Diane Seaton is the Manager of the National Procurement Institute, Inc. (NPI). The National Procurement Institute, founded in 1968 as a non-profit organization, serves public procurement professionals internationally.

NPI is focused on leading excellence in public procurement. The Achievement of Excellence in Procurement Award, established by NPI in 1995, recognizes organizations that demonstrate commitment to innovation, professionalism, productivity, e-procurement, and leadership attributes.

Members of NPI represent the current and future leaders of the public procurement profession. The Achievement of Excellence in Procurement Award® symbolizes organizational excellence in innovation, professionalism, productivity, e-procurement and leadership.

NPI is large enough to serve you and small enough to know you. As a member of NPI, you benefit from the support of a thoughtful, strategic, and professional organization dedicated to supporting the evolving needs of its membership, encouraging them to achieve procurement excellence, and providing them with the tools to do so.

In 1995, the National Procurement Institute, Inc. (NPI) established the Achievement of Excellence in Procurement® (AEP) program, designed to recognize organizational excellence in public procurement. This prestigious annual award is earned by those organizations that demonstrate excellence by obtaining a high score based on criteria designed to measure innovation, professionalism, productivity, e-procurement, and leadership attributes of the procurement organization. From nine recipients in 1996 to around 200 in the most recent years, the AEP continues to be recognized as the premier award in the public procurement profession.