August President's Message
Make it Rain!!
Just like a summer monsoon storm that first appears as a foreboding, towering wall of midnight-blue clouds darkening the eastern horizon, slowly creeping nearer, until deep in the night, it suddenly explodes over the Valley, stabbing down with radiating lightning, rolling thunder, roaring winds, and pelting rain….okay, maybe not exactly like that, but your AZNIGP Chapter is creating its own kind of wild weather by making it rain a multitude of events, activities, and professional development opportunities throughout the month of August!
I am very pleased to share that AZNIGP is a sponsor of our Community Outreach Charity’s Pickle Ball Tournament. The HUB is hosting this tournament on August 1st, from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Dink & Dine Pickle Park, 1017 North Dobson Road, Mesa, Arizona. As a sponsor, we were able to nominate two Chapter members to compete in the tournament. Following a drawing, Kelly Greene, from Valley Metro and John Jimenez from the State Procurement Office were selected to represent AZNIGP at this event. Anyone can register as a spectator or a competitor by visiting the registration site. Registration closes on August 1st. A big thank you to Becki Watson, Maricopa County, and Jane Scherbing, Department of Economic Security, for coordinating this fun event.
I hope you were able to register for our extraordinary in-person Career Seminar II that takes place on August 4th at the ADOT Stack. We have an outstanding line up of national procurement experts presenting valuable topics that will energize, motivate, and inspire you to grow professionally and accomplish even more. Please join us at 8:30 a.m. to sign-in, enjoy some breakfast treats and get ready for the program to begin promptly at 9:00 a.m. I can’t wait to see everyone there!! Please remember to bring some toiletries or other helpful items to support our Chapter Charity. (If you are not able to attend, with a little luck and some help from the Tech Gods, we might be able to post the featured presentations on our YouTube channel following the event. Stay tuned!
Next up, on August 18th, please join us for a live webinar featuring Dr. Jeff Pierce of Governmental Leadership Solutions, who will be presenting “Trust and Influence: Ethical Leadership in Complex Environments.” This is a free webinar for our members and promises to be an engaging exploration into the dynamics and challenges of creating, maintaining, and repairing trust. Procurement professionals must be at the top of our game in this area to ensure we create and foster trusting and ethical environments that help deliver exceptional results for our entities. Dr. Pierce will lead a fun and interactive session that will leave you with many practical strategies and some fresh insights into one of the most important area of our skill set. Please visit the AZNIGP website to register.
Then get ready my friends! On August 23rd many of us will convene in Columbus, Ohio, for the humdinger of all Pro-D events – the NIGP Forum. We have over 60 members from our Chapter who will be attending in person and many others attending virtually. And I am so happy to share that National informed us that our Chapter has been shortlisted to possibly receive the Outstanding Chapter Award in Advocacy & Outreach for our 2025 Reverse Vendor Trade Show. Just being recognized as a finalist is an awesome achievement. The winners will be announced during Forum so stay tuned and keep your fingers crossed.
If you’re thinking about earning your certification or maybe adding a new one, please check out the CPPB/CPPO Review Session beginning on September 10th led by Maria Hernandez from CAP. Gaining certification can feel like a daunting task but it gets more manageable if you join with other like-minded members and participate in Maria’s online preparation classes. To get involved please reach out to Maria Hernandez.
Please don’t forget to complete the Chapter General Survey that is open through August 18th and awaiting your input. This survey will take about 15 minutes to complete and will provide Chapter leadership with valuable insights and opinions on how to drive more value for all of you. Please don’t miss the opportunity to share your feedback.
And finally, watching these spectacular summer monsoon storms reminds me of the awesome power of our natural world. It also reminds me that our profession – public procurement - is its own force of nature within the dynamic eco-systems we operate within. We have been given incredible responsibility to select and manage the companies that we contract with that help our organizations achieve their vital missions. Imagine for just a moment that your organization had no outside companies to provide the resources it needs – no services, no contractors, no consultants, no equipment and material suppliers – nothing. How well do you think your organization would do in accomplishing its mission?
That is the staggering responsibility that has been placed on all of us. We are the force of nature that takes on that challenge to evaluate the turbulent markets and align our organizations with the best companies and non-profits that will accelerate our effectiveness in delivering value to our communities. So the next time you marvel at the power of a roiling, boiling monsoon storm, remember that you too are a force of nature. And together through our combined actions, we become a powerful storm – a storm of good. Lightning becomes our energy and thunder becomes our resolve. We are the rain makers – so let it rain!
Thank you
Michael Greene, CPPO, C.P.M.
2026 AZNIGP Chapter President