Successful public procurement offices have adapted to the post-pandemic world

Yes, the early days of the pandemic affected public procurement staffing much as it did workforces in the commercial world. We saw facilities closed, staffers becoming ill and societal fear. The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic reduced productivity and created backlogs, says Mark Muckerman, former head of sales, government and education at Sterling, a provider of background and identity services to employers. The company has a team dedicated to the government space that works to provide a positive experience for public sector employees.

He explains that agencies that were able to pivot and stick with a new, remote work model were less impacted, and able to rebound and recover more quickly than departments that were rigidly tied to a central on-site requirement.

He adds that the procurement function is one of those adaptable areas. “We’ve seen movement to all-digital solicitation, response and communications between agencies and bidders/vendors, as well as a prudent and necessary evolution away from archaic legacy behaviors such as ‘wet signature required’ and ‘original notarized documents must be mailed.’ Many agencies have embraced available tech alternatives, such as digital signatures and notaries, yielding all electronic submittals and contracting forms.”

Muckerman believes COVID-19 and the “Great Resignation” amplified and accelerated an emerging trend of experienced professionals stepping away from their long-term careers and employers. “The days of the ‘career employee’ in the public and commercial sectors are long gone, as we continue to see shorter retention windows across all industries, often ranging from only two to five years before moving on.” He says one opportunity market, specific to recruiting, is to identify and target “second career” professionals.

“Whether through early retirement, COVID-driven or just career burnout, many 50-something professionals in all skillsets and disciplines walked away from established careers, only to realize 12, 18 and 24 months later that they still have the drive and hunger to work, and much to contribute, but in a modified environment.” He notes that many have returned to the workforce as consultants or contract workers in the public and private sectors. “This slice of the workforce offers a sourcing opportunity for public procurement directors to target and recruit experienced procurement professionals from former private sector positions into open- or soon-to-be-open positions.”

As procurement team players retire, Muckerman urges public procurement directors in local and state government to consider recruiting new talent at community college systems nearby. He says that community colleges are an under-accessed arena for new talent recruitment and hiring.

“Public agencies, particularly those seeking to develop and acquire specific talent skillsets, can partner with their community college systems, locally and statewide, to sponsor and co-develop procurement-oriented curricula, including internships, campus job fair events and a recruiting/hiring pipeline,” Muckerman tells Co-op Solutions.

He adds that several data points show community colleges can help employers who seek to recruit more professionals from Black, Indigenous, people of color, women and other under-represented groups. These include:

• Data from the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) on first-time students at community college indicates enrollment as 19 percent Hispanic, 19 percent Black and 18 percent American Indian.
• The College Board reports that 44 percent of community college students are over the age of 25, with 28 percent over the age of 30.
• A 2019 survey report by Educause noted that 67 percent of community college students are female.

Muckerman points to a couple of contract offerings that can help overworked city and county purchasing departments: “Cooperative purchasing, piggybacking, statewide buying agreements and preferred vendor lists all improve the speed, efficiency and reliability of government procurement. Administratively, there is a direct beneficial reduction in workload. Also, by creating and promulgating an aggressive cooperative buying culture, governments will attract the interest of high-quality providers (vendors) of goods and services due to the opportunities for growth and expansion.”

He notes that formal solicitations (RFP, RFQ, ITB, etc.) are always time-consuming for both the agency’s procurement staff and potential vendors. “Too often, low-to-moderate-value solicitations get limited response from high-quality vendors because ‘the juice isn’t worth the squeeze’ and the administrative complexity has a chilling effect on potential bidders.”

Muckerman offers this conclusion: “Cooperative procurement contracts significantly remove that participation deterrent, and create additional fiscal savings opportunities for public agencies.”

OMNIA Partners Public Sector offers a cooperative contract with Sterling that covers pre-employment background screening, related products and services.

Michael Keating is senior editor for American City & County. Contact him at [email protected]