PACT scheme Singapore: map value for both partners

A PACT scheme Singapore proposal should describe a real partnership, not a subsidised purchase order. The lead enterprise and local partner need a shared business objective, clear work packages and a credible explanation of how the smaller enterprise will gain capabilities or market opportunity while the lead enterprise gains supply-chain, innovation or growth value.

Choose the partnership mode

The current EDB PACT page describes supplier development and co-innovation, and notes that supported costs may include manpower, software, hardware, equipment and professional services. Identify the partnership mode from the work, not from the desired cost category.

Supplier development may focus on quality, technical standards, lead time or resilience. Co-innovation requires genuine joint development, shared expertise and risk. State the operational problem and why neither ordinary procurement nor an internal project is the complete answer.

Define PACT scheme Singapore value for both sides

For the lead enterprise, possible value includes a stronger qualified supply base, shorter response time, local technical support, better resilience or a new solution. For the local partner, value may include new technical capability, process discipline, reference requirements, market access or reusable intellectual property. Use measures that each party can verify.

Avoid a one-sided promise that the local partner will simply receive more orders. Commercial volume may change, and PACT does not guarantee a contract outcome. Record the capability and evidence that remain useful even if forecasts change. This makes the business case more durable and fair.

Break the project into work packages

Use work packages for diagnosis, design, build, test, qualification, training and deployment where they fit. Give each package an owner, inputs, deliverable, acceptance method and date. Show where both organisations contribute. A vendor quotation alone rarely explains the partnership responsibilities.

Map dependencies. The lead enterprise may need to provide specifications, test access or engineering time before the local partner can deliver. The local partner may need equipment, software or specialist support. Put those dependencies into the timetable so a late input is not mistaken for weak partner performance.

Protect commercial and technical clarity

Agree how confidential information, background intellectual property, new results and publication will be handled. Record who can use the developed solution after the project. Formal legal work should be coordinated with Singapore lawyers with the relevant speciality, while the business team keeps the commercial objective clear.

Separate the collaboration agreement, supply contract and grant record even when they refer to the same project. Each document serves a different purpose. Consistent scope, parties, dates and costs across them reduce later disputes and make the evidence easier to review.

Use milestone evidence

Select evidence before work begins. It may include test results, defect rates, cycle time, qualification records, staff competence, process capability, pilot output or customer acceptance. The EDB co-innovation examples show how partnerships can address concrete operating problems, but each new proposal needs its own facts.

Include failed tests and corrective action. A credible capability project rarely moves directly from plan to success. Keep versions and decisions so reviewers can see what changed. Do not invent a case study or present another company’s outcome as a forecast for this partnership.

Build a cost responsibility map

For each cost, identify the contracting party, payer, user, work package and expected evidence. Distinguish shared project resources from normal procurement and ongoing operating costs. Confirm current terms with EDB before commitments because support is subject to assessment and approval.

Run a no-support case. Both parties should understand which work remains commercially sensible, which depends on funding and who bears sunk costs. This preserves a real management decision and avoids presenting government support as guaranteed financing.

Review governance and next use

Create a joint steering rhythm with named decision makers and an exception route. Review scope, evidence, spend, risks and benefits. Keep operational discussions close to the people doing the work. Escalate decisions that change the approved project before implementation.

At completion, state which capability is now operating, who owns it and where it will be used next. Link the outcome to the business support decision guide and the wider business plan. A strong partnership file closes with capability transfer and commercial readiness, not only reimbursement.

PACT is most convincing when both organisations can point to a stronger operating capability after the project. The value map keeps that result visible from the first proposal through testing and commercial use.

Use a joint value map

Create one row for the lead enterprise, one for each local partner and one for the shared project. For every row, state the capability contributed, work performed, asset created, cost incurred, benefit received and evidence produced. The shared row should describe the value that cannot be achieved by either party alone. This makes it easier to distinguish a PACT scheme Singapore capability transformation from an ordinary buyer-supplier transaction.

Attach a responsibility matrix to the map. Name the owner for technical specifications, data, testing, intellectual property, procurement, training, cybersecurity and outcome reporting. Record decision rights and the escalation route. If a small partner bears most delivery risk but has no authority over acceptance, redesign the arrangement before application.

Test commercial durability

Model what happens after programme support ends. Identify who owns the solution, who may reuse it, how maintenance is funded and whether the smaller enterprise gains a repeatable capability or reference. A pilot that only reduces the lead enterprise’s short-term cost may not create the intended transformation. The post-project operating model should be credible without assuming another grant.

Keep the programme narrative, collaboration agreement, quotations, workplan, cost allocation and outcome measures consistent. Avoid double counting the same employee, software licence or equipment item across partners. Record conflicts of interest and related-party relationships early. A transparent value map gives both management teams a practical basis for negotiation and a stronger file for official discussion.