Use energy futures. Most districts have invested in energy-saving equipment, but few have used the futures market to reduce costs. Some states allow school districts to buy natural gas when prices are low for delivery during the peak winter season when prices are high. If used properly, futures can cut as much as 25 percent off a district's gas bills. Use information technology to simplify and reduce administrative costs.
Technology provides many opportunities to reduce costs.
It is particularly helpful in functions that involve processing large numbers of transactions, such as payroll, budgeting, accounts payable, treasury operations, purchasing and warehousing, human resources, clerical support, communications, telecommunications, and printing. An excellent, but often overlooked, use of technology is in textbook purchasing and delivery. Textbooks represent a major investment for most districts, but the process of acquiring, delivering, and managing books can be quite inefficient. On-line ordering allows districts to acquire books faster while slashing shipping costs, and a computerized inventory management system identifies the location of each textbook in the district. Establish supply allocations.