Be Ready for That RFP

At any given time, possibly out of the blue, a higher ed institution might decide to entertain proposals for management of its self-operated campus store.

If you’re the manager of that store, the decision probably comes as a shock. It did for the panelists and facilitator of the CAMEX100 session Managing the Risk of Outsourcing. They offered tips and advice for other store managers who might find themselves in the same situation. With preparation, you can make sure your administration considers an RFP with open eyes.

In issuing a request for proposals, administrators might be looking to snag a larger financial return, improve service for students and faculty, reduce risk, upgrade store facilities, simplify oversight of the store—or all of the above and more. A new vice president, dean, or president may have come from an institution that leases its store and they’re already comfortable with the model (and often don’t know much about retail operations, even if they have a background in finance). Lease companies also routinely market their services to administrators.

“There are lots of things you can do. It’s about being proactive,” noted session facilitator Jeff Nelson, NACS vice president of industry collaboration and development. “When you learn they’re doing an RFP is not the time to start doing things.”

In fact, by the time you hear about the RFP, your institution may have already made up its mind to accept one of the proposals.

Here are some of the recommendations panelists shared in the session:

Build solid relationships and partnerships with other campus departments.

“What helped me was allies,” noted Nelson, who previously managed a university store in Ohio. When the administration decided to lease the store, other departments spoke out against the decision and the administration changed its mind. A similar scenario played out for the Brown Bookstore at Brown University, Providence, RI, years before TJ Cochran took over the reins as director. “Our team had such outstanding relationships across campus,” he said, and he takes care to maintain those relationships.

Don’t count on a “Save the Bookstore” campaign, however.

Gavin Jensen, now deputy director of Wildcat Stores, Weber State University, Ogden, UT, used to manage a community college store. In an unexpected restructuring, the store was placed under the purview of a different vice president, who promptly sought to lease the store. “Things can turn around just so quickly,” he said. Jensen attempted to rally support from other areas, but it wasn’t enough to dissuade the VP. He now realizes he should have prepared a presentation for his new boss to explain what was going on at the store and to establish his expertise as an experienced manager

Promote your store’s contributions to the campus.

Many campus stores are doing a great job “but the problem was really they didn’t blow their own horn often enough,” Cochran said, adding, “Sometimes you’re actually giving a lot back to campus and the administration doesn’t know it.”

“Let people know the good things you’re doing,” echoed Amy Hannahs, assistant director, business services, Denison University Bookstore, Granville, OH. At a previous store she managed, she was taken aback when a new administration opted to contract the store out. But she was prepared when the topic of leasing arose at Denison and was able to show the store’s successes. “I meet with the boss once a week,” she said, and uses the opportunity to share updates about the store.

Know your numbers and have strategies in place.

Store managers should stay on top of the financial data and strategic plans about their operations, and be ready to talk about them confidently and accurately. “I started to be asked questions,” Jensen recalled. His former school suddenly was interested in his labor percentage and how he planned to budget for remodeling, among other things—all items that the lease companies were raising with the administration.

Be able to compare your store’s numbers and capabilities.

Of course, the lease marketing team will tout their companies’ services to the administration; that’s their job. You will need to explain how your store stacks up in comparison. Cochran, who worked for a lease company for 22 years before Brown, noted that the leasors have their own systems, which can’t integrate with institutional systems such as enrollment or financial aid. “The more integrated you are into campus systems, the more difficult it is for the campus to undo all that,” he said. Hannahs pointed out that most buying is centralized in lease companies, rather than each store individually selecting merchandise.

Invest in your space, your employees, and your website.

Don’t put off improvements, thinking you have time later. Your store needs to be in tip-top shape all the time. The lease companies are “very good at figuring out the vulnerabilities a store has,” Cochran said, and will show the administration how they would fix things. “Be prepared to say ‘We can do that and do it better and meet the mission of the campus,’” Hannahs said.

Watch the video.

In the session, the panelists discussed much more about their previous experiences with contract management. Watch a video recording of the session on CAMEX On-Demand in NACS University until Aug. 31 (free to CAMEX100 attendees; access to all sessions is $249 for member stores that did not attend CAMEX).