It is with much anticipation and excitement that I look forward to the upcoming rollout of a more modern, streamlined way of doing business with the state of California. Buying, selling or viewing public procurement information with the state will soon become easier and more efficient.
The multifaceted system, which will launch in December 2015, is designed to transform how the state performs bidding, purchasing and contracting.
As the state’s chief procurement officer, I oversee the team of skilled professionals at the Department of General Services (DGS) who administer the statewide procurement authority. These professionals are just part of a large team of procurement and administrative officials from across the state that have collaborated with the outstanding talent at the Financial Information System of California (FI$Cal) project to create this modernized procurement system.
We have been committed to offering a customer-friendly way of buying, selling and exploring transactions with the state, and I believe the new system moves us closer to accomplishing our goal. By replacing BidSync as the portal for public bidding in California, this effort will bring new efficiencies to the procurement process, enhancing users’ experience and broadening their access to information.
By registering in this new system, businesses will be able to maintain their own profiles, including notifications from the California State Contracts Register (CSCR) for bidding opportunities, apply for or renew small business/disabled veteran business enterprise certifications, and provide visibility into their procurements and contracts with departments transacting in FI$Cal.
Registering will also allow businesses transparency into the life cycle of their procurements and contracts, including whether goods have been received, the status of the state receiving an invoice and whether a payment has been issued.
Originally slated to go live this summer, the statewide procurement aspects of the project have shifted to fall 2015. The new timeline allows us to provide an enhanced user experience for state customers — such as certified small business and disabled veteran business enterprises — as responsive design features and mobile compatibility will now be wrapped into the initial release rather than being phased in over the next two years.
Perhaps most importantly, the new launch date allows additional time for DGS and the project to communicate with affected users so they are fully aware of the new system and ready to go when it is launched later this year. Functionality for DGS Contracted Fiscal Services and their client agencies will still go live as originally planned this summer.
DGS and FI$Cal are both committed to transforming the way the state does business for the better. I believe that the enhancements to usability allowed for by this new date will significantly improve the customer experience and serve the interests of California.