Welcome, 2022! The New Year is a great time to reset and set professional intentions and goals for the year. Whether your goals include developing soft skills, growing your skillset, or working towards a major organizational initiative, we’ve got you covered.

To kick off the new year we’ve rounded up some of our most inspiring interviews with thought leaders across the public sector. If your 2022 goals fall into one of these categories, give the interview a listen to start the new work year off right.

2022 Goal: Developing Soft Skills

Communication, leadership, and networking are key to bringing your professional career to the next level. While it’s easy to gloss over soft skills…don’t! Just like you dedicate time to learning a new technical skill, it is important to devote intentional time and effort to growing your soft skillset. Here are a few lessons to get you started:

Goal: Being a Better Internal Partner
Interview: Creating Procurement Hurdles, Not Roadblocks with Stacy Gregg

Whether you are crafting an RFP or making a purchase off of an existing contract, the nature of procurement requires purchasers to collaborate with their agency stakeholders. In this episode, University of South Carolina’s Stacy Gregg talks through how she has created mutually beneficial relationships with stakeholders so they see Procurement as an asset, not a roadblock, to their success. Stacy also discusses navigating procurement ethics in these relationships and scenarios where she’s had to make tough decisions.

Click here to listen to our interview with Stacy.

Goal: Finding a Mentor (or Being a Great Mentor!)
Interview: Finding a Mentor and Building a Career in Procurement with Jenn Meyers

The procurement community is a collaborative one where people lift each other up, and Jenn is a great example of what can happen when you take the advice of others to heart. As 2020 Young Professional of the Year, Jenn discusses her start in procurement and the path she took to rise to her current position as Procurement Manager at the City of Tucson. She shares lessons learned through her participation in Arizona’s local NIGP chapters, and how she found and fostered her relationship with her current mentor.

Click here to listen to our interview with Jenn.

Goal: Improve Supplier Performance
Interview: Adding Value to Supplier Relationships with Jason Steinmann

When a supplier feels more like a partner and less like a vendor, the sky’s the limit. The supplier isn’t the only piece to this puzzle. In this interview with Granite School District’s Jason Steinmann, Jason shares tips for creating long-term, value-add supplier relationships that foster growth and innovation for both parties.
Click here to listen to our interview with Jason.

2022 Goal: Build an Inclusive and Optimized Workplace

With ‘The Great Resignation’ sweeping the public and private sectors alike – 4.5 million people lefted their jobs in November 2021 alone – taking a proactive approach to recruiting and workplace culture are top of mind for many in 2022. Here are some interviews to fuel your efforts:

Goal: Build a More Inclusive and Equitable Workplace for Women.
Interview: How Women Can Advance in Government and Conquer Imposter Syndrome w/ Brooke Smith

Brooke Smith, City Recorder at Murray City in Utah, joins Decisions That Matter to discuss her data research study on women representation in government. Tune in to hear the results of her research and actionable advice for governments looking to build a more inclusive workplace for women to excel in their careers. She also discusses her own career growth and how she overcame imposter syndrome.

Click here to listen to our interview with Brooke.

Goal: Attract and Retain Top Talent
Interview: Recruiting the Next Generation of Public Procurement Leaders with Darin Matthews

With “The Great Resignation” sweeping the public and private sector alike, many organizations are taking a more intentional approach to hiring and employee retention in 2022. In this episode with author, director, consultant, and all-around great procurement mind Darin Matthews, we discuss nurturing and hiring the next generation of procurement leaders, especially amidst the new era of procurement technology.

Click here to listen to our interview with Darin.

Goal: Successfully Adapt the Workplace to the COVID-19 World
Interview: Public Sector Workplace Optimization with Shuli Steele

Workplace optimization leader Shuli Steele joins the podcast to discuss workplace optimization in the public sector, and its implications on employee engagement, retention, efficiency and overall profitability. The workplace has evolved over the years, and there are many reasons for that evolution, but not all have led to positive outcomes or a more productive workforce. Listen to hear Shuli explain how you can adjust your government office or higher ed / k-12 set up to give people the best environment to excel.

Click here to listen to our interview with Shuli.

2022 Goal: Improve Historically Underutilized Business Participation

Improving HUB participation in government contracts has been a priority for the better part of the last two decades. One of many lessons learned: if you fail to plan you plan to fail. Intentional programs and dedicated staff are just two factors that can help drive real change. Learn much more from these two experts in the interviews below:

Goal: Increase Your Jurisdiction’s Spend with Historically Underutilized Businesses
Interview #1: Creating a Thriving HUB Program w/ North Carolina’s Tammie Hall

North Carolina’s Tammie Hall discusses how she has created one of the most successful programs for historically underutilized businesses (HUB) in the country. Her work within North Carolina’s Department of Administration includes an in-depth disparity study to lay the groundwork for diversity and inclusion policies, a no-strings-attached grant program to help HUBs during the coronavirus pandemic, and so much more.

Click here to listen to our interview with Tammie.

Interview #2: Procurement Concierge Program in Nebraska with Chief Procurement Officer Doug Carlson

In this interview, Nebraska Chief Procurement Officer Doug Carlson discusses the three elements of the state’s successful new procurement concierge program and how they worked together to improve diverse supplier participation in Nebraska.

Click here to listen to our interview with Doug.

Whatever your goals are, we wish you success in 2022!

Here’s to another great year for public procurement.