Continuous Improvement in FY25
Continuous Improvement
Campus Contributions Towards Continuous Improvement
Systemwide
Chefs + Procurement = Smarter, More Sustainable Food Buying
In June 2025, UC food procurement leaders and campus chefs met at Sysco San Francisco for a two-day product rationalization and cutting event. Reviewing nearly 900 meat SKUs ($8M), 450+ poultry SKUs ($6.3M), and 59 French fry specs (across six campuses!), the team aimed to streamline inventory, boost sustainability, and cut costs. Benefits included stronger supplier leverage, savings without culinary compromise, menu consistency, and simpler logistics.
Early wins: $51.7K annual French fry savings and new opportunities with Cream Co., Real Good Fish, Sweet Street, and Fable Foods. Chefs provided valuable insights and confirmed minimal or no culinary impact from the proposed changes. This collaborative effort marks a tastier, more sustainable path forward for UC food procurement.
Library Bindery: Preserving the Past, One Book at a Time…
Tucked away in Berkeley’s Supply Chain Management organization, the Library Bindery expertly preserves printed materials through a blend of mechanized and artisan processes. This unique operation serves the entire UC system and is the ‘binder of choice’ for prestigious clients beyond UC, like the State of California and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Library. This skilled team ensures that these valuable pages endure for generations. In a digital age, the Library Bindery remains a steadfast champion of print, preserving the texts that serve as a foundation of knowledge and truth.
Enhancing Digital Adoption at Berkeley
In early 2025, UC Berkeley selected Pendo and Jaggaer as the campus platforms for digital adoption and assist tools. These solutions are now being implemented to guide and support users across Procurement and Financial systems—making technology more intuitive, accessible, and effective. By investing in these tools, Berkeley is streamlining system navigation and ensuring our community can focus less on processes and more on impact.
Faster, Smarter, and Setting the Standard
In FY25, Berkeley processed over 139,000 purchase orders through BearBUY, totaling nearly $839 million in spend. That’s a 29-point improvement over seven years ago. Jaggaer, the platform behind BearBUY, now considers Berkeley best-in-class for total volume management spend. A full 70% of POs were processed in under 24 hours with another 8% wrapped up within 48 hours. This reflects Berkeley’s dedication to using systemwide and campus procurement contracts that do the heavy lifting on risk, compliance, and cost control upfront - both faster and smarter!
UC Davis Streamlines One-Time Payments with Candex
Processing one-time payments at UC Davis used to require setting up individuals as vendors, creating thousands of unnecessary records. In February 2025, Business and Financial Services launched Candex to streamline the process. Integrated into Aggie Enterprise, Candex lets departments request payments for honoraria and research subjects, while payees register securely to manage banking and tax details. Since launch, UC Davis has processed $18,000 in payments to 1,500+ individuals. With expansion planned for referees and stenographers, Candex is making small payments faster, safer, and easier campus-wide.
UC Davis Delegated Authority Pilot to Streamline Contracting
All agreements have typically required review by the Business and Revenue Contracts team, slowing down routine, low-risk contracts. To streamline the process, Supply Chain Management (SCM) launched a delegated authority pilot in December 2024. Two event-focused departments gained authority to sign unmodified hotel, venue, and catering agreements, processing 60+ contracts to date. The Research Core Facilities Program received authority for routine revenue agreements, with a dozen staff trained and equipped to manage them. SCM plans to expand the pilot, making contract management faster and more effective campus-wide.
UC Davis Pilots Instant Card for Safer, Smarter Travel
Handling cash for travel has long been a challenge at UC Davis, especially in Athletics, where coaches carried cash for athlete meal allowances. In November 2024, the Card Program team piloted Instant Card, a virtual travel card accessed via smartphone with set spending limits, vendor restrictions, and direct expense tracking. In just eight months, Athletics returned nearly $10,000 in unused funds. Instant Card reduces cash risks, boosts accountability, and delivers savings. With Athletics’ success, UC Davis plans to expand it campus-wide in 2025.
UC Davis Repro Graphics Streamlines Campus Copier Program
UC Davis has over 500 copiers serving the campus, but until recently, Repro Graphics staff had to collect meter data manually—a challenge with hybrid work and building access. In July 2024, Repro Graphics partnered with vendor Ubeo to automate the process, sending data directly into spreadsheets and the billing system. After one year, 312 monthly trips and 26 quarterly trips were eliminated—saving time, improving billing accuracy, and preventing errors. The automation makes the program more efficient, sustainable, and service-focused.
US Bank-Funded Internships Advance Payment Modernization
In summer 2024, UC Davis launched the Procurement Card Usage Analysis and Findings project, powered by U.S. Bank-funded student internships. The initiative supports P-Card growth and expands Payment Plus, an electronic payment solution that streamlines vendor payments while generating cash rebates for the university. Interns gained hands-on experience in supplier engagement, data analysis, Oracle integration, and financial operations. They also identified ways to boost efficiency, strengthen supplier relationships, and promote modern payment technologies—while gaining practical exposure to university finance.
Department Buyer Training Builds Confidence and Compliance
To help campus buyers navigate evolving policies, UC Irvine Procurement Services launched bi-monthly training sessions covering sourcing strategies, Export Control, Conflict of Interest, PALCard exceptions, and requisition best practices. Recorded sessions are paired with step-by-step guides for later on-demand access. Buyers now work more efficiently, reduce compliance issues, and approach procurement with greater confidence. Blending live learning with lasting resources strengthens procurement learning.
UC Irvine Adopts Payment Plus with Student Engagement
UC Irvine Procurement Services and Accounts Payable launched Payment Plus, replacing checks and ACH with Visa virtual cards to speed payments, boost security, and cut costs. Over 200 suppliers have enrolled, with more joining monthly. Supported by a U.S. Bank–funded student intern, UCI ensured smooth adoption while giving hands-on financial operations experience. The program strengthens efficiency, supplier cash flow, and student development—a win on all fronts.
UCI Advances End-to-End Procurement Project
Procurement Services is transforming purchasing through the End-to-End (E2E) Procurement project. Procurement has finalized the design of UCIBuy+, powered by Jaggaer, to replace KFS’s manual, fragmented processes. Developed with strong campus collaboration, UCIBuy+ will deliver a more efficient, transparent, and customer-focused procurement experience. Benefits are many, including improved transaction visibility, automated compliance workflows, faster PO processing, simplified forms, and cost savings.
UCI Procurement Services Debuts Virtual Office Hours
In FY24/25, UCI Procurement Services launched bi-weekly virtual office hours, giving staff a convenient drop-in space to ask real-time questions on requisitions, POs, agreements, and policies. Complemented by 1:1 training and ServiceNow appointments, the program ensures tailored support. Departments now get faster answers, reducing purchasing delays, while stronger engagement has built a culture of partnership.
UCI Procurement Streamlines with ServiceNow
UC Irvine Procurement Services transformed procurement support by moving to the ServiceNow ticketing system in FY25. Over 9,000 tickets were processed in the first year, with insights driving clearer website guidance on POs, forms, and policies—reducing repeat questions. ServiceNow created a continuous improvement cycle, making procurement more customer-focused and efficient while reinforcing UCI’s commitment to service excellence.
Beau Jimmerson Joins UCLA Leadership Team
UCLA’s Office of the Vice Chancellor and Chief Financial Officer is proud to announce the appointment of Beau Jimmerson as associate vice chancellor of procurement services and supply chain operations, effective July 2025. Beau joins the Bruin community with over two decades of leadership experience in procurement and strategic operations. Beau’s strategic vision, innovative mindset, and customer focus will be vital as UCLA navigates the current financial landscape while still advancing its education, research, and service mission.
UCLA Streamlines Procurement Training with Scribe
The Change Management + Media Innovation (CMMI) team within UCLA’s Office of the Vice Chancellor & Chief Financial Officer has streamlined procurement training centered around Scribe, a digital tool for creating intuitive, step-by-step guides. Since launch, over 50 Scribes supporting procurement processes have been created and embedded directly into Campus Purchasing & Payables web pages, improving accessibility and streamlining the user experience. These materials have already garnered more than 40,000 views, signaling strong engagement from both campus users and vendors. Looking ahead, CMMI will continue to apply this approach, integrate user feedback loops, and leverage analytics to measure impact.
Merced Sees Exciting Impact with BobcatBuy+
In October 2024, UC Merced’s Supply Chain Center of Excellence launched BobcatBuy+, a new campus shopping platform powered by Labviva, a systemwide partner platform first launched at UC San Diego. Since Merced’s launch, suppliers and catalogs grew from 25 to 36, invoice exceptions dropped 50%, and savings averaged $400 per 1,000 orders. Economic Impact spend rose 137%, peaking at 25.2% in December. With new suppliers, catalog expansions, and features like Community Purchases, BobcatBuy+ is boosting efficiency, savings, and sustainable impact for UC Merced.
UC Merced Launches Wellness Vending Machines
UC Merced Procurement completed installation of two SimpliChek Wellness Vending Machines in Student Housing and the Library lobby – making it easier for students to access everyday health and wellness essentials. Stocked with OTC medications, healthy snacks, and personal care items, the machines provide students with convenient, 24/7 support. From paper cuts to personal care, UC Merced students can count on these Health & Wellness vending machines to keep essentials close at hand.
Procurement and OIT Deliver Big Wins for UC Merced
A strong collaboration between Procurement and UC Merced’s Office of Information Technology (OIT) delivered two key improvements. Through UCOP’s ProtectUs initiative, they added BobcatBuy+ punchouts for Dell and Apple laptops via CDWG, enabling fast purchases of pre-configured, UC Merced–ready devices. They also revamped the software renewal process: OIT now reviews data security while Procurement ensures contract compliance. These efforts strengthen security, reduce risks, and streamline tech purchases—making them easier, safer, and more reliable for the UC Merced community.
UC Riverside
Campus Community Helps Choose UCR’s New Coffee Partner
UC Riverside has welcomed Klatch Coffee as its new campus provider after a competitive RFP in May 2025. What made the process unique was community involvement: more than 200 students, faculty, and staff joined a tasting event, scoring each supplier’s coffee via QR code. Those results factored into the quality evaluation, ensuring a best-value award. Founded by UCR alum Mike Perry, Klatch is known for award-winning, sustainably sourced coffee, set to debut across campus in Fall 2025.
UC San Diego
ERC Students Gain 24/7 Package Access with New Locker System
Eleanor Roosevelt College (ERC) students can now access packages anytime with new rear-loading self-service lockers in the ERC Student Activity Center, serving 1,500 residents and 27,000+ packages annually. Previously limited by long lines and restricted hours, the new system—developed with Housing, IT, and Procurement—streamlines operations, reduces labor, and enhances convenience. As the third phase of UC San Diego’s locker strategy, it delivers 24/7 access, faster processing, and a scalable, student-centered solution supporting modern delivery needs.
UCSF SCM Expands Support for Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland
UCSF Supply Chain Management (SCM) expanded its support for Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland with new services launching this summer. Beginning July 6, SCM began providing BCH Oakland employees with expense, travel, and P-Card support—while SCM Logistics has also integrated BCH Oakland’s outbound mail into UCSF's centralized system, saving costs and streamlining operations. Together, these efforts strengthen efficiency, compliance, and collaboration across UCSF.
UCSF SCM Response Team Celebrates Five Years of Service
UCSF Supply Chain Management’s Response Team is celebrating five years of service excellence. What began in 2020 as a rapid pivot during the pandemic has grown into a trusted support hub, resolving thousands of tickets each year and helping customers across UCSF and beyond. This team continues to drive efficiency, education, and innovation in support of our community.
UCSF Procurement Improves Queue Stats and Service Levels
Managing procurement requests efficiently keeps UCSF’s operations running smoothly. In 2024-25, the Strategic Procurement team took significant steps to reduce backlog, improve processing times, and ensure departments and suppliers receive timely support. Their efforts have led to major improvements in queue management, demonstrating a strong commitment to service excellence.
UCSF Tango Gift Cards Ready to ‘Dance’ on Demand
UCSF has launched the new Tango gift card punchout in BearBuy, making it easier for staff to purchase and distribute digital rewards. With Tango, employees can quickly order electronic gift cards for recognition or research participant payments, giving recipients access to 150+ popular brands through a simple online rewards catalog.
UCSB Streamlines Small Business First Process
UC Santa Barbara introduced improvements to the Small Business First (SB First) process to cut administrative burden and streamline compliance. Some requisitions, such as federally funded purchases or contract amendments, now bypass SB First review, saving processing and oversight time. A new validation requires requisitioners to select the correct SB First category before submission, with quarterly compliance reviews ensuring accuracy. UCSB Procurement also released an updated SB First Requisition Guide with instructions, definitions, and supplier resources.
P-Card Process Optimized Ahead of Oracle Launch
Ahead of UCSB’s July 2025 transition to Oracle Financials Cloud, a U.S. Bank–funded student intern supported Procurement Card process optimization in Jaggaer. The project delivered cost savings, streamlined administration, improved integration, clearer process mapping, and reduced risk—enhancing cardholder experience while strengthening long-term financial operations. These improvements create immediate value and position UCSB for a smoother Oracle transition.
UC Santa Cruz
Driving Efficiency and Revenue Through Student Engagement
With support from the U.S. Bank Student Engagement Fund, UCSC launched a project that boosted revenue and created student opportunities. Interns analyzed campus spend data and identified ways to shift payments from checks and ACH to solutions like Payment Plus, Instant Card, CTE-Cards, and P-Cards. The effort drove card program growth, streamlined payments, and increased revenue while reinforcing UCSC’s commitment to practical learning and financial innovation.
Strategic Priorities
UC Procurement is committed to the five strategic priorities below. Through dedication to these priorities, we strive to empower our campuses, foster innovation, and shape a more sustainable and equitable future. This Annual Report is organized by these five priorities – click any card to delve into our progress in these areas:
Economic and Community Impact
Strategic Partnerships
Drive Value and Savings
Continuous Improvement
Risk Management
Our supply chain, legal, and policy strategies minimize risk to safeguard UC against financial, operational, and reputational damage.