Greetings NASIG and other serials colleagues,
Hope you all are safe and well!
Your assistance is needed to determine the role of procurement in contract review at academic libraries.
Please let me know if your library has the authority to review, approve, and sign its own vendor contracts (within approved financial thresholds) or if campus procurement has taken on this role
including signatory authority. Our library can no longer sign vendor price quotes or contract agreements which causes major delays in negotiating and renewing resources.
Backstory: about a year ago campus procurement implemented two new campus-wide requirements for contract review and technology review. To receive approval and obtain an authorized signature from
a procurement official, all vendor contracts/quotes must have Terms updated within the past 5 years AND undergo technology review to assess vendor compliance with accessibility requirements (VPAT, etc). The latter is a worthy goal but together these requirements
remove our ability to act in a timely manner or negotiate favorable terms that often need an expeditious turn around.
To make a case for library autonomy and regain our signatory authority, I seek evidence that academic libraries retain the authority to approve and sign their own contracts (within approved
financial thresholds) and to complete their own technology review process. Please respond to this query (and include the name of your school, if possible):
Thanks so much for your help!
Take good care and stay safe,
Laura
Laura Gewissler
Director of Collection Management Services
David W. Howe Memorial Library Rm 117
University of Vermont
Burlington, VT 05405
Prefer cell: 908-839-2810
Office line: 802-656-2204