What data should I collect? A guide to prioritizing data fields in an e-GP implementation

When designing open contracting reforms it is very important to establish key goals and metrics to be able to set baselines, track progress and adjust as needed. Gathering good quality and reliable data is crucial to implementing proper monitoring, evaluation, and learning strategies and running analyses for better decision making.

The data that electronic procurement systems can collect can be very different and can range from just collecting data on the pre-awarding phase to including functionalities such as e-invoicing, e-complaints, or supplier registries. In addition, while there might be information collected into the system, this information might not be available to export as structured data.

In practice, there are multiple considerations to take into account while implementing a new e-GP system. This guide focuses on key recommendations to consider related to making sure that the new system will facilitate the process of having structured data that can be used to track the progress of your goals and maximize the number of indicators that can be calculated, to increase data usability.