Press Release

For Immediate Release
Contact: Ms. Susan Preston
(973) 972-3000

UMDNJ President Announces Management Reform Initiatives
--Objective is transparency in day-to-day operations--

5/25/05—Dr. John J. Petillo, president of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey has announced his twelve-point management initiative for the university to reform existing management practices and policies in three major areas - resource utilization, compliance and procurement.

"The reforms announced today are a major step forward for ensuring greater accountability in our activities," Petillo said. "We need more transparency in our daily operations and ethical guidelines that illuminate and educate the university community so that everyone knows we are achieving excellence in all mission areas."

"This is an open-ended initiative, and if we need to take additional steps, we will," Petillo added. The reforms include the following:

• UMDNJ will cease all political contributions.
• Guidelines will be created for providing program and community event support.
• The Office of the President and the Department of Government Affairs will be funded with non-State dollars, effective with the FY 2006 budget.
• Fiscal accountability will be enhanced by the tightening of university purchasing policies to include a level of increasing penalties - up to and including termination of employment - for individuals who violate approved procedures.
• Gasoline credit card utilization will be severely curtailed, and cards issued to university personnel for travel will be discontinued.
• Auditing functions will be enhanced through the creation of the Office of the Compliance Auditor, reporting to the University’s General Counsel and a "dotted-line" reporting function directly to the University’s President. A realignment of the Department of Internal Audit and the auditing function within the Office of Business Conduct will facilitate the new office.
• Waivers between $50,000 and under $100,000 which meet criteria established under public statute, will now be required to be approved by the President and reported monthly to the Finance Committee of the Board of Trustees.
• For "technical and professional" waivers, public pre-qualification of vendors will be implemented, and a greater emphasis will be placed on public bidding for required services.
• A number of initiatives regarding blanket waivers will be implemented, including an identification of qualified group purchasing vendors at the onset of each new fiscal year and also a more detailed monthly reporting to the Board of Trustees.
• To assist with these and other procurement reforms, the University has engaged retired New Jersey Supreme Court Justice Gary Stein to conduct an independent process review and provide recommendations as to purchasing and waiver procedures.
• The purchase of all goods and services will conform to approved procedures so that no services can be performed prior to approval.
• Board approved contracts will be posted on the University website.