Procurement Enhancements to Preserve Time and Money Across U of A

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The U of A is enhancing procurement processes to be more efficient, more user-friendly and generate cost savings.

"On our path to becoming an employer of choice, we want to enable faculty and staff to focus on the most impactful parts of their jobs," said Ann Bordelon, executive vice chancellor for finance and administration. "One way we can do that is by improving our tools and processes to be more valuable and easier to use.

"As a result, the Division of Finance and Administration is working with AArete to ensure our procurement practices preserve some of our most valuable resources — time and money — and ultimately allow the university to further invest them in student success and research excellence."

Identifying Savings in Key Categories

Negotiations for equipment, supplies and services procured by Information Technology Services, Facilities Management, the Division of Athletics and others have saved about $1.5 million so far. The university has also identified more than 20 total opportunities that represent more than $40 million of annual spending.

Direct negotiations are also underway to select preferred supplier partners in key categories such as supplies, waste management, gameday security services, scientific and medical supplies, and travel agency services. Additional opportunities will be explored in new areas such as utilities, libraries and telecommunications as well.

Increasing Efficiency Through Technology, Processes and Procedures

The turnaround time for procurement requests has been reduced from more than seven days in August to about three days today. The U of A's goal is to decrease requisition times to about two days through the implementation of automatic approvals, dashboards and reporting, and improved access to training.

Establishing a list of preferred vendors and suppliers will make it easier than ever for university stakeholders to find cost-friendly solutions for the services they need in a timely manner. The U of A Fayetteville campus is also collaborating with the U of A System office to make enhancements within Workday and share best practices that may lead to increased savings of time and money for other campuses.

The Division of Finance and Administration will continue to engage with key stakeholders across the university to discover additional savings opportunities and ensure procurement processes are as user-friendly as possible.

About the University of Arkansas: As Arkansas' flagship institution, the U of A provides an internationally competitive education in more than 200 academic programs. Founded in 1871, the U of A contributes more than $2.2 billion to Arkansas' economy through the teaching of new knowledge and skills, entrepreneurship and job development, discovery through research and creative activity while also providing training for professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the U of A among the few U.S. colleges and universities with the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the U of A among the top public universities in the nation. See how the U of A works to build a better world at Arkansas Research News.