The Civil Service Council will feature a civil service employee at Illinois State University each month to highlight an exceptional colleague and the outstanding work being done on campus! This month get a chance to learn about and applaud Brienne Reid from the Purchasing Office.
What is your position on campus and how long have you been with the University?
I’m the Strategic Sourcing and Supplier Diversity Coordinator in the Purchasing Office. This June will mark five years working at the University, not counting student work during my degrees. I also completed undergrad and grad degrees at ISU, so I’ve been around for ten and a half years when everything’s tallied up.
What do you find most rewarding about your work?
My job regularly involves connecting campus units with small, diverse businesses in relationships where the University gets great products and services for great prices–stretching budgets further is always a goal–and the small business grows further. It’s very rewarding to see these connections not only happen once or twice, but to watch small, diverse businesses become trusted suppliers and contractors. When supplier diversity clicks, it’s a solid win-win for everyone involved—and helps to disrupt the disparity in opportunities that we see for so many minorities – women and person with disability-owned small businesses.
What are your hobbies or favorite past-time?
I’m a big nerd, so I get into all sorts of dorky stuff: cosplay, tabletop RPGs, miniature painting, videogames, etc. I married an equally big nerd and a wonderful artist, so our apartment’s full to the brim of lightsabers, d20s, and acrylic paint. I also enjoy getting out a short hike when I’m not staring at a screen or a 28mm chunk of hard plastic, although preferably with a little more elevation than we usually find in Central Illinois. Moraine View is lovely, but—my folks being from the Ozarks—I’ve got a lot of love for rolling hills too!
What else would you like others to know about you or your time at ISU?
I’ll take any opportunity to tell folks at ISU to get connected with groups outside the University if they haven’t already, get invested in our wider community, and be deliberate, active, and urgent in our efforts to stamp out racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, and fatphobia. Groups like the Prairie Pride Coalition do fantastic work in helping our local LGBTQIA+ community, often doing crucial work in materially supporting marginalized people in town and organizing efforts in McLean County to gain strong rights and protections for queer and trans people across Illinois and at the federal level. While we do what we can to improve the operations and culture of the University, we’ve also got to put time and attention into the community we live, play, pray, and grow in. I’m calling out PPC specifically, but there are so many other organizations in Bloomington-Normal who are doing invaluable work and deserve our support.
More about Brienne from Ernie Olson, Director of Purchasing:
Brie has been with our department since 2017, and she has always been a thorough and conscientious member of our staff. Her role has changed drastically over a few years and she has handled the responsibilities and changes with grace and professionalism. Brie has a strong passion for equity and diversity, and her current role takes full advantage of those traits. Her position as Strategic Sourcing and Supplier Diversity Coordinator is a fantastic fit, and is a benefit to the University, our community, and the State. As ISU has increased the focus on procurement diversity goals, Brie’s involvement, passion, and expertise has been a significant reason for the advances and growth over the past few years and will be a strong reason why further growth is accomplished. I hope Brie will be in this evolving position for the foreseeable future, and bring her enthusiastic yet practical approach to this position for years to come.
