My store is out for RFP, but we are less than 120 days from our contract date and we don’t have a new contract yet. Anyone have any experience with this? Should I start looking for a new job?
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If the school is not pleased with the current service they will go out for bid, or if they are looking to megotiate for a higher commission rate. Either way, B&N will out bid if it is a profitable store, so unless the school is extremely happy with you, the service, the staff, Follett, chances are good they will switch vendors. Sometimes there is no contract, or it automatically rolls over, because even though the contract has expired the school is happy but just isn't a priority to do the work to resign.
Everyones experience may be different but I didnt have a particular bad experience working for follett. I only worked for a few years full time after the school chose follett. I left because I recognize the decline in retail in general and I didnt want to continue with it. If you have the resources to pursue and obtain different skill sets, do it and move on. Dont wait for the rfp process or expect continued employment with follett or a new vendor.
Asking how the RFP process works is a good question.
Asking if you should be looking for a new job, not a good questions. YES! Look for another job! follett is terrible. IF you dodge this bullet, why not continue looking anyhow? Are you so curious that you have see the bullet that will take you out, at follett. Hint- the bullet is the company. It is an awful company. Get out!
I heard on a regional course material call that managers from another state were added to our call because of some changes. Does this have anything to do with RMs being shuffled or let go? We usually are told about that.
Thanks for the explanation! I don’t know if my school has an RFP or not? The business contact is fairly hands off with the store so they may not care that we don’t have a contract. Maybe one is in the works.
@1mpk+1alAiy4e RFP means Request for Proposal. As it pertains to our industry, whenever a university or community college wants to outsource a specific service to someone else i.e. bookstore operations, they will send out an RFP to companies that provide that service. The RFP will list previous histories like store finances, square footage, enrollment history, etc and will also detail what the school is looking for the potential incoming company to provide. The potential companies will fill out the RFP, submit it to the university/community college in question, face to face meetings will take place, negotiations will be made and eventually the school will select who they think will best service the school, students and faculty.
IA, I'm assuming, is inclusive access. For Follett that would be ACCESS, for BNED that would be First Day - unless the school wants to rename it to something else (and some have).
What is RFP and IA?
At least they're transparent about putting the stud...business needs of their Campus first! At my campus I keep getting calls from publishers about IA titles the faculty are demanding when the campus has refused any IA every single year. Of course the publishers just go ahead and set it up to be order direct from them, but the campus doesn't even bother to notify us.
OP here. In response to the last comment: It wouldn’t worry me so much if our campus contact wouldn’t have made a comment to faculty on their latest Access call that they were currently out for RFP and would be continuing IA in the Fall whether it is was with Follett or a different vendor.
There are typically agreements for how to operate the store under the conditions of the current contract until either a new contract is in place or they go in another direction. It isn’t typical for the store to just close one day without notice. Your RM or GVP should be a little more transparent with you on this process.
I agree we are kept in the dark on these. My RM is not very clear about it. With no contract it would seem to me that it would be much easier to close a store. I haven’t been able to pull March financials yet to see how I did. Hopefully did well enough to last.
Why are contracts kept in the dark from Sms? Doesn’t make sense, very disrespectful to SM.
Yep; if you're not top earners, you're on the pile of places to ignore until the campus finds an excuse to remove you, or the home office does. If I had to take a stab at it, Follett faces a period of 'retrenchment' in the wake of COVID in the minds of planners. Doesn't matter that the company has been in this phase of business operation for almost a decade, now comes the time when we are all really asked to tighten our belts.
Having been at one location when the contract was terminated, orders were already on the books for a future semester, want lists were running, after the transition vendors were still sending books and merch to the competitor. years on, still fielding emails from faculty regarding book orders Sooner or later, everyone's number comes up.
Our store was out of contract for years. They finally decided to close it this year.
Good luck
I don’t think my store has had a contract for months to my knowledge. It’s so weird. I literally spend half my day worrying when this place will close. Can’t take it. Orders are still placed by home office though so that’s a good thing right?