UK GOVERNMENT
Saving lives with the NHS Test & Trace
IN ASSOCIATION WITH:
DIGITAL REPORT 2021
UK GOVERNMENT
UK GOVERNMENT: SAVING LIVES WITH NHS
TEST & TRACE
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Jacqui Rock, Chief Commercial Officer for
NHS Test & Trace for UK Government, on leading the response that’s winning the digital war against COVID-19
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Jacqui Rock CCO for NHS Test & Trace
ll the executives that feature in the pages of this magazine have earned their place through hard work, dedication, and a huge dose of the X Factor. That said, you’d be hard pressed to meet anyone with more personality, drive and passion for service than Jacqui Rock. Officially designated Chief Commercial Officer for NHS Test & Trace for the UK Government, she is simply the person you turn to in an hour of need. Someone who Gets Stuff Done. Just the person, in fact, to help the UK in its fight against COVID-19. This sense of duty is something that has stayed with Jacqui throughout her distinguished career. “I would work all day on the trading floor then go out and put on a police uniform,” recalls Jacqui. “I have always felt a strong desire to give something back and make a difference. We write our legacy every day and, in the words of Heather Small, ‘what have you done today to make you feel proud?” www.gov.uk
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THE EXCEPTIONAL EVERY DAY Proud to support the UK Government to help Britain get Back to Business
MITIE COVID-19 CHECKLIST ASSURED
Mitie: Frontline Heroes in the COVID-19 Response MITIE COVID-19 CHECKLIST ASSURED
Mitie, a key partner in the UK government’s COVID-19 testing programme, is also supporting businesses to return to the workplace safely and seamlessly. Most adults in the UK will have been impacted by the vital work carried out by thousands of Mitie colleagues in the past 18 months. As the UK’s leading facilities management company, Mitie is a key supplier to the UK government’s COVID-19 testing programme, and has played a pivotal role in helping communities monitor and control coronavirus infections.
“We have more than 11,000 Mitie colleagues working in our test centres across the length and breadth of the UK, and 65,000 colleagues in total on the frontline” says Simon Venn, Chief Government and Strategy Officer, Mitie. “We call them our frontline heroes, and they’re delivering everything from cleaning and clinical waste management, to security and intelligence services.” Mitie is already running more than 138 test centres but that figure is expanding to 175 regional and local fixed testing centres in the coming months, alongside a further 105 mobile testing units across Great Britain. “It’s a huge capability,” Venn says. “And now that lockdown restrictions have eased and we enter a new phase of the pandemic, we stand ready to support local communities as and when they need to respond to potential outbreaks.” Alongside infrastructure and boots-on-the-ground services, that also means intelligence. Mitie leverages AI and ML technology to analyse a variety of data streams to predict spikes and outbreaks at both the micro and macro level. “Horizon scanning is a key component of our ability,” Venn says. The company also tracks developments in other countries such as Israel, which shares many parallels with the UK’s situation. “That puts us in the best possible position to act proactively,” Venn says. “Everything we do has a scientific thread running through it. Cleaning, for example, is no longer about mops and buckets. It’s about nanotechnologies, sprays that leave antibacterial films on surfaces, and UVC air handling technologies that kill airborne pathogens. It’s this underlying science that gives us a real edge when it comes to turning the tide on the pandemic.”
As the economy reopens, Mitie is extending its expertise and support to the business community. “We’re really proud to share our expertise, to help get Britain back to business as quickly and as safely as possible,” Venn says. Mitie’s research shows that more than half of British employees working from home say they are ready to return to the office, but a third are concerned that their office’s aren’t COVID secure.
“In that vein, we've created a comprehensive guide called Getting Britain Back to Business, to help companies prepare for a safe and seamless return to the workplace and our guide is all about facilitating that.” “Many of us have experienced working from home, and the one thing that the pandemic has proved is that it is possible to do so,” Venn explains. “But it's also highlighted how difficult it is to build genuine social rapport. That's where you really need that face-toface time with your colleagues.” The Mitie COVID-19 Checklist Assured mark takes that one step further. “This is really about us working in genuine collaboration and partnership with our customers. It’s been developed based on our experience of creating and managing efficient workplaces, as well as leading organisations through the current pandemic,” Venn says. “For me, to be declared Mitie COVID-19 Checklist Assured is a way for all of our customers to demonstrate that they've taken the strategic and responsible steps to provide a safe, secure workplace for all of their people." Written by: Rhys Thomas
UK GOVERNMENT
UK Government: Saving lives with NHS Test & Trace
Jacqui worked for 30 years in the Financial Services industry where she held multiple executive positions with the likes of Credit Suisse, JP Morgan, Barclays and Bank of America Merrill Lynch. She then followed her calling and joined the Ministry of Defence as director for the Defence Infrastructure organisation – where she was responsible for £4 billion annual investment across the whole military estate for the Army, Navy, Royal Air Force and Joint Forces Command. “When the call went out across Government for a chief commercial officer, I felt compelled to stand up and be part of the solution,” says Jacqui. “I have never been a good observer, always wanting to be in the thick of it, and this was the most challenging situation our country and the world has faced for decades.” 8
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“ I found myself managing the most complex delivery challenge across government” JACQUI ROCK
CCO FOR NHS TEST & TRACE, UK GOVERNMENT
NHS (National Health Service) Test & Trace was established in May 2020 as a government-funded service in England, in response to the crisis to track and help prevent the spread of COVID-19. NHS Test & Trace forms a central part of the country’s recovery strategy, which seeks to return life to as close to normal as possible, for as many people as possible, in a way that is safe and protects the NHS and social care.
UK GOVERNMENT
EXECUTIVE BIO JACQUI ROCK TITLE: CHIEF COMMERCIAL OFFICER FOR NHS TEST & TRACE COMPANY: UK GOVERNMENT Jacqui Rock is the Chief Commercial Officer for NHS Test & Trace. She is a member of the NHS Test & Trace Executive Team of trusted directors in the Government’s strategic defence against COVID-19. She is the driving force behind dynamic and rapid innovation and technology development in the supply chain. Jacqui is formerly director for the Defence Infrastructure Organisation at the Ministry of Defence: where she was responsible for £4bn annual investment across the UK and Overseas Defence estate with a total value of £35bn. She led delivery on hard & soft FM, construction projects and major programmes across the full military estate for the Army, Navy, Royal Air Force and Joint Forces Command. Jacqui is a member of the Cabinet Office Commercial Function and joined the UK government after 30 years in the Financial Services industry where she held multiple Executive positions in companies including: Credit Suisse, JP Morgan, Barclays and Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Previous positions included International Chief Procurement Officer for Bank of America Merrill Lynch, where her passion and leadership style delivered procurement and risk management for US$22bn of spend
across 42 countries. As an experienced Commercial Executive, Jacqui brings subject matter expertise, an extensive global network and a proven track record of complex start-ups and transformation delivery.
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Brighter Together Baringa Partners is an independent business and technology consultancy. We help businesses and governments run more effectively, navigate industry shifts and reach new markets. We use our industry insights, ideas and pragmatism to help each client improve their business. Collaboration is central to our strategy and culture ensuring we attract the brightest and the best. And it’s why clients love working with us.
Baringa. Brighter Together.
Baringa: Defining the COVID-19 Response Ecosystem Baringa has been instrumental in defining and establishing the ecosystem and supply chain that underpins NHS Test and Trace and the UK’s vaccination programme Baringa has served at the forefront of the UK’s COVID-19 response since the outset. Teams led by Sarah Ashley, Government Partner, and John Calder, Partner and Practice Lead for Supply Chain and Procurement, have been instrumental in the past 18 months. As a commercial partner to NHS Test and Trace, Sarah Ashley, worked early on with Jacqui Rock, CCO, NHS Test and Trace, “building the pipeline, working with different suppliers, and putting in place the commercial agreements that have allowed Test and Trace to deliver”. That involved providing commercial assurance for over £1bn in spend, engaging with 150+ suppliers, negotiating rates, working with business owners to challenge requirements, and executing 300+ contracts, Ashley explains. “This has resulted in multimillion pound savings for NHS Test and Trace.” It is a high-pressure, high-stakes environment, and one in
which Baringa’s most senior teams drew upon all their experience to deliver the required outcome. “What you don’t want is teams of consultants writing decks all day,” Ashley says. “Our clients needed experienced people to have conversations with them as peers, to define the risks, the knock-on impacts, and the logical next best step. That’s why we’ve been successful.” In the UK’s vaccination programme, Baringa was integral in establishing and rapidly scaling a supply chain at a pace. “Today, more than sixty million vaccinations have been delivered and 75+% of all adults in the UK have received both vaccinations,” Calder says. “The supply chain has been a key contributor to that. It has stood up to all the challenges thrown at it, delivered 99% on time, and all with minimal damage or loss of the precious vaccine, which has been a key part of the mandate.” As the efforts to combat COVID-19 evolves, so too will Baringa’s involvement. “It’s really important for us to hand over and not do these roles forever,” says Ashley, who has placed great emphasis on building resilient processes and frameworks. “Handing back to the whole health ecosystem is vital,” adds Calder. “We’re building a legacy, and making sure that when the consulting engagements end, we’ve transitioned to an up-skilled client team to run this going forward.”
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“In July 2020, we set out the plan for NHS Test & Trace to take us through summer and into winter,” says Jacqui. “When the Test & Trace service began, we were still learning about the virus. We did not fully know how prevalent COVID-19 was, or the number of people who had the virus but did not display symptoms. “To help stop the virus, we stood up an integrated system at extraordinary speed so we could test at scale and trace the contacts of people who tested positive to advise them to self-isolate. We also created the Joint Biosecurity Centre which, with public health England, the Office for National Statistics and analysts from across government and academia, has deepened our understanding of the progress of the virus, allowing us to intervene early and with evidence.” As with any effort of this scale, it was essential that the UK Government drew on both public and private sector expertise and experience to try to deliver an app that would meet the unprecedented needs of the pandemic response. The NHS COVID-19 app was launched in September 2020 and is currently the second most downloaded exposure notification app in the world. “This was made possible by working in partnership with others,” says Jacqui. “We were striving to be ‘teams of teams’ made up of local authorities and Directors of Public Health, the NHS, Public Health England, public, private and not-for-profit sector partners and the devolved administrations [the Scottish Government, Welsh Government, Northern Ireland Executive]. It is thanks to them that as a country, we have made such unprecedented strides in developing our testing and contact tracing capacity and systems.” 12
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“ I am immensely proud of the work and achievement of Test & Trace and being part of the COVID response team. We often remind each other when it gets tough that this is something you can be proud of for life” JACQUI ROCK
CCO FOR NHS TEST & TRACE, UK GOVERNMENT
The stats are staggering. By May 2021, the first anniversary of NHS Test & Trace being established, it had achieved: • 5 million lateral flow test provided a week • 92 million PCR tests conducted • 1 million+ antibody test kits delivered • 22.2 million app downloads • 180 million+ tests carried out across the UK • 3.9 million positive cases identified (as of 2 June 2021) • 87% of cases traced and asked to provide close contacts • 82% of close contacts identified reached and asked to self-isolate • 1,390 asymptomatic and 1,100 symptomatic testing sites • 600,000 PCR tests conducted a day Many of those 180 million tests were conducted at 1,200 test sites. Within two weeks, 14,000 staff were hired to establish contact tracing – the largest call centre in UK history. Lighthouse Labs across the UK now process more than 2 million tests per day. www.gov.uk
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Business transformation. Made easy. Our unique approach to procurement and supply chain delivers both immediate and long-term sustainable results. 4C combines the extensive experience of its teams, a deep and personal understanding of your business and goals, with the latest processes and technologies to create transformative solutions that deliver both immediate and long-term results. 4C are proud partners on the NHS Test and Trace programme.
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Start your transformation today Allison Ford-Langstaff Managing Partner
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Testing times for 4C Associates Executives from 4C Associates explain how they worked as a team to support the NHS Test & Trace efforts to combat COVID-19. When the call went out to support NHS
“There was no precedent, there was
Test & Trace in the UK’s hour of need
no infrastructure and the only thing
as it prepared to combat COVID-19,
certain is uncertainty. And this is where
procurement and supply chain experts
our knowledge of transformations
4C Associates were the natural choice.
really came to the fore. The ability to
With more than 20 years of international experience and extensive knowledge to draw on, coupled with the latest technological innovations and processes, 4C were able to provide a transformative, sustainable solution. “Our focus is procurement and supply chain, that is where our deepest expertise lies,” says 4C Managing Partner Allison Ford-Langstaff.
deal with ambiguity is something we consider to be a real strength of ours.” Ford-Langstaff says she feels immensely proud to have been part of this mission and how the entire 4C Associates team have worked together in incredibly difficult circumstances. “We have to remember that we are people dealing with people in a very, very difficult time,” says Ford-Langstaff.
“When we were first contacted by NHS
“Any of us sitting in our rocking chairs,
Test & Trace it was a couple of months
looking back on our lives and telling
after the pandemic started and we were
tales of our times, we will be able to
asked to deliver their procurement
bring out the scrapbook and show
agenda and deliver to the mission –
our grandchildren all the amazing
to control the spread of COVID-19.”
things that we’ve achieved.”
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With the world clamouring for solutions to combat COVID-19, and an ever-changing, uncertain landscape, the procurement and commercial challenges Jacqui and her team faced were immense. They had to establish effective commercial support, a robust commercial function and a sustainable Commercial Operating Model in a matter of weeks. Flexible contracting and speed of commercial delivery was vital to support an emergency response organisation and enable protection of public health. “I found myself managing the most complex delivery challenge across government,” recalls Jacqui. “We created a new organisation without systems infrastructure and domain experience to deliver at scale which procured more than
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“ We used a modern, 21st-century solution to connect with a modern public in a way that resonated and was easy for all to use” JACQUI ROCK
CCO FOR NHS TEST & TRACE, UK GOVERNMENT
1,000 contracts across 600 suppliers in three months – and all of this was done remotely as it was during lockdown. “We created a volatile demand with a short window of confidence where we faced supplier resistance to deliver without committed growth. I could write a book on the procurement and commercial challenges, but we stayed focused on the mission and executing the appropriate government commercial governance to deliver a service that is compliant and auditable.” Like so many responses to the pandemic, NHS Test & Trace was reliant on digital solutions beyond the development of a user-friendly app. From the supply chain solutions that manage the provision of tests to the lab systems that manage the analysis, to the test digital reporting systems, contact tracing systems and data analytics platforms – all underpinned by cloud platforms. However, it is the app, Jacqui believes, that made the most significant contribution and demonstrated the power of digital. “We used a modern, 21st-century solution to connect with a modern public
Rock Salutes Suppliers “There was an army of more than 50,000 people delivering NHS Test & Trace services (including the Army). Suppliers made valuable and innovative contributions towards the delivery of the pandemic response. They delivered multiple service, capabilities, tech and manufacturing solutions including test sites, labs, contact tracing, building the app, executing community testing, workforce and schools testing, and new testing technology. “Our suppliers acted in an outstanding way, bringing ideas and innovation to the table. It was a joint effort and the best example of supplier collaboration and engagement I have ever witnessed.”
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in a way that resonated and was easy for all to use,” she says. “At its peak, the digital solutions were processing 300 test results per second. “We worked closely with Google and Apple, scientists within the Alan Turing Institute and Oxford University, medical experts, privacy groups, at-risk communities, and teams in countries across the world to bring a state-of-the-art testing and contact tracing product to market that is safe, simple to use, and secure. 18
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“ When the call went out across Government for a chief commercial officer, I felt compelled to stand up and be part of the solution” JACQUI ROCK
CCO FOR NHS TEST & TRACE, UK GOVERNMENT
UK GOVERNMENT
“We will continue to work closely with academia and the science industry across the world. This was a global pandemic and needed a global response.” It’s fair to say that when Jacqui began her role in NHS Test & Trace, it was a crisis response unit. There was no end-to-end process, no operating model and no team. They started from scratch and had to scale activities to contain the virus and then test the entire UK population. This already pressurised situation was magnified by constant pressure and scrutiny.
“We have been under relentless scrutiny from the media, audit committees and legal challenges,” says Jacqui, “but we knew that what we were delivering was the roadmap out of lockdown and we were saving lives. “I am immensely proud of the work and achievement of Test & Trace and being part of the COVID response team. We often remind each other when it gets tough that this is something you can be proud of for life.”
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