Questions and Answers

Q: How do I Login to CUNYfirst (Where I Can Access eProcurement)?

Launch Internet Explorer/Firefox/Safari on your computer screen and type the following address: home.cunyfirst.cuny.edu. Then login with your CUNYfirst Employee ID and password. Select Financials Supply Chain and then select eProcurement.

Q: What do I do if I forget my password?

Select the link that says “Forgot your password?” enter your User ID or Empl ID and then answer the series of questions.

Q: What do I do if I Tried to Create an Account in CUNYfirst and the System doesn’t Recognize Me?

If you are being paid thru non-tax levy you will need to fill out the “Person of Interest” form below and return it to Human Resources.
- POI Position Request Information Sheet

Q: I Would Like to Add Another Requester/Approver to My Department…What do I Need to do?

You will need to fill out a User Access Request Form below:
- Request form.

Q: Where can I find Job Aids (illustrated how-to sheets) for eProcurement?

You can also find links to the Job Aids by clicking here

Q: What are the Enterprise Learning Management tutorials?

eProcurement online tutorials are animated, narrated, interactive video clips that you can run and watch on your own. The tutorials are same tools used by the TTTs...the same people who teach the training classes. Tutorials are designed to help you learn, or just give you a refresher, on how to use the eProcurement online system software. They walk you through individual tasks.

Q: What is eProcurement?

PeopleSoft eProcurement (aka ePro) is a web-based ordering system that CUNY employees use to buy certain goods and services. eProcurement has replaced our old purchasing system known as WebPurchasing. Through eProcurement, we can order things like books, computers, food, custodial supplies, furniture, etc.

With ePro, you use a computer to create requisitions online. You create the electronic requisition by choosing items to order, and placing those items in your shopping cart. You submit the requisition electronically to your Approver to be approved and processed, once the budget has been checked successfully a Purchase Order will be created. Your Approver is your Department Head or other supervisory manager listed by Human Resources. ePro also provides ways in which you can track your requisition orders to see what is happening with them after you submit them.

Before you can begin to use eProcurement, you need to attend one of the eProcurement training classes.

Q: What is a Worklist?

A Worklist is an online web page in eProcurement where requisitions submitted to a Department Head (like a Supervisor, Director or Vice President) are routed to be approved for processing. The requisitions appear on the Worklist web page in a list, and can be clicked on to be opened for viewing, approving, and/or denying.

It's the Approver's responsibility to check his/her own Worklist on a regular basis (at least once or twice a week), to either approve or deny things that were submitted. Approvers can only access their own Worklists...they don't have access to anyone else's Worklist.

Q: What is Budget Checking in eProcurement?

Budget-checking in eProcurement is the process whereby a chosen budget account is accessed, and funds from that budget account are pre-encumbered for a specific ePro requisition order. Budget-checking is run automatically within CUNYfirst.

When money is pre-encumbered, it means that the money needed to pay for all the items on a specific requisition is removed from the available funds in the budget account, and "saved" or "attached" to the requisition. This is done so that when the time comes for the district to pay the bill for that requisition, the money is already there, in place, and there is no danger that there won't be enough funds in the budget account to cover the cost.

An ePro requisition cannot be submitted unless it has passed the budget-checking process, and has received a "Valid" budget status (meaning that the money is there, and available).

Q: What do I do if I get a Budget Error?

If you receive a budget error when you try to budget-check an eProcurement requisition order it means one of the following:
A) There isn't enough money in a budget you are trying to use to pay for something;
B) A budget you are trying to use is inactive and needs to be activated.

If the problem is A or B, you must notify a Budget Analyst who can resolve the problem. Budget errors are discussed in the eProcurement training classes, since you are most likely to get such an error while creating an ePro requisition.

Q: Where can I Find Help Specifically for Budgets?

You can call the Budget Department at (718) 482-5509. A knowledgeable person in the Budget Department will answer the phone and assist you with budget-related questions.

Q: How do I Approve an eProcurement (ePro) Requisition?

Only designated Approvers are allowed to approve ePro requisitions. Basically, all an Approver needs to do is to:
1. Go to https://home.cunyfirst.cuny.edu.
2. Sign in with your Employee ID and password.
3. Navigate to the PeopleSoft Financials Supply Chain link.
4. Click your Worklist link to view your worklist web page.
5. Locate the requisition you want to approve in the list you'll see, and click it.
6. View the entire requisition to ensure it is correct.
7. Click the Approve button.

Q: ePro Requisition Still Pending After Approval?

Sometimes after a Department Approver approves a requisition it still appears to have a "Pending" status in the Approver's Worklist. It can also show a status of Pending in the Manage Requisitions page of the person who created and submitted it. If this happens it usually means that the ePro requisition requires an additional Approver to approve it. Only after all required approvals are completed will the ePro requisition show a status of "Approved."

Q: I’m Unable to Edit My ePro Requisition...Now What?

In order to edit an eProcurement requisition you must be able to see and click on the "Edit Requisition" choice for that requisition, in its Select Action drop-down menu, in the Manage Requisitions page. If the Edit Requisition choice is not there in the drop-down menu, it's because it is too late to edit that requisition.

On that same Manage Requisitions page you can view the Status column and see what's going on with the requisition. If the requisition has been approved and has already become a purchase order (the status column will say "P.O." in it) then you cannot edit the requisition...it's too late.

Q: I Can't Find Items in eProcurement Catalogs?

Some users are having difficulty finding what they want to order when they search the preset lists of items in the ePro online Catalogs. There is more than one way to locate items to order. Try these methods before calling for help.
- Method 1 - Try different keyword that’s closely related to the item; i.e. instead of laptop try computer.
- Method 2 - Change Keyword Search: Try changing the keyword to a plural version of the word, or vice versa (from plural to singular); i.e. office supply to office supplies.
- Method 3 - Place a % in front of and/or in back of the keyword you are using to search. The % is a wildcard and will help you find what you are looking for; i.e. %comm% = Accommodation, Commercial
- Method 4 - Type only the first three letters of the keyword, instead of the whole word; i.e. “Com” = Computer, Commercial

Q: Where do I see the status of my requisition?

Navigate to eProcurement >> Manage Requisitions. If you can’t find your requisition, use the search fields to expand or narrow your search. Once you locate your requisition, use the small triangle to the left of the requisition ID to expand the requisition and from there, you can look up approvals, PO statuses and invoice payments (whichever is >eligible).

Q: My requisition has been approved (I got an email saying it has been) but I still do not see a PO for it. What happened?

Look up the budget status on the manage requisitions page. It is likely that your requisition failed budget check. The budget office will be working on budget failures and if it is urgent, please contact them to find a resolution for the issue.

Q: What is a template?

A template is nothing but a fully saved requisition for repeated use. Example: You want to order the same type of item every month except for a few changes. In that case, savethe first requisition you make as a template and then use that for making future requisitions. Use the PEP2 document (beginning page 25) on how to enter requisition from templates. After requisitions are created from templates, you can go ahead and change any information you need (such as vendor, item category, descriptions, quantities, comments, etc)

Q: What is a favorite?

A favorite is a line item that you have added to your favorites. Favorites may not have accounting information in them so you still need to put in accounting information for the lines that you add from favorites. The favorites are tied to vendor, item category, and item description. You still need to add the remaining fields.

Q: After I create a requisition from a template, can I add more lines to it?

Yes. Use the “Add items and services” link and then use a special request or favorite (whichever you need) to add more lines to a requisition loaded from a template. Note that you need to populate accounting information for these additional lines (or at least, verify that accounting is correct).