Students shape the future of public procurement

Esmee Peters, Klaas Stek and Louise Knight

The influx of young procurement talent into the public sector is far below par, and the opportunity to make an impact here is enormous. According to Esmee Peters, Klaas Stek and  Louise Knight, higher education should pay more attention to public procurement. This article has previously been published in Dutch in the December 2024 issue NEVI Deal!, the magazine of the Dutch Association for Purchasing Management. This article provides free teaching materials that are valuable for both practitioners and educational institutions, including cases and training courses that can be used directly in education and practical training (you can find it on the PROCEDIN website www.procedin.eu).

Why not public procurement?

Despite the significant impact of public procurement, the subject receives too little attention in higher education. Public procurement would fit programs such as management, law, engineering, and environmental sciences as subjects of study. Public procurement greatly impacts the efficiency and transparency of government spending and the implementation of social objectives such as sustainability and social justice. Yet, the relevance is often insufficiently recognised by teachers in higher education. By creating more awareness, offering suitable learning resources, and connecting education, students, and employers in the public sector, the influx of talent for public procurement can be promoted.

Attention to the specific competencies for public procurement is essential in this regard. At the moment, public buyers often develop their expertise in practice, supplemented by training programs. Many recent graduates enter the government or public institutions through traineeships. They usually have no intention of focusing specifically on public procurement, but eventually, some end up in it. Public procurement competencies should already be developed in higher education, as is already happening at the University of Twente. Graduates with a business administration background, for example, have a focus on innovation, strategy and entrepreneurship. They do not have all the public procurement knowledge but have the right basic profile. This type of student is often unaware of and does not consider public procurement. The question is how to interest these and other students in the field.

Raising awareness of the social impact of public procurement

Regarding the image, public procurement as an employer should have the wind in its sails. Research by training institute De Baak and research agency Motivaction shows that 61% of young adults (<34 years old) consider quitting their job if the organisation has no clear vision on social themes or does not align with their values. On the other hand, companies and organisations with a strong vision of social themes such as diversity and sustainability appear to be better able to retain young talent.

Therefore, the undergraduates and graduates of today's Generation Z are looking for meaningful work and would like to make a concrete difference in society. Public procurement offers numerous opportunities because of its impact; the Dutch government purchased around 85 billion euros in 2023.

Because of this economic size, public procurement dramatically influences how the market develops, for example, through climate-neutral tenders for electric vehicles or CO2-negative road construction. Public procurement also contributes to combating climate change by, for example, tendering projects that reduce urban flooding. The public buyer can have an impact by encouraging sustainable choices, such as purchasing circular products or fighting food waste within public institutions. Public procurement also plays a significant role in the social field, for example, by promoting diversity or including social return requirements in contracts.

Yet, many students do not choose public procurement as a logical path to fulfil their aspirations. In contrast, public procurement is a driving force for innovations, sustainability and social progress. These examples can all inspire students. The impact of public procurement is often unknown and, therefore, unloved. Thus, it is crucial to show the social relevance of public procurement to interest students in the field.

Collaboration between practice and educational institutions

Ideally, higher education should offer more courses aimed explicitly at public procurement, such as the relevant specialisation in Public Procurement at the University of Twente. Still, there are also low-threshold ways to introduce students to the field. An essential condition is a collaboration between the teachers of the educational institutions and the professional field. In this way, students can be enthusiastic about public procurement early in their education without requiring significant time investments from teachers or professionals.

A compelling example is the organisation of guest lectures in which professionals share their practical experiences and inspire students with concrete examples. This makes the theory livelier and shows how essential and versatile public procurement is. In addition, it highlights career opportunities within the field and provides insight into internship and research assignments. This helps prepare students for their future and also gives a more realistic picture of the impact they can make.

In addition, practical cases from local public institutions, such as municipalities, water boards and academic hospitals, can involve students in the complexity of procurement decisions. By analysing such cases, students discover how public procurement contributes to societal challenges and what role they can play in this. For students who want to deepen their knowledge of public procurement, internships and research projects at public organisations offer valuable practical experience. At the University of Twente, for example, "simple-but-wicked" cases were presented that were easy to explain but difficult to solve.

The importance of student-centred education

Developing interpersonal skills and intrapersonal attitudes (soft skills) is vital for effective public procurement. Soft skills are key to the mix of knowledge and professional skills (hard skills) needed to solve complex problems in public procurement. However, many higher education procurement programs often prioritise hard skills and ignore soft skills learning goals. To bridge the soft-skills gap, teachers should change their didactics from traditional teacher-centred to student-centred approaches. Student-centred didactics promote active student and practice engagement, leading to a dynamic learning environment where students can practice and refine their skills with realistic real-world assignments.

It is, therefore, important that lecturers with public procurement professionals introduce project assignments in which students work together to solve real procurement issues. The integration of practice-oriented cases in a course contributes to the development of soft skills. The cases should challenge students to analyse stakeholder interactions, negotiate effectively, and make decisions under uncertain circumstances. This strengthens critical thinking and problem-solving skills, allowing students to develop the necessary soft skills such as collaboration, effective communication, inventiveness and thinking outside the box.

Using cases as a teaching method

Cases are complex but solvable problems. The idea is that students work in small groups on a solution to a concrete procurement issue and then present their findings to the contracting authority. This format offers an accessible way for students to get acquainted with public procurement and, simultaneously, offers public organisations an opportunity to introduce students to their organisation and work while receiving new and fresh insights.

An example is a case involving procuring a waste management solution for a public organisation. The aim is to find a partner to manage waste more efficiently and reduce the ecological footprint. The procurement process requires a strategic procurement plan in which sustainability, social return and market analyses are central. A supplier must be selected that meets legal requirements and actively contributes to more sustainable waste management, with a focus on economic and environmental responsibility in the tender criteria.

Another possible case related to the tender for constructing a university building. The learning objective was to formulate criteria for building construction, emphasising compliance with sustainability requirements, creating an energy-efficient design, and ensuring the integration of modern technologies. The procurement process includes not only the technical and architectural requirements of the building but also the environmental impact, cost control, and social responsibilities, such as the use of local labour and the promotion of diversity and inclusion within the project team. The students were told to have an eye for the future of the building in a depreciation period of 30 years. The students must, therefore, develop a vision of using such a building in the coming decades.

Each case provides a challenging and realistic context for developing procurement strategies and skills, focusing on collaboration, sustainability and cost management.

Free training material from the PROCEDIN Project 

The insights from this article come from the PROCEDIN (PROcurement Capability – Embedding and Driving INnovation) project, a Horizon Europe project funded by the European Commission with the aim of building capacity building for public procurement for innovations among public procurement organisations and SMEs. Furthermore, the objective is to involve critical stakeholders, such as educational institutions, in developing public procurement. The PROCEDIN consortium comprises five partners, including the Municipality of Haarlem and the University of Twente as Dutch representatives.

On the PROCEDIN website (www.procedin.eu), you can find free teaching materials that are valuable for both practitioners and educational institutions, including cases and training courses that can be used directly in education and practical training. The website also contains a stakeholder folder and a course example of public procurement. This course outline can be used as a whole or in part. Individual parts can be used to enrich existing lessons. Furthermore, helpful advice documents are available for students, purchasing professionals and teachers. Students can find advice on organising an internship or graduation project in public procurement. For professionals and teachers, there is a document with guidance tips for internships and graduation research. All these documents are freely accessible and can be freely distributed.

Investing together in the future of procurement

This article aims not only to inform but also to inspire reflection and action. For our fellow lecturers, it raises the question: how can we make students more aware of the crucial role and impact of public procurement in various programmes? And how can we embed student-centred education more strongly in our existing curricula? However, this responsibility does not stop with higher education. The next step lies with employers, who must attract and retain young professionals for the long term. How can they create attractive roles allowing growth, innovation and learning off the beaten track? Together, we can work towards a future in which public procurement becomes a natural and inspiring choice for the professionals of tomorrow.

Esmee Peters , Louise Knight , dr. Klaas Stek , Valentina Schippers , Todor Popov , Danijel Pavlica , Debby Jansens , Dilara Günes, Paula Paixao, Letizia Piras , Jakub Sieber , Frederik Vos