Teaching Materials & Office Supplies
Not so many years ago TLM consisted simply of curriculum and library books supported by a blackboard and chalk ! Times have changed and the spectrum of products and services has grown significantly together with the cost .Typically , the broader the curriculum the higher the average cost per pupil.
Given that many schools in Switzerland offer multi-lingual curriculums (starting as early as pre-school) balancing cost against quality is a major consideration. In addition, many schools source their English, French and German language material from the respective local countries.
In its simplest form, the bulk of teaching materials are still in two basic categories. The first is books (and e-books) and the second is teaching supplies. These supplies range from basic classroom stationary through to specialist departmental needs eg Art , Music, STEM , Sports & SEN.
Unfortunately, much of this supplier selection and management is often left to individual teachers who understandably don’t have the time to shop around and secure best value for money for the school.
So how can
Tepo Consulting help?
Whether your materials are sourced locally in Switzerland or from overseas, Tepo always recommends that the first step is to identify and prioritise the TLM vendors that can supply the majority of your need . Having fewer suppliers means larger orders, meaning greater discounts and significantly less administration.
For Books, Tepo has a shortlist of 2 strategic suppliers – 2 in the UK and 2 in Switzerland who can source the majority of curriculum and library books & e-books both for primary and secondary categories at the most competitive pricing possible and even offer a price guarantee to match the price of any books of a competitor.
For Stationery & Office Supplies – KPIs demonstrate that schools which have both centralised their stationery buying and limited the range of articles available to staff to a pre-negotiated school list, are those which far and away have the best control and the least spend.
Not all schools have the manpower to centralise buying, but we have worked with 2 partners(1 Swiss & 1UK ) to agree to help produce a “core” list of the key and most commonly bought items. The objective of this core list is value-for-money.
Please get in touch with Tepo if you wish to explore this and to obtain contact details.