EPS Corporate Services has responsibility for the implementation and administration of procurement policies, procedures and processes in the education sector, providing customer service, data analytics and communications. The CS team works closely with our partners across the education sector in developing tools of engagement for improved efficiency and performance under the national procurement model.

Our corporate events will link you with procurement representatives from across education institutes, DoE, OGP, HEA and other relevant public sector bodies.

EPS Corporate Services supports the implementation of policies and procedures for national procurement.

The following is an example of some of the areas covered:

EPS Corporate Services key areas of responsibility:

• Customer Service
• Stakeholder engagement
• Communications
• Data Analytics and reporting education sector future procurement requirements

Corporate Procurement Planning

Procurement is a key element of the Government’s Public Sector Reform Programme.  Education spends approximately €1 billion on goods and services annually and it is essential that this spend achieves maximum value for money, adheres to government policy, national guidelines and EU directives for procurement, while providing a sustainable delivery of services for the taxpayer.

EPS recognises the need to develop strategy to support procurement planning across the education sector.  We continually engage with our stakeholders through a series of information events, workshops, surveys and focus groups.  In 2018 EPS launched a Corporate Procurement Plan (CPP) template for Higher Education that would provide the platform for institutions to develop compliant and efficient procurement plans and strategies.  It was subsequently rolled out to the Education and Training Boards in 2019.

Philip Gurnett, Director of EPS and Head of Sourcing (Education) and Denise O’Malley, EPS Corporate Services Manager

The CPP template pack has become an invaluable ‘toolkit’ for finance and procurement personnel as they get to grips with the challenges of the procurement process.  The EPS project team identified that whilst the various guidelines, policy documentation, circulars and information were widely available, they were dispersed across a number of channels and not readily to hand for easy access and reference.  EPS collaborated throughout the project with the Department of Education (DoE) and the Higher Education Authority (HEA).

Multi-Annual Procurement Planning (MAPP)

The MAPP template is part of the CPP pack.  It is a vital forecasting and planning tool for education institutions as it allows them to collate and aggregate their predicted spend data for the forthcoming three years including details on current contract status, contract expiry dates and number of procurement transactions per year.  Contract renewal can be planned under national frameworks and central arrangements.

Some predictions in the 2020-2022 MAPP trends to continue due to impact of COVID-19:

EPS Winners of “Best Procurement Internal Collaboration Project of the Year”

Denise O’Malley
EPS Corporate Services Manager

“MAPPs is a great forecasting and modelling tool. It delivers efficiently to the overall strategy to buy for the spends under management and it will effectively be driving the right procurement decisions for the future and for the extended stakeholders. Excellent collaboration and very concrete and positive results. Thoroughly articulated the process and benefits of creating an organisation wide integrated procurement planning approach.”

Excerpt from Judge’s Comments – National Procurement Awards 2020

Winning the Best Procurement Collaboration Award of the Year in 2020 at the prestigious National Procurement Awards was indeed an honour and firmly establishes the success of the MAPP Programme in the education sector.

As we look back at the significant achievements in planning sector requirements,  EPS would like to acknowledge the successful collaboration built through the pro-active and ambitious shared objectives and goals with its HEI and ETB education partners.  We would mention particularly the co-operation we have received from our sector partners in providing the clarifications and supplementary information necessary to fully comprehend and represent the information provided in the MAPP line items.  Analysis of the MAPP Reports looks at the performance of central frameworks and arrangements in the sector, identifies key metrics for continued progress and actions required to meet the needs of sector specific requirements.  In developing the MAPP programme, we will continue to increase utilisation and delivery of central arrangements for education.  We look forward to progressing the programme through the use of dynamic visualisation platforms and reporting software to enhance communications and sharing of data for optimum utilisation and return of benefits to our sector partners.

We welcome your feedback and comments.

Email MAPP related queries to: mapp@educationprocurementservice.ie

Workshops and Focus Groups

EPS is committed to communicating in an open and collaborative environment.  The following is an example of some of the forums that bring key partners together to support good planning and increased utilisation of central frameworks that meet the education sector requirements:

• 2019 – 2021: Workshops with OGP, LGOPC and EPS sourcing teams. The workshops provide the opportunity to discuss the performance of central frameworks and arrangements within the scope of sector specific requirements.
• 2019 – 2021:  MAPP Clinics with individual institutions.  The clinics provide a forum for planning and scoping future requirements, to look at the type and number of contracts in place, the level of cover under central arrangements and KPI’s.

Information Events

March 2019 – Laboratory Supplier Communication Day

As a Central Purchasing Body, EPS is committed to providing procurement services to its stakeholders in a compliant and professional manner under the directives and guidance governing public sector procurement.  The Lab Supplier Communication Day event was an important part of the EPS partner engagement process and will contribute to the development of the Category Management Strategy for Laboratory and Research.

Conferences

May 2019 – EPS Corporate services organised the Higher Education Summit in partnership with the HEA. It emphasised the importance of planning for the future to ensure better outcomes through the delivery of value for money savings as well as consideration of social and environmental factors to help promote sustainability.

April 2019 – EPS partnered with the ETBI to develop the Education and Training Board’s (ETB) Corporate Procurement Plan (CPP) template and Multi Annual Procurement Plan (MAPP), tailored specifically to meet the needs of the ETB’s. The Education Training Boards of Ireland ran a very successful conference in April 2019. The day gave valuable insights into the need for good governance, consistency and transparency in the expenditure of public funds.

L to R: Denise O’Malley (Corporate Service Manager, EPS), Mary Rose Cremin (Director, Audit & Assurance, Deloitte), Paul O’Toole (Interim CEO, HEA), Joe McHugh, TD (Minister for Education and Skills), Philip Gurnett (Head of Sourcing Education, EPS), David Mangan (Portfolio Manager, EPS), Paul Quinn (CEO, OGP) and Eleanor Stokes (Key Account Manager, OGP)

April 2018 – The Higher Education Summit was held at St. Laurence’s, DIT Grangegorman.

The Summit saw EPS launch the Corporate Procurement Plan (CPP) template for the Higher Education sector. Speakers included Philip Gurnett, EPS Director and Head of Sourcing Education , Graham Love, Chief Executive of the HEA and Deirdre McDonnell, Assistant Secretary General, Major Operations Division, Department of Education and Skills, Mary Rose Cremin, Deloitte, Mags O’Callaghan, Office of Government Procurement. Denise O’Malley, EPS Corporate Service Manager launched the CPP at the summit. The pack contained the MAPP template and guidelines as an appendix to the CPP to support users in completing the reports.

The summit outlined the benefits of adopting the CPP uniformly across education to provide compliance, strong governance, openness, transparency and deliver best value for money for the tax payer.

May 2017 – The Higher Education Procurement Summit was held in Bedford Hall, Dublin Castle.

The Summit was organised by EPS in conjunction with the Higher Education Authority. Speakers included Philip Gurnett, EPS Director and Head of Sourcing Education, Graham Love, Chief Executive of the HEA, Mary Rose Cremin, Deloitte, Mags O’Callaghan, Office of Government Procurement and Seán Ó Foghlú, the Secretary General of the Department of Education and Skills. The event brought together key personnel from Higher Education Institutions to discuss the common challenges faced and opportunities arising given the government decision to centralise procurement. The summits key message was the importance of good procurement compliance and governance throughout the Education sector with the support of the Department of Education and Skills, the Higher Education Authority and the Education Procurement Service. The summit was well received by the attendees.

EPS Newsletter

In December 2019, EPS produced their inaugural quarterly Newsletter. The idea was to produce a letter that captured the professional standards and dedication that the EPS team bring to their work on a daily basis. Dorothy Walshe, Corporate Services, was tasked with the production of the publications:

“I was delighted to take on the challenge, the vision was to send a message to our stakeholders that represented the work that we carry out for our customers but also to portray the achievements and human side of the EPS Team. Through working with my colleagues the issue shows the dynamic and proactive culture that exists within our organisation”

EPS has just published the August copy of their Newsletter, see link below to access all issues.

https://www.educationprocurementservice.ie/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/EPS-Newsletter

MAPP Template

The Multi-Annual Procurement Plan (MAPP) template for Higher Education is available by request at mapp@educationprocurementservice.ie.