October 27, 2016

Dear Colleagues,

As many of you know, the Green Mountain Higher Education Consortium (GMHEC) was formed in 2013 by Champlain College, Middlebury College, and Saint Michael’s College. Our goal was to contain our institutional costs while increasing and/or adding value to our services. We are pleased with the partnership and the progress we have made so far, particularly in the areas of purchasing and benefits.  

We see opportunities to achieve the same objectives in our technology services. This past spring, we began exploring what is currently working well and where there are opportunities in the administrative systems we use for financial management, payroll and human resource management, student services and advancement.

We first met with stakeholders in these respective areas at each college, gathering data through surveys and listening sessions led by our consulting partner CampusWorks. Then, over the summer, we used the stakeholder data to design a request for proposal (RFP) that we submitted to a number of technology vendors. We selected seven respondents to come to Vermont to demonstrate their respective software starting October 25. Please see the GMHEC ERP/Advancement page for further information on the process as well as the schedule for upcoming demonstration days for these vendors.

By engaging with these vendors, each college can evaluate which technology solutions will best meet our needs, help us increase our service levels, and optimize our talent, similar to what we have done in other areas. It also allows us to learn about opportunities for improvements within our current systems. We are also reviewing where shared needs exist between the Consortium colleges, and determining whether there are opportunities to partner together.

We thank you for your assistance to date and encourage you to continue to be involved, engaged and supportive in this exploration.  

Please address any questions to Corinna Noelke, the Consortium’s executive director, or visit the Consortium’s website.

Sincerely,

Donald J. Laackman
President, Champlain College

Laurie L. Patton
President, Middlebury College

John J. Neuhauser
President, Saint Michael’s College