1. U.S. Communities

2. National Collaborative Purchasing Program –Operates on the same principles as local and regional coops –National structure for public agencies to aggregate collective purchasing power –Improve the overall effectiveness of their purchasing processes –Non-Profit Organization

3. Public Agency Value Competitively solicited contract by a lead public agency No cost to agencies to participate Best government pricing Optional and non-exclusive contracts; no minimum spending requirements

4. Founding Co-Sponsors Presence & Credibility –Association of School Business Officials International (ASBO) –National Association of Counties (NACo) –National Institute of Governmental Purchasing (NIGP) –National League of Cities (NLC) –United States Conference of Mayors (USCM)

5. The Advisory Board Allegheny County, PA Charlotte-Mecklenburg, NC Cobb County, GA Dallas County, TX Davis JUSD, CA Denver, CO Detroit Public Schools, MI Fairfax County PS, VA Fairfax County, VA Harford Co. Schools, MD Hennepin County, MN Hillsborough Schools, FL Houston, TX Los Angeles County, CA Maricopa County, AZ Miami-Dade County, FL San Antonio, TX San Diego County, CA San Diego City Schools, CA Seattle, WA Wichita Public Schools, KS Public Procurement Professionals Advisory Board Program Purchases Over $120 Million in 2006

6. Products Available Office & School Supplies Office Furniture School Furniture Office Machines P.E. Supplies Janitorial Supplies Carpet & Flooring Roofing Supplies & Services Auto Parts & Accessories Technology Products & Solutions Telecommunications Supplies Maintenance & Hardware Supplies Homeland Security & Public Safety Electrical Products Park & Playground

7. Eligible Agencies Cities Counties K12 Special Districts Universities/Colleges Non Profits State Agencies

8. Nationwide Agency Participation Over 27,000 Participating Agencies

9. Supplier Advantage One contract for all public agencies Capture new revenue through selling while your competitors wait to bid Extend existing relationships without exposure to a public solicitation Increase revenue at twice the rate of traditional sales methods Improved profitability

10. Leverage Our Expertise National Sponsors Advisory Board of Public Procurement Professionals Regional Program Managers Legal and Administrative Resources Other Using Public Agencies Lead Public Agency (Fairfax County)

11. What US Communities RM’s Can Do For You Supplier Training Supplier Resource Largest Agencies in Largest Metro Areas Public Agency Group Presentations Public Purchasing Official Meetings Annual Conferences –NIGP, ASBO, NACo, NAEP

12. Regional Contacts Corey Imhoff US: (AK, AZ, CA, HI, ID, NV, OR, WA) CA: (BC, YU) Chris Mellis US: (DE, FL, GA, PA, NJ) CA: (NB, NL, NS, PE) Program Manager 4034 S. Huachuca Way Chandler, AZ 85249 cimhoff@uscommunities.org Mobile: (925) 708-5340 Fax: (480) 802-0785 cimhoff@uscommunities.org Program Manager 830 Harper Ave. Drexel Hill, PA 19026 cmellis@uscommunities.or g Mobile: (610) 368-9766 Fax: (925) 933-8457 cmellis@uscommunities.or g Scott Wilson US: (MN, MT, ND, NM, OK, SD, TX, UT, WY) CA: (AB, MB, NT, NU, SK) Chris Robb US: ( AL, AR, DC, IL, LA, MD, MS, VA) CA: (ON) Program Manager 2772 Barnhill Lane Frisco, TX 75034 swilson@uscommunities.org Mobile: (856) 816-5838 Fax: (972) 370-2544 swilson@uscommunities.org Program Manager 3 Pondsedge Court Stafford, VA 22554 crobb@uscommunities.org Mobile: (571) 243-1651 Fax: (540) 659-5007 crobb@uscommunities.org Mary Pelfrey US: (CT, KY, MA, ME, NC, NH, RI, SC, TN, VT) CA: (QC) Program Manager 9124 Drayton Lane Fort Mill, SC 29715 mpelfrey@uscommunities.org Mobile: (704) 564-0320 Fax: (803) 547-5361 mpelfrey@uscommunities.org Doug Looney US: (CO, IA, KS, MO, NE, WI) Alexis Turner US: (MI, NY, IN, OH, WV) Program Manager 10379 Tuxford Dr. St. Louis, MO 63146 dlooney@uscommunities.org Mobile: (773) 892-2204 Fax: (925) 933-8457 dlooney@uscommunities.org Program Manager 166 Elizabeth St. New York, NY 10012 aturner@uscommunities.org Mobile: (214) 629-2056 Fax: (212) 343-1032 aturner@uscommunities.org

13. Improved Purchasing Process Reduced Administrative Costs Competitively Solicited Contract No Cost to Participate No Obligation to Purchase The Edge

14. Haworth/Lacasse Contract Discounts are product only Contracts includes separate pricing for all services Includes all product lines Dealer bills end user at US Comm discounts depending on tier Enter Order for program products through OFUSA and fax the Order Validation Form to Lacasse Dealer discounts are the standard OFUSA discounts for program products

15. US Communities Contract Pricing and OFUSA Dealer Margins Product GroupShipping ZoneDealer Discount (GP%) List ValueCustomer Discount NvisionAll Zones50/20/20 (36%) 50/20/20 (18.9) 50/20/20 0-$50,000 $50,001-$200,000 Above $200,001 50% 55% Neg. (contact OFUSA bid dept) United ChairAll Zones50/20/8 (26.4%) 50/20/8 (18.2%) 50/20/8 0-$50,000 $50,001-$200,000 Above $200,001 50% 55% Neg. (contact OFUSA bid dept) Education and Avenue (not available through OFUSA; send orders direct to Groupe Lacasse) All Zones50/20/9 (27.2%) 50/20/9 (19.11) 50/20/10 0-$50,000 $50,001-$200,000 Above $200,001 50% 55% Neg. All Lacasse Laminate, Steel and Quorum All Zone50/20/8 (26.4%) 50/20/8 (18.2%) 50/20/8 0-$50,000 $50,001 - $200,000 Above $200,001 50% 55% Neg. (contact OFUSA bid dept)

16. Groupe Lacasse Service Matrix

17. Selling Approach To lessen risk, public agencies will look to others to try something for the first time Local governments often have a herd mentality: if one agency takes a risk, others will quickly follow Larger public agencies often pave the way for smaller ones. This magnet effect is evident in the U.S. Communities contracts

18. Selling Approach 1.Focus on selling, not bidding 2.Sell at the Director of Procurement level or above 3.Sell yourself and your company first (closing question) 4.Establish the competitive solicitation and award by a public agency Provide the RFP, Master Agreement, MICPA and Statute. 5.Utilize U.S. Communities as a vehicle to avoid the solicitation process 6.Start the process 6 – 12 months prior to the end of their current contract 7.Reference Advisory Board members and others in the region utilizing your USC contract

19. Special Districts Identify type of Special District –Independent or Dependent Reference other Special Districts utilizing program Show value of your product immediately- Analysis/TCO Use U.S. Communities protocol to help access Special District Market

20. University/Colleges Tend to have de-centralized purchasing –Purchasing looking to pull this in to their department Reference other Universities/Colleges utilizing program Show value of your product immediately- Analysis/TCO Use U.S. Communities protocol to help access University/College Market

21. Nonprofits Little or no knowledge of U.S. Communities –Need to explain program – why non profits qualify Need to understand how they buy –Who, what, where and when –Usually don’t have purchasing department –Small ones used to paying retail –Product mix is ideal for these organizations Can have immediate impact for suppliers –No government bureaucracy –By extending immediate savings, supplier will develop long term relationship

22. Public Hospitals Public Hospitals historically are not familiar with U.S. Communities Target Central Purchasing or Materials Management Are they active in any GPO’s? –If so offer to show a price comparison for savings Do they follow specific Public Agency procurement codes (City, County)? Reference large users in area Reference U.S. Communities Public Hospital advisory board member Ted Lucas

23. State/Local Gov’t Agencies, School Districts Target Procurement Review any immediate barriers –Legal, Competition, Strategic sourcing Reference other States/Municipalities utilizing program Offer price comparison –Need to show immediate impact Use U.S. Communities protocol to help access State Market

24. Launch Your Market! Steps 1.Advisory Board member(s) 2.Agencies that have registered online –Supplier login search feature 3.Agencies by budget size –List available from U.S. Communities –Align targets with U.S. Communities Target Agencies 4.Leverage the network of U.S. Communities Supplier Sales People

25. How to log on How to search for users How to find contract information How to find State Statute, MICPA, RFP and master agreement information How to register yourself and end users Locating agencies by budget size Using US Communities protocol US Communities Website Navigation

26. Questions and Suggestions