Tag: Agency Relations

Agency Relations & Customer Service

Customer Service to Agency Stakeholders

A successful procurement relies on quality customer service from the procurement specialist.  An important component of customer service is early collaboration between agencies. The initial interaction provides the procurement specialist the opportunity to establish trust and start a relationship through personal engagement with agency stakeholders. This is the best time for the specialist to set clear expectations, listen and respond to concerns, and build a partnership.

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Professional Development

Reflecting on the Pandemic: Networking

You, like many people, may feel dread in hearing the word “networking.” You are not alone, according to one study from Harvard Business School, people feel gross about networking being pushed by their superiors because of the feeling of how transactional it can be. That same study showed, however, that people do feel good about organic (or self-initiated) networking. Networking can be good for not just you as an individual but also good for your department and organization. Read more “Reflecting on the Pandemic: Networking” →
Professional Development

Everything is NOT Awesome – Difficult Customer Situations

Imagine this – a state agency has come to you with frustrations about a lack of communication from the central procurement office. They have not heard back from the office in over three days, and they are frustrated that they do not know what is going on with their solicitation. This is just one example of a frustrated customer situation you might run into in your operations. When these unhappy customers arise, there are steps you can  take in order to recover from a bad customer service experience. Read more “Everything is NOT Awesome – Difficult Customer Situations” →
Professional Development

Relations Matter!

Agency relations and customer service is NASPO’s top priority for 2019. What an exciting topic to tackle as it is the first time it appears on NASPO’s Top 10 in the last two years! Current NASPO President Lisa Eason is a big supporter of highlighting agency relations initiatives across the country.
Improving relationships with state agencies not only increases the efficiency of procurements in the state but also makes the process and experience for both agency staff and procurement staff less tedious. However, many states have yet to implement extensive programs and initiatives due to the different puzzle pieces that need to come together to make the change effective. Improving agency relations and customer service is a complex task that requires both employees and management to change mindsets and behaviors. At times, it requires organizations to restructure their operations to function in a customer-centric mindset rather than working in traditional silos.

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