A new cloud-based purchasing system for professors and other Ohio Wesleyan University employees is set to replace the current system by July 1.
The system, “BishopBuy,” was designed by SciQuest Inc. and will create an automated online domain for shopping, placing purchase orders, check requests, change orders, budget transfers and more. It is said to enhance the all-around purchasing experience of the employees at OWU.
“Our current system is for entering online requisitions only,” said purchasing coordinator Melanie Kalb. “This system is also cloud-based and will work with any browser. This a great benefit to those working from multiple offices.”
A shopping cart application will be used that allows users to connect with other shopping websites, browse catalogs of items used for each respective department and purchase items with their purchasing cards (PCards).
The site has been worked on by a team of 30 people for 20 weeks beginning in October. BishopBuy has been tested by multiple focus groups during its development.
BishopBuy is a shared purchasing system between Ohio Wesleyan and the other Ohio Five schools: Denison University, Kenyon College, College of Wooster and Oberlin College.
According to the frequently asked questions, “A shared system allows us to leverage our combined purchasing power for better discounts.”
The fact that the system is shared enabled a collective purchase between the Ohio Five schools from SciQuest, meaning the software is even more cost efficient. A grant from Carnegie Mellon University lowered the price even further.
Dan Hitchell, vice president for finance and administration, explained in an email sent out to OWU employees that training for BishopBuy would begin during the first week of March. He went on to say that the target date for training completion was June 1, the day that BishopBuy will replace the current system.
Hitchell was unavailable to comment on BishopBuy.
Though training has allegedly begun, some OWU professors and employees are still unaware that a new purchasing system even exists.
When asked about BishopBuy, several professors and secretaries declined to comment on the grounds that they did not yet feel comfortable enough based on their current knowledge of the system. Others didn’t even know there was going to be a change.
Either way BishopBuy will go into full effect at the beginning of the new fiscal year on June 1.