Suppliers

The Supplier Management Team at the University of Arkansas, in collaboration with the UA System Office, manages the supplier onboarding process using the PaymentWorks Platform.  This process is essential for establishing a secure method of identifying suppliers, eliminating the potential for business payment fraud, and supports the procure-to-pay workflow by enabling secure supplier authentication and digital documentation of payee details. 

PaymentWorks

Effective October 2022, supplier management will be handled through PaymentWorks.  

What is PaymentWorks?

  • PaymentWorks is a digital supplier onboarding platform used by the University of Arkansas.
  • PaymentWorks streamlines the procurement process by enabling secure supplier verification and digitized payee information.
  • Suppliers must be invited by the university to register through PaymentWorks to establish a Supplier Account.

How Does It Work?

  • Streamlines supplier onboarding by providing instant verification, automating communication, and simplifying data collection.
  • Through this process, suppliers will submit their identity which is then automatically verified against third-party data sources.
  • Upon completion and approval by all responsible parties, the supplier will be accessible in Workday.

Who's Responsible?

  • University Employees (faculty/staff) - Responsible for inviting new suppliers to register in PaymentWorks and assist their suppliers through the online process to become a verified supplier for the university. UA employees will initiate an invitation to the supplier via PaymentWorks.
  • Suppliers - Responsible for submitting an initial registration as well as maintaining and updating their profile information via PaymentWorks.  Suppliers will receive an email from PaymentWorks inviting them to register and enter all of their information safely and securely.
  • PaymentWorks - Responsible for verifiying or validating supplier information, to protect the UA System from any potential fraud and mitigate compliance risks.
  • Supplier Management Team - Responsible for determining additional vetting and internal approval of a supplier.  After the PaymentWorks verification is complete, the supplier’s information is routed to UA Supplier Management Services for internal  review and approval.
  • UA System Office - Responsible for final approval and transmission of supplier account to Workday. After Supplier Management approval, the supplier's information is routed to UA System Office for final approval and assigned a Supplier ID number in Workday. 
  • PaymentWorks Support - Suppliers should contact  PaymentWorks Support with questions regarding use of the PaymentWorks platform.

How should Suppliers prepare?

What's the Benefit?

  • PaymentWorks Security Measures:
    • Provides enhanced supplier data security and leverages efficiencies while ensuring UA and suppliers are protected.
    • All data is encrypted both in transit and at rest, adhering to strict data protection and privacy protocols.
    • Leverages automated processes and a two-factor authentication process to minimize risk of fraud and errors before payment processing.
  • Provides reliable verification to aid UA Supplier Management Team approvals. 
  • All supplier requests require the verification and approval process before available for use in Workday.
  • Available for both new and existing suppliers and allows suppliers already verified in PaymentWorks to update their information.

Questions? (For Employee Access)

  • UAF-PaymentWorks Sharepoint Site - sign in for additional information.
  • Invitation and Vendor Registration Status Explanations
  • A supplier that registered through PaymentWorks will show as "PaymentWorks Connected" supplier group in Workday.
    • To see this, simply type the supplier name in your search bar in Workday to see the supplier account overview.
    • OR, run the "Find Suppliers" report and filter by Supplier Group for "PaymentWorks Connected" to search for suppliers that were established through PaymentWorks.
  • Visit the IT Help Portal (Cherwell) and submit a ticket to request access to PaymentWorks. 
    • Request access - create a ticket in the IT Help Portal (add "Payment Works Access Request" to the Short Description)
    • Trouble accessing? - refresh your browser or restart your computer. 
      • If the issue persists, create a ticket in the IT Help Portal, (add "PaymentWorks Access Issue" to the Short Description).

Supplier Defined:

  • A supplier is a person or entity who provides goods or services to the institution or general public.  The goods or services provided by a supplier may be needed to support our institutions daily operations and primary objectives but do not typically overlap with duties/responsibilities generally assigned to employees.   
  • Before submitting invitations to suppliers please ask the following questions: 
    1. If a person, will the person be teaching in any capacity?
      • A request for adding such person to the system should be directed to Human Resources Compensation via Help Ticket.
    2. If a person, is the person a current UA employee or has the person worked as a state employee within the last year?
    3. If a person or a company, is there any relation to a current or former state or UA employee?  
  • If any of the above questions result in "Yes" then the person or company is considered having a Conflict of Interest (COI) and does not qualify as a supplier.
  • In rare circumstances, a supplier considered to have a Conflict of Interest (COI) may be approved by the Chancellor or his designee through clear explanation of unique circumstances.  That approval must then be provided to the Supplier Team during the Supplier onboarding process.
  • Workday:
    •   Suppliers have been harmonized across the U of A system. Upon UA internal approval of the supplier registration in PaymentWorks, and UA System Office approval and transmission of the supplier account from PaymentWorks to Workday, then the supplier will be accessible in Workday.
    • Workday structures suppliers by the 'primary' name, which is the name associated with the TIN and the name that will display on the screen.  For example, if you type in "Chartwells", the name that will display is "Compass Group USA."  Typing in “Chartwells” and receiving this name back ensures that you have the correct supplier.  We understand this is a training issue for our campus users and hopeful that future releases of Workday will include a modified process.

Bid Opportunities

Questions about bid opportunities?  Visit the Hogbid site.

Trademark Licensing

The University of Arkansas Trademark Licensing program serves to promote, preserve, and protect the use of its name(s), verbiage, and identifying trademarks.  The U of A wishes to maintain association of its trademarks with quality products that are competitively priced by appropriately licensed companies.

For specific information and guidance about the U of A licensing program please visit the University of Arkansas Trademark Licensing Office.

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