Customer Help Resources

Purchasing Services staff members can provide a unique blend of business, technical, and services skills to assist the campus community in purchasing required supplies, equipment, and services, including the following:

• Interact with suppliers in matters of price, quality, and delivery at both the sourcing and ordering stages of the procurement process
• Identify alternative sources of supply through regular commodity reviews
• Conduct formal negotiations with suppliers
• Assist departments with the development of specifications for required products and services
• Provide acceptable terms and conditions for procurement requirements
• Resolve legal and risk management issues with the aid of the Office of General Counsel and Office of Risk Management and Insurance which may arise during contract and purchase order negotiations

BEN Buys Support

BEN Helps is the enhanced customer support service for users of BEN Financials, the University's business and financial applications. By simply dialing 6-HELP (215-746-4357) and entering your 2-digit School/Center code (the first 2 digits of your CNAC), you can get help with BEN Financials, Travel and BEN Reports.

BEN Knows

BEN Knows is the place to browse and search for possible solutions to your BEN Financials and BEN Reports questions.

BEN Financials Advisories

The Advisories site contains useful suggestions for using BEN Financials. The most recent advisories and tips appear at the top. When a problem has been resolved, RESOLVED and the date will appear in the right hand column for five business days and then the item will be removed from the list and placed into the "Advisories Archive".

Computing Support

Primary computing support for staff is, in most cases, provided by their school, center, or department. If in doubt about whom to contact as your primary computing support provider, call First Call (215-573-4778) for a referral.

Customer Feedback

Purchasing Services is interested in receiving feedback from University faculty and staff regarding our staff, operations, purchasing policies and procedures, authorized buying methods, purchasing initiatives, or supplier performance. Please feel free to provide us with as much detailed information as possible. This will help us to identify and address your issue or concern.

Business Services IDEAweb

IDEAweb provides Penn faculty and staff with the opportunity to submit questions, comments, complaints, or ideas to the various Business Services departments.