Industry: Public

When we talk about innovation in procurement, we tend to equate it with digital transformation or next-gen technology. And that’s certainly not wrong. It’s a big part of what we do here at Bonfire. But innovative procurement can actually take a lot of different forms. Just ask Carol Izzio, our special guest on the latest episode of Inside Public Procurement.

With over 15 years of experience in the field, Carol is the Director of Procurement at Sheridan College. An expert in the higher ed realm, she’s also worked in healthcare purchasing in both the public and private sectors.

According to Carol, the key to innovation is being creative “about the way you procure. And be[ing] innovative about the tools that you’re using to help you procure.” She joins us on our latest episode to talk about one surprisingly simple—but game-changing—approach to innovation: collaboration.

Here are some of our favorite lightbulb moments from the conversation. Have a read and be sure to check out the full episode on our website or wherever you get your podcasts!

Procurement’s bad habit of reinventing the wheel

“In the past, public procurement has always been [done in] silos,” Carol says. Individual institutions would create their own procurement policies and processes, “so, we’ve been known to reinvent the wheel.”

In recent years, and especially with the pressure placed on procurement teams during the pandemic, it’s been increasingly important for agencies to collaborate. Carol explains why it’s so important to start sharing resources, tools, templates, and best practices right now.

The need for collaboration between agencies

The concept of pooling resources and working together for mutual benefit has been around for probably as long as humans have. And despite the fact that it’s not new, it’s still key to innovation and, in particular, optimizing procurement.

“Optimization is really about using each other. So, we have a ton of professional procurement people out there. There are a ton of procurement organizations out there.” Rather than starting from scratch on a new procurement policy, for example, Carol says the best way to optimize time and resources is by reaching out to other institutions.

She sees duplication of effort happening all too often and, in our latest episode, she shares her tips for tapping into existing networks and resources.

Maximizing value with sustainable procurement

In the second half of our conversation, we switch gears to chat about another hot topic in procurement right now: sustainability. Specifically, how can procurement teams make the most of taxpayer dollars through sustainable procurement policies?

For Carol and her colleagues at Sheridan, sustainable procurement “isn’t just about clean purchasing” or reducing the organization’s environmental impact. It’s procurement that “achieves social, economical, environmental, and financial goals.”

When planning their approach to sustainable procurement, Carol says her team focused on shifting priorities to drive those goals. “Let’s see what we can do about keeping our communities healthy, people in jobs, making sure that we can support people who have smaller companies, or who want to start entrepreneur groups, and let’s try and support them.”

More aha moments on the podcast

Catch the full episode for more advice and firsthand experience from Carol on how to promote collaboration, optimize procurement, and approach conversations around sustainability policies in your agency.

Hungry for more tips, insights, and inspiration you can use to level up your procurement strategy? Head over to our website, or find Inside Public Procurement on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts!

From the moment she stepped into her role as Chief Procurement Officer, Jennifer Frates knew the procurement process had to change if Barnstable County was going to improve collaboration and deliver more value for stakeholders now and into the future.

With 15 towns and a one-person procurement team managing cooperative bids for all of them, the regional government for Cape Cod, Massachusetts relies on strong collaboration in its procurement process. Achieving that through workflows involving hardcopy submissions, in-person bidding, manual Excel tabulations, and email wasn’t only labor-intensive. It was also preventing the county from reaching more vendors, making data-driven decisions, and finding innovative new purchasing solutions.

Having come from an organization that used Bonfire for eProcurement, Jennifer says, “I knew right away – the technology exists, we can use this software to be able to efficiently have the same exact process that we have now and be able to do it quicker, faster and with a lot less administrative work on my part.” 

Experience had shown her that switching from paper-based to eProcurement would be the best way to help the towns deliver more cost-effective, on-budget solutions and collaborate more effectively — and Bonfire fit the bill.

15 towns working together

Barnstable County has a population of over 212,000 across its 15 towns. Since none of the towns have dedicated procurement departments, they often pursue cooperative bids coordinated through the county to make the most of their resources and level up their purchasing power.

In order to do that, the towns need to be able to work together effectively and efficiently to get projects off the ground, a task single-handedly managed by Jennifer, who is responsible for all the bidding, contracting, and purchasing for the internal department and county-wide cooperative bids. That includes RFPs for critical projects such as road materials, school supplies, fuel, professional services, and more.

Paper-based procurement slows progress

As if coordinating cooperative bids for 15 towns wasn’t already complex enough, Barnstable’s manual processes made every project even more difficult and procurement was up against some significant challenges, including:

• Labor-intensive clerical processes that were creating inefficiencies and unnecessary administrative overhead
• No centralized way to coordinate communication and collaborative processes between stakeholders, vendors and evaluators across multiple towns
• A lack of data analysis and insights that limited strategic planning and decision-making
• A small pool of vendors with no easy way to extend their reach, which meant the county and towns weren’t getting the best possible value for citizens

Bonfire keeps all stakeholders on the same (virtual) page

Switching to Bonfire’s state-of-the-art eProcurement software has saved Barnstable County countless hours of administrative effort, expanded their vendor pool, and improved pricing and value, enabling them to divert more funds to critical projects that make all the towns better.

Everything in one central location

Providing a centralized platform for seamless collaboration, Bonfire allows all stakeholders, including vendors, internal departments, and evaluators, to see all the information they need in one convenient place with automated reminders and notifications so they never miss a step or deadline. It’s simple for everyone to see where others are in the process and easily submit and view documents, comments, and feedback.

Time-saving process automation

Like many agencies struggling with a shrinking budget, adding more team members to the procurement department simply wasn’t an option for Barnstable. Bonfire eProcurement has filled that gap and delivered more value with less budget, taking the administrative burden off Jennifer’s shoulders — almost like a virtual extension of her team.

Faster, data-driven decision-making

Automating previously manual tasks has freed up time for higher-level strategic planning and decisions backed by data-driven insights from Bonfire. Not only do digitized processes allow Barnstable to complete projects faster, they also translate to more competitive bids, higher quality submissions, and direct cost savings. During COVID-19, Barnstable was able to use Bonfire to complete time-sensitive projects quickly and easily, including procuring COVID testing equipment and commissioning a study on the pandemic’s economic impact.

A future of collective success

Every day Jennifer sees the role collaboration plays in getting the most value for taxpayer dollars. “A lot of budgets are getting slashed and people are trying to find new opportunities to save,” she says. “This is where it becomes much more important for public procurement officials to collaborate.” For Barnstable’s towns, which rely on cooperative bids to stay on budget, Bonfire has drastically improved their ability to collaborate for better, faster results.

If your agency uses paper-based procurement processes, some of the challenges Barnstable County was facing probably sound familiar. Discover more about how Bonfire instantly expanded their procurement capacity with Bonfire by watching the full video client story.

Have you noticed a shift? Public agencies are getting back to business in 2021 and procurement teams are feeling the pressure to post more bids and complete more projects this year. But COVID-19 has changed the world of procurement—possibly forever. What does that mean for how public procurement departments work, collaborate, and plan for the future?

Our 2021 State of Public Sourcing report is here to answer those questions and more with a deep dive into the Bonfire database. We analyze the key trends and challenges that are driving procurement priorities and strategies right now. Our analysis examines data from approximately 400 U.S. public organizations that use the Bonfire eProcurement platform, comparing metrics from 2019, 2020, and 2021 over a 6-month period (January through June) of each year.

Keep reading for the top three insights from this year’s analysis and be sure to download the full report for findings and guidance you can use to inform your procurement strategy.

1. Projects and RFPs are back on track

If you work in public procurement, you don’t need us to tell you that project and RFP counts plummeted from 2019 to 2020. The pandemic forced you to put many plans on pause to address emerging priorities like sourcing PPE and setting up COVID-19 testing sites.

The good news? In 2021, we’re seeing a resurgence of projects verging on pre-pandemic numbers. This can be explained by a number of significant shifts, including a mass return to the office, continued stimulus funding from the American Rescue Plan, and Biden’s proposed $1.2 trillion infrastructure package—all of which are making it possible to pursue more complex projects.

Here are some of the key project-related trends that are impacting public agencies right now:

• In the first six months of 2019, organizations were putting out an average of 11 RFP projects. That number dropped to 8 by 2020, but bounced back up to 11 within just six months.
• In 2020, healthcare was the only sector to see an increase in projects—and it was significant, with project counts skyrocketing 117%.
• Looking into 2021, K-12 and Special Districts both have higher project counts than before the pandemic, increasing by 49% and 13% respectively.

2. eProcurement adoption continues to rise

With projects and RFPs bouncing back to pre-pandemic numbers, it’s worth asking: are agencies going back to pre-pandemic ways of working too? When we look at the number of eProcurement users, the answer is clear. Times have changed. Public agencies are embracing digital transformation and rethinking procurement processes to incorporate streamlined, digital-first practices.

Here’s some key evidence of eProcurement’s continued growth:

• Even though project volumes dipped in 2020, there were close to 50% more logins to the Bonfire platform than ever before.
• Not only did people log in more, but agencies expanded the use of eProcurement to a broader set of buyer groups within the agency. 
• Vendor and supplier registrations jumped by over half between 2019 and 2021.

3. Agencies are diversifying and widening their vendor pools

Public agencies are shifting their strategies for a post-pandemic world. And one significant way they’re doing that is through their vendor pool. Bonfire data shows that agencies are widening their network by sending out more vendor invitations. And they’re also seeking out more diverse, local, and small businesses to partner with. 

By tracking vendor diversity in Bonfire, buyers can quickly and easily gain increased visibility into the participation of diverse vendors, including small and medium-sized businesses and those owned by historically disadvantaged or marginalized groups. Diversifying and widening the vendor pool is a strategic move because it allows agencies to increase competition, mitigate supply chain issues (which continue to be a critical challenge during the pandemic), get the most value for taxpayer dollars, and support social procurement policies.

Our analysis uncovered these insights pointing to agencies’ increased attention to vendor diversity and relationships in 2021:

• Agencies have doubled the average number of registration fields they use to track vendor diversity within Bonfire.
• At least 10% of buyers are tracking vendor diversity in Bonfire.
• The percentage of vendors that identify as small, disadvantaged, and/or minority owned has increased in recent years.
• Agencies are also sending out twice as many vendor invitations in 2021 than they were in 2019.

Get more insights to accelerate your strategy

In 2020, public agencies pivoted to tackle emergency projects and keep their communities safe. Now, halfway through 2021, it’s clear that procurement teams are back to pre-pandemic levels of business—but it’s not business as usual. Agencies are advancing new priorities, strategies, and goals, and they’re planning for a world that looks a lot different than it did in 2019. The pandemic will continue to impact life for years to come, but our latest State of Public Sourcing report shows that public organizations are already integrating its lessons to plan for a better future.

Get more insights to help your public procurement team get back to business. Download The State of Public Sourcing: Fast and Focused.

When the time comes for you to get that new RFP together, where do you begin? As we’ve been engaging with our customers and the broader procurement community, the response we’re hearing is that there’s simply no easy answer. 

Everybody agrees that there’s no plagiarism in procurement—using each other’s best practices and RFP samples helps to ensure better outcomes for the whole community. However, finding the right kind of examples to help build a new RFP is easier said than done. The search for templates, trying to get in touch with nearby agencies, or simply resorting to general Google searches —these are just a few ways our customers try to help build out new RFPs.

Does this feel familiar to you?

At Bonfire, we also knew there had to be a better way for our customers to create RFPs. We also knew that everybody—not just our customers—would benefit from a new way to collaborate on new projects. 

Introducing Bonfire Open Access Community Projects

To that end, we’re excited to announce Bonfire Open Access Community Projects, a new tool that provides access to tens of thousands of public projects from our network of 500+ agencies across North America. Best of all, we’re making this tool completely free for everyone in procurement.

Launching later this fall, Open Access Community Projects will allow you to quickly search from up to 62,000 public projects (and growing) from our Bonfire network, and get access to all public supporting bid documents. 

We think that Open Access Community Projects will have the power to transform your RFP creation process, and here’s why:

• Get best-in-class examples of RFPs from 500+ agencies in the Bonfire network. No matter what kind of project you’re beginning, chances are that other agencies will have done the work already—work you can use directly when creating your next RFP.
• Access all public supporting bid documents, so you can see exactly how to structure your project. There’s no plagiarism in procurement—sharing best practices is what helps everyone improve their outcomes in procurement!
• Draw from thousands of new projects added monthly from our network of agencies across North America. Every day, you’ll get access to even more projects, so check back often on our always-growing collection.

What our customers are saying

Just this month, NIGP Forum 2021 brought together the best and brightest in procurement at their annual (virtual) event. This year, NIGP’s theme was all about Connecting Procurement Communities, so we thought there was no better place to announce Open Access Community Projects.

We’re glad to say that you seem just as excited about this new tool as we are. Here’s just one of our customers who got a sneak peek at Open Access Community Projects:

“One of the biggest challenges we face in procurement is getting the right information together for a new RFP and ensuring that we’re using best practices right from the start,” said Maija Lampinen, Procurement and Contracts Manager at the Port of Everett, Washington. “With Community Projects, we’ll be able to easily search for similar projects run by other agencies, see how they structured their projects, and access supporting project documents. It’s hard to understate how valuable this information will be for us going forward, and the impact it will have on how we run our projects and the time it saves us during RFP creation—especially for new or unfamiliar procurements.”

Get on our list for early access before the public launch

While we won’t be launching Open Access Community Projects until later this fall, you can reserve a spot for early access right now.

Be sure to head over to our registration page, learn a bit more about Open Access Community Projects, and sign up. With your spot reserved, you’ll be one of the first people to get access to this new tool ahead of the public launch.

Welcome to the moment in history when “business-as-usual” ceased to hold much meaning for public sector organizations. As the pandemic continues to impact ways of doing business and technology evolves at a rapid pace, change is the only constant.

At the same time, public procurement professionals everywhere are—how do we put this?—tired. Under constant pressure to respond and pivot, agencies are feeling the strain. So, it seems like the perfect time to ask: where do we go from here? If we know change is here to stay, how can public procurement teams make sure they’re ready for anything?

We’re tackling these big questions and more on our latest episode of Inside Public Procurement. We’re joined by special guest Amanda Burton, Contract Buyer at Utah Transit Authority (UTA), who shares her thoughts on how public sector procurement can respond to today’s challenges and innovate for the better.

Keep scrolling for a few hot topics from the show (spoiler alert!), and catch the full episode on our website or wherever you get your podcasts.

No shortage of supply chain shortages

65% of public sector organizations say they faced supply chain shortages during the pandemic, according to a recent Bonfire survey. For Amanda, even 15 years in the field of procurement couldn’t have prepared her for that challenge.

“There were many failures and many structural issues that have been brought to light due to the pandemic,” Amanda says. “Four or five years ago, most companies had moved to a just-in-time inventory, and with the pandemic, we realized pretty quickly that was not the best way to run a company. It left us very vulnerable.”

Describing a situation that’s no doubt familiar to many of our listeners, Amanda says she and her colleagues scrambled to get the products they needed to keep business running. Particularly challenging was the fact that organizations using the same pool of state and government funds were forced to bid against each other for essential products, such as PPE, causing prices to become even more inflated.

“I think that was a big eye-opener for a lot of us to kind of get out of the norm. It showed me personally how important vendor relationships are. Suddenly those mom and pop shops that I kind of overlooked a little bit were my main go-tos.”

In our conversation, Amanda dives into the lessons she learned from ongoing supply chain shortages, including identifying and dealing with fraudsters, sourcing in-demand products, handling shipping delays, and maintaining strong vendor relationships.

“Get out of the norm” to improve procurement

Evolving away from traditional ways of doing business has been necessary during the pandemic, but Amanda says it’s mostly been a good thing. Seeing how organizations and vendors pivoted to help one another and solve critical challenges is a trend she hopes will prevail long after the pandemic. And, for the most part, that ability to adapt has been driven by innovation.

“Innovation is very important in the world of procurement. Many times vendors come to us with new ideas… And if we listen with a non-judgemental ear, we’re able to push ideas to the forefront and hopefully better our processes.”

It’s easy to focus on other priorities or “get comfortable with current suppliers” and ways of doing things in procurement, but Amanda says making a conscious effort to find efficiencies and explore new solutions is one of the main ways that procurement can deliver value.

“I just worry that business-as-usual isn’t always best and we need to continue looking outside and looking for opportunity, and that’s what I try to do all the time. And if you do that there will be failures… But there are definitely wins too.”

Amanda shares her own experience driving process improvements at UTA that made it faster and easier for transit mechanics to access the parts they needed for critical repairs. After overcoming months and months of resistance, procurement’s solution is now dramatically cutting downtime and improving efficiency.

Discover even more on the podcast

The pandemic has transformed ways of doing business for good. And Amanda’s insights offer great inspiration for every procurement professional feeling overwhelmed by the rapid pace of change in today’s world.

Tune into our next episode to hear more from our conversation, including Amanda’s take on bridging the generational gap in procurement and dealing with the ever-present challenge of funding in the public sector.

Hungry for more tips, insights, and inspiration you can use to level up your procurement strategy? Head over to our website, or find Inside Public Procurement on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts!

You’ve likely heard this frustrating and all-too-common misconception about procurement: it’s all about rules, red tape, and getting in the way. 

In reality, that couldn’t be further from the truth. While compliance is the backbone of good procurement, that doesn’t mean sacrificing customer service. In fact, the best procurement teams are also supportive peers, strategic allies, and expert consultants who help internal partners get the goods and services they need at the best value.

In our third episode of Inside Public Procurement, special guest Aaron Howell tackles this contentious topic head on. Dishing insights from an impressive career in finance and higher education, he shares best practices for balancing compliance and customer service to build better relationships and long-term wins in your organization.

Keep reading for key takeaways from the show, and tune in to the full episode on our website or wherever you get your podcasts!

Customer-centric culture starts at the top

As the Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) at Kennesaw State University, Aaron has nearly 25 years of higher education experience, including past roles as Vice President for Business & Finance/CFO at Averett University and Assistant Vice President & Controller at Oregon State University. 

Having led purchasing teams in multiple organizations, he knows firsthand the role that customer service plays in procurement’s ability to drive success. He says that, ultimately, laying the foundation for a customer service model has to come from the top.

“Compliance is a given for me. We’re never going to do it wrong, we’re always going to do it right, even when it’s complicated. If that’s the given, then let’s focus on how we can deliver the most effective customer service. Let’s make sure that I am continually repeating and then I’m modeling good customer service,” Aaron says.

In episode three, he explains what leaders can do to set the right tone and ensure the internal client experience is top of mind in procurement strategy and processes.

Creating relationships rooted in empathy

But what, exactly, does client service mean in a procurement context? And what strategies can procurement professionals use to improve it?

At its most basic level, customer service is about building strong relationships and demonstrating care. Aaron has seen, again and again, that internal stakeholders want one key thing: empathy. They’re looking for procurement to “take an interest in their work and the challenges that they face.”

“I really do think that they hope for somebody [in procurement] who’s a partner—who understands and helps them solve their challenges.”

In our chat, Aaron says he’s seen some of his biggest breakthroughs in client relationships when he’s gone the extra mile to make a personal connection. That can be as simple as walking across the office or setting up a call to ask questions, understand their needs, and show you’re on their side.

“It’s really amazing how you can change your relationship by doing that—by reversing the stereotype. Not only do you get an opportunity to deepen the relationship, but you can provide some training while you’re there.”

Building a reputation for strategic leadership

By focusing on the client experience and investing in better relationships with internal stakeholders, Aaron says procurement can reverse the misconception that their only job is to push compliance and stonewall projects.

That opens up space for procurement professionals to shape their role in the organization as collaborative partners and consultants who help clients make the most of their budgets, find efficiencies, and achieve success together.

“The better we do, the more we’ll be viewed and treated as strategic allies within our organizations. Ultimately, I think that is where we would all like to be.”

Listen today

Bring episode three on your morning walk or commute, and catch our full conversation with Aaron! Plus, dig into more tips, insights, and inspiration you can use to level up your procurement strategy.

Hungry for more in-the-field insights from the world of public procurement? Head over to our website, or find Inside Public Procurement on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts!

Tell me if this sounds familiar: It’s your first week on the job. You’re the new hire in your organization and your colleagues have been here for 10, 15, or even 30 years. Everyone seems confident and in the know—except you. To top it off, you’re afraid to ask questions or make mistakes because then your boss might realize the truth: they hired an imposter.

We’ve all been there. And it can be especially overwhelming starting out in procurement, of all places, where established relationships make the world go round. Whether you’re early in your career or working with colleagues who are, being successful means knowing how to collaborate across generations.

In our second episode of Inside Public Procurement, Joanna Hunt joins us to talk about just that: how can new and senior procurement professionals build strong working relationships within their organizations—and why is it important? 

Meet our guest: Joanna Hunt

As a Retail Buyer and Customer Experience Professional for the Wildcat Shop at Central Washington University, Joanna is an advocate for the fun (and sexy!) side of procurement.

With over 10 years of experience in dynamic visual merchandising, product procurement, and event facilitation, she brings infectious enthusiasm and seasoned insights that can help procurement teams collaborate better, work smarter, and be bolder.

Here are some of the topics we dive into with Joanna. Catch the full conversation on our website or wherever you get your podcasts!

Building relationships bridges the gap

For early career procurement professionals, Joanna says, “It can be really overwhelming to try to innovate or do anything new because you don’t know the history of the organization.”

She often sees young professionals experiencing imposter syndrome and afraid to share ideas with well-established colleagues. Her advice for fledgling buyers is to bring it back to the basics: building relationships and asking questions. Understanding how people in your organization work together, what relationships exist, and how you fit into that context is key.

“When we’re not thinking about ourselves in our one role, but about how we are a part of a living entity, it changes the dynamics immensely.”

Innovation starts with asking questions

When new procurement professionals enter an organization, Joanna says they’re typically thinking: “We want to get it faster. We want to get it at a better value. We want to create relationships with new vendors.”

That enthusiasm for innovation and eagerness to explore new ideas can make early career professionals real changemakers in their organizations. But not everyone is as comfortable with change. Innovation has to start with asking questions and working together.

Joanna has seen how established organizations can be apprehensive about new technologies, but the selling point always comes back to the efficiencies and cost savings that come along with shifting from paper to digital. 

In our conversation, she shares advice for how buyers can approach conversations about digital transformation in a way that’s sensitive to everyone’s perspective, from digital natives to traditional mindsets. 

Success is in the nitty-gritty

Ultimately, Joanna’s biggest piece of advice for new buyers is to obsess over details. While it can be tempting to focus on the big picture of how procurement keeps the whole organization running, the true key to success lies in the nitty-gritty of every order and RFP. That, and always having a backup plan.

“When I talk about gritty, for me, it’s knowing as much as you can about what can go wrong. I’m not a pessimist, but there’s so much room for human error—for manufacturing delays, shipping delays, natural disasters—that for me I need to know what can go wrong so that I can maximize what can go right.”

Joanna shares why she believes success in procurement always comes back to asking a few key questions to understand what’s important and where it’s okay to risk making a mistake.

Listen today

Tune into episode two today for our full chat with Joanna—and more tips, insights, and inspiration you can use to level up your procurement strategy.

Hungry for more in-the-field insights from the world of public procurement? Head over to our website, or find Inside Public Procurement on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts!

Public sector budgets may be bouncing back in 2021 but, no matter what, agencies are always under pressure to give taxpayers more bang for their buck.

Driving value increasingly requires creative solutions, which is why more and more procurement teams are turning to cooperative bids. But how do they work? And how can you show taxpayers measurable results?

In our first episode of Inside Public Procurement, we’re joined by Jennifer Frates, Chief Procurement Officer at Barnstable County and President of the Cape Cod Association of Public Procurement Officials (CCAPPO).

Jennifer discusses the value of cooperative bids and shares her experience leading collaborative purchasing for the 15 towns in her county. Plus, she gives us her insights from 15 years in the field, breaking down the importance of transparent reporting and the role of technology in public procurement today.

Tune into episode one on our website or wherever you get your podcasts!

The scoop on coops

Many public organizations use cooperative bids, or coops, to optimize how taxpayer dollars are spent—and unlock better pricing too. But did you know they can also strengthen your organizational capacity?

In this episode of the podcast, Jennifer explains how agencies drive more efficient processes, eliminate duplication of effort, and save time when they work together—a strategy that’s especially valuable if you don’t have a dedicated procurement department.

Barnstable County has seen these benefits firsthand thanks to cooperative contracts with the 15 towns in the county. Plus, Jennifer says it’s been a win for continuity planning. “The more collaboration and involvement from different towns, the more that institutional knowledge will have a better chance of staying.”

Time-saving technology

Along with the efficiencies created by cooperative contracts, Barnstable has seen big time savings in other areas over the past year. Jennifer says moving procurement processes online and working remotely has totally transformed how her team collaborates with the towns in the area, internal clients, evaluators, and vendors, allowing them to “do a lot more with less.”

“Even now as people are starting to go back in person, I’m hoping that [remote work] is one of those efficiencies that we keep a little bit longer,” Jennifer says. “I can’t even begin to talk about the benefits of having that extra time.”

Let’s get transparent

As her organization realizes more time and cost savings thanks to strategic purchasing and streamlined processes, Jennifer says she wants to be as transparent as possible about the value of those wins.

While they may not be the decision-makers, procurement provides “a service that’s probably just as important as any elected official,” she says. “It’s not only the compliance, but also data and reporting. And, with that, [elected officials] can make better decisions, save money, and provide services for their constituents based on the savings we’ve made.” 

Jennifer says it’s in agencies’ best interests to use their data to report back to stakeholders. By demonstrating how their strategy spends taxpayer dollars responsibly, they can win confidence and show the real value of procurement.

Listen today

Tune into episode one today for our full chat with Jennifer—and more tips, insights, and inspiration you can use to level up your procurement strategy.

Hungry for more in-the-field insights from the world of public procurement? Head over to our website, or find Inside Public Procurement on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts!