Implementing Purchasing Policies
Ken Jones has been working in the public and non-profit procurement field for 30 years. He worked for the New York State Office of Taxation and Finance as a Purchasing Assistant from 1985-87 and left there to work for the University at Albany, SUNY where he served as a Purchasing Agent and in 1999 was the Assistant Director supervising and providing training for the Office of Purchasing and Contracts. This included proving training for both State procurement and The Research Foundation for SUNY procurement rules and regulations. His previous purchasing experience included procuring commodities, services and construction for the departments on campus. A past Director of the SUNY Purchasing Association, Ken retired from the position of Assistant Director in January of 2014. However he was requested to continue to assist the office through the end of 2014. Afterward Ken worked part time for the SUNY Center for International Development as a Procurement Specialist assisting primarily with their program in Kenya, Africa. Ken has trained many University staff on procurement rules and regulations. He established online ordering processes with vendors ranging from Office supplies to Lab chemicals and continues to provide training in his current position to procurement staff at the University at Albany, SUNY.
Ensure you have up-to-date information on policies, procedures, and contracts. You will learn about the different elements that make up a standard procurement procedure. The topic will cover those looking to improve or change a current procurement policy or program and also for those starting from scratch. You will learn about technical areas to include in structuring a new or improved procedure or program and then will follow along on a real case study involving creating a procurement manual for a funded program that did not have a customized manual for them to use. You will also learn of issues that come up and how to manage changes and keep procedures current.
1. For existing procurement offices review what is working and what isn't working in your current environment
- Ask customers that your service to provide feedback or a formal customer satisfaction survey
- Meet with current stakeholders that use your procurement documents in their workflow
- Meet with outside control agencies or departments that impact workflow
- Based on the feedback layout an implementation plan that will improve outcomes
2. For new purchasing offices or new procedures review the stakeholders and their need
- Do a survey of who your customers are and then define their needs and abilities
- Establish workflow based on the procurement office's internal requirements and needs of the customers
- Draft internal forms such as purchase requisition, purchase order, change order, and vendor contract
- Initiate internal controls such as authorized signatures, levels of approval, etc.
- Review the technologies available to the customers and procurement staff
- Develop a procurement manual for the purchasing office
3. Case study; creating a procurement manual for a grant-funded program
- Which rules will have precedence
- Bidding levels
- Sample documents
- Procurement levels and approvals
- Single and sole source requirements
- Changing procedures from paper-based to electronic workflow
4. Avoiding pitfalls in procurement policies
Areas Covered
- How to improve and implement changes to current procurement procedures
- How to create new Procedures
- Ways to communicate changes to affected parties
- Soliciting Input to facilitate change
- Drafting a new procurement manual
The importance of updating procedures and soliciting feedback after changes are made
Who Should Attend
- Purchasing Officers
- Contract Officers
- Accounting Officers
- Receiving Staff
- Compliance Officers
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$200.00
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