations in contracts such as: JV’s, partnerships, alliances, LLC or wholly owned, but maybe more pertinent going forward, between clients themselves (take for example the Midlands Highways Alliance and the South East 7 projects) and certainly between clients and the people they serve.

Recent data from Ipsos MORI tells us that within local authorities 80 percent of people surveyed want to be involved in decisions about their local services, but only 15 percent feel as though they are involved and 9 percent of those believe they cannot affect decisions anyway.  At the same time we are informed that across 70 local authorities road condition is a higher priority than congestion, which surely presents opportunities for work to be done by the highways management and maintenance community.  Certainly local authorities have some difficult decisions to make and it is evident that the people want to be included.

It is generally accepted and agreed that the current climate is unique and ways of working need to change.  However, is there still the attempt to deliver gold standards of service where maybe bronze will do and perhaps is all that can be afforded?  And what of the possible conflict in levels of service between the strategic and local network?  The debate is ongoing and the solution is becoming clearer that the industry will only be successful through a collaborative approach.

Across the industry there is a wealth of experience that can be harnessed to achieve demonstrably better outcomes collectively compared to what has been delivered in the past.  Success in collaboration and partnering requires some key elements to be in place.

Collaboration is a partnership working on many levels but will only be successful if each party gets what they need from that partnership.  From an industry perspective, there needs to be a mutual understanding and clarity of what the outcomes will be to encourage innovative thinking and maximum efficiencies.  Both parties will have a shared goal to which they are working and within the workplace there needs to be a willingness to let go if the work can be more effectively achieved by someone else, or by doing things differently.

Some of the consultations HTMA has been involved in with Transport Scotland and Transport for London, have provided the opportunity to shape goals that will be beneficial for both clients and service providers.  Local authorities are still universally viewed as the providers of service with all the issues that entails.  As some of clients reduce in size, is there a way to create a new environment where service providers become even more recognised for service delivery?

A successful partnership has strong leadership that allows parties to play to their strengths and can drive change.  Risks can be managed when each party is allowed to maximise what they bring to the partnership and is encouraged to respect and appreciate each other’s contribution. Leaders need to communicate that a partnership is not about a party losing control, but nurturing a willingness to allow others to succeed and recognising the benefits everyone can enjoy.

Individuals need to realise that success in collaboration is much more aligned to ‘attitude’ rather than purely technical competence.