Penn State Intercom......February 27, 2003

Purchasing fosters use of diverse,
environmentally responsible suppliers

By Nancy Mahon
Finance and Business

Duane Bullock is up for a challenge, and as the University's new manager of supplier diversity and environmentally responsible purchasing, he has found one. During the coming months, Bullock aims to visit units and departments to talk about why they should consider doing business with a diversity-owned (i.e., minority, women, historically underutilized business zone, veteran) supplier. He also plans to increase the number of diversity suppliers doing business with Penn State. On top of that, Bullock will urge departments to buy products that are environmentally friendly, and he will encourage existing and potential suppliers to provide such products and do it at a reasonable cost.

Bullock sees outreach efforts as key to the new program's success. Already a member of the Regional Minority Purchasing Council of Pittsburgh, Bullock plans to join the Philadelphia council as another way to identify potential business. He also plans to visit vendors -- lots of them -- to find out, as he explains, "what they're capable of, to see if there's a fit." And that fit, he is quick to point out, may be with University Park or with any of the commonwealth campus locations.

Jim Dunlop, director of Procurement Services, agrees, stressing that the program is about bringing good opportunities to all of Penn State. He acknowledges that the program needs buy-in at the departmental level for it to succeed.

"My goal," Dunlop explains, "is for units to be open-minded and consider new suppliers for part of their business, even if they're satisfied with current suppliers."

Dunlop clarifies that the program does not give priority to diversity suppliers. Instead, it brings such suppliers to the table, encouraging more opportunities for the University to work with diversity businesses. However, the University still buys products and services competitively. As a result, not all diversity vendors will successfully compete for Penn State business. It's Bullock's job to identify those vendors who can compete and help them overcome obstacles to become successful suppliers.

To illustrate, Bullock tells of two businesses. Clearwater Services, a Harrisburg-based window cleaning company, successfully bid on a summer window cleaning contract for University Park residence halls.

"They won the bid, came up and rented a house locally while working in the area, and did a great job. The Harrisburg outfit resulted in decreased cost to the University," he concluded.

A second diversity vendor, a computer firm, could not compete for product. But the company did compete for consultation for network services.

"They've been around for a couple of years now, providing excellent service to different units on campus," said Bullock.

"My job is to bridge the gap by bringing good diversity suppliers together with University departments that require the products they offer," Bullock said. "We want to find the right fit, the right mix."

The end result is more competition for better services at better prices.

To learn more about the program, contact Bullock at (814) 865-5417 or dmb5@psu.edu.

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