Finding the right contract caterer for your university
Many UK universities are deciding that catering is an outside job and are teaming up with external providers. This article in University Business looks at the experiences of universities and contract caterers in forming partnerships and working together.
BUFDG 2014 Annual Conference, 6-8 April, University of Leicester
Booking is now open for the 2014 BUFDG Annual Conference, kindly hosted at the University of Leicester on the 6th-8th April. We have created a fantastic programme of interesting plenary sessions and engaging workshop choices for FDs this year, to help you tailor your conference experience to your needs.
G-Cloud
Procurement programme and online catalogue of government approved cloud computing commodity and support services.
Procurement as a strategic asset in higher education – call for evidence
We know that procurement makes a key contribution to the savings agenda in higher education, yet the strategic value of procurement within institutions is...
Tony Newjem: adding value at Heriot-Watt
The impact of procurement departments on university's spending is well-known. But as Tony Newjem of Heriot-Watt University explains, as well as saving money they can also add value through their work across the university.
New chief for SUPC as it explores collaboration options
Southern Universities Purchasing Consortium (SUPC) has appointed Simon Hill to the role of interim head in advance of a review that will examine how SUPC and London Universities Purchasing Consortium (LUPC) can work more closely together. Hill, who has experience of change management in the private and not for profit sectors, starts in September at SUPC, which has agreed a collaboration project brief with LUPC outlining background and objectives for the review.
‘Insourcing’ is the new ‘outsourcing’
Creating a wholly-owned subsidiary company to house the commercial activities of a university is fundamentally about cultural change rather than cost saving. If the focus is placed firmly on stripping out payroll costs through reducing rates of pay and associated staff benefits, then the project is doomed to failure, says Peter Church Director of Campus Services at the University of Essex.
Strategic Sourcing in Higher Education – Survey
Senior managers involved in strategic sourcing decisions within UK higher education institutions are invited to participate in a HEFCE and Leadership Foundation funded research project....
Universities should aim for social value in their procurement
New EU directives call upon public authorities to seek social value in their procurement activities. Universities, while not being public bodies, should nevertheless strive to achieve the same high societal value via their commissioning, Nick Petford Vice-Chancellor of the University of Northampton told the Inside Government Conference on 20 June.
SUPC takes steps to protect supply chain workers
SUPC has joined with the world-wide monitoring organisation Electronics Watch which assists public sector buyers to meet their responsibility to protect the labour rights of workers in their global electronics supply chains more effectively, and less expensively, than any single public sector buyer could accomplish on its own.
