By Orville Bailey
CEO, EqualLevel

The role of education procurement is evolving, and the pandemic provided a glimpse into one of the key drivers of the evolution – the importance of real-time information. For much-needed supplies, such as personal protective equipment, procurement must have real-time information about supply, sources, and prices to accelerate decision making and collaboration. Delays or inaccuracy in such information can also lead to canceled orders, incomplete or delayed shipments, unwanted substitutions, and overpaying. The following are a few examples of how procurement is evolving the use of real-time information in day-to-day procurement.

Real-time Comparison Shopping Across Approved Contracts
As consumers, we have always comparison shopped – haggling for the best price has been part of the earliest markets. With the emergence of the internet, comparison shopping can now be instantaneous. Consumers can find the same products from different suppliers with just a few clicks and then choose the best price. Unfortunately, requisitioners at their work do not behave like consumers, and they tend to make the most convenient purchase. This convenience costs districts a significant amount of extra money each year. Artificial Intelligence technology now makes it possible to identify, in real-time, lower prices and substitutes for items prior to checkout.

Real-time Price Check
Purchase compliance verification is done after payment by conducting an audit of randomly selected invoices. These audits help to recover overpayments and mitigate the risk of further non-compliance. Although effective, price compliance audits are resource-intensive and not scalable. Real-time online price checks can proactively analyze thousands of contract price data points each day and identify discrepancies, enabling procurement to remedy pricing issues prior to purchase.

Real-time Evaluation of Invoices versus POs
Manually matching invoices to POs requires significant time to enter information and confirm pricing. If discrepancies are found, further time is needed to escalate the issue internally or reach out to the supplier. Automating the matching process eliminates manual steps and instantly feeds the invoice into the financial system. When issues during matching are uncovered, the invoice is sent electronically back to the supplier to correct and resubmit.

60 to 90 Day Implementation
Real-time procurement is a must for districts that want to streamline their procure-to-pay process and improve compliance and savings. School districts can see benefits quickly with applications that complement existing financial systems and can be implemented in 60 to 90 days. Often a return on investment can be achieved within a single fiscal year. By making informed decisions based on real-time data, school districts can quickly revert meaningful dollars directly back to the classroom.

There’s a continued need to sustain in-person learning for our students and teachers. Despite numerous guidelines from government agencies and industry experts on the best way to enable schools to safely operate and billions of dollars earmarked by the U.S. government to help improve learning environments, questions still remain. More importantly, there is a need to reassure parents, students and staff that returning to in-person learning is safe.

One key factor of this reassurance is indoor air quality (IAQ). How can you make sure the air in your building is clean? How can you demonstrate this to your community today and tomorrow? How do you know what you need to create safer learning environments? How do you fund the improvements and updates needed to comply with the guidelines?

How do you become an air quality expert while running your school?

Honeywell’s Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) Assessment is designed to measure the effectiveness of your school’s indoor air and help you create a return-ready strategy. It can also help you leverage and secure available funding for the needed updates. Honeywell can help create healthier learning environments and support sustained in-person education.

Contact us to today schedule your IAQ assessment.

FASBO is always looking for stories to help fill our bi-annual magazine, Florida School Business. You're the experts of your field – and we would like you to share new innovative solutions and ideas with your peers. We are seeking submissions for feature material in the following fields: Auditing; Business Management; Environmental/Energy; Facilities Planning and Operations; Finance, Fixed Assets/Property Control; Food and Nutrition Service; Human Resources; Information Technology; Maintenance; Purchasing; Risk Management; Safety and Transportation. 

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Mark your calendars!

The FASBO/FRMA conference will be held October 18-21, 2022 at the DoubleTree entrance to Universal.

Did you know with a FASBO scholarship you could attend the conference free? FASBO pays for three hotel nights and the registration fee with a scholarship. Fill out your scholarship application today.  

FASBO is working hard to ensure the conference is beneficial for all members. If there is a topic you would like to see at our next conference, please reach out to the Board. Contact information is located on the website (fasbo.org). We truly appreciate your support. 

The SASBO and AASBO boards have put their best foot forward to guarantee you will have a great experience at their 2022 Annual Conference, which will be held April 5-7 in Hot Springs, Arkansas. 

Full Conference Registration Fee is $400

Embassy Suites Room Rate is $145/night. Double occupancy rate is $155/night

Register by February 28, 2022 to receive a conference T-Shirt!

Need to book your room?  Follow this link to reach the Embassy Suites room block.

More information about the schedule and programming can be found in the Conference Registration Packet.

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Visit www.sasbo.org for updated Conference Information and more about what is happening with the Southeastern Association of School Business Officials.

School business is a very complex and demanding profession requiring a special set of knowledge, skills, and abilities. It is incumbent upon us to ensure that those that follow us have the requisite knowledge, skills, and abilities. To that end, the Board of Directors of the Florida Association of School Business Officials (FASBO) has embarked on the creation of a Professional Certification Program.

Recognizing the importance of attaining professionalism for school business officials, not only with regard to acquired knowledge and experience, but also in terms of the recognition and respect of peers and other professionals, FASBO’s Board of Directors established its Professional Certification Program in 2009.

The Program offers both acknowledgment and recognition for professionals at all levels of school business management. Certification is a way of recognizing those individuals with the background, training, and on-the-job experience to meet recognized standards of professional competence.

A Florida Senate committee this week advanced a plan endorsed by Gov. Ron DeSantis which would require new limits on how race is discussed in Florida classrooms and workplaces. (Tallahassee Democrat)

Under the K-12 Cybersecurity Act, the government will study cyber risks in schools and create security guidelines. (EdTech)

During last year’s widespread remote schooling, teachers found greater flexibility—no commute, no hallway duty—and liked it, even if they didn’t like teaching virtually. After that experience, the relentlessness of the in-person school week is a big reason teachers are finding this year even more stressful. (Ed Surge)

Based on the results of a new Harris Poll conducted for Axios, more than half of Americans favor remote learning to protect students and teachers’ “health and safety” as COVID surges. (The 74)

The editorial board of the Orange County Register sees an emergency unfolding in public education, with California’s test scores reflecting plummeting competency amid soaring absenteeism and mental health concerns. (Government Technology)