Lexington, KY – The National Association of State Procurement Officials (NASPO) is pleased to announce the winner of the 2026 NASPO ValuePoint State Leads Excellence Award, which was presented at the 2026 Annual Conference Awards Night on September 30, 2026, in Phoenix, Arizona.

This award was created to celebrate visionary leadership, bold innovation, and outstanding achievement by a NASPO ValuePoint State Lead. It honors individuals who go above and beyond to create, procure, and administer NASPO ValuePoint portfolios—driving measurable value, expanding access, and elevating the impact of cooperative procurement nationwide.

This year’s finalists were:

• Sandy Anderson, State Procurement Manager, State of North Carolina
• Michael Speakmon, Procurement Director, State of South Carolina

After committee review, the 2026 winner is:

• Sandy Anderson, State Procurement Manager, State of North Carolina

To learn more about this award, please visit the Awards tab on the NASPO website.

About NASPO: NASPO® is a non–profit association dedicated to advancing public procurement through leadership, excellence, and integrity. It is made up of the directors of the central purchasing offices in each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the territories of the United States. NASPO is an organization that helps its members achieve success as public procurement leaders through the promotion of best practices, education, professional development, research, and innovative procurement strategies. www.naspo.org

About NASPO ValuePoint: NASPO ValuePoint® is the cooperative purchasing division of the National Association of State Procurement Officials (NASPO), facilitating cooperative public procurement solicitations using a Lead State Model®. NASPO aggregates the demand of all 50 states, the District of Columbia, the US territories, their political subdivisions, and other eligible entities, spurring best value, innovation, and competition in the marketplace. NASPO ValuePoint delivers high-value, reliable, and competitively sourced cooperative contracts – offering public entities outstanding prices, favorable terms and conditions, and value-added services. Learn more at www.naspovaluepoint.org.

NASPO®, NASPO ValuePoint®, their logos, and Lead State Model® are trademarks of the National Association of State Procurement Officials.

Media Contact:
Kate Davila
Director of Creative Accounts, NASPO
[email protected]