An Interview with the University of California’s Strategic Sourcing Senior Category Manager for Facilities & Maintenance, Reynaldo Cano-Boza.
How Cooperative Purchasing Has Impacted Our University’s MRO Purchasing Strategy
Reynaldo Cano-Boza (Rey) joined the UC Systemwide Procurement Strategic Sourcing team in 2019. Rey holds an MBA with a dual emphasis in Finance and Information Technology, a Post-Graduate Certificate in Supply Chain Management, and a Lean Six Sigma Green Belt certification (CLSSGB).
Rey has over 15 years of business/supply chain work experience in the military, private and public sectors. Twelve years of this work has been supporting multiple sourcing categories: Facilities and Maintenance, Corporate Services, Information Technology, Customer Energy Efficiency programs, and other strategic sourcing programs, including supplier diversity and sustainability.
Let’s dive into how cooperative purchasing has helped Rey do his job more efficiently.
Being a category manager for a university system the size of the University of California (UC) is challenging because each campus has its own set of needs. “One solution may work for one campus while it may not for another,” says Rey. “My job involves presenting tailored, compliant solutions to a campus and making sure it aligns with UC’s overall mission.”
For example, earlier this year, UC Santa Cruz went through a contract evaluation. The campus was trying to validate the value of a Maintenance, Repairs & Operations (MRO) contract awarded to one of OMNIA Partners’ suppliers. Not only did the campus assess pricing, service, and rebates, but they also wanted to see actionable results and top-notch service — which was promised by this supplier. They put it all to the test and due to a level of exceptional support and service, UC Santa Cruz has moved forward with a long-term strategic procurement plan with this supplier.
“We anticipate that with the recent re-launch and renewal of the MRO contract, we will see a growth in the contract usage systemwide,” says Rey. “This is a great program and with some of the new sustainability initiatives that OMNIA Partners MRO suppliers are offering, we are excited to offer expanded energy and cost-saving solutions to these campuses.”
Cooperative Purchasing Strategy
The key benefits of our MRO contracts are the competitive pricing that is offered, rebates, and value-add services. We have a long-standing partnership with OMNIA Partners that goes beyond transactional value. OMNIA Partners has equipped the UCs with the ability to provide not only the best pricing and savings for our campuses when it comes to facilities supplies, but also best-in-class delivery and service.
– Rey Cano-Boza
Working together towards the same strategic goals, OMNIA Partners and UC are providing higher education solutions systemwide. Partnering together in resources and relationships, they are not only able to offer compliant solutions to each of their campuses, but also other public agencies nationwide.
About The University of California
The University of California (UC) and OMNIA Partners are proud to offer UC campuses, affiliated institutions, and public agencies nationwide with a portfolio of cooperative contracts through the Lead Agency Marketing Partner (LAMP) program. These contracts have been competitively sourced by the UC, formally adopted on behalf of the UC System, or competitively sourced by another public institution and are available for the UC System to utilize as well as other public agencies nationwide.
About OMNIA Partners
As your ally in the purchasing process, OMNIA Partners is dedicated to optimizing procurement for your organization. Our goal is to improve the way your organization identifies, evaluates, and procures what they need at the best value. With free membership, you'll gain full access to our portfolio of leading national supplier contracts, spend visibility, analytics, and subject matter experts to help you identify more strategic and efficient ways to procure. We are here to help you achieve your procurement goals while saving you time and money along the way.