Georgia Purchaser - December 2009 Edition

Georgia Purchaser, December 2009

In This Issue

Commissioner Speaks at Federal Budget Meeting

Spend Management Project

Team Georgia Marketplace Update

Employee Spotlights

Professional Development News

State Use Update

New Statewide Contracts

P-Card Tips

Quick Links

Statewide Contracts Index

State Purchasing Web site

7 Stages of Procurement Forms

SPD Staff Directory

Statewide Card Programs

Training Program

How's My Service?

DOAS Job Opportunities

MESSAGE FROM THE ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER

Greetings Purchasing Partners,

It is with great pleasure that we share the Winter Edition of the Georgia Purchaser. In recent months, we have experienced great economic challenges that have helped to emphasize the importance of streamlined and efficient procurement practices. In the same vein, the year has been filled with many notable accomplishments to improve purchasing in Georgia, thanks to the ongoing support of our involved state entities.

We can all be proud of the continued success of Team Georgia Marketplace

as well as the increased skill and confidence of state entities that conduct their own procurements inline with the increased delegated purchasing authority policy change. Additionally, our deployments of Window Shopper, along with new training opportunities, are just a few recent accomplishments that promise continued purchasing excellence into the future.

In addition to our usual procurement highlights, this issue features a new face to Georgia's Accelerated Procurement Transformation: the Assistant Vice Chancellor of Strategic Sourcing for the University Systems of Georgia, Michael Herger. As you read more about him, we trust you will see how his tremendous knowledge, procurement experience and fervor for building relationships make him a great fit for our statewide transformation efforts.

I sincerely hope that your holiday season will be joyous and safe. May this edition of the Georgia Purchaser meet your procurement needs and lastly, let us know how we can serve you better.

Best Regards,

Tim Gibney, C.P.M, CPPO
Assistant Commissioner - Procurement
Department of Administrative Services
purchasing@doas.ga.gov

NATIONAL IMPLICATIONS OF GEORGIA'S TRANSFORMATION

Commissioner Douglas Speaks at Federal Budget Meeting

On December 10, 2009, Commissioner Brad Douglas testified on Georgia's Procurement Transformation before the U.S. Senate Budget Committee Task Force on Government Performance in Washington, D.C. The Task Force is charged with examining the federal government's management practices and identifying opportunities to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of federal programs and services. Learn more about the Budget Senate Committee in a press release. Preview Commissioner Douglas' testimony and access the archived broadcast of the hearing.

SPEND MANAGEMENT PROJECT UPDATE

SPD Issues First Spend Management White Paper

A 12-month project that has been in progress since March 2009, the Spend Management Project is in full swing, with the data collection, development of the multi-relational database (spend cube), and initial categorization phases out of the way and detailed spend categorization at hand. As the first of many spend management updates, learn how this project ties to greater purchasing visibility and efficiency throughout the state. More>>

TEAM GEORGIA MARKETPLACEUPDATES

Want to be a Time Chopper? Be a Window Shopper!

Is your agency without the Team Georgia

Marketplace

application? Do you hate spending time searching for items you need to buy to support your operations? The Department of Administrative Services (DOAS), State Purchasing Division has a solution for you! Window Shopper is a search tool and online repository of statewide contract catalogs. Using the tool, you can quickly search for items (goods and services) for your organization and compare prices in a manner very similar to online shopping at home. More>>

On December 8, 2009, Georgia joined many governmental agencies...

in charging a small fee for email event notifications from Team Georgia Marketplace

. We are including a copy of a communication that describes this change to our supplier community. Thank you in advance for your support in promoting our effort to secure funding for critical procurement processes and tools for Georgia. More>>

The Procurement Transformation Continues: SPD Gears Up for Future System Launches

It has been nearly a year since our January 2009 launch of Team Georgia

Marketplace

and the Department of Administrative Services (DOAS) continues to make major strides towards its implementation statewide. Statewide acceptance of the eProcurement system is well on its way--with 1604 state entity users totaling nearly $600 million of state spend, the registration of 14,429 state suppliers, and more implementations down the pike. More>>

EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHTS

Spotlight on DOAS' "Customer Service Star" Gina Tiedemann

DOAS is proud to announce that Director of Customer Advocacy Gina Tiedemann was recently honored with a Governor's Commendation for Excellence in Customer Service. It seems best-in-class service to DOAS customers coupled with quality leadership in the statewide implementation of Team Georgia Marketplace

is not only helping to "change the way Georgia does business," but is what led her to receive this most prestigious award. More>>

Meet Michael Herger

There is a new face to Georgia's Accelerated Procurement Transformation: the Assistant Vice Chancellor of Strategic Sourcing for the University System of Georgia, Michael Herger. Said to "offer the whole package with respect to himself and his professional background" by Assistant Commissioner Tim Gibney, he is sure to excel in his new role as both an advocate for Georgia colleges and universities and DOAS partner to moving Georgia purchasing to the next level. More>>

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Fiscal Year 2009 Successes

On behalf of State Purchasing Division's (SPD) Professional Development staff, I want to thank you all for your participation in our training classes and your interest in our learning events. This past fiscal year, we concentrated on addressing the issues you identified in Fiscal Year 2008: "We need more training courses," "We need more distance-learning classes," and "We need more training classes close to our location." More>>

Training Courses and Certification Update

Learn about the certification programs SPD has been working diligently to develop and about the availability of new purchasing courses. More>>

STATE USE UPDATE

Toner Cartridges Added to State Use List

The State Use Council voted and unanimously approved that 42 remanufactured toner cartridges be added to the State Use Procurement List. Get further details in a memorandum from Commissioner Brad Douglas. More>>

NEW STATEWIDE CONTRACTS

The Georgia Department of Administrative Services, State Purchasing Division, has established a host of new statewide contracts that will help you save time and the additional costs associated with acquiring needed products and services. Search the Statewide Contract Index for details on these and other available statewide contracts:

Auto, Truck, Bus Parts & Maintenance Parts Management
Facility Maintenance Services

IT Servers

Liquid or Liquified Petroleum Gas
Maintenance, Repair and Operations (MRO)

Office Supplies

Printing Services

Tire Retreading & Repair Services

PURCHASING CARD TIPS

Credit Card Processing Fee Clarification

Many vendors charge a "credit card processing fee" or "convenience fee" for accepting credit cards including the State Purchasing Card or P-Card. These types of fees are strictly regulated by Visa and MasterCard (also called the "Associations"). Learn more about these fees and whether they are allowed on the P-Card. More>>

If you would like to access the Georgia Purchaser online, go to www.doas.ga.gov, click the "More News" link within the News section on the home page and view our "Newsletters" list on the right.

DOAS State Purchasing Division