SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. – The California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo (Cal Poly) Digital Transformation Hub (DxHub), powered by Amazon Web Services (AWS), has embarked on an innovative collaboration with the university’s Strategic Business Services department to revolutionize the procurement process through the application of generative AI technology. 

 

Generative AI is a type of artificial intelligence used to create new content based on models trained on text, visual, and audio data in response to prompts. It reuses what it knows to solve new problems.

 

Cal Poly’s procurement process occasionally struggles with the large volume of requests to purchase a multitude of goods and services.  University procurement specialists are expected to be knowledgeable in many commodity areas, and they often need to expand their knowledge in a very short time frame to develop a clear and comprehensive statement of work (SOW).

 

To address the issue, the DxHub developed ‘ScopeBuilder,’ a generative AI tool focused on enhancing scope development and request for proposals (RFPs) to streamline the creation of high-quality SOWs. The development of ScopeBuilder, led by student Gus Flusser, embodies Cal Poly’s Learn by Doing philosophy. 

 

“My experience working for the DxHub and with the Cal Poly procurement office has been invaluable,” said Flusser. “I’ve gained so many skills that I will use in both the technical and professional aspects of my career.” 

 

One of the most powerful aspects of ScopeBuilder is its ability to leverage advanced generative AI capabilities to reduce common pain points in the procurement process, such as limited commodity knowledge, vague or unclear work scopes, and lack of clear milestones which reduces the risk of project delays or misunderstandings. ScopeBuilder can draft scopes in real-time, one section at a time based on user input and established best practices. As users interact with the system, it dynamically generates content, drawing from a set of examples from relevant past contracts. This ensures that each SOW is tailored to the specific needs of the procurement, while adhering to established industry practices and automatically formatting the generated content into the proper document structure required by Cal Poly and the CSU system.

 

“We see ScopeBuilder as a valuable item to add to our procurement toolbox. It will help our procurement team be more efficient in developing work scopes for our RFPs and contracts,” said Darin Matthews, Executive Director/Chief Procurement Officer, Cal Poly Strategic Business Services.

 

The success of this project could have far-reaching implications, serving as a model for other institutions seeking to modernize their procurement practices through the strategic application of AI technologies.