Riding the Wave
Higher Ed procurement in a time of change
Higher Education procurement professionals are facing unprecedented macroeconomic headwinds—from tariffs and funding uncertainty to changing technologies and workforce challenges. But amid the turbulence, leaders are finding opportunities to reimagine how institutions spend, source, and serve.
“We’ve done some modeling and instituted strategies around negotiating and transparency,” said James Dwyer, Vice Chancellor University Business Services at Washington University in St. Louis, reflecting on how his institution is mitigating the impact of tariffs. While tariffs have caused pricing shifts, Dwyer emphasized that “the bigger macro impact for us has been around NIH funding and a potential endowment tax increase.” These pressures have prompted deeper engagement across departments in budget analysis and a newfound willingness to embrace operational change.
This openness to transformation is mirrored at other institutions. Lenora Sevillian of Nova Southeastern University shared how proactive procurement strategy has turned disruption into dialogue. “It really forced suppliers to think about it a lot quicker than they wanted to,” she said. “But it also put us in a really good position to be more of a partner.” By challenging vendors to share their plans early, Sevillian has helped shape more resilient supply chains, especially in high-tech and research-heavy categories like lab equipment.
For Cody Powell. Associate VP Facilities Planning & Operations Miami University in Ohio, the pressure point is construction. “When you’re talking about the types of capital projects we have… the dollar value becomes significant pretty quickly,” he explained, referencing a new $250 million multi-purpose arena. Timing is everything when commodity prices are in flux, and Powell stressed the importance of “weighing that and making timing decisions on capital projects accordingly.”
Beyond procurement specifics, institutional strategy is evolving. “More members of the institution have been engaged in budget analysis than probably ever have in the past,” noted Dwyer. This cross-functional approach is breaking down silos. “Our finance team and our academic teams are talking together,” he said—an increasingly necessary shift as institutions move from decentralized to more optimized procurement models.
Still, uncertainty looms large. Justin Sullivan, Associate Vice Chancellor and Chief Procurement Officer at UC San Francisco, described the challenge of managing budgets with “so many scenarios on the table” just weeks before a new fiscal year. With NIH grant prospects tightening and healthcare funding at risk, UCSF is bracing for what Sullivan called a “business-model-changing moment.”
Meanwhile, suppliers are taking a cautious stance. Paul Murphy from Canon shared that while 50% of their SKUs saw price increases, Canon has aimed to remain “tariff neutral.” He added, “We ate a lot of what could be tariffs so we could be we effective for those that we serve.”
The broader lesson? Don Buffum, former Procurement Director at Mississippi State, perhaps put it best: “We need to be more flexible and nimble so that we can change rapidly.” Whether it’s through adaptive contract structures, strategic supplier relationships, or embracing AI for efficiency, procurement is no longer a back-office function—it’s a strategic engine helping institutions weather the storm and plan for what’s next.
Higher Education will remain in flux for a long while. But the a passion to serve and a customer oriented mindset will allow procurement professionals to ride the waves.
