We've come a long way! ... Remember the fear that many of us experienced when our bosses told us we were going to have to use this new technology called electronic mail to communicate. Now, most of us most likely could not survive without it. Another example is how you registered for purchasing conferences in the past. You filled out the form and mailed or faxed the information back to us.

This year, we offered online registration for our 1999 Agency Purchasing Conference.What a response we received! Over 80 participants (32 percent) registered using our online registration feature. Many expressed that registering online was faster and more reliable.

Agency Purchasing Manuals, complete with all revisions made since July 1, 1998, were distributed at the 1999 Agency Purchasing Conference in September.

Due to various changes, many pages within this reference document have been modified since its original print date. Periodically, revised pages were distributed to all agency procurement officers; however, it was their responsibility to share these changes with their respective staff.

If you are unsure if you have an updated manual, you may purchase a new copy for $10.00 by contacting Debbie Watkins at (304) 558-3568 or via e-mail at dwatkins@gwmail.state.wv.us. The State Purchasing Card may be used when making this purchase.

The Purchasing Division joined Governor Cecil H. Underwood in September to welcome business and government representatives from the eastern panhandle as part of the Governor’s initiative to bring state government closer to this region. The Governor and his entire cabinet were in the eastern panhandle for two days of meetings, beginning August 31.

Two open purchasing forums scheduled on September 1 in Jefferson and Berkeley counties were conducted by the Purchasing Division staff.

The purpose of these meetings were to address purchasing-related issues and to answer questions concerning business opportunities with the state of West Virginia. Purchasing Director Dave Tincher, Administration Unit Manager Jo Ann Dunlap and Surplus Property Manager Ken Frye conducted these meetings.

"We are always looking for ways to reach out to West Virginia vendors by offering information on how to do business with state government," according to Tincher. "Last year, over 70% of state contracts were awarded to West Virginia businesses. We want that percentage to continue to increase."

In May of this year, nearly 100 state business representatives attended the first-ever vendor purchasing conference which was sponsored by the Purchasing Division. Another vendor conference is set for May, 2000.

Negotiation tip:
When you change your mind, explain why

When you are negotiating with an employee or vendor, remember one of the cardinal rules: Don't change your mind without telling the other person why. For example: You are discussing job duties with an employee and you differ on who will perform a certain task. If you decide to concede the difference, you should tell the employee why so you can get something in return: "If I assign Bill this task, then will you agree to perform this other task?"

You signal your willingness to change your position, but by making it conditional, you get something extra yourself - and both sides win.