By: Vakul Arora- MCIPS (Chartered), CSCMP, SCMP Senior Manager, Procurement and Supply, City of London The City of London is reshaping procurement as a core public trust function-one that protects public funds, enables timely service delivery, strengthens institutional confidence, and creates measurable civic value. Over the past year, the City is undertaking one of the most significant […]
Read more »
By Katie Walton, Purchasing Agent, City of Barrie As procurement professionals, we are often responsible for a procurement from start to finish, from identifying the needs of the department and running the solicitation to monitoring performance once the contract is awarded. When multiple procurements and competing stakeholder deadlines are added to the mix, it is easy […]
Read more »
By Robin Friefield-Hudson, City of Mississauga What Is Indemnity? Indemnity is a legal or financial commitment by one party to compensate another party for specified losses, damages, liabilities, or costs. In practical terms, it is a risk-transfer mechanism: the party best positioned to control or manage a particular risk agrees to bear the financial […]
Read more »
By Dave Stewart, The District of Thunder Bay Social Services Administration Board and Stephanie Ryynanen, Lakehead District School Board As public procurement continues to navigate the post Covid world, we are faced with more challenges than ever before. Between an ever-changing political landscape that shapes government policy reactions, to the rise of AI, nothing is […]
Read more »
By Joseph Adekale, Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) As public procurement professionals, we have all been there. A business unit (BU) submits a requisition with a scope of work that reads like a tech manual, a wish list, or a single page of vague bullet points. When we ask to get involved earlier in the drafting process, […]
Read more »
By Lise Patry, LXM LAW LLP One of the more surprising things I have recently heard from a litigation lawyer is that a limitation of liability clause in a RFx document is legally worthless. I was involved in a procurement matter where this issue came up. A municipality had run a binding RFQ for […]
Read more »
OPBA was pleased to welcome 188 attendees to its 68th Annual Meeting, held virtually on June 25, 2026. Thank you to all members who participated and demonstrated their support by exercising their voting privileges. Board Chair Victoria Mirlocca highlighted another strong year for the association. OPBA membership reached a record 1,101 members at the end of […]
Read more »
Two years ago, OPBA began a deliberate journey to strengthen awareness and build practices that support a more inclusive and responsive association. As a first step, we invited members to join a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Committee. What began as a small group of members grew steadily into a dedicated committee, strengthening its capacity […]
Read more »
By Michelle Palmer, City of Owen SoundThe things I appreciate the most about being a member of the Ontario Public Buyers Association (OPBA) are the variety of professional development that is offered and being able to network with over 1000 public procurement professionals across the province, but I also appreciate that OPBA is a chapter […]
Read more »
Dear Erb,I’m starting on a new procurement and don’t know where to begin. How can I find the information I need to put together a solid bid document with my department?Sincerely,Starting From ScratchHi Starting From Scratch,Starting a procurement in an unfamiliar area can feel overwhelming, especially when you’re not sure where to look for the […]
Read more »
