Procurement Services Newsletter
Sole Source Justification continued…
Newest Members of Our Team
It also allows us to identify other options or ideas that
might meet your needs. A bid or RFP does not mean we
must award to the lowest supplier, but it does mean BC
has investigated the market to obtain the best overall
value for the University. A sole source justification does
not mean we will not negotiate the purchase. All sole
source justifications still require that the pricing and
contract terms be negotiated by Procurement. If you
have any questions regarding the applicability of a Sole
Source Justification for a purchase, contact your buyer in
Procurement at 2-3055.
Please welcome two (2) new additions to the
Procurement Services department in key leadership
positions; Karen Hughes; Associate Director,
Procurement Systems and Payment; and Cesar Suarez;
Associate Director, Strategic Sourcing.
Karen has been with Boston College's Financial
Management Systems (FMS) department for many years
until she was promoted early in the fiscal year to
Associate Director, Procurement Systems and
Payment. Karen has had an immediate impact on the
operations of the department and University. Her
leadership for the Procurement Services department in
the PeopleSoft 9.1 upgrade was key to improving the
services of the department for our user community.
Karen is focused on collaborating with all of our users
to continuously improve the procurement systems and
accounts payables at BC.
Misdirected Mail Update
Thank you all for your help with reducing the volume of
misdirected and insufficiently addressed mail on
campus. We are beginning to see a decline in the total
number of incompletely addressed mail pieces. The
average number of pieces per week has dropped from
60-80 to 25-35.
Cesar has over 11 years of experience in leadership roles
with a focus on procurement systems, strategic sourcing,
and business process improvement. Most recently with
Boston University Sourcing and as a consultant with
multiple companies, Cesar comes to BC with an MBA, a
technical background, and significant experience in team
leadership and project management. Cesar has become a
multifaceted individual who can deliver results in an
extensive variety of leadership roles. Cesar is Black Belt
Six Sigma certified with a proven track record of
improving business processes through data driven
decisions. He has an outstanding academic record and
speaks three languages. Cesar has excellent
interpersonal skills and is a team-oriented individual.
In addition, Bill Corcoran has left Boston College to
pursue other opportunities. We are currently
interviewing for an Assistant Director position of
Strategic Sourcing/Facilities/Sciences.
July 2014
The best method for correcting your address is taking
immediate action on incompletely addressed pieces of
mail. Remember, if you see an orange card attached to a
piece of mail delivered to your department, contact the
sender and update your address straightaway.
Thanks!
Campus Mail Services & Procurement Services
Official Format
Boston College
Department Name
Employee Name/ Building Name, Room #
140 Commonwealth Ave.
Chestnut Hill, MA 02467
IN
Sole Source Justification
THIS
ISSUE
Newest Members of our Team
What does “Sole Source Justification” mean?
Sole source justification is used in RARE cases when a
bid does not apply. It must be approved in advance, by
Procurement, before communications with the vendor
begin. A bid, Request for Quotations (RFQ), or Proposals
(RFP) should be completed for most transactions,
including professional and other services over $5000.
Obtaining competitive pricing allows BC to put a value on
what may be an existing relationship or other knowledge
that suppliers bring to the table.
Definition of Sole Source Justification
Misdirected Mail Update
New Contract Information and Supplier Updates
PeopleSoft Tips
page 1
Keep Us In Mind
How Can We Help…
Best Invoice Practices
Here are some recent projects that Procurement Services
has worked on with various departments throughout the
University
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
For purchases less than 5k, invoices, receipts, and
statements should be sent directly to your department via
mail or email. Your address should always include your
department name.
Contracted for a marketing study to assess
graduate educational needs to prepare future
curriculum.
Helped identify resources to create a media plan to
improve ratings in US News.
Worked with the Print Management Committee to
provide trainings to reduce print costs. See
www.bc.edu\printmanagement to view the
presentations.
Created an RFP and contract for the redesign and
update of a BC magazine.
Aided in defining specifications for a video and
associated media package to promote a successful
BC program to other Jesuit institutions.
Collaborated with Capital Projects, Athletics,
Network Services and Information Technology in
the Alumni Stadium Sound System Package. The
team sent out a Request for Proposal and
negotiated a deal with All Pro Sound. Installation is
underway and the plan is to have it all in place for
the first home game. Go Eagles!
Orchestrated the bid process and purchase of the
brand new video-boards and ribbons that are
currently being installed in Alumni Stadium in
preparation for the upcoming football season.
Worked with ITS and e-Learning departments with
the goal of selecting a Lecture Capture System.
Ultimately the team selected a tool from the vendor
with the best combination of technology, service
and price and is looking forward to a successful
implementation this summer.
Worked with McMullen Museum to identify new
stock and pricing for a Catalog for a new Exhibit.
Bid the 150th Anniversary book for the University.
Assisted 6 departments renting motorcoach buses
for University sponsored trips, and facilitated
multiple customer service disputes resulting in
credits or price reductions.
page 2
For purchases over 5k, invoices will be sent to the billing
address indicated on the official Purchase Order. Always
provide the supplier with the PO number. PO related
invoices received without a Purchase Order number will
incur a delay in processing.
Our Part in Saving the Environment!
Thank you for using the BC Print Management Program
and the recommended papers. In addition to the cost
savings this program generates, the following
environmental savings were also generated from use of
the program for 2013. Your continued support is
appreciated.
2013 Environmental Impact
• 317 trees saved
• 913 lbs. water-borne wastewater not created
• 134,360 gal wastewater flow not generated
• 14,867 lbs. solid waste not generated
• 29,271 lbs. net greenhouse gases prevented
• 224,045,000 BTUs of energy not consumed
Federal Express – Helpful Hint
When completing a FedEx package transaction be sure to
click the button to verify if the address is correct. Although
you may know the address, some addresses are not
“Deliverable” addresses. Clicking one button will save BC
unnecessary charges for misdirected deliveries and for redeliveries as well as speed up your delivery.
What’s Ahead?
The beginning of the fiscal year is a great time to plan the
major needs of your department for the next fiscal year,
and in the case of larger projects, years beyond. What is in
your budget and what do you need to purchase? Gather
your needs and contact Procurement with a listing of any
expenses or projects over $5,000 with the projected
timeline. Knowing, in advance, the possible expenditures
will help you and Procurement work together to
strategically meet your needs as efficiently as possible.
Please send your requirements to purchase@bc.edu or
contact the associated buyer.
Updates
PeopleSoft Users
Blanket POs
Ricoh
BC welcomes Jorge Lainez to the BC community as a new
Ricoh technician. Jorge will be replacing Frank who has
moved to a new territory. Jorge is trained on all the BC
equipment and has been a technician for Ricoh in another
location. As we introduce Jorge to the community, we
want to remind you to place your service orders using the
website, www.my-ricoh.com. Calls are not allowed to
individual technicians directly.
The website, www.my-ricoh.com, allows Ricoh to assign
technicians as efficiently as possible, identify workloads,
and manage the response times. It also provides us with a
survey system on calls made and the feedback from the
calls. Your feedback on the survey is vital to improving the
program and your cooperation in using the website is
greatly appreciated.
AMS Imaging purchased by Konica Minolta
Boston College has continued its contract for image
capture with AMS Imaging but the company has been
bought by Konica–Minolta. For information on scanning
or other image requirements the contact, for now,
remains Paul Connolly, pconnolly@amsimaging.com.
Removing Old Copiers and Printers
Boston College continues to reduce the number of printers
on campus and move to shared multi-functional devices
(MFDs) for efficiency and improved security. Please do
your part to identify and remove printers and move to
shared MFDs in your area. Contact your TC to remove old
printers and stand-alone copiers. TCs will work with you
to be sure the hard drive has been removed and cleaned
on the department copiers and printers before they are
removed from campus.
Once the hard drive information has been removed,
contact our Ricoh Sales Representative, Raymond Tatten
at Raymond.tatten@ricoh-usa.com with the make, model
and ID number and exact location of the equipment being
removed, along with your contact information to arrange
for the pick-up. Ricoh has agreed to remove all old
printers and copiers, regardless of make and model.
UPS – New Box for Pick Ups
A UPS box has been added next to the Federal Express box
in the back of the Cadigan Alumni Center on the Brighton
Campus. There is a scheduled pick-up at this box daily at
6:30pm.
page 3
Tip: When setting up blanket POs use the query
“BC_PO_BY_DEPT”. This will give you the most
accurate look at your FY14 spend, including any
change orders processed throughout the year. Blanket
Purchase Orders should be fully funded to cover all
anticipated invoices for the entire fiscal year.
Attachments in PeopleSoft Financials
Many users have asked about the attachment feature
in PeopleSoft Financials. While some areas are using
attachments, Procurement is still investigating the
best way to use this tool for vouchers, expenses and
requisitions. Users should not use the attachment
feature for invoices. Invoices should be scanned using
the Nolij (Autostore) software or the physical invoice
needs to be sent to Accounts Payable. If you would like
to know more about Nolij (Autostore), please contact
Carolyn Donoghue at 2-8911. We will be sending out a
communication about attachments to PeopleSoft users
soon so keep an eye out for that information.
What Queries do you find most helpful?
With the upgrade of PeopleSoft there have been some
changes to queries. Since you are the experts, we
would like to share your tips with others. Please send
your favorite queries to purchase@bc.edu and we will
share them in a future newsletter for others to
consider. PS: You could also share any suggested
changes, such as fields to add, that might make your
work easier!
We are listening!
We are always looking for your feedback to make our
newsletters helpful and informative. Please email
purchase@bc.edu or call 2-3055 with comments or
ideas for future newsletters.