Guided BUying Announcements
Sourcing & Procurement sends out periodic communications to assist the community in navigating Guided BUying. Please see email updates below. If you are not receiving these emails, please fill out this form to subscribe.
Note: If you had shopper or approver access in SRM, you will have requisitioner or approver access in Guided BUying. If you do not have access and require the role, please reach out to your Department Security Administrator (DSA). If you are not sure who your DSA is, please contact Information Security at buinfosec@bu.edu.
This page lists updates for Sourcing & Procurement. Accounts Payable has blog and news updates available as the First Friday Five. For research related announcements, questions and policy, please visit Research Support.
Communications
- • Announcement: Freezer Upgrade Program NOW LIVE – (1/27/25)
- • Announcement: Fairmarkit RFQ Procedure – P2P to review each RFQ for accuracy – (11/14/24)
- • BU Travel Program: Benefits & Discounts available to BU faculty & staff for business travel – (11/6/24)
- • Metrics: Fiscal Year 2024 Supplier Diversity Dashboard Update – (10/4/24)
- • Catalog Announcement: Purchase Life Tech products from Fisher Scientific – (9/16/24)
- • Event Announcement: Laboratory Equipment & Supply Expo on Tuesday, October 8 – (9/11/24)
- • New Catalog Announcement: BioLegend – (8/26/24)
- • BU Travel Program: JetBlue Corporate Perks Program – (8/21/24)
- • New Catalog Announcement: Hawk Marketplace Catalog in Guided BUying for gift cards – (8/2/24)
- • Reminder: Order through Supplier Catalogs in Guided BUying – (6/7/24)
- • Reminder: PRs in Composing Status do Not Carry Forward to New Fiscal Year – (6/4/24)
- • Event Announcement: BU Travel Fair Prizes Available for Attendees – (4/22/24)
- • Metrics: First Half FY24 Supplier Diversity Data – (4/1/24)
- • Event Announcement: Boston University Travel Fair on April 23, 2024 – (3/22/24)
- • Announcement: Yankee Line as New Preferred Charter Bus Supplier – (3/18/24)
- • New Catalog Announcement: Bio-Techne, doing business as R&D Systems – (2/27/24)
- • Reminder: Digital Gift Card Ordering Process – (2/26/24)
- • Reminder: Airgas Cylinder Returns & Gas Replenishments – (2/20/24)
- • Gift Card Catalog Reminder: Hawk Marketplace for Digital Gift Cards – (2/15/24)
- • Gift Card Catalog Announcement: Hawk Marketplace with Blackhawk Network – (2/8/24)
- • Alert: Amazon Business Catalog – Product Safety Information – (11/15/23)
- • Metrics: Fiscal Year 2023 Supplier Diversity Spend – (10/11/23)
- • Event Announcement: 2023 Lab Equipment & Supply Expo – (9/7/23)
- • Reminder: PO Closeout Requests – (8/31/23)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Fiscal Year Composing Errors – (7/5/23)
- • Announcement: BU’s Travel Management Company Change – (6/21/23)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Fiscal Year End – (6/20/23)
- • Alert: Unused Travel Tickets – (6/7/23)
- • Alert: Creating Non-Catalog Purchase Requisitions – (5/24/23)
- • Announcement: Christopherson Business Travel as BU’s preferred supplier for business travel management – (5/11/23)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Competitive Bid Policy – (4/25/23)
- • Announcement: Airgas Bulk Pickup Of Empty Cylinders – (4/11/23)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Account Reassignment For Equipment PRs – (3/21/23)
- • New Catalog Announcement: Linde Lab Gas Punch-Out Catalog – (3/15/23)
- • Metrics: Supplier Diversity Dashboard Updated Metrics FY23 – (3/14/23)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Attend Virtual Guided BUying Training – (2/28/23)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Checking Out Via A Catalog & Adding Information To The Header Level – (2/23/23)
- • Announcement: Fairmarkit Pinned Groups for Quick Quotes – (2/23/23)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Signatories, PII, And Attachment Visibility – (2/9/23)
- • Best Practices: Choosing the correct commodity code is essential for oversight and compliance – (12/19/22)
- • Training: Guided BUying Monthly Training Sessions – (12/8/22)
- • Alert: Intersession Procedures for 2022 – (12/8/22)
- • Announcement: Ariba Contract Request Form (CRF) Enhancement For Campus Planning & Operations – (10/17/22)
- • Event Announcement: 2022 Laboratory Equipment & Supply Expo on October 20 – (10/6/22)
- • Metrics: Fiscal Year 2022 Supplier Diversity Dashboard Update – (10/4/22)
- • Announcement: Removal of Purchasing Functions under Procurement Tab in BUworks – (9/23/22)
- • New Catalog Announcement: Linde Lab Gas in Guided BUying – (9/19/22)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Account Assignment Change – (8/24/22)
- • Reminder: Charter Bus Services Must Be On A PO – (8/17/22)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Fiscal Year Composing Error – (7/21/22)
- • Catalog Announcement: EBook Purchasing Now Available Through Amazon Catalog – (7/26/22)
- • Guided BUying Feature Announcement: “PR Interrupt” for diverse supplier bids – Go-Live July 19, 2022 – (7/14/22)
- • Catalog Announcement: SHI Catalog RESTORED – (7/12/22)
- • New Preferred Supplier: Linde Gas & Equipment for Lab Gases – (7/7/22)
- • Catalog Announcement: SHI Catalog OUTAGE – (7/7/22)
- • Coming Soon: “PR Interrupt” to invite diverse suppliers to bid on PRs through Fairmarkit – (6/22/22)
- • Best Practices: Supplier Guide For Invoicing – (6/21/22)
- • Training Reminder: Supplier Diversity Dashboard & Explorer TOMORROW – (4/20/22)
- • Training Announcement: Supplier Explorer by supplier.io Now Available – (4/14/22)
- • Announcement: Launch of Supplier Diversity Dashboard & Supplier Explorer – (4/8/22)
- • Supplier Diversity Announcement: Enhanced Supplier Diversity Program with Supplier Explorer – (4/6/22)
- • Catalog Announcements: New Artcraft Catalog and Catalog Ship-To Restrictions – (3/10/2021)
- • Announcement: Launch of Sustainable Purchasing Program (SPP) to support BU Sustainability’s Zero Waste Plan – (11/18/21)
- • Supplier Policy Update: Amazon Business Approval for Deliveries to Non-BU Addresses – (11/18/21)
- • Supplier Announcement: Amazon Business – How To Purchase Digital Content – (7/30/21)
- • Announcement: FedEx Account Transition – Effective August 1st – (8/1/21)
- • Reminder: Amazon Requisitioners and Administrators Roles – (7/30/21)
- • Announcement: Amazon Requisitioners and Administrators Roles – (7/22/21)
- • New Catalog Feature: Enhanced Amazon Catalog: “Checkout-Based Punchout” – (7/15/21)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Team Buying – (5/20/21)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Ordering Method Matrix – (3/16/21)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: When and How To Place After the Fact Orders– (3/4/21)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Engaging a Consultant; Registering a Supplier & Having Contract Signed; Shipping to a Non-BU Delivery Address – (2/17/21)
- • Guided BUying System Updates: PR Title, Order Type, Accounting Summary – (2/3/21)
- • Guided BUying Training: Register Now for February 2021 Trainings – (1/28/21)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Amazon Business, Shipping, and Canceling vs. Closing a PO) – (1/26/21)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Ordering Method Matrix, Disbursement Process, and Searching for Suppliers – (1/14/21)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: ATF Orders, Adding Attachments for Suppliers, and PR Title – (12/15/20)
- • New Catalog Announcement: SHI Apple Catalog Now LIVE – (12/11/20)
- • Reminder: SHI Apple Catalog COMING SOON – (12/4/20)
- • Announcement: Creating a PR for Moveable Capital Equipment – (11/19/20)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Ariba Email Notifications; Adding Attachments, Adding Approvers & Watchers to a PR; Attend Training – (11/18/20)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Amount Based POs and BPOs – (11/12/20)
- • New Catalog Announcement: SHI Apple Catalog COMING SOON – (10/29/20)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Process to Register a Supplier and Have a Contract Signed: CRF – (10/22/20)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Shipping to a BU Delivery Address and Managing Submitted Requests – (10/20/20)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Closing vs. Canceling a PO – (10/15/20)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints Supplier Invoicing – BU Standard Account Invoice via PO – (9/30/20)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Personal Profile, Shipping to a Non-BU Delivery Address, and Shipping to a BU Delivery Address) – (9/21/20)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Amount Based Non-Catalog PRs, Attachments on Catalog PRs, Supplier Request Form, Designating a Non-Catalog Request as Amount Based or Standard, and September Training – (9/3/20)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints Setting Shipping Address, Viewing PRs and POs, and Requesting on Behalf Of – (8/31/20)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Requesting to Register New Suppliers, Updating Supplier Registrations, Delegating Authority, and Adding Approvers & Watchers – (8/25/20)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Searching for Suppliers and Ordering Method Matrix – (8/20/20)
- • Training: Fairmarkit Quick Quoting Tool – (8/17/20)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Non-Catalog PR Replacing Ad Hoc Requests, Updating Account Assignment to IO, and Editing & Resubmitting Denied PRs – (8/14/20)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: (Approval Workflow, Ad Hoc Requests, Saving PRs, and Supplier Invoices – (8/11/20)
- • Metrics: BW Reporting – (8/6/20)
- • Guided BUying Helpful Hints: Adding Multiple Suppliers to a PR, Searching for Registered Suppliers (Catalog and Ad Hoc Request) – (8/4/20)
- • Training Announcement: Sign Up for August Guided BUying Training (PRs and Approvals, Invoice Approvals & Exceptions) – (7/31/20)
- • Training: Guided BUying Go-Live – (7/23/20)
- • Training: Guided BUying Training: Sign Up! PRs and Approvals, Requisitioner Invoice Approvals & Exceptions – (7/8/20)
- • Guided BUying Training: Dates and Frequently Asked Questions – (6/29/20)
- • Announcement: Transition to SAP Ariba Guided BUying – Best Practices – (6/19/20)
- • System Announcement: Highlights – SAP Ariba Guided BUying for Invoicing Highlights – (6/11/20)
- • Announcement: New Procurement System Coming Soon! – (2/12/20)
- • Announcement: UPGRADE of Existing Procurement System in Spring 2020 – (12/6/19)
System Ambassadors
With the rollout of Guided BUying, Sourcing & Procurement engaged Requisitioners and Approvers across campus to represent their departments as Guided BUying System Ambassadors. System Ambassadors received additional training and worked with Sourcing & Procurement and Accounts Payable to help identify areas for additional training and communication.
Please join us in thanking the System Ambassadors for their dedication in helping us bring Guided BUying to the community!
| • Diana Atoui | • Shelley Barnes | • Mary Dangora |
| • Linhares Macdougall Donna | • Diane Dougherty | • Luke Dwyer |
| • Helen Flagg | • Montanna Freeman | • Michael Garon |
| • Anh Huynh | • Lisa Hynes | • John Imbergamo Jr |
| • Edward Jacques | • Stephanie Johnson | • Melissa Kelly |
| • Stephen Macchi | • Christina Macdonald | • Nicole McCaffrey |
| • Karen Molloy | • Kathleen Morley | • Daniel Quigley |
| • Oldeta Shore | • Deana Smiljic | • Hillary White |
| • Sophie Zschirnt |
Training
Sign up for Guided BUying Training here. For more information on navigating Guided BUying including training guides, please visit the How to Place Orders page.
Frequently Asked Questions
View Guided BUying Frequently Asked Questions from training here. Further FAQs can be viewed on our FAQs page. If you have additional questions, please submit a ticket to the Financial Affairs Customer Service Portal.