Frequently Asked Questions

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Best Practices

Is there a list of the Spend Codes and descriptions available for procurement (similar to the old object code list)? The list available in Workday is all spend codes including transfers, central office only codes, etc., which is 1423 records long.

Please see Spend Category report in the UW Finance Portal.

What is the difference between new supplier and new customer request?

A Supplier is a business entity (external to UW) that sells goods and services for a price to a customer. UW-registered suppliers are those entities or individual contractors which have provided their federally-registered information for verification and been approved for use in Workday as part of the procure-to-pay process.

Can you tell us what (if any) important issues your team is experiencing from your perspective?

Use of UW Connect Finance has presented a significant learning curve, and all teams communicating within UWCF are bringing patience to their daily activities, utilizing office hours, and trying different methods of doing things within Connect to attempt to streamline and become as efficient as possible as soon as possible. We are definitely, learning together!

Are there advisors from PCS on the training teams?

One of our training team members was formerly on the PCS team, and both work closely with PCS (they are under the same manager) to create content.

The job aids/user guides are very helpful. Will report information be added to them as well? Example: an ER disappears after moving away from the draft. We learned that we have to run a report to find them. The job aid/user guide currently does not have t

The job aids are being updated frequently by the FT team

How can we look up contracted vendors to know who is on the catalog?

The catalog web page lists all the suppliers that have a catalog available in Workday at

https://finance.uw.edu/ps/how-to-buy/ariba/catalog-purchases

If a vendor doesn't have a catalog that it used to, how do we order if we don't know prices?

You would obtain a quote from the vendor. If there is specific pricing, you may also contact the Procurement contract manager for that contract for assistance.

For questions regarding Workday such requisitions, existing BPO and etc., can we still send an inquiry to pcshelp@uw.edu?

Yes

Is there an office supply catalog that has been loaded into Workday, yet?

Yes, Guy Brown is currently a catalog vendor in Workday.

Is there a list of items that are exempt and require a justification? We have been using Lab Supplies (SC1092) and some were asked for a justification and some were not.

There is not a specific list; it depends on several factors: the vendor, the budget, the item being purchased, etc.

How soon should we expect to hear back when we email PCS Help?

We are currently researching this question and look forward to having a definitive answer soon.

How do we know something has had central review?  We have submitted two reqs: One under $10k that immediately generated a PO.  Another over $10k that appears done, but we do not see a PO.

You may check the “Process History” tab for the routing status. A PO number will also appear in the “Sourcing” column on the line items when a PO has been issued.

If you close an order in Workday, does that liquidate any remaining encumbrance on the budget?

We are currently researching this question and look forward to having a definitive answer soon.

After we complete the order and a PO has been issued, how does the PO number transmit to the vendor?

All Purchase Orders are transmitted via email by Workday except catalog vendors, which are sent electronically via GHX.

If we have an urgent PO stuck in “draft” status, should we cancel and order on ProCard instead?

Contact the contract manager to correct the PO in order to avoid duplicate orders.

How can we order Digi-Key now? They used to be catalog. We imported the item list to purchase so that we don’t have to enter each items (sometimes we have 50 + items). I am assuming it is non-catalog order. Can we import the items in Workday?

You may order directly from Digi-Key on a purchase order using a quote.

When we used P2Is, a submitter could enter the contract in the P2I in Ariba. In Workday, if we need a contract signed do we attached the unsigned contract in Workday? What key notes should we enter so that Goods and Services can sign the contract to pay t

We will have a contract review intake form available to campus soon (currently in progress). Until then, the contract review process for P2I is to manually send them via Connect or email to Procurement.

If a BPO is issued to a "network" company but, then we receive invoices from multiple locations within their network, is this allowable? Or will we need to issue separate BPOs to each location (I assume it depends on whether they share a TIN?)

Much like Ariba, suppliers can determine how a company or different areas of a company transact with the UW. Some are large companies with a single procurement intake point and single invoicing or Accounts Receivable team, while others are divided by mailing locations or divisions, and whether they choose to use the legal entity Taxpayer ID Number (TIN) or a subsidiary TIN. When asking for quotes, etc., it could be beneficial to review the locations available in Workday (if access allows) and point the supplier to the "For Suppliers" webpage if they have additional questions and need to contact supplier administrators at UW for clarity.

Could we get a better understanding of the approval flow for when it's set-up but also, for when we're paying invoices?