Spending Stimulus Dollars Wisely: BidBridge Promotes Competition in Public Works eProcurement
As public sector organizations examine American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) stipulations and guidelines, eProcurement services provider BidBridge announces its alignment with the Stimulus Act, providing adherence to crucial stimulus spending factors like competition and transparency through reliable reporting and efficient time allocation.
BidBridge facilitates a secure, real-time electronic sealed bid platform that allows suppliers to place multiple bids on a project, replacing the public sector’s traditional process of a one price per supplier response. BidBridge has already worked with more than 400 public agencies, leveraging extensive experience in a young market.
Fostering Competition with Reverse Auctions
According to the White House Office of Management & Budget’s “Initial Implementing Guidance for ARRA,” “Competition is the cornerstone of our acquisition system…Competition saves money for the taxpayer, improves contractor performance, curbs fraud, and promotes accountability for results. Agencies should review their internal policies with a goal towards promoting competition to the maximum extent practicable.”
“The reverse auction promotes ultimate competition because it provides suppliers the opportunity to submit multiple bids in a sealed environment, ultimately finding true market value,” said Jim Headlee, CEO of BidBridge. “Consequently, local and state governmental bodies are saving taxpayer funds by creating an atmosphere for efficient, fair competition. What BidBridge offers is a cost-effective, timely and efficient avenue for running reverse auctions in a secure, electronic environment.”
Transparency and Reporting through BidBridge’s eProcurement Platform
To increase accountability, the ARRA stipulates that state and local agencies should provide detailed reports of how funds have been allocated. BidBridge’s secure web-hosted platform allows clients to monitor and manage the bid process from open to completion, providing real-time tracking with complete transparency for government organizations. Buyers can follow supplier bids as they are placed, and BidBridge’s eProcurement system logs all aspects of the bid process for detailed reporting after the auction is complete.
Because the platform is web-based, no cost or installation for software is required. BidBridge provides suppliers with a web-based tutorial on how to engage bids via the BidBridge platform and helps educate buyers on how the bidding process works.
Timely Delivery of Services
ARRA guidelines state that appropriated funds should be spent in a timely manner and state and local agencies should adhere to reporting deadlines. Additionally, funding will be made available in increments over a specific timeline.
BidBridge provides its clients with immediate access to resources and tools designed to assist procurement professionals in achieving the rewards of efficient purchasing. Electronic procurement eliminates the need for physical data transmission and takes place in a real-time environment, allowing decisions to be made much more quickly than in the traditional one price per supplier bid environment.
Leveraging Expertise to Guide the Process
Throughout the buyer’s relationship with the company, BidBridge helps identify the right type of purchases for the reverse auction format while providing valuable assistance in spec development to ensure the buyer gets the product it wants at a fair market price. BidBridge’s team of professionals deploys strategic solutions to help expand the pool of qualified suppliers competing for its clients’ opportunities.
For news and more information on BidBridge’s stance on stimulus spending, please visit: http://strategies.bidbridge.com.
About BidBridge
Founded in 2005, Louisville-based BidBridge provides eProcurement services to both the public and private sectors, including cities, towns, municipalities and the medical, educational and corporate sectors. Through its competitive sourcing and online procurement system, BidBridge assists its buyers in achieving true-market value for the goods and services needed for ongoing business operations. Significant cost reductions and procurement efficiencies have allowed BidBridge’s buyers to save millions of tax payer, corporate and investor dollars, ultimately producing a positive effect on compressed budgets.
For more information, please visit: http://www.bidbridge.com/.
Nicknamed the “Thoroughbred City,” Lexington is betting on a different kind of horse race these days- one less exciting than the real thing but with far better financial odds. It’s called a reverse auction, and municipalities can use it to purchase goods and services at a low rate.
