OECM

What OECM does

OECM (Ontario Education Collaborative Marketplace) is a Toronto-based not-for-profit collaborative sourcing partner established by the Ontario government in 2006 to aggregate procurement demand across the province's education, municipal, and broader public sector (BPS) organizations. The organization operates a digital Marketplace platform offering 80+ pre-negotiated procurement agreements across categories including end-user computing, networking, software licensing, office supplies, furniture, custodial and janitorial supplies, elevating device maintenance, fleet management, EV supply equipment, broadband, and professional security services. Customers access agreements through a self-serve Customer Dashboard, with electronic tendering now delivered via the Euna Procurement (Bonfire) platform following a May 2026 transition, and reporting/analytics supported by Power BI and automation tools.

OECM serves 1,500+ public sector customers including Ontario school boards, colleges, universities, municipalities, hospitals, and BPS organizations, connecting them with a network of 600+ pre-qualified supplier partners. Revenue is generated through a marketplace commission-style model, primarily via fees from awarded supplier partners participating in OECM agreements, with life-to-date cumulative revenue exceeding $100M as of 2023. The organization maintains a Sector Success Sharing reserve fund of $10M (2022) and has accumulated $6B+ in life-to-date collaborative spend as of 2025, with roughly $1B in incremental annual flow-through in recent years.

Distribution combines a self-serve Marketplace platform with direct field sales engagement (Business Development and Customer Relationship Management teams) and strategic partnerships with organizations such as Supply Ontario, OPBA, eCampusOntario, Shared Services West, NISCL, BCNET, ISI, and Cybera. OECM's go-to-market is anchored in Ontario public sector regulatory frameworks, with growing emphasis on ESGI (Environmental, Social, Governance, and Indigenous) commitments, evidenced by the 2024 launch of the Indigenous Marketplace, the 2024 SPLC Leadership Award, and alignment with provincial legislation including Bill 194 and Bill 72.

Name

OECM

Legal name

Ontario Education Collaborative Marketplace

Website

https://oecm.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

2006

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

OECM is a not-for-profit collaborative sourcing partner serving Ontario's education, municipal, and broader public sector organizations through a digital marketplace connecting 1,500+ customers with 600+ vetted suppliers across 80+ pre-negotiated procurement agreements.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Toronto

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Collaborative Sourcing Services: OECM generates revenue as a not-for-profit organization through fees derived from collaborative procurement activities. The company has accumulated over $100 million in life-to-date revenue and maintains a Sector Success Sharing (SSS) reserve fund totaling $10 million as of 2022.
2. Supplier Partnership Fees: Revenue generated through partnerships with awarded supplier partners who pay fees to participate in OECM's Marketplace agreements.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

OECM operates a digital Marketplace platform that connects Ontario's education, municipal, and broader public sector customers with over 600 pre-qualified supplier partners through 80+ competitively-sourced procurement agreements. The not-for-profit organization aggregates demand across school boards, colleges, universities, and municipalities to negotiate pricing, manage supplier relationships, and deliver procurement efficiencies. OECM also operates a specialized Indigenous Marketplace and provides customer relationship management, electronic tendering, and reporting tools.

Product overview

OECM (Ontario Education Collaborative Marketplace) operates as a not-for-profit collaborative sourcing partner offering a unified marketplace platform for Ontario's education, municipal, and broader public sector customers. The core platform aggregates over 80 procurement agreements across diverse categories including IT hardware (End-User Computing, Networking), software licensing, facilities management (Furniture, Custodial, Elevating Devices), professional services, and specialized offerings. The platform connects customers with over 600 verified supplier partners, enabling significant cost savings and procurement efficiencies through collaborative strategic sourcing. OECM's ecosystem includes specialized marketplaces like the Indigenous Marketplace featuring Indigenous-owned suppliers, and supports sectors from school boards and colleges to municipalities and healthcare organizations across Ontario.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Indigenous Marketplace: A marketplace connecting OECM customers with verified Indigenous supplier partners offering a broad range of products and services to support socially responsible procurement.

Products and services

• OECM Marketplace Comprehensive collaborative procurement marketplace offering over 80 agreements across multiple product and service categories for Ontario's education, municipal, and broader public sector customers, providing access to over 600 supplier partners.
• Indigenous Marketplace Specialized marketplace connecting OECM customers with verified Indigenous supplier partners offering a broad range of products and services to support socially responsible procurement.
• Furniture, Mattresses and Related Services Procurement agreement offering casegoods, systems furniture, seating, desks, tables, storage, office accessories, lamps, mirrors, mattresses, consultation, education and training, delivery and installation, space planning and design, and project management services.
• Custodial and Janitorial Supplies, Equipment, and Related Services Agreement covering air purifiers, chemical products, cleaning hardware, cloths and towels, custodial software tools, disinfectants, dispensers, environmentally-friendly products, equipment leasing, floor care products, gloves, hand sanitizer, PPE, paper products, and preventive maintenance programs.
• Office Supplies and Fine Copy Paper Agreement providing fine copy paper, office supplies, various paper types including photocopier, stationery, art supplies, binders, labels, pens, pencils, and environmentally friendly paper options.
• End-User Computing Products and Related Services (EUC) Third-generation agreement offering laptops, desktops, workstations, tablets, mobile products, servers, storage, hyperconverged products, EUC accessories and peripherals, along with planning support, asset tagging, configuration, installation, lifecycle management, training, and support services.
• Software License Products and Related Services Agreement for education and enterprise software licenses including Microsoft, Adobe, and other enterprise solutions, with acquisition support, transition support, and technical support.
• Networking Products and Related Services Agreement covering access points, routers, switches, security products, hybrid networking, SDWAN, wireless LAN controllers, license subscriptions, unified threat management appliances, and related technical support, installation, and training services.

Quantifiable outcome

• 91% overall customer satisfaction (Nanos Survey 2025)
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered moderate, core and minor.

• BCNET, ISI, CyberamoderateStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 June 2025National procurement initiative collaboration for Electronic Research Administration Systems (eRAS) agreement. Combined regional insights, customer engagement, and supplier expertise to co-develop unified procurement strategy across Canada.
• Dell TechnologiescoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 November 2024Partnership for Professional Learning for Ontario Educators program, offering 15 free webinars in 2024-2025 focused on Generative AI for enhanced teaching and learning. Dell serves as Platinum supplier partner.
• National Institute of Supply Chain Leaders (NISCL)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2024OECM serves as NISCL's exclusive National Public Sector Champion, supporting public sector initiatives for supply chain professionals across Canada. OECM staff have access to NISCL training and development resources.
• Ontario Public Buyers Association (OPBA)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 27 June 2024Three-year collaborative project partnership focused on enhancing professional development and educational opportunities for Ontario's public procurement professionals. OECM and OPBA work together to advance procurement excellence across the sector.
• eCampusOntariocoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 June 2024Strategic partnership for the development and implementation of a shared services program to advance collaborative digital transformation efforts and enhance value through innovative learning experiences for Ontario's post-secondary students.
• Empowered Kids OntariominorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 June 2024Program partnership supporting the Spring Symposium and celebrating Tribute Award recipients, advancing early childhood education sector engagement.
• Supply OntariocoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2023Collaboration agreement to determine mutually beneficial opportunities including leveraging stakeholders, data aggregation, and strategic sourcing to drive public sector innovation and transformation.
• Indigenous WorksmoderateStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 November 2021Partnership to advance Indigenous inclusion and economic participation in procurement, complementing OECM's Indigenous Marketplace and ESGI initiatives.
• Shared Services WestmoderateStrategic or Co-development Partner · 15 September 2021Joint affiliate relationship allowing for reciprocal access to existing and future agreements, extending reach to education sector customers in western Ontario.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves16 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Vizient: US healthcare GPO and performance services company that negotiates supply chain contracts on behalf of member hospitals and healthcare systems. Comparable as a large GPO peer, particularly relevant to OECM's healthcare and BPS expansion, though primarily US-focused.
• Amazon Business: Major B2B marketplace serving business, government, and education customers with broad catalog sourcing. Represents a competitive threat to OECM's marketplace layer, particularly in commoditized office supplies and IT categories, as it offers direct purchasing without GPO intermediation.
• Supply Ontario: Ontario government's central procurement agency providing strategic sourcing and supplier management for BPS organizations. Operates as a broader incumbent with government backing, with OECM having a 2023 collaboration agreement but also competing for the same BPS procurement mandate.
• OMNIA Partners: Large US-based GPO serving public sector, education, and nonprofit organizations through cooperative contracts. Comparable in business model (supplier-paid fees, aggregated spend) but operates as a much larger, for-profit incumbent.

Direct peers

• Plexxus: Ontario-based shared services organization serving healthcare providers with procurement, IT, and other back-office services. Comparable to OECM as a shared services/GPO for the Ontario BPS market, though focused on healthcare.
• Mohawk Medbuy: Canadian healthcare shared services organization (formerly Medbuy) that procures medical supplies, equipment, and services on behalf of member hospitals. Highly comparable to OECM in operating model (not-for-profit GPO, member-driven, multi-category contracts).
• HealthPRO Procurement Services: Canadian healthcare-focused GPO that aggregates demand on behalf of hospitals and healthcare organizations to negotiate favorable supply contracts. Operates the same collaborative procurement model as OECM but serves the healthcare vertical nationally, making it the most directly comparable peer.
• Shared Services West: Ontario GPO providing collaborative procurement services to the education and broader public sector, with particular strength in Western Ontario. OECM has a reciprocal affiliate agreement with Shared Services West, indicating direct overlap in customer base and offerings.
• Canoe Procurement: Canadian public sector group purchasing organization that aggregates purchasing volume of its members across multiple categories to achieve volume discounts. Operates the same cooperative procurement model as OECM and serves a similar BPS customer base nationally.
• Sourcewell: US-based government GPO that competitively solicits and awards cooperative contracts used by government, education, and nonprofit entities. Highly comparable in cooperative procurement model and customer base, though operates at much larger scale in the US.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInca.linkedin.com/company/oecm
• Xx.com/OECMCollaborate
• Facebookfacebook.com/OECMCollaborate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about OECM