By
Jeff Erlichman
SEWP has a dynamic catalogue where offerings are based on what people want. So it’s not a question of what is on the catalogue, it is a question of what do you want on a catalogue.
The only thing that the catalogue does is that it verifies that we have the items on the contract for the time that the order is made. But it should not be used to decide what you want.
The SEWP dynamic catalogue is a case of addition by subtraction.
“We used to have this tool that people looked at as a tool to search the catalogue,” said Joanne Woytek, SEWP PM.
“We are actually – and this is one place where we are taking something away – decreasing that tool to be almost meaningless because it really is!”
Why? Because SEWP is not a static catalogue explained Woytek.
Ask, Ask, Ask
Woytek said that most people think of going online, searching the contract catalogue and if it is there they will buy it. But if it’s not there, they will think it is not available here and go somewhere else because it is not in the catalogue.
“We are a dynamic catalogue. Our offerings are based on what people want. So it’s not a question of what is on the catalogue, it is a question of what do you want on a catalogue,” Woytek said.
“We will get it on and then you can purchase it, assuming that it is IT, and can be properly priced. And that can all be done within a day or two if it fits the scope and the pricing,” she added.“I would say 90% of the time, if somebody wants something and they look it up, they may not find it. So why have them look it up? Then they think that we don’t have it. Which is why what they need to do is ask for it and then we’ll add it,” Woytek said.
It’s a process that has become so automated in the SEWP system that it works too well. They are actually taking the description search away from the search tool. “What it does is give them a false sense of what is on the contract. They might also use it to do a decision on pricing. When I see a price, I would say this is the highest price I am going to pay. When I actually go and buy 10,000 of them I expect to pay less.”
“If you look at the catalogue price as the deciding factor, then it is wrong. The only thing that the catalogue does is that it verifies that we have the items on the contract for the time that the order is made. But it should not be used to decide what you want,” counseled Woytek.
To make things easier for customers, SEWP has improved their manufacturer’s page which shows the types of companies that are represented. If you know the type of company you are looking for you can look and see if that company is represented in the contract. That’s useful. And if you don’t find the product you are looking for – call, because the SEWP catalogue is dynamic.