WUSTL Marketplace
Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
WUSTL Marketplace Frequently Asked Questions |
 | Welcome to the WUSTL Marketplace FAQ Page This page is still being populated and will be used to provide you answers to the most asked questions on WUSTL Marketplace. Should you have a question not covered here, please email us. Also, you may want to visit this new Helpful Tips page: Helpful Tips in using Marketplace To start with, so what is WUSTL Marketplace? The WUSTL Marketplace is a web-based electronic requisition purchasing program. Washington University has contracted with SciQuest, the leading provider of electronic procurement solutions for higher education, to develop this program to interface with our financial system. The Marketplace will provide:
The program is customized to interface with the university's financial system. Current business rules and budget controls will remain in place. So how was this Marketplace product developed and tested? In order to meet a planned launch by summer of 2008, a project focus group had been assembled and first met in late January 2008 where they provided input regarding requirements when dealing with procurement issues. This group reconvened in early March 2008 to review the progress of program development. Since that time there have been multiple levels of system and user testing. During the testing phase, Purchasing Services actually placed live orders with suppliers in order to test the order transmissions, receive order acknowledgements, verify accurate shipping labels, and verify receipt of invoice. So what's roll-out plan? The plan is to implement the Marketplace platform with several phases of pilot departments in August with full implementation to begin in September. At the same time, there may be simultaneous departmental training for AIS line-item purchase orders, change orders, receiving and invoice review. What if I want to continue using FIS for my line-item orders? The technology transition project to move functions to AIS continues with Marketplace ultimately being the platform for the creation of purchase requisitions. The legacy FIS system has already been turned off and the plan is to retire the existing EDI catalogs mid 2009. Will I be able to create all of my purchase documents in Marketplace? Not immediately as animal orders and radiochemical orders will remain in AIS at this time. The plan is to continue Marketplace development to incorporate those purchase order types. What are these "roles" that are used in the Marketplace? There is new terminology associated with the Marketplace. Shopper - a person that may initiate an order by creating a shopping cart requisition, but typically does not access FIS/AIS to create purchase requisitions. ( Lab researcher, etc..) Reviewer - a person that approves a requisition, but typically does not access FIS/AIS to create purchase requisitions (Lab supervisor/PI). *NOTE: This is an optional function, as not all departments have this requirement. Requisitioner - a person that enters the order in FIS/AIS today. This person can also serve as a departmental shopper. What suppliers currently have catalogs in the Marketplace? as of March 30, the following suppliers are available with either a hosted or punchout catalog:
What's the difference between a "hosted" and "punch-out" catalog? Punch-out catalog links directly to Wash U/Supplier specific web page and is used when the shopper knows which supplier to use to make purchase. Hosted catalog is best used when the specific supplier is unknown or shopper wants to search and compare items from multiple sources. Will the implementation of Marketplace significantly slow down my internet response time? It is anticipated there will be reasonably good performance for Purchasing functions in AI System. Both the HRMS and AI system web applications are monitored for performance between the web server and the data base server. Statistics since mid June show consistently good response for these applications. There was instances of very poor responses this past Spring in AI system. The problems were addressed by a combination of application improvements and hardware improvements in the data center. IS&T will continue to monitor performance but will also respond to comments provided through the AIS Helpdesk from users who are experiencing poor performance. Should you contact the Helpdesk, please let them know your location and functions within the applications that are slow at that time. So what does the document workflow look like for these Marketplace requisitions? The first step is to log into AISystems, then use the Marketplace link to enter Marketplace. After creating the shopping cart, the purchase requisition (PR) routes either for an initial review or to the individual that finishes the PR with appropriate account codes, etc. The PR then routes to AIS for additional approvals (department, general accounting, SPA, etc). The PR routes to Purchasing for final approval. A supplier that receives "auto-approval" from Purchasing skips this step. The PO is created and immediately transmitted to the supplier. The final PO information is then exported back to AIS. ******************************************************************** User FAQ's Will the AIS and Marketplace website be accessible outside of WU networks (ie from home on the web)? YES Can the website be accessed and interact from a Blackberry or is it only a screen print that would show up on their smartphones? This is a application that requires you to sign in and navigate the site. We would not advocate nor suggest this option. How do I get an email notification when a shopper has submitted a requisition to be reviewed? To set up this email notification: >from Marketplace click on "profile" link next to your name in upper left corner of page. >>click on "email preferences" tab >>>select "PR pending workflow approval" by clicking the appropriate box >>>>hit the "save" button How come I can find an item in a punch-out catalog but it's not listed in the equivilent supplier hosted catalog? The punch-out catalogs will offer every item that the supplier distributes. While the hosted catalog is a sub-set of items most commonly ordered by the university. How come I get an "invalid" error message when entering my department number in the Accounting Code section? The department number must be 6 digits so be sure you included the necessary leading zeros. How do I withdraw a requisition before it goes to AIS for approval routing? Open the req >select all items >>from the drop-down box right above the list of items select "reject" and hit "go". >>>from the drop-down box at top of PR, selected "approve/complete" and hit "go". How do I delete an order once the document is in AIS? You must first delete the document in AIS. Deleting the document in AIS should cause the Marketplace PR to reject. In Marketplace, you can disregard it or copy it to a new cart. How do I add items to a pending shopping cart (PR)? There are a couple of methods to acomplish this task. 1) you first make the pending PR your "active" cart by clicking on the "cart" tab, then the "draft carts" tab, then select the cart you wish to use. Then shop for the items needed and place them in your active cart. 2) you can shop and place items in your existing active cart, then move them to the cart you want by selecting the items, from the drop-down box select "add to draft cart or pending pr", hit go, pick which cart you wish to use and hit the "add" button. Can I create a requisition (PR) for a company that does not have an electroninc catalog? Yes, just use the Non-catalog form, select the supplier you want to use, and free text your requisition just as you would in AIS. Why should I rename my shopping cart before shopping or before submitting the cart? We recommend renaming your cart in order to more easily locate that cart from your cart list. You can use any naming scheme you want that helps you find it at a later time. Most users utilize the supplier name along with some other identifier such as Lab name. Can I use my P-card on Marketplace orders? No, this functionality is not available in Marketplace today. In fact, using PO's through Marketplace, while they do require approval routing in advance, actually saves time by not having to reconcile transactions on the back-end through PaymentNet. How can I tell which MP orders require receiving? We still have the auto receiving that we had in legacy, but the Marketplace does not follow the administration number sequence that was used in legacy. The easiest way is find po's that need receiving is to use the 'Auto Receiving' flag on the AIS Receiving page. The system defaults to 'N' - that means it only displays the PO's that do not auto receive. Additional information is in the RE Help link. Can I make changes to a requisition after it arrives in AIS? No. After a Marketplace requisition appears in AIS, it cannot be changed. Should changes be necessary, you need to delete the AIS document, go back to Marketplace, copy the original cart, make the necesssary changes and resubmit the new cart. Changes can be made to a Marketplace PR at anytime before it reaches AIS. ******************************************************************** Purchasing Services contacts: Debbie Marks, 935-5016 Greg Mosley, 935-5927 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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