New British Standard on collaborative business relationships published

ST ALBANS, UK October 22, 2010 (Press-News.org) The world's first standard for collaborative business relationships has been published and copies are available from the BSI website.

Copies of the 46-page standard - known as BS 11000-1:2010 (ISBN number 978 0 580 69562 9) and which replaces PAS 11000:2006 - are available, price GBP162, from http://www.standardsuk.com/BS 11000-1:2010

The publication of BS 11000 is a landmark for the world of business. It provides a consistent framework for collaborative partnerships in business which can be scaled and adapted to meet particular business needs.

The framework comprises methodologies supported by a wide range of tools and guides which have been established over some 20 years experience in relationship management.

The standard is the brainchild of Partnership Sourcing Limited (PSL) - a self-financing not-for-profit organisation which helps organisations of all sizes, in both the public and private sectors, to build and develop effective competitive business relationships based upon a collaborative approach. PSL's operations director, David Hawkins commented: "Venturing into the world of collaboration can be one of the most exhilarating and ultimately rewarding aspects of business.

"Collaboration offers the opportunity to share the flow of knowledge and experience between individuals and organisations. Moreover, it gives organisations an excellent opportunity to establish an open dialogue to generate positive changes to the dynamics of how the organisations work together to deliver benefit and add value.

"Collaborative working is not about cutting cost, although that may be possible," Hawkins added. "It offers an alternative and enhanced capability to build new value propositions which are beyond the capabilities of an individual organisation."

"Collaborative working is a journey which introduces many twists and turns, highs and lows, as it matures. BS 11000 provides a framework - a map, if you like - which organisations and individuals can use to understand the issues that will influence their journey and allow lifecycle planning from concept to closure," said Hawkins, who is chairman of the BS 11000 development committee.

"Adopting BS 11000 should create an invaluable common structure to allow key questions to be addressed, evaluated and answered."

Earlier this year, five leading companies in the defence, aviation and support services sectors become the first in the UK to be awarded PAS 11000 certification - the precursor to BS 11000. EMCOR Group (UK), Lockheed Martin UK, NATS, Raytheon Systems Limited and VT Group worked closely with PSL to achieve PAS 11000 certification, awarded by BSI after they were audited in a pilot certification programme.

In addition, representatives from the UK's higher education sector have welcomed BS 11000. At a meeting in London in the summer, representatives from institutions including the University of Exeter Business School, the University of Bath, the University of Strathclyde, and Cranfield University agreed that the creation of BS 11000 was a major step forward which offers significant opportunities to support the implementation of more effective collaborative working for both the private and public sectors.

Although the standard has been published in October, BS 11000 will receive a formal launch at the House of Lords on 7th December.

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Notes for Editors
About PSL
PSL was established in 1990 as a joint initiative between the Department for Business Innovation and Skills (formerly DTI)) and the Confederation of British Industry (CBI). PSL is a self-financing not-for-profit organisation. Its role is to help organisations, large and small, in both the public and private sectors, to build and develop effective competitive business relationships based upon a collaborative approach.

PSL provides practical guidance based on a wide portfolio of experience utilising knowledge from extensive relationships within the commercial, Government and academic arenas.

PSL's unique CRAFT methodology provides a framework for business relationship management developed from the collective experience of the PSL knowledge network. This programme was adopted by the British Standards Institution (BSI) as the foundation of the Collaborative Business Relationship Framework - PAS 11000, published in November 2006 - the world's first Standard in relationship management.

Future PSL events include:
• Partnering with Government, being held at the Cabinet War Rooms, in London, on 21st October
• The official launch of BS 11000, at the House of Lords, on 7th December. BS 11000 is the world's first standard in collaborative business relationships. In particular, BS 11000 aims to address business sectors and elements of partnering relevant to small and medium-sized enterprises.
• Partnering in Energy, in December
• Partnering in Transport, in March 2011

Further information from:

Les Pyle, PSL, 0207 824 1807; les.pyle@PSLCBI.com
David Hawkins, PSL, 0207 824 1807; david.hawkins@PSLCBI.com
Bob Little, Bob Little Press & PR, 01727 860405; bob.little@boblittlepr.com

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