HE Shared Legal
Subscription-based legal guidance service for UK HE institutions. Includes help desk and assistance with engaging legal advisers. Operating on a pilot basis, with HEFCE funding.
Saving universities millions a year in online subs
Subscription fees for software and other online resources can amount to a substantial sum for universities. Eduserv’s Jenny Carroll explains how its licences for these products help higher education budgets to go further.
‘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.
Assessing the efficiency and effectiveness of porters and cleaners
Benchmarking is increasingly used in the quest for efficiency and most universities have used the Procurement Maturity Assessment, developed by SUMS Consulting and the Southern Universities Purchasing Consortia. SUMS has now developed another maturity model that allows easy self assessment and indicates a way forward and has applied it to portering and cleaning services.
Small, but perfectly formed
Alison Brownjohn, head of procurement at the University for the Creative Arts, tells Rosie Niven about working at a small, specialist institution and her transition from the private sector to a university.
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....
Understanding PEL’s role in supporting procurement in the HE sector
In an already crowded HE sector, can another sector body, Procurement England Limited (PEL), really add value? In an interview, Rex Knight, chair of the PEL Board, says yes and explains how.
How can we tackle procurement skills shortages in higher education?
The higher education sector is facing difficulties in finding and recruiting procurement professionals with the right skills. NEUPC’s CEO Frank Rowell talks about how the consortium is addressing the issue.
LUPC launches new contracts database
A contracts database developed jointly by the regional higher education purchasing consortia is now live. HE Contracts replaces the previous database, uniBuy, and includes a host of new features and easier access for consortia members looking to find information about the sector’s collaborative agreements. Members can find resources and information about training on their local consortia website.
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.
