It is a well-known fact that one of the most long-term important responsibilities of a purchasing manager is to encourage the municipal purchasing staff to take on leadership roles in purchasing. Staff training should emphasize understanding (rather than memorization) of the rules, including the reasons for them.
Staff need to understand the risks that must be managed, and the role that the rules play in this process. They need to be able to help client departments identify and avoid risk. Opportunity should be provided for municipal purchasing staff to have direct input into process of ongoing rule revision. Staff should be encouraged to become familiar with the needs to their client departments, and must develop the ability to deliver purchasing services to their client departments on a timely basis.
For instance, if staff and other resources permit, a placement period of working inside the department for a few weeks, may enhance the team spirit. I cannot overstress the importance of the municipal purchasing manager, having been one for several years, in the ongoing process of rule review.
In the fluctuating conditions of the modern economy, it is no longer sensible to treat the rules as if they were written in stone. The purchasing manager should report to council at least annually with respect to how well the existing Rules are working in practice — giving specific examples of problems, and recommending specific changes that will avoid such problems in the future. To continue making the same mistake repeatedly is as bad as not following the rules in the first place.
Four quick tips to remember:
- Listen to the advice from the using departments; they have the direct contact with the suppliers and products.
- When new ideas are brought to your attention from suppliers, make sure this information gets to the correct people.
- Take a personal role in the investigation of new products. Keep current with trade journals and pass on relevant ideas to the appropriate areas and departments.
- Work with all levels of government to improve upon the public procurement process.
Although prospective municipal suppliers have no direct role to play in rule compliance, any private entity considering bidding for government work, or entering a contractual relationship with a municipal government or other public sector entity needs to be aware of the following:
- All public procurement is subject to strict rules. While in some cases compliance with rules may be relaxed, no guarantee exists that this will be done.
- Most cities post their purchasing policies and procedures on their websites. Suppliers should become familiar with the municipal procurement process. By so doing, the quality of their bids will improve, and there is an enhanced prospect of securing government contracts. An informed supplier has a better understanding of its rights and responsibilities in relation to a given transaction.
- Suppliers should encourage the municipal purchasing departments to give seminars to the supplier community to inform them of the preferred process.
- Most purchasing managers are willing to debrief suppliers when they lose, or get disqualified from bids. Seek out the guidance that this sort of debriefing can afford.
- A supplier who has taken the time to learn the relevant policies and procedures has a better chance of submitting a winning bid.
The enactment of municipal bylaws and the approval of purchasing procedures and policies are among the few aspects of public procurement that directly involve municipal councils in the procurement process. As I have pointed out in previous articles, municipal councils need to be far more realistic in the direction that they give to staff through procurement bylaws and related policies and resolutions.
I would suggest that the current approach to municipal purchasing rules could benefit from significant re-thinking.
Stephen Bauld is a government procurement expert and can be reached at [email protected].
Some of his columns may contain excerpts from The Municipal Procurement Handbook published by Butterworths.
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