Inside Public Procurement: Heroic Stories from the Frontlines Bonfire Interactive

Every year, around 3.6 million kids get opportunities to pursue their dreams with the support of Boys & Girls Clubs of America. That incredible impact takes the work of hundreds of thousands of people in more than 5,000 club locations across the country.
Among them, hustling behind the scenes at the national office, is BGCA’s hard-working procurement team led by Director of Procurement, Chris Burton. From large federal grants to generous private donations, every dollar that passes through the BGCA national office is strategically allocated by his team to ensure each club has the resources it needs.
It’s a massive responsibility to bear. But it’s also a big part of what keeps Chris and his team improving processes, strengthening relationships, and striving to be their best every day.
In this episode of Inside Public Procurement, Bonfire host Maria Volakhava sits down with Chris and his colleague Jordan Rodges for a journey into the world of purpose-driven nonprofit procurement.
The pair share their firsthand experience managing procurement at one of America’s top youth organizations—diving into these hot topics, and more:
● What makes nonprofit procurement unique
● The biggest challenges that nonprofit procurement teams face
● How BGCA navigates challenges like vendor diversity, complex contracts, and financial planning
● Managing the ebbs and flows of nonprofit budgets
● Strategies for measuring procurement’s cost-saving successes
Enjoy the show! And don’t forget to connect with Chris and Jordan on LinkedIn.
You can find this interview, and many more, by subscribing to Inside Public Procurement on Apple Podcasts, on Spotify, or gobonfire.com/podcast.
Listening on a desktop and can’t see the links? Just search for Inside Public Procurement in your favorite podcast player.

Procurement departments know that federal grants play an important part in achieving their community goals. The good news is that there’s never been more funding to go around. The bad news? Making sure all that money gets to the right places-and stays there-requires a lot of work in the form of reporting and compliance, and the rules are always changing. 
 
In this week’s episode, we invite you to listen in on a roundtable discussion at the 2023 NIGP Forum, where Stephen Cook from Bonfire, a Euna Solutions brand, sits down with Sherry Weir (partner at Kearney & Company) and Andrew Janos (Director of Procurement and Material Management for Fairfax County) to discuss how you can help your organization stay accountable. 
 
Hear about: 
 
The importance of understanding grant requirements The journey of a federal grant, from “pre-award” to “post-award” The difference between a subrecipient and a contractor How to optimize your grant compliance   
Plus much more! 

A “one-size-fits-all" solution is not something that applies to the procurement capacity puzzle, as so many factors can influence how your team handles projects: staffing, process, demand, technology, etc. It’s a tough conundrum but it is solvable. 
Our guest on this episode of Inside Public Procurement, Danny “Rockstar” Mays, Director of Procurement at Maryland Judiciary, chats with Euna’s Ian Roberts about how you can start creating solutions to these multi-faceted challenges. 
They talk about: 
Why the phrase “do more with less” should be retired Procurement’s secret advantage for bringing in new talent How becoming a strategic partner to your customers improves capacity, among other things The marriage of the procurement and grants offices And so much more! 
You can find this interview, and many more, by subscribing to Inside Public Procurement on Apple Podcasts, on Spotify, or gobonfire.com/podcast.  
Listening on a desktop and can’t see the links? Just search for Inside Public Procurement in your favorite podcast player.  

In the day-to-day of public procurement, things like sound recordkeeping or rigorous compliance checks can often get lost in the shuffle. 
Now, with so much grant funding coming to fruition, a lot of heavy reporting requirements are coming with it. If the thought of adhering to these regulations makes you sweat, this episode can help! 
This episode of Inside Public Procurement listens in on a webinar we held with the California Association of Public Procurement Officials (CAPPO). Jen Riddell from Bonfire, a Euna Solutions brand, and Cliff Chroust from Ventura County, CA took a deep dive into reporting and compliance for grant funding—and how to turn these practices into standard operating procedures in your organization. 
Listen to the full episode to learn more about: 
Education and standardization of policies and procedures Why you should take the time to create ironclad digital document storage The benefits of digital evaluations Increasing stakeholder engagement and accountability How to keep up with changing reporting, compliance, and best practices And so much more. 
You can find this interview, and many more, by subscribing to Inside Public Procurement on Apple Podcasts, on Spotify, or gobonfire.com/podcast.  
Listening on a desktop and can’t see the links? Just search for Inside Public Procurement in your favorite podcast player.  

Sustainability is not the buzz word it once was. Nowadays, it’s a tangible initiative. The private sector has been increasingly pushing sustainability in their procurement over the past few years, and it’s now starting to take hold in the public space. 
The idea of sustainable procurement has been around for a while, but it’s important to point out that the definition has changed a little bit. It’s not just about environmental sustainability anymore; it brings in the social aspect as well. Supplier diversity and other diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives are hugely important to impactful sustainable procurement. 
This seems like a huge project to take on—and it is. However, it’s important to lean on your peers, start small, and really determine what sustainability means to you and your organization. Our guests on this episode say the key is mindfulness—being conscious of what you’re buying, why, and where it’s coming from. 
We had the pleasure of chatting with two sustainable procurement champions from the Ontario College Procurement Managers Association (OCPMA). Carol Izzio, Director of Procurement at Sheridan College, and Christine McParland, Director of Residence & Ancillary Services at St. Lawrence College, have been in the trenches of creating sustainable procurement policies and procedures. There’s a lot of experience between them, and they have so much wisdom to give anyone interested in starting their own initiatives. 
Tune in to hear more about: 
The importance of planning and incremental progress Busting old school misconceptions about sustainability Being more mindful in your purchasing Ways to get started on your sustainability policies The importance of procurement visibility in these initiatives You can find this interview, and many more, by subscribing to Inside Public Procurement on Apple Podcasts, on Spotify, or gobonfire.com/podcast.  
Listening on a desktop and can’t see the links? Just search for Inside Public Procurement in your favorite podcast player.  

The crusade against paper-based processes is still very prevalent in some cases—and when you think about digital transformation, that’s most likely what comes to mind—but it’s a lot deeper than that. Digital transformation encompasses a lot of the moving parts needed to be efficient, effective, and scalable as a procurement department in a modern digital landscape. 
On this episode of Inside Public Procurement, we sat down for a chat with Bonfire’s own Anthony Berry and Willow Stuart about their experiences working alongside public procurement teams all day, every day. 
Listen in to hear more about: 
What procurement tech is and the different functions it can support The three tiers of procurement tech readiness and need Solving the capacity conundrum and scalability Your internal and external stakeholders’ role in choosing tools A weird amount of food and lake-related metaphors You can find this interview, and many more, by subscribing to Inside Public Procurement on Apple Podcasts, on Spotify, or gobonfire.com/podcast.  
Listening on a desktop and can’t see the links? Just search for Inside Public Procurement in your favorite podcast player.