buyND e.Procurement (formerly Higher Markets)

Purchasing Instruction

All purchases of goods/services by the department are to be handled through buyND (unless the procard is used). BuyND is an online buying tool utilized by the Business Office.

Once you decide to make a purchase, complete a Purchase Requisition and submit it to the Business Office. This will initiate the purchase.

Please Note:

• Always refer to the university's list of strategic vendors
• Plan ahead & allow the Business Office to initiate an order. Do not place orders directly over the phone.
• Purchases greater than $5,000 require 3 competitive bids
• BuyND is not used for travel expenses
• Once you receive your package please forward any packing slip to the Business Office. This alerts the Business Office that you have received the correct goods/services and initiates payment to the vendor

Athletics e-mail dated December 5, 2003

On July 1, an initiative was launched by Procurement Services that will bring about significant improvements to procurement processes across campus. At the core of this effort is e-procurement technology from HigherMarkets, a division of SciQuest, Inc., which specializes in higher education.

The Athletics Business Office now utilizes this online procurement mechanism. The university's transition to the HigherMarket system will be complete by July 1, 2004. The system is designed to give campus users quick, simple, and convenient access to negotiated contract pricing with strategic suppliers. More significant for all of us right now, it will also eliminate a lot of paperwork and delays associated with many of today's cumbersome processes.

With this new process in use going forward, there are 2 key things that must occur to make it work:

1.) It is imperative that purchase requests be submitted to the Business Office as the means to initiate all purchases of goods and/or services. Do not place orders with vendors directly via the phone, etc., unless you use a ProCard for payment.

2.) Upon receipt of goods/services, please provide the Business Office with any correspondence regarding the purchase (packing slip, invoice, etc.) that is provided by the vendor. This will allow us to confirm receipt of the goods/services and initiate payment to the vendor.

Please know that use of HigherMarkets does not apply to travel (hotels, buses, etc.) and entertainment (food) expenses.

Also, use of HigherMarkets eliminates the need for competitive quotes for purchases less than $5,000.

In the near future, additional Athletics staff will be trained on the use of HigherMarkets technology. This will allow them to initiate orders online and submit them for review and approval according to departmental protocol. The Business Office will contact the department's key "spenders" in order to register them for use of HigherMarkets and the required training.

Thank you for your cooperation during this transition period, and please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions that you may have in this regard.

Athletics "Did You Know..." e-mail dated January 15, 2004

As outlined in an e-mail on December 5th, Procurement Services introduced an online buying system (Higher Markets) that gives users quick, simple, and convenient access to negotiated contract pricing with strategic university vendors. This has already been proven to eliminate paperwork and delays associated with the buying process. Athletics, via the Business Office, currently uses this system exclusively for the purchase of goods and services.

What does this mean for you?

• Higher Markets eliminates the need for 3 competitive quotes for purchases less than $5,000.
• Higher Markets is to be used to initiate all purchases (except for those authorized via the ProCard). The Business Office places all orders upon receipt of your Purchase Request .
• As Procurement Services no longer issues purchase order numbers over the phone, "confirming orders" cannot be issued at this time. Orders may be duplicated if you place orders directly and the company receives the order issued via Higher Markets.
• Upon receipt of goods or services, please provide the Business Office with any correspondence regarding the purchase (packing slip, invoice, etc.) that is provided by the vendor. This will confirm receipt of the goods and is required to initiate payment to the supplier.
• The use of Higher Markets does not apply to travel and entertainment expenses.

With your assistance, Higher Markets will improve the efficiency of ordering goods and services.

In the future (once the system has been "debugged", the majority of our vendors have been entered into the system, and our approval work flow implemented) additional Athletics staff will be identified and trained on the use of Higher Markets technology. This will allow them to initiate orders online and submit them for approval according to departmental protocol.

Thank you for your cooperation during this transition period, and please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions that you may have.

Procurement's Role in Higher Markets

Non-Catalog Items

Procurement will contact the vendor to verify item(s) and price. A Purchase Order (P.O.) is faxed directly to the vendor by Procurement.

Catalog Items

If the item is under $500, Higher Markets will automatically fax a P.O. to the vendor. If the item is $500 or more, Procurement reviews the item ordered and the budgetary unit. Once approved, Procurement faxes a P.O. to the vendor.