Greetings Region XI!

It’s been far too long since my last report.  And I have great news to share. 

In the spring, I had the opportunity to attend my first official Board of Directors meeting in St. Louis.  It was an honor to represent this region at the national level.   Of our many orders of business, I am most excited about two of our own Region XI members gaining new roles on the national level. 

First, congratulations to our new Treasurer, Christopher Klein, CPPB, from California.  And also, congratulations to our new NIGP representative to the UPPCC Board of Directors, John Coggins, CPPO, C.P.M., from Orange County, California.  Both individuals bring great experience to their roles and I know they will represent our region well.

Forum was a huge success!  I was so thrilled to see so many members from Region XI at the conference.  I would like to congratulate the Copper Chapter of Southern Arizona for receiving the Small Chapter of the Year award.  Outstanding!  And, I’d like to recognize Victoria Cortinas, from the City of Tucson, for being one of the Buyer of the Year Finalists.  Way to go!

More great news from Region XI:

Every month I continue to see large numbers of Region XI members receive their CPPO and CPPB certifications.  Congratulations to all of you!  This is an outstanding professional accomplishment.  I hope many more of you plan to pursue certification under the newly revised program.  Also, I’m excited to see so many new members and new member agencies continue to join NIGP. 

Times are very difficult financially for all of us, but I believe membership in NIGP provides tremendous value and that value in turn can result in savings to organizations.  So, please share your cost savings ideas with me and your colleagues.  We can all learn from one another.  I would love to highlight some success stories in future reports.

My thanks to the Grand Canyon, the Arizona Capitol and the Northern California chapters for having me at your meetings and conferences the past few months.  It was wonderful spending time with you and your members.  The first week of November, I’ll be traveling to Washington, DC for the Fall Board of Directors meeting.  I’m certain I’ll have things to share with you.  So, stay tuned!

Hope to see you all in my travels.  Please stay in touch.

Marcheta E. Gillespie, CPPB, C.P.M., CPM
Region XI Director
(520) 940-7194
marcheta.gillespie@tucsonaz.gov

Certification: What's the ROI?

The following excerpt is from "The Big Picture" editorial
in the October/November issue of GO PRO: Government 
Procurement Magazine, which NIGP members will receive
in the coming week.
                      

                         If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.
                                                                                    Andy McIntyre

Show of hands, please. 

How many of you have been told by your management that you are
on your own for professional development and certification expenses
because the ROI of a given class, curriculum or professional certification
is not immediately quantifiable and, therefore, the organization doesn’t
realize a benefit in return for the organizational expense?

As expected, a deafening show of hands.

Instead of inciting a riot over the short-sightedness of those leaders who
underestimate the value of a certified professional and the education and
experience that certification manifests, let’s consider this argument head-on
and put numbers to the expenses associated with professional development
and certification.  The following expenses are based on the National Institute
of Governmental Purchasing’s educational program fees and the Universal
Public Purchasing Certification Council’s CPPO and CPPB certification
requirements and fees.

Q:  How much does it really cost to get certified?

A:  For a CPPO certification, between $930 and $4,482.  For a CPPB
certification, $930 and $3,138. This range of expense reflects the
certification application fee ($450-CPPO; $350-CPPB) plus the cost to
achieve the number of education “contact hours” required to qualify to sit
for the certification exam.  As shown here, the cost of each contact hour
is determined by the length of each particular educational offering, the price
charged for that offering and an allowance for travel expenses.  Travel
expenses are the primary variable and could be outright eliminated if you
were only to attend local offerings.  Thus,the upper end of the range should
represent a conservative, worst-case number for justifying a positive
return on investment.

Q:  I work for Mr./Ms. Scrooge, who believes that any ROI calculation
should also reflect the cost of lost productivity while away from the
office.  How much loaded expense would I have to justify for a
certification?

A:  Allowing for base salary plus an additional 20% for your employer’s
expense paid for employee benefits, the chart below should help give you
a good estimate. 

	CPPO		CPPB
Salary	Low	High	Low	High
$35,000	$3,162	$25,794	$3,162	$17,346
$50,000	$3,522	$29,826	$3,522	$20,034
$65,000	$3,906	$33,858	$3,906	$22,722
$80,000	$4,266	$37,890	$4,266	$25,410

Again, the range is due to the number of education contact hours necessary
to sit for a certification exam.  The more historical formal education and
experience you have, the fewer number of contact hours necessary to qualify
for the exam.

ROI:  Efficiency and Effectiveness

Having identified the “I” of the ROI calculation, how then do we demonstrate
the “R” that is the return on the investment?

Find out "how" by reading the complete article in the upcoming
October/November issue of GO PRO:  Government Procurement
Magazine.  If you do not currently receive GO PRO and would
like to, subscribe here.

Upcoming Webinar: Top Ten Best Practices for Your P-Card Program

Thursday, November 13
1PM - 2:30PM (Eastern)
Registration Deadline:  Friday, November 7

Course Objectives:

•  Understand how to leverage p-card information and processes
   throughout the procure-to-pay lifecycle
•  Achieve visibility of non-compliant behavior, misuse, exceptions
   and waste
•  Approach delivery of p-card best practices throughout your
   organization
•  Improve process efficiencies and cost savings for your purchasing
   card program

Presented by:

Debbie Hamel, CEO of TakeCharge Technologies

Register Today  [ return to top ]

Webinar Sweepstakes: Celebrate National Distance Learning Week

NIGP kicks off a Webinar Sweepstakes in celebration of National Distance Learning Week (November 10 - November 14),

Register for any NIGP Webinar today through November 14 and you will be automatically entered into a random drawing to win three free Webinars.  The more Webinars you register for, the more chances you have to win.

To qualify, your Webinar registration (either fax or online) must be dated today through November 14.   Members and non-members are eligible to win.  The drawing will be held on Monday, November 17 and the winner will be notified by November 19 via email.  Only the winner may redeem the three free Webinar registrations.

Upcoming Webinars include:

•  Cooperative Purchasing Benefits - The U.S. Communities Program
   November 20
•  Revisiting Specifications and Bids    
   December 16
•  A Guide to Effective Protest Management    
   December 18

Register Now.  For more information, contact distancelearning@nigp.org.




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City of Portland Strengthens Sustainable Procurement Policies

On October 15th, the City of Portland adopted a Code of Conduct for Apparel Contractors and Sweatshop Free Procurement Policies.  These policies specify minimum contracting standards based on the principle that contractors, subcontractors and suppliers within the supply chain of the prime contractor, including cut-and-sew manufacturers, comply with all applicable laws and regulations in their business activities.

The City recognizes that its purchase of uniforms and clothing products has inherent social and human health impacts, and the City shall make procurement decisions that emphasize its commitment to social justice by specifically addressing sweatshop free procurement practices.

Sweatshop Free Procurement Policy Goals:

•  Identify anti-sweatshop criterion that shall be incorporated into
   procurement decisions
•  Provide implementation authority
•  Comply with applicable standards to ensure sweatshop free practices
•  Educate and empower employees to be innovative and demonstrate
   leadership by promoting anti-sweatshop labor factors into procurement
   decisions
•  Complement Citywide and Bureau-specific sustainability goals and
   related polices
•  Communicate the City's commitment to sweatshop free procurement

Learn more about the City of Portland's Sustainable Procurement Policy.  Jeff Baer, CPPO, CPPB,  is the Director of the Bureau of Purchases for the City of Portland and an NIGP Green Knowledge Community leader.  To join NIGP's knowledge communities, email membershipinfo@nigp.org.

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NIGP Instructor Spotlight: Bill Hertwig, CPPO, CPPB, C.P.M., A.P.P.

Agency:  Retired April, 2007 after 17 years as the Assistant Director of Operating Procurement in the Procurement and Material Management Department of MTA Metro-North Railroad, which is based in New York City.

NIGP Member since:  I have been a national member since 1990 and I was one of the founding members of the local NIGP-New York chapter which began in 1995.

Can’t teach without: I need to have my various teaching props to help demonstrate and reinforce the various procurement terms and concepts that are presented in class.  The physical props help the students to better remember these terms and concepts.

What people don’t know about me:  I have held a FCC (Federal Communication Commission) amateur radio (Ham) license since 1993.  I have volunteered, along with 400 Ham radio operators, to assist runners in the New York City marathon by providing emergency medical communications between the New York City EMT personnel and runners in the event a runner becomes injured.  Also, it gives me great satisfaction in fixing broken items, so I have become the neighborhood repairman in fixing bicycles and other household items.  I am an avid woodworker and have created a good workshop in trying to keep up with the famous television woodworker, Norm Abram from the New Yankee Workshop with new tools and accessories.  I was also the UPPCC Chairman of the Board of Examiners for 5 years and was a text reviewer for the NIGP LEAP series and the new NIGP Dictionary.

Funniest classroom moment:  I happened to be teaching a CPPB Review Class on my birthday and just before the afternoon break, the whole class began to sing, “Happy Birthday” and they brought in a birthday cake with candles for the celebration.  They took me by complete surprise and we all had a good time by having birthday cake during the break session.

Fondest classroom memory: One of my fondest NIGP classroom memories was when I was teaching the concept of F.O.B. and to see the expression on a student’s face light up when she said, “YES, now I finally understand this concept after all of theses years!”  Many of my fondest classroom memories occur just a few weeks after I teach Prep Classes when I get individual emails from students thanking me for taking the time to teach the Prep Class.  It is especially rewarding when they tell me that they just passed their CPPB or CPPO examination.

Reason for becoming an NIGP Instructor:  Having been a corporate buyer for 14 years with JCPenney and having great latitude in making buying decisions, it was a major culture shock to leave the private sector when they relocated to Dallas and to enter into public sector procurement.  Even though I was a seasoned private sector buyer, I was overwhelmed with the public sector jargon and all of the requirements on how they had to conduct business.  I immediately signed up for NIGP courses and soon became more comfortable and knowledgeable about the public sector, so much so, that I went on to receive my CPPB and CPPO certifications.  I felt fortunate to have good NIGP instructors to help me learn along the way so in turn, I wanted to become an NIGP instructor so I could give back to the procurement profession and help others as they enter the public sector procurement profession.  I have been teaching for NIGP since 1999 and I find it to be a very rewarding personal experience.

Thank you, Bill, for your dedication to the profession and our members and your hard work in the classroom!

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UPPCC Certifications: September 2008

Congratulations to the following individuals for successfully completing the Universal Public Purchasing Certification Council (UPPCC) certification requirements!

New CPPOs   

 

Ontario
Dawn E. Hipwell, CPPO, CPPB
Director of Purchasing
The Corporation of the County of Simcoe

Texas
Doris Kay Wagner, CPPO, CPPB
Purchaser IV
Texas Department of Transportation

Washington
Scott A. Bird, CPPO, J.D.
Resource Enhancement Project Manager
Washington State Department of Social & Health Services


New CPPBs 

California
Robert A. Markt, C.P.M., CPPB
Buyer
El Dorado Irrigation District

Pamela L. McMillan, CPPB, C.P.M.
Buyer
Central Contra Costa Sanitary District

Pennsylvania
Rene A. Kahl, CPPB
Purchasing Analyst
County of Northampton

Virginia
Gary W. Borden, CPPB, C.P.M., VCA
Procurement Manager
Virginia Department of General Services

Martin S. Fields, CPPB
Procurement Officer
Virginia Department of General Services

All certified and recertified CPPOs and CPPBs may be found at uppcc.org. 

_______________________________________

Next Certification Testing:  May 4-9, 2009

The next testing opportunity is fast approaching.  Interested individuals must submit completed applications by February 2, 2009 for consideration (or by February 16 with late fee).  For additional information, visit UPPCC Spring Testing.

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Welcome New Members: September 2008

Agency Members

Arizona Department of Public Safety
Lu Himmelstein
Phoenix, AZ

Cape Breton Regional Municipality
Nancy Dove
Sydney, Nova Scotia

City of Belleville
Yasmina Jamal
Belleville, Ontario

City of Keene
Jeffrey Titus
Keene, NH

City of Talladega
Terry Hanner
Talladega, AL

Colorado Department of Military and Veterans Affairs
Janet Jones
Centennial, CO

Hobbs Municipal Schools
Karen Soria
Hobbs, NM

Middleton-Cross Plains Area School District
Cherree Wellman
Middleton, WI

Northampton County Virginia
Glenda Miller
Eastville, VA

Pikes Peak Library Distrct
Michael Varnet
Colorado Springs, CO

Recovery School District
Kerry Doucette
New Orleans, LA

Saint Paul College
Nataliya Kabakova
St. Paul, MN

Tulare County
Alfred Guzman
Visalia, CA

University of Alaska Fairbanks
John Hebard
Fairbanks, AK

University of Louisiana
Larry Estess
Monroe, LA


Individual Members

Linda Atencio
Espanola, NM

Kimberly Bradley
Bowling Green, KY

David Brown, CPA, CGFO
Sumter, SC

Vernon Davis
Atlanta, GA

Theresa Diaz
Gallup, NM

Randall Dunn, CPPO, CPPB
Lewisburg, TN

Judith Garrett
Morrow, GA

Kari Haschke
Fairbanks, AK

Elise Lancaster
Lansing, MI

Patricia O'Grady
Woodbridge, NJ

Eric Payne
Washington, DC

Marshall Ritchey, CPPB
Redstone Arsenal, AL

Celestin Tienon
Abidjan CA' te d'Ivoire

Greg Vlietstra, CPPO
Kalamazoo, MI

Priscilla Wallace
Manassas, VA


Retired Members

Linda Capps, CPPB
Corolla, NC

Salvatore Cheraso, CPPB
San Antonio, TX

H. Edward James, CPPO
Chesterfield, VA

Kathryn Lyles, CPPO, CPPB
Frankfort, KY


Student Members

Dominic Lackey
Alexandria, VA

Michelle Suggs
Temple Hills, MD

Markita Turner
Cincinnati, OH [ return to top ]