Work

Assessing the Design Coherence of a Social Procurement Regulatory System: Victoria’s Experiment

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Social procurement can attain particular traction when governments leverage large-scale infrastructure programmes to mandate the procurement of goods and services from categories of people in society that have historically be disadvantaged. However, frictions can arise within a system of regulation when operational choices in the structural design of a regulatory regime are not well matched with the nature of the social opportunity being addressed. In 2018, the Australian State of Victoria introduced a Social Procurement Framework, intending to create economic and employment opportunities for historically disadvantaged groups. Applying Sheehy and Feaver’s theory of regulatory coherence, and taking into account findings from interviews with stakeholders, this article assesses the coherence of the Australian State of Victoria’s social procurement regulatory regime, as it applied from 2018 to 2023. This article explains Victoria’s framework, makes recommendations for its improvement, and, drawing upon pertinent theoretical perspectives, extends the regulatory coherence debate into the domain of social procurement.

Source: Buildings

DOI: 10.3390/buildings15142521

Authors: David Goodwin, Riccardo Natoli, Catherine Xiaocui Lou

Institutions: University of Nottingham, University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus, Victoria University

Language: English

Topic: Public Procurement and Policy

Subfield: Strategy and Management

Field: Business, Management and Accounting

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Peace, justice, and strong institutions, Reduced inequalities

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,137