Department Digest - Yale Finance Buying Team

The Buying team consists of buyers and purchasing assistants who manage the day-to-day operations for goods and services across the university. The team also assists in connecting stakeholders with subject matter experts in Procurement for RFP’s, contract review, policy questions, and data analytics.

What work does your team focus on?  

Our team focuses on helping people where to get started purchasing services or goods.  Additionally, we review Workday Requisitions and approximately 10,000 + Purchasing Intake cases annually in the following areas:     

• Purchasing a good/service; RFP’s & RFI’s
• Contract/agreement discussions, reviews, signature requests
• Policy and procedure interpretation assistance
• Help in completing forms such as, Sole Source, ICE, Comparative Bid Forms
• Data analysis requests
• Issues with suppliers
• Closing POs

What have been some of your team’s biggest accomplishments?

Essentially the Buying Team is brand new.  We’ve onboarded three new buyers and two purchasing assistants to support the increase in Intake Portal request. The entire team exemplifies teamwork, initiative, and adaptability that has exceeded expectations. The team exudes such a positive work culture and, because of them, we’ve established a reputation of being the “fun aisle.”

What projects are you looking forward to in the coming year?

We are about to start our second year-end of the Intake Portal. Looking forward to seeing how work evolves, what Yale templates (agreements) develop out of the categories and any new challenges that come our way.  I’m sure it will keep us on our toes. The Intake Portal sees something unusual almost every day.

Is there anything else you would like to include about you or your team? 

The Buying Team goes above and beyond the status quo to ensure a seamless purchasing experience.  We hope our optimistic spirit spreads like wildfire and inspires those around us in Finance and the university.