As we transition to IC Finance Cloud, the College will need to undergo some changes to our procurement process in order to align with best practices and to take full advantage of the features of our new financial system. Below is a summary of key information to help end users prepare for this transition.

  IC Finance Cloud Procurement to Replace IC Marketplace

In place of the IC Marketplace platform, IC Finance Cloud will contain a Procurement module which will be used to meet our purchasing needs. The Procurement module will provide a similar user experience to that of IC Marketplace, but with improved functionality and visibility. Users will continue to browse punchout catalogs for premium suppliers like Staples and Amazon, build shopping carts, create and share shopping lists, and view the order history for their areas.

IC Marketplace will not be used to complete any new orders after IC Finance Cloud goes live.

  New User Roles

IC Finance Cloud, like IC Marketplace, will have two main roles for procurement. However, the names and capabilities of these roles will be different. IC Marketplace Browsers will become Requestors, and IC Marketplace Buyers will become Preparers.

Requestor – All users of the Procurement tool are Requestors. They can browse catalogs, build a shopping cart, create a requisition, enter General Ledger account information, and submit a requisition to a Preparer.

Preparer – This role will be limited to a smaller number of users. Preparers will review and submit requisitions into the approval chain, and have the ability to create a requisition on behalf of another user.

Updated Approval Process

The approval chain for orders in IC Finance Cloud will be determined by the department codes of the accounts being charged. For each department code in the General Ledger, there will be one associated Cost Center Manager. This employee will oversee all procurement activity charged to accounts with their associated department code(s). All orders will go to the Cost Center Manager for first approval before going out to vendors. Based on dollar amount, orders will also go through a Supervisor Hierarchy, beginning with the Cost Center Manager’s Supervisor. More information on this hierarchy and the dollar thresholds for approvals will be provided in end user training.

  Proactive Approach to Procurement

One of our main goals when transitioning to the IC Finance Cloud system will be to shift as much of our spending as possible to the purchase order process using the Procurement module, and to have the invoicing process be viewed more as an exception. This aligns with our goal of moving toward a zero-based approach to budgeting and a more planful allocation of funds. After we begin using IC Finance Cloud, EZ Pay will no longer be available as an invoicing tool. More details on the invoicing process in IC Finance Cloud will be provided alongside forthcoming information on the Accounts Payable module.