Consip

Consip is an Italian state-owned company that serves the country's public administration as a central purchasing body and procurement competence centre. It is wholly owned by Italy's Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF), operates in line with the ministry's strategic objectives, and works exclusively for public-sector users rather than serving ordinary consumer or private-enterprise markets. The company was established in 1997 under the name CON.S.I.P., an acronym derived from Concessionaria Servizi Informativi Pubblici. Its original purpose was connected with information-technology management for the former Ministry of the Treasury, Budget and Economic Planning. Legislative Decree No. 414 of 19 November 1997 assigned Consip information and communications technology responsibilities related to finance and accounting across Italy's national public administration. Ministerial measures issued in December 1997 and June 1998 subsequently placed the management and development of relevant ICT services for the ministry under the company's responsibility. Consip's role broadened significantly in 2000. In implementation of Italy's 2000 Budget Law, a ministerial decree dated 24 February 2000 assigned the company responsibility for supporting public administrations in purchasing goods and services. This change transformed Consip from a primarily public-sector ICT organization into a national procurement infrastructure provider. Over time, legislation and administrative measures added further responsibilities, and the company developed a broad portfolio covering central purchasing, procurement support, consulting, project design, and complex public-administration initiatives. Its principal activity is the Programme for the Rationalization of Public Administration Purchases. In this capacity, Consip designs and manages procurement instruments intended to aggregate demand, simplify purchasing procedures, improve transparency, and encourage competition among suppliers. Its tools include framework contracts, framework agreements, the public-administration electronic marketplace, dynamic purchasing systems, and application-service-provider tenders. These instruments allow eligible administrations to purchase goods and services through standardized or digitally managed processes rather than independently designing every procurement exercise. Consip also provides direct assistance to individual public administrations under specific agreements. This vertical procurement work can cover strategic planning, tender design, legal and technical support, project management, supplier-selection procedures, and other stages of the procurement life cycle. A third area consists of initiatives assigned through legislation or administrative acts, where Consip applies its procurement expertise and project-management capabilities to complex or innovative public-sector programs. The company's positioning is therefore institutional and infrastructural rather than consumer-facing. Its value proposition is based on combining procurement expertise, legal and technical knowledge, digital platforms, demand aggregation, and process standardization. The intended public benefit is more efficient and transparent use of public resources, while the intended market effect is to make public tenders more accessible and competitive for businesses. Consip has described itself as a competence centre spanning both strategic procurement planning and the execution of actual purchasing activity. Consip participates in the Procurement G6, an informal international group associated with the use of framework agreements and electronic procurement instruments. It also obtained ISO 9001:2008 quality certification for the design, implementation, and launch of framework contracts and e-marketplaces for public goods and services in its capacity as a central purchasing body. The reference material describes a workforce of approximately 340 people, with an average age of 43; 83 percent were university graduates and 51 percent women at the time of that description. Consip has also been associated with public-sector, e-government, procurement, and energy-service awards. Its continuing role is to provide Italy's public administrations with shared purchasing infrastructure and specialized procurement capabilities.

Consip was created in 1997 as an Italian state-owned joint-stock company originally focused on public-sector information technology. Its initial institutional setting was the former Ministry of the Treasury, Budget and Economic Planning, where it was intended to support changes in the management of information systems. Legislative Decree No. 414 of 19 November 1997 assigned Consip ICT functions relating to finance and accounting for Italy's national public administration. Ministerial decrees of 22 December 1997 and 17 June 1998 then assigned the company responsibility for managing and developing ICT services for the ministry. The company's mission expanded at the beginning of the following decade. In connection with implementation of Italy's 2000 Budget Law, the Ministry of Economy and Finance issued a decree on 24 February 2000 assigning Consip a role in assisting public administrations with the purchase of goods and services. This marked the development of Consip into a central procurement organization rather than a company limited to information systems. The new role reflected an effort to make public purchasing more coordinated, digitally enabled, transparent, and efficient. Consip subsequently became responsible for the Programme for the Rationalization of Public Administration Purchases. Through this program it developed and operated procurement instruments including framework contracts, framework agreements, an electronic marketplace for public administrations, dynamic purchasing systems, and application-service-provider tenders. These tools allow public bodies to use shared procurement arrangements and electronic procedures, while enabling suppliers to compete for public-sector demand through structured tenders. The company's activities later developed along three broad lines. As a central purchasing body, it manages national procurement instruments and supports aggregated purchasing. Under specific agreements, it assists individual administrations across the procurement process, including planning, tender management, and related technical or legal activities. It also undertakes additional programs assigned by legal provisions or administrative acts, applying its procurement knowledge to complex and innovative public-administration projects. Consip's operating model combines consulting, assistance, procurement design, legal expertise, technical capabilities, and project management. Rather than acting as a conventional commercial brand, it functions as a public institutional service provider. Its customers are public administrations, while its procurement processes also create access points for private-sector suppliers seeking public contracts. The company's stated purpose is to improve the use of public resources and stimulate competitive participation in tenders. Consip has participated in the Procurement G6, an informal group associated with framework agreements and e-procurement. It received ISO 9001:2008 certification for the design, implementation, and launch of framework contracts and e-marketplaces for public goods and services in its role as a central purchasing body. Its work has also been recognized through public-sector and e-government awards, including European public-service and e-government distinctions. The company remains owned by the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance and continues to operate as a national procurement and public-administration support institution.

• 2014

  Awards for public-sector and governance work

  [1]Consipen.wikipedia.org

  The source material records Consip receiving or being associated with the European Energy Service Award and the Ambrogio Lorenzetti Award for Corporate Governance.

• 2009

  European public-sector recognition

  [1]Consipen.wikipedia.org

  Consip is associated with European Public Service Award and European eGovernment Award recognition in the source material.

• 2000

  Consip becomes a public-procurement support organization

  [1]Consipen.wikipedia.org

  A 24 February 2000 ministerial decree assigns Consip responsibility for assisting public administrations with the procurement of goods and services, leading to its central purchasing role.

• 1998

  Ministry ICT management role is expanded

  [1]Consipen.wikipedia.org

  Ministerial measures dated 22 December 1997 and 17 June 1998 place the management and development of relevant ICT services for the Ministry of the Treasury under Consip.

• 1997

  Consip is established

  [1]Consipen.wikipedia.org

  Consip is founded as a joint-stock company under the original name CON.S.I.P., Concessionaria Servizi Informativi Pubblici, to support information-technology management for the Italian Treasury and related public administration.

• 1997

  ICT responsibilities are assigned

  [1]Consipen.wikipedia.org

  Legislative Decree No. 414 of 19 November assigns Consip ICT activities connected with finance and accounting for Italy's national public administration.

Italy's public-sector procurement infrastructure and competence centre, focused on demand aggregation, transparent tendering, digital purchasing tools, and professional support for public administrations.

• Central public procurement

  Framework contracts and framework agreements

  Consip designs and manages framework-based procurement arrangements that allow public administrations to obtain commonly purchased goods and services under standardized conditions. These instruments aggregate public demand, reduce duplicated tendering work, and establish structured terms through which administrations can place purchases. They also provide suppliers with organized opportunities to compete for public-sector business.

• E-procurement

  Public-administration electronic marketplace

  Consip operates an electronic marketplace serving Italian public administrations. The marketplace supports digital interactions between eligible public buyers and suppliers and forms part of the wider effort to make public purchasing more accessible, traceable, and efficient. It is one of the company's principal digital procurement instruments.

• E-procurement

  Dynamic purchasing systems

  Dynamic purchasing systems are electronic procurement mechanisms included in Consip's central purchasing toolkit. They are intended to support competitive purchasing through digitally managed procedures and can provide public administrations with a flexible method for buying goods or services within defined procurement categories.

• Professional services

  Procurement consulting and assistance

  Consip provides consulting, assistance, and procurement project-design services to public administrations. Its support can span strategic procurement planning, legal and technical preparation, tender procedures, project management, and the operational purchasing phase. This offering reflects the company's role as a specialized competence centre rather than only a digital platform operator.

• 2000

  Expansion into public procurement rationalizationStrategy

  Background

  Consip had initially been established around ICT responsibilities for the Italian public administration. The Ministry of Economy and Finance subsequently sought a more coordinated approach to public purchasing in connection with the 2000 Budget Law.

  Action taken

  A ministerial decree dated 24 February 2000 assigned Consip responsibility for assisting public administrations with the procurement of goods and services and for developing the procurement-rationalization program.

  Aftermath

  This decision established the foundation of Consip's modern identity as Italy's central purchasing body and procurement competence centre.

  Source

1. 1Consipen.wikipedia.org