Past articles, podcasts, and interviews on thought leadership on government operations topics
2024.06.01: Similarities Between Government and Non-Profit Organizations
Government and non-profit organizations share several similarities, including how public procurement is conducted. Both sectors share the fundamental goal of achieving value for money while fulfilling their missions to serve the public good.
2024.05.20: Mental Health and Public Procurement
May is Mental Health Awareness Month, a time dedicated to raising awareness and reducing mental health stigma. It is crucial to recognize the role that public procurement plays in providing essential services to individuals in need.
2024.01.17: Traditional Best Value RFP vs. PIPS
Traditional Best Value RFPs rely on the people posting the RFP to be subject-matter experts. The PIPS Best Value approach enables genuine subject-matter experts to respond. Jacob Charries, CPPO, CPPB, PIPS BVA, CPO-OK, CPM-OK explains.
2023.12.13: Logistics and Food Rescue: A Perfect Match for Positive Change
What do food insecurity and food waste have in common with the supply chain? Learn how Food Rescue US incorporates supply chain principles in innovative ways.
2023.12.12: Civic Initiatives commits a percentage of revenue to Food Rescue US
2023.11.16: Performance Measurement in Procurement (and Beyond)
Performance management focuses on how government organizations measure, analyze, and improve their operations through data-driven decision-making.
2023.10.04: Timely Payments and Public Procurement
Our approach to vendor payments is not just a finance issue - it has a direct impact on the success of our procurement activities. In this article, I delve into the top 7 reasons why prompt payments to vendors should be a regular focus in public procurement.
2023.08.03: Mindful Measurement: Benchmarking in Public Procurement
There is a quote attributed to quality guru Peter Drucker: “What gets measured, gets managed...”
2023.06.21: Procurement Automation Project Fundamentals
2023.06.15: Don't Cover the Stove In Caution Tape
...one of my favorite analogies when it comes to procurement. I talked about running procurement against guiding principles, about not "covering the stove with caution tape." What is that about? It's understanding that procurement is a tool that, if people become afraid of, they will treat it in a particular way - or if they understand it is a tool that has a strategic role, they might run it differently.
2023.05.30: Building Bridges: Connecting Finance and Procurement Part 2 of 2
A story in five parts:- Procurement is a fully professionalized function (AND)- Finance and Procurement are highly aligned in mission (BUT)- To make Procurement thrive requires the correct support (SO THAT)- Citizens are served with the strongest characteristics of both (HOWEVER) the story has a twist ending if you are “small but mighty”.
2023.05.22: Building Bridges: Connecting Finance and Procurement Part 1 of 2
Dustin speaks about connecting finance and procurement at the GFOA conference.
2023.05.17: The Financial Data Transparency Act: Get On The Glidepath
The Financial Data Transparency Act (FDTA) was passed as a part of the National Defense Authorization Act on Dec 23, 2022. Originally a stand-alone bill, it requires local governments to meet open data standards for financial reporting over several years, with standards established by federal agencies, including the SEC and the Treasury.
2023.04.26: Five Keys to Strategic Partnerships
"If you want to go fast, go alone - If you want to go far, go together." African Proverb
Why should any organization – public or private – choose to establish strategic partners instead of building everything in-house? After running a business for almost 14 years and supporting procurement shops with strategic thinking, I think it boils down to five tests.
2023.04.20: Federal Relief Funds and Procurement - A Survival Guide Podcast
2023.02.07: The Six Core Questions on Co-Op Contracting
In preparation for my panel participation for the NCPP, I've pulled together thoughts on the Six Interrogatives - "Who", "Why", "What", "When", "How", and "Where" - of Co-op contracting.
2023.01.19: Navigating Staffing Constraints
In a special conference panel with California public procurement leaders, Dustin moderates a solution-oriented conversation covering clever points for human resources and staff retention.
2022.11.22: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Programs and Public Procurement - Where do they Connect?
Where do DEI and Public Procurement Connect?
2022.10.17: Affiliated Experts - a New Program of Service
2022.09.15: Procurement as a Service
Procurement is not something that can simply be covered by Finance or Legal - it is its own professionalized function that sits within the nexus of those groups.
2022.07.14: Procurement as the Focal Point
“A purchasing agent is the focal point for the nexus between finance, business, and legal, and our relationships with our vendors. I don’t know how you can deliver on some of the expectations of councils to be able to manage that function, protect cost, execute a vendor supplier program, and be good at managing our contracts without that focal point.”
2022.06.28: Flipping the Financial Year - In Style!
A great discussion on "Flipping the Financial Year - In Style" with perspectives from state, local, and higher education procurement practitioners, and it's available on-demand audio here!
2022.05.22: Talent Management in the Great Realignment
2022.03.23: 'Growing Purchasing Into Procurement' Speech
Establish the seed to start the process; nurture the change to make it take root; make it thrive through five actions
2022.03.15: Procurement as a Career: Should Public Procurement be on the List for Graduating Seniors?
Let's pitch to college seniors to get procurement on the list!
2021.12.14: Our Year of Content in Review
Launch of our LinkedIn newsletter, and a look back at all the content in 2021.
2021.10.15: Being a Public Procurement Change Agent
A podcast out of my prepared remarks in the NIGP panel on being a public procurement change agent, and its impact on a positive outcome in automation.
2021.08.11: Succession Planning in Public Procurement
Chief Procurement Officers may be reluctant to loosen the reins for fear that their expectations won’t be met. For this reason, the following points enable Agents and Buyers to pursue career-defining opportunities while exercising their leadership abilities in the public procurement arena. These practices enable individuals to become leaders who can take up the reins in the future.
2021.07.09: New Grant Funding - How does procurement prepare?
With ARPA and ESSER funds starting to enter the pipeline next month, it will be an interesting time for procurement.
The normal start-of-fiscal-year pressure will only be accelerated by new funding that may have specialized procurement needs.
2021.07.07: Gearing Up for an Infrastructure Infusion
With anticipated funding for infrastructure projects, even small public entities are seeing unprecedented levels of funding in what could be one of the most significant public "building booms" of our lifetimes. Here's a checklist of proactive tips as you navigate an increase in construction and IT infrastructure procurement.
2021.06.23: Creating Content - When That's Not What You Do for a Living (NIGP Chapter Presentation)
We've learned a lot about making content useful and doable, and I'm happy to share what we've learned.
2021.06.09: Procurement Automation Project Fundamentals
Fundamentals and frameworks for keeping procurement projects grounded in business value, understanding the automation-choice framework, and keeping project members rowing as one.
2021.05.19: Voice of the Customer
The "Voice of the Customer" in Public Procurement. Who are the customers, and how do we hear their voices when we are designing actions and policies?
2021.05.06: Environmentally Preferable Purchasing Infographic
2021.04.28: Tools in the Toolkit
Adding more tools to the toolkit in public procurement! We talk about some of the ways procurement is trying to do more than the standard RFP. From problem-statement-style bids to challenge-style bids and more, there are new ways to find the right tool for the problem.
2021.04.01: Client Stories Intro Article
How our clients work with us in 3 main areas.
2021.03.31: Procurement and Technology Security Standards (StateRAMP discussion)
How can Procurement and IT collaborate to make security standards in the public sector... well... standard?
2021.03.24: Strategic Pillars of Procurement Modernization
Panel of Patti Bowers, Barry Zimmerman, & Michelle McNellis.
2021.01.21: Driving Change - Pressing Through Headwind
Public procurement can be an agent of change by helping business units go to market, learning from the past to improve the future.
This is the transformative power of procurement that improves outcomes for our citizens and attracts the next generation to procurement as a career.
2020.12.17: System Thinking in Public Procurement
There is a balance in public procurement between requirements that prescribe “what” is needed versus asking the vendor to describe “how” they would solve the problem.
2020.10.27: Investing in Spend Data Management
Five ways to get spend data out of the silos. Data, and the insights they bring, are essential in today’s business environment. In the push to enable fact-based decision-making, organizations are making huge investments to capture and store massive amounts of data.
2020.10.26: Strategic Sourcing
TURNING AWAY FROM TRANSACTIONAL PURCHASING
When a central public procurement team is overwhelmed with transaction management, it operates primarily in reaction to inbound requests. The transition to a strategic stance - and strategic sourcing - comes with asking not just "what is the oldest thing on my desk", but asking "what's the next best thing to do."
2020.09.16: Procurement Automation: What's the Burning Why?
For any automation project in government to make it through the “hard middle,” where enthusiasm wanes, and bug counts grow, there has to be a burning "why". So what is the “why” of procurement automation?
2020.09.15: The Case for Procurement Automation
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems are designed to provide back-office support across the entire organization, spanning finance, human resources, supply chain management, and specialized functions.
ERP is a standard expectation for medium- to large-sized organizations and is often implemented to bring consistency and transformation.
2020.07.01: A Careful Balance
“Dustin, is anyone talking about how deeply connected schools re-opening and governments re-opening are? Because they need to be.” (Client last week). OK, let’s talk about it then.
2020.05.27: What if the Offices Stay Empty
CONDUCTING REAL PROCUREMENT IN A VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENT - As government operations continue to be performed with part or all of the staff working from home, the question arises: “What if the offices stay empty?”
2020.05.13: Locked on Target: Applying Agility in Public Procurement
The COVID-19 response has prompted our public-sector organizations to retrench and reload.
Now it’s time to lock in on the target.
2020.04.29: The New Normal in Public Procurement
In marking time since the first US case of COVID-19. It's time to plan for the new normal of proactive government during a sustained response.
2020.04.22: Towards A New Public Procurement Playbook
We have effective playbooks for mitigating hurricane impact. There is a key difference between COVID-19 and a hurricane that makes it time to start talking about a new playbook.
2020.04.15: Preparing for FEMA Reimbursement
3 Things Procurement Officers Can Do Now to Prepare for FEMA Reimbursements.
2020.04.01: A New Lens for Vetting Suppliers
"Now, who are you again?"
Tips on validating new suppliers in public procurement during emergency response.
2020.03.26: Distributed Workforce
As public procurement adjusts to a new normal, issues with leading a distributed workforce through shifting rules and priorities have moved to the forefront.
2020.03.17: Public Procurement Officers on the Front Line
As the world mobilizes to respond to COVID-19, procurement has a central role.
2020: Identifying Innovators
How do we know an innovator when we see one? They create an environment where innovation is welcomed...
2020: Grounding Automation Projects in Business Value
First, run these as business projects with a technology component and not the other way around. Second, business value is about expanding the capacity of #procurement to create value for the organization. Third, transforming #publicprocurement, making it easy to buy and hard to fail.
2020: Making Sense of Procurement Automation Choices
Learn about a new tool we call PARSE - Procurement Automation Readiness Self-Evaluation.
2020: Building the Workbench for Procurement Automation
Building Blocks for Procurement Automation Success.
2020: Transactional Procurement Automation
Transactional procurement automation, from 'req to check', and using an ERP, e-procurement, or both.
2020: Transformational Procurement Automation
Transformational aspects of procurement automation for public procurement.
