Procurement decisions influence far more than cost and service delivery. They help shape communities by creating local jobs, supporting skills development, strengthening supply chains and contribute to environmental outcomes within communities.
The challenge for many organisations is measuring those outcomes consistently and demonstrating the value they create.
The Australian TOM System (Themes, Outcomes and Measures) provides a practical framework for defining, measuring and reporting social value through procurement. This is based on a globally recognised framework that has been successfully applied in the United Kingdom for more than a decade. It provides a consistent, evidence-based approach to measuring and reporting the social, economic and environmental value created through procurement.
What social value looks like in practice
Social value is the additional social, economic and environmental benefit created for communities through how public money is spent, beyond the core goods, services or works being purchased.
A practical way to measure social value outcomes
The Australian TOM System helps organisations move from broad social value objectives to measurable outcomes.
The framework provides a consistent way to identify, evaluate, contract and report social value throughout the procurement lifecycle, from tender development and evaluation through to contract delivery and reporting.
With more than 100 standardised measures, supporting evidence requirements and proxy values, the TOM System helps procurement teams compare commitments consistently and track outcomes over time.
What this means
- For Government
- For Procurement leaders
Helping governments turn policy priorities into measurable outcomes
Governments increasingly look to procurement as a way to support broader policy priorities while maintaining value for money and fiscal discipline. The TOM System provides a consistent framework for translating policy objectives into measurable procurement outcomes. It creates a clearer link between:
Policy priorities > Procurement requirements > Supplier commitments > Delivery > Measured outcomes
Social value outcomes the TOM System can support:
• Local jobs and economic participation
• First Nations employment and supplier participation
• Social enterprise and diverse supplier engagement
• Apprenticeships, traineeships and workforce development
• Regional economic development
• Local supplier capability and supply chain resilience
• Employment pathways for people facing barriers to work
• Community and place-based outcomes
• Environmental sustainability objectives
The TOM System helps government buyers create a more consistent approach to measuring outcomes across contracts, programs and portfolios, providing greater visibility of the value created through public expenditure.
Helping procurement leaders deliver measurable outcomes
Procurement teams are increasingly expected to balance value for money with broader economic, social and community outcomes. The TOM System provides a practical way to incorporate these outcomes into procurement processes and contract management.
How the TOM System supports procurement teams
• Define the outcomes that matter for a contract, community or region
• Create a more consistent approach to supplier evaluation
• Translate tender commitments into contractual requirements
• Monitor delivery against agreed outcomes
• Aggregate and report results across projects, contracts and suppliers
• Improve transparency and accountability throughout delivery
• Measure broader outcomes alongside cost, capability and performance considerations
Rather than introducing a separate program or reporting framework, the TOM System helps strengthen the connection between procurement decisions and the outcomes they create.
Download the whitepaper
How to drive greater social value through public procurement
Learn how the Australian TOM System can help organisations measure, manage and report social value outcomes through procurement.
As Co-chair of the Australian Social Value Taskforce, Ventia is working alongside government, industry and procurement leaders to support a consistent, evidence-based approach to social value measurement in Australia.
Through this collaboration, organisations can better understand the outcomes created through procurement and make more informed decisions about future investment.
To discuss how the TOM System could support your organisation's procurement or policy objectives, contact our social value team.
