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INDEX

SUBJECT PAGE

E-mail Notification ……………………………. 2

On-line Directory Access ……………………………. 3-5

Record of Business Solicitation Changes ……………………………. 6-7

DATE: June 15, 2011

TO: Business Managers/Purchasing Card Liaisons

FROM: Venis Manigo, Director of Purchasing

We want to express our sincere appreciation of the great job you have done in reporting our attempts to involve small and minority businesses in our procurement processes and wanted to make you aware of changes we are implementing in order to enhance the program. The On-Line Small and Minority Business Directory will be available effective June 15 and may be accessed via the referenced link or by visiting the Purchasing Department web site as described herein. The revised business solicitation form will become effective July 1, 2011. This document describes the highlights of the directory and the revised business solicitation form.

1.  On-Line Small and Minority Business Directory: The small and minority business directory will now be available electronically. This means you will no longer need to reference the hard copy manual we provided you last year. This hard copy manual listed businesses that attended the Business Opportunity Expo and served as a reference for your convenience.

The new On- Line directory provides instant access to all vendors who have registered with the university’s small and minority vendor database. You may search it by vendor name or business category. You may access the on-line directory in the Announcements section of the Purchasing Department’s web site SMALL AND MINORITY BUSINESS DIRECTORY or by opening the following: http://purchasing.sc.edu/smallminority.php

2.  Business Solicitation Form: We are updating the form to make it easier to complete. Complete instructions are available on the Purchasing Department’s web site in the Announcements section entitled SMALL AND MINORITY BUSINESS UPDATE FOR BUSINESS MANAGERS.

When you are entering a small or minority business name, now you will be able to select from a drop down box of all of these businesses that have registered on-line with the University. If a business has not registered, you will be able to type the name in the “Other” field. Please remember to include contact information also: telephone # and/or e-mail address. All vendors entered as “Other” will be routed to the Purchasing department and will be contacted in order to get the proper information to register them.

Thank you all so much for your continued support of this on-going initiative. If you have any questions, you may contact Mary Sims or Venis Manigo at 777-4115.

ON LINE LISTING OF SMALL AND MINORITY BUSINESSES:

1.  Below are samples reflecting the results of searches on the new On Line Directory listing. Please take a moment to familiarize yourself with the business categories. If you need to add a category, or have any issues with the businesses on this list, please contact Mary Sims or Venis Manigo in the Purchasing Department at 777-4115.

2.  The address for this On Line Directory is: http://purchasing.sc.edu/smallminority.php

3.  You may search by:

  1. Selecting a business category. This enables you to see all businesses who have indicated their ability to provide the specified products and services when they registered. Complete contact information is included with each business.
  1. Typing in the business name. All contact information for that business is listed.
  1. Clicking on the business name provides a summary of the services offered by that business.


RECORD OF BUSINESS SOLICITATION (Revisions):

A completed sample is included below for your reference.

  1. The primary object code is the object code from which the majority of the funds will be used to pay for the transaction.
  2. If the business is a small or minority business, check the box under the category entitled “Small/Minority.”
  3. Once this box is selected, a drop down box with the alphabetical listing of all the businesses that have registered via the Small and Minority Business Vendor Directory site will appear. You may select the vendor contacted from this list and indicate the amount quoted.
  4. If the business is not listed, you must select the “Other” option at the end of the list. You will then be able to type in the business name and contact information (telephone # and/or e-mail address and indicate the amount quoted.
  5. If the business is not a small or minority owned business, you may type in the name of the business and indicate the amount quoted.
  6. The form is changed so that you can select the winning vendor by checking the box next to the business name in the column entitled “Winner.”