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| Reviewed and Revised by Acquisitions | |
|---|---|
| Revision Date |
Below are questions that were sent to the Acq Task Force directly. Since odds are that multiple people are wondering these same things, we're posting them here. Interested in the cross-topic Basecamp Q&A page? Go here. For Acquisitions-specific questions, see below.
REMINDER: If you have any questions regarding doing Acq in Alma (implementing GOBI API or other integrations, or setting up funds, how to handle taxes, etc.) PLEASE POST THEM to the Tech Svcs ULMS Listserv. It benefits the group when we share these things. And nobody knows it all yet, the Acq Task Force included, so let's tap the group's collective knowledge.
Acq FAQ
Q:In the example of a Chancellor's Office "Opt-In" resource, how do you link your local PO Line to an appropriate NZ When adding invoice lines (creating an invoice in Alma), do I have to manually add on the sales tax amount to each PO line if the amount is not included on the vendor invoice? Currently, our Alma PO line does not include sales tax and the invoice line amount on the GOBI invoice shows only the item amount (tax is shown as one total at the bottom of invoice but not per item line). When creating an invoice line, we are manually adding the sales tax amount to each line. Is this the best way?
A: You should look into the "Line Exclusive" VAT type when creating these invoices. The definition of that VAT type is this: "If Line Exclusive is selected, the invoice's total amount includes the VAT (similar to Inclusive), but the invoice line’s prices do not." If your Gobi invoices are like ours, then the line items don't include tax; it is applied separately and shown at the bottom, along with whatever tax percentage you have set up with YBP.
So in your Invoice Details for the Line Exclusive scenario, you would need to add the VAT%, and select the VAT Type of "Line Exclusive". Now, depending upon how your campus does its tax payments, you may want to also check the "Expended from Fund" box for these invoices IF you want the tax to also be paid from each line item's associated fund. This is how we do it, but local practices may have different requirements. In our case (in the 2nd picture below) with a sample YBP invoice, we have 4 separate fund codes, one per line item. The 8.5% tax we'll pay (shown at the bottom of the invoice as GST/Tax) will be paid along with each line item, so the individual funds will handle the item + the tax. But the "Line Exclusive/Expended from Fund" scenario is just one option; your local needs may be different. See below the graphics for links to more info.
Alma tax options are confusing to be sure. We tried to summarize some of the aspects on this wiki page- Tax Payment & Scenarios in Alma . And there are more detailed examples in the ExL documentation at VAT Calculation – Example
Q: In the example of a Chancellor's Office "Opt-In" resource, how do you link your local PO Line to an appropriate NZ record?
A: You can do that via the "Change Bib Reference" function, which would be available when viewing a PO Line in the IZ. The basic steps are:
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From the results, choose the NZ tab to see your network choices and SELECT:
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An Ex Libris Knowledge Center training video (5 minutes) is available here.
Q: We are working on our YBP technical specifications and are confused about which fields we need to map for the GOBI API, EDI invoicing and WCM.
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The procedure document on the Import Profiles for Loading Brief Order Records and WCP into NZ wiki page helps clarify these mapping aspects (Thank you @Marcus Jun & the Import Profiles Task Force.)
Q: When we migrate order records, do the vendors in the orders have to match to active vendors in Alma? Or will they also be able to match to vendors marked as inactive?
A: We (Megan Drake, ExL) have confirmed that vendors do not need to be active in order for the orders to link. Orders will link to both inactive and active vendors.
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Q: We are trying to set up the GOBI API and have questions about the 980 & 981 fields. Do we still use those for invoice information (fund, invoice #, price, etc.)?
A: the OrbisCascade documentation has confused some on this point. At SJSU, the data in these fields was used to inform the Sierra load tables, which then created our order and brief bibs with the right data and statuses. We confirmed with Dan Miller at YBP that this data in the 980/981 is no longer necessary in Alma.
Q: Is the CO going to help fund the GOBI API for campuses?
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Q: Have you discussed how to record vendor’s change Tax IDs? What if a vendor has more than one code? Do you just add a note for the historical code to that vendor record?
A: First, you may want to take a look (if you haven't already) at the Ex Libris doc on Managing Vendors and a 5 minute training video on Vendors.
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In the case of a particular vendor (with change of TIN, for example,) depending on those local CFS supplier rules, the "Additional Code" field in the Vendor Summary Tab could also be used to list an associated TIN, or you could use the Notes Tab to record anything you want about a vendor, including old TINs. These would not be true links where you could use it to click from one vendor record to the other, but could be a way to track those associations.
At SJSU, we will usually update a vendor (rather than create a totally new one and new vendor ID) if the vendor's TIN is the same and it the name or address is just being adjusted. There are cases where we might create a new one if there are a lot of changes at once, but updating seems to be acceptable for most changes to existing vendors.
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There's the option in Alma vendor records to store multiple addresses (and phone #'s, etc.) You can mark one address as "preferred" to function as the default.
If the vendor changes entirely with a new TIN and everything then we would create the new vendor in the system and make the now-defunct vendor "inactive." We will likely use the "Notes" tab to record a connection between the old and new vendors.
Q: How you are handing the fiscal close? When will you close III/Sierra and when will you start using ALMA? Any information and feedback you can provide would be helpful.
A: Some libraries plan on completely closing out the fiscal year early in their soon-to-be-old ILS, and then starting with the new year in Alma sometime after go live, from immediately after to a few months down the road. Some plan not to pay invoices for a while, which might involve notifying vendors/or arranging to get the invoices early to include them before we close this year, etc.
At San Jose, we are in the 3rd group to cutover, so our data will be extracted from Sierra around May 21st or so. We know we won't have absolutely all invoices paid by that time, so we will need to track whatever happens after the extract to update in Alma when we go live. (since we are migrating open orders.) But we are hoping to get as much paid in Sierra as we can, track the rest, and update in Alma as things are received and paid (once we're live.)
We are planning to run Fiscal Close in Sierra during the tech freeze. We will be populating our funds in Alma from scratch, so that's not a problem. Our fund codes are migrating, but no balances.
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