2017 Starlight Award Winners

Introduced in 2015, the Procurement Leadership Council (PLC) established this exclusive recognition program to spotlight the achievements of procurement professionals, working on a campus or in a systemwide role, for exceptional projects and engagements that contribute to advancing UC Procurement’s core mission. Congratulations to this year’s winners!

MVPP- Jeremy Meadows, Systemwide- San Diego

Jeremy Meadows accepting the award from Laurie Wolkow, Chief of Staff and PMO Director

The MVPP is nominated and selected by the voting members of the Procurement Leadership Committee and is awarded to an individual that has achieved exemplary projects and initiatives that contribute to advancing the University’s core mission.

As Associate Director for the Facilities and Maintenance COE, Jeremy led his team to develop some of our highest performing supplier programs including programs for janitorial supplies and laundry. He has expanded COE support into new, innovative partnerships such as the systemwide energy program for solar energy production and biogas that reduce costs, move external markets, and which will contribute to the UC’s carbon neutrality initiative by 2025. When increased attention was placed on Prevailing Wage, he took personal responsibility for providing systemwide guidance and training to ensure compliance from all UC locations.

The strong bonds he has established with various campus departments and suppliers, demonstrate high quality work, accountability for results, and deliverable solutions that capture the best interests of the University of California. Jeremy has set a standard for all other COEs to emulate. His contributions and approach have garnered respect and appreciation among the members of the nominating committee.

MVPP Team- John Arbolino, Dianne Holmes, Joanne Petersen and Susan Riddle, UC San Francisco

The MVPPT is nominated and selected by the voting members of the Procurement Leadership Committee and is awarded to a team that has achieved exemplary projects and initiatives that contribute to advancing the University’s core mission.

With more than $50M in approved benefit over the past 3 years, the UCSF IT Commodity management team set a high bar for systemwide procurement at UC. In the past year, this team executed strategic IT initiatives for UCSF that will serve as a model for the greater UC system. The Health IT Alternative Delivery Model will better support research and allow UCSF IT to refocus efforts away from routine tactical work in favor of strategic opportunities. The UC Health Enterprise Imaging initiative is instrumental in facilitating collaboration with UC’s medical centers by permitting doctors to share patient images with their peers. These initiatives, along with 20+ others have redefined UCSF Supply Chain Management’s relationship with IT, enabled UCSF to attain the role of strategic partner, and provided systemwide opportunities. Their contributions and approach as a team, have garnered undeniable respect and appreciation among the members of the nominating committee.

Collaboration- Nik Neu, Systemwide- Oakland

The Starlight Award for Collaboration is awarded to the successful procurement professional for achievements that exemplify systemwide collaboration.

Nik’s collaborative efforts are noticed by all his colleagues. This year collaboration played a key role in the successful SC500 assessment initiative beginning with his effort to include a cross-section of stakeholders in selecting our supply chain consultant. Collaboration was evident in his outreach to all campuses, his coordination of site visits, and in the versatility he demonstrated in dealing with unique stakeholder reactions and styles. His strong engagement and partnership balanced campus and systemwide needs with the consultant’s guidance and recommendations. Campus participants particularly appreciated his willingness to give them extra time and attention when needed. His inclusiveness, and the extra effort he demonstrated, ensured this was truly a systemwide initiative. These contributions embody the characteristics of a successful professional who has achieved exemplary systemwide collaboration.

Innovation- Heather Vinograd, UC San Diego

The Starlight Award for Innovation is awarded to the successful procurement professional that has delivered lasting change to a University or procurement business process.

The business relationship Heather established with Amazon, not only impacted San Diego’s campus, but set up a model for collaboration between Amazon and other UC locations. Her vision of integrating an Amazon Campus Store with procurement and shipping paves a new way of addressing UC’s work-related purchases. The PLC recognized the uniqueness of this business model not just within UC, but for Amazon and higher education in general. Heather’s contributions to this project embody the characteristics of a successful professional that has delivered lasting change to a procurement business process.

Initiative Leadership- Tim Wheeler, UC San Diego

Tim Wheeler pictured with Ted Johnson, Associate Controller and Chief Procurement Officer

The Starlight Award for Initiative Leadership is awarded to the successful procurement professional for excellence and achievement in leadership on an initiative.

When the need arose, Tim stepped into the role of Spend Analytics module lead for the Upstream RFP two months after the process began. He offered support and leadership by pulling the SME team together within a short amount of time to meet pending deadlines. Despite numerous challenges, he kept the team on track and maintained flexibility throughout the process. His commitment to maintaining his campus role and overseeing local data activities while filling leadership at a systemwide level was impressive. Such contributions embody the characteristics of a successful professional that has displayed excellence in leading an initiative.

Procurement Rookie of the Year- Rose Liu, Systemwide- Oakland

The Procurement Rookie of the Year is awarded to an individual that is relatively new to procurement for achievements contributing to the advancement of the UC Procurement mission.

A rookie to both UC and procurement, Rose has acclimated well to her new role as the eCOE Content Analyst. In her first year, she has become a key subject matter expert in our strategic eCommerce implementations, supported documentation of our systemwide price file process to provide more clarity, and gained enough trust to contribute as the eCommerce representative in both the Laundry/PPE implementation and Ergonomics strategic sourcing project. During her time with eCOE Support, she has maintained a 100% customer satisfaction rating, a testament to her client service. In addition to supporting the UCD transition to AggieBuy, she expanded the UC content offering as project manager for numerous systemwide and local eCommerce projects. These contributions have successfully demonstrated her early commitment to advancing the UC Procurement mission.

We would also like to acknowledge the other nominees for their invaluable contributions:

Systemwide	UC Berkeley	UC San Diego
Anita Enos	Carla Prado	Veronica Wilson
Christina Jones	UC Irvine	UC San Francisco
Faye McCullough	Diane Silver	Greg Macway
Karen Rhee	Helen Chang	Roesia Gerstein
Nick Bowerman	Jennifer Chey	UC Davis
Suzanne Martin	Shaina Sims	Mike Morgan
UC Santa Cruz		Lia Scott
Rex Chung