Procurement (Buy2Pay)
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Procurement (Buy-to-Pay) Setup
In order to be set up with Buy-to-Pay access, please reach out to your Division Administrator. You’ll need to take the appropriate Buy-to-Pay role training as listed below.
Placing orders using Buy-to-Pay
Whenever possible, requisitions should always be submitted before the item or service order is placed with the creation of a Purchase Order (or PO). This is known as a pre-commitment requisition. This allows for review and pre-approval of your request before the funds are committed to the vendor. It also allows the invoice to be paid electronically via Central Administration.
HCO Sponsored Cart Naming Convention: for orders that contain HCO Sponsored expenditures (org: 31460), please include the PI Last Name after the date (i.e. 2020-11-18 SMITH….) so that it is clear which Research Administrator should take on that cart assignment. This naming convention should also be used when carts are split coded between HCO sponsored and any non-sponsored account as the assignment of the cart will still need to take place by a 31460 approver at some point in the approval flow.
If a cart does not contain any HCO Sponsored (org: 31460) charges, no cart naming convention is required (specifically HCO Non-Sponsored orgs 31450 and 31470 or Astronomy org 31430).
HCO Requisition Description or Business Purpose (Header): please include the funding sponsor (i.e. NSF/NASA/STScI) and award nickname (i.e. A.Smith Fellowship/XYZ Telescope Fund) in the Header Requisition Description or Business Purpose section – this will help those approving (especially when multi-level approval is needed) ensure that the coding matches the sponsor/award entered in the Header description
HCO Naming Convention Quick Reference Guide
B2P Correlation to HART/Detail Listing: the Product Description in B2P is what will post as the Line Description in HART
Buy-to-Pay Role Types
There are three (3) distinct roles that have different permissions and responsibilities in Buy-to-Pay. These roles are as follows:
Requestor and Approver Guidelines
- Checkout Process (includes steps for splitting line items across COAs)
- Combining Carts
- Adding an Ad-Hoc Approver During Checkout
- Adding an Ad-Hoc Approver During Approval Process
- Setting up a Substitute Approver
- Approving a Requisition
- Returning and Rejecting Requisitions
- Rejecting Line Items on Requisitions
- Checking Approval Status
- Amount-Based and Standing Order Guidance
- Creating a Change Order
- Receiving and Returning/Adjusting (to note: invoices received against standing PO’s should not only be uploaded into B2P at time of receiving but also need to be emailed to AP – PRs/NRs do not need to email AP)
- Match Exceptions
- Requesting a Wire (UPDATED)
- To note: if you need to create a Standing PO that is in a foreign currency and will be invoiced/paid in a foreign currency: the PO should be created with a 10% inflation based on the currency conversion from FX to USD on the date of the quote. The receipts created when invoiced should be in USD with 10% inflation to allow FX conversion rate shifts and the OANDA currency conversion sheet must be included in both the receipt and sending to ap_invoices.
- Processing an Invoice
- Viewing Invoice and Payment Information
- Creating Chart of Accounts Favorites on behalf of other users
- Uploading Chart of Accounts Favorites
- Zelle – Electronic Payment for Individuals
Useful Links & Guides:
General Links & Guides
- Buy-to-Pay Updates (March 2021)
- Procurement Policy Updates (January 2021)
- How does B2P Correlate to HART (Detail Listing)?
- B2P Support: Office Hours and Email Contacts
- Subscribe to the B2P Updates Blog – best way to keep up to date on any B2P System Adjustments
- B2P Sponsored Guidance (VJFs, Debarment Forms, COA, Split Codings, and Reporting)
- Strategic Procurement FAQs
- How are PO’s distributed to suppliers? and How do I update where a PO is sent and who gets a copy?
- How can I tell what kind of line item is in a cart or requisition (e.g. punchout, non-catalog, catalog, form (PR, NR), etc.)?
- How do I process a Deposit in B2P?
- Are In Lieu of Invoice Forms still necessary in B2P?
- How do I view, print, or create a PDF copy of a PO?
- What does a user need to include when emailing an invoice to AP?
- I assigned a cart or submitted RQ that needs to be adjusted, what do I do?
- Accounts Payable Forms – including Homeland Security Form, In Lieu Of form, Deposit/Pre-payment Form
- Revised (March 2021) Procure to Pay Manual
- How to Look Up Payments in B2P
- How to Settle Pcard in Concur
General Online Training
Video Tutorials
General
Requisitioning
PO Management
Approval Queue Management
- Approval Queue Filtering
- Shared Queue Hold and Forward
- Ad Hoc Approval Experience
- Saved Searches
- Document Review and Approval
Document Search
Helpful Sites
- Strategic Procurement
- AP Forms and Exception Processes
- Financial Accounting and Reporting
- Financial Policy Office
- Financial Forms
- Wire Transfer Authorization Form – US Currency (to be used when transferring USD and receiving USD)
- Wire Transfer Authorization Form – Foreign Currency (to be used when transferring USD to a different currency OR when transferring foreign currency to foreign currency – NON-USD)
- To note: if you need to create a Standing PO that is in a foreign currency and will be invoiced/paid in a foreign currency: the PO should be created with a 10% inflation based on the currency conversion from FX to USD on the date of the quote. The receipts created when invoiced should be in USD with 10% inflation to allow FX conversion rate shifts and the OANDA currency conversion sheet must be included in both the receipt and sending to ap_invoices.
- Policy Service Announcement (PSA): Indicate Location of Activity country when processing payments to Foreign Individuals and Foreign Entities
Friendly Reminders:
- Standard SLA (service level agreement) for invoice processing is 3-5 business days
- Send invoices to AP only once; multiple submissions risk duplicate payments and processing delays
- PO# MUST be listed on the invoice itself, not in the body of your message
- No need to send PR-related invoices to us, they are automatically generated in B2P
- Inquiries and other messages to the AP team must be submitted to: AP_CustomerService@harvard.edu
Paymode-X for B2P Business Vendors
- Harvard University’s Accounts Payable department utilizes the Paymode-X® service offered by Bank of America Merrill Lynch to replace paper checks and other traditional electronic payments
- It is the vendor’s responsibility to provide and maintain their banking information with Paymode, not AP
- Vendors who have signed up to receive electronic payment via Paymode have their vendor sites programmed to default to electronic payment
- Paymode payments are processed on Tuesdays and Thursdays based on vendor payment terms (typically Net 30 – 30 days after the invoice date)
What you may need:
- A Valid Email Address
- Your Company’s US Tax ID Number (EIN)
- Your Company’s Bank Account and Transit Routing Number
Electronic Payments for US Individuals (Zelle)
Zelle is an electronic payment method for individuals with a U.S. based bank account. Individuals with a Zelle account with their bank can choose Zelle as their preferred payment method in their Buy2Pay Supplier Portal profile.
- For information about Zelle: https://www.zellepay.com
- Zelle – Electronic Payment for Individuals
Please note: departments cannot specify Zelle on behalf of an individual during the supplier portal registration process. This step must be done by the supplier.
Individuals without a U.S. based bank account are not eligible for Zelle, and should be paid by Check. Companies are not eligible for Zelle, but Harvard University offers Paymode-X for electronic payments to companies.
Preferred Vendors
Harvard has negotiated rates with many suppliers. Please see your Division Administrator for any purchase requests. If you manage projects that require a lot of purchasing – you may be given access/training to the Harvard purchasing system or receive a Purchasing Card (credit card). The vendors with preferred pricing that we typically use are:
- WB Mason – office supplies
- Dell/Apple – computers
- GovConnection – computer products
- B&H Photo – audio visual
- DigiKey/Newark – electronics
- McMaster Carr/Cambridge Valve and Fitting – fabrication materials
- Airgas – scientific gas
- ThorLabs/VWR/ThermoFisher/Sigma Aldrich – lab supplies and chemicals
A full list of preferred vendors can be found on the Harvard Procurement site: https://internal.procurement.harvard.edu/preferred-vendors