Frequently Asked Questions

Here are a few of the questions we get asked most frequently.  However please do not hesitate to contact us directly if you do not find the answer you were looking for.

 

1.     We are a consultancy and would like to offer LM3online to a number of clients is this possible?

Yes we can issue a consultancy licence that will allow you to set up multiple different clients in addition to the multiple use and multiple supplier licences.  We can even brand the model with your corporate style for you. 

 

2.     Does LM3online help us with the Public Services (Social Value) Act?

Yes.  The Act neither defines nor indicates how to measure Social Value.  While tools such as SROI can be useful in a descriptive sense they cannot be used within a public procurement environment.  This means that the only tool that it is auditable and available to prove a ‘Social Value’ is LM3online.

 

3.      Is there an easy way to combine LM3 with our other social and environmental measures?

Yes, the best way is to use our Impact Manager software.  This was developed with Defra to enable organisations to measure the impact of economic, social and environmental measures.  Please either contact us directly or check out the website.

 

4.     How do I decide on the size of my local area?

This is entirely up to you and there are no restrictions on the tool.  Often the size picks itself for example local government almost always use the political area for which they are accountable.  Private companies tend to use a measure that is related to employment as this is usually a major part of the cost of a project.  So for example they might use an area that includes where 80% of their employees/suppliers are based. 

This is an important decision as the smaller the area the lower the LM3 is likely to be.  This is one reason that we fight against the ‘my LM3 is bigger than yours’ approach.  But hell you cant buck human nature.

 

5.     What is the best way to get a good supplier response?

The most important thing is communication.  If the letter that you write to got out to your suppliers within the tool comes from the CEO and explains properly what and why you are doing then this is the most important element.  The second most is to follow up those that don’t respond.  In one LM3 with 140,000 suppliers the response rate (voluntary) rose from 36% to 48%. 

The best way of all and this is how almost all our private sector clients’ use the tool is to include the completion as a condition of the contract.  The public sector tends to be very poor at this but best practice is to include the completion in the original tender or framework.