Click here to receive your FREE subscription to Campus Technology
Purchasing
The eProcurement Equation
11/1/2007
Planning Your Rollout
One of the beauties of eProcurement is that you don’t have to roll out the new system across the entire institution at once. Of course, you may prefer to follow UCF’s approach and just rip off the bandage, but you may decide instead to produce good results in one area, then use that as leverage to market the new system’s use to other departments.
KEEP IT SIMPLE
A KEY REASON that your eProcurement system needs to be uncomplicated is what Oracle VP Jim McGlothlin calls "the incidental buyer." Unlike corporations, where purchasing typically is performed by agents who spend lots of time with the purchasing software, universities might have hundreds or even thousands of buyers, some of whom may jump into the system once or twice a year to make their purchases. For those reasons, as you evaluate eProcurement systems, keep in mind that the purchasing process needs to be very simple.
For basic user purchases, your system should resemble the tried-and-true approach of a purchasing front-end megalith like Amazon.com. Users already know how to visit such websites, select products, and drop them into shopping carts; it’s a structure we’ve all grown used to.
Another point, adds McGlothlin: There’s a great need in universities for purchasing not just goods, but services such as cellular phone service. By setting up that sort of purchase as just another line item, you can still let users take advantage of simple eProcurement procedures. For more complex services, such as contracting with a consultant, you’ll probably need eProcurement software with a services procurement capability, but look for one that works just as simply as purchasing a product.
Newer to eProcurement is the capability to handle online strategic sourcing. That means the ability to gather competitive bids from suppliers, run reverse auctions, and perform other more sophisticated procurement tasks, throughout the program. Those capabilities, popular currently in the corporate world, McGlothlin says, will most likely migrate to higher education soon.
Two years ago, in fact, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (NY) opted for a gradual six-month rollout of its eProcurement system that began with the School of Engineering, according to Ann Crislip, director of the purchasing department, and Kevin Smith, associate director. Today, except for staffers on a small satellite campus, no one at RPI uses paper to complete a purchase order. One big benefit of the new system: Even multiple levels of approvals can be handled remotely—from finance and property management, to research and risk management— since physical signatures are no longer required on purchase orders.
Recommended Reading
- CT Industry
- eProcurement Success!
Today, it's clear to almost every campus executive that moving an institution from the traditional purchasing model to a strategic eProcurement program can greatly increase staff efficiency and save the institution money. Because eProcurement automates so many purchasing processes, it eliminates reams of paperwork and allows procurement staff to refocus their efforts on cutting costs and improving strategic partnerships.
- How to Be a Super Tech Leader
Mary Jo Gorney-Moreno didn't start out in IT. She joined San Jose State University (CA) in 1981 as an assistant professor in the school of nursing. But somewhere along the way, she realized her energy was focused on academic technology, and how it could help a variety of learners gain knowledge.
- James Morris
- Products :: Data Security
- Products :: Physical Security
