Navigate to the Configuration tab, Vendors page. The screen allows searching for (and maintaining) vendors being used by the system. In order to create or edit any vendor, a list of vendors must first be displayed by searching.

Search results display in the Preferred Vendor Results or the Normal Vendor Results grids.

Preferred Vendors are ones that are identified as being primarily used for a specific service type, whereas normal vendors (non-preferred) are not.

Create a new Vendor by clicking the [+] button in either of the Results grids. As there is no validation in AssignmentPro to detect duplicate vendors, be sure to search for the vendor first, to ensure it is not already entered into AssignmentPro. Update an existing Vendor record by clicking the [Select] button next to a vendor. Doing either will open the Vendor Details screen.

When adding a new vendor, information must first be entered on the General tab in order for additional tabs to appear. This tab captures general details about the vendor itself.

If the image exceeds any of these dimensions when creating the vendor, AssignmentPro displays an error and prevents the upload. If the image exceeds any of these dimensions when updating the logo, AssignmentPro displays a warning only. In Windows, these dimensions can be viewed by looking at a file’s Properties.

If helpful, track information related to payments to the vendor, such as Default Currency, AP Number, and Preferred Payment Method.

Identifies the services the vendor provides. This is used to automatically limit the number of vendors returned for a Service Order. By default, the vendor will be presented in searches where the Service Type the vendor provides matches the Service Order Type identified for the Service Order.

For example, when creating a Service Order for Cross Cultural Training, if Vendor ABC does not have Cross Cultural Training associated as a Service Type, Vendor ABC will not be presented as an available vendor. However, this can be overridden by removing the Service Provided value in the Vendor Search screen and searching again.

Add as many Service Types as appropriate for your vendor, along with the Preference for each. If needed, the Vendor Preference may also be maintained/overridden at the Company level. Navigate to the Company tab, Vendor Preference page. Here you see a list of all Vendors with company level preferences configured, and be able to add additional ones. Once a Vendor is selected, each Service Type configured for that vendor is listed. The Preference may be set as appropriate for the given Company.

If a Vendor is the only one configured with a specific Service Type as <Preferred>, the Vendor will be automatically selected on the Service Order of that service type.

You may set default values for various settings related to service orders for the selected vendor, such as the type of communication and an associated document.

The default service order type is the one the system will default to when you are making a payment. Thus, if you selected multiple Service Types in the previous steps you would need to select one here.

Default Communication is how you plan on typically communicating with this vendor (For example, if a payment had been made or processed.

If you have a document uploaded, you can have it as a default for this specific category to attach to emails.

On the right hand side, Referral Fees can be allocated if you have any to speak of. Notice you can input them either as a currency amount (Fixed Fee) or percentage value (Referral Fee Percentage).

Maintain any referral agreements in this section. Information available to track is as shown below.

A summary of areas covered is listed here. The list is maintained on the Service Area tab.

If Surveys of Type Vendor are configured, and associated with the Service Provided per the Service Oder Settings configuration, collated survey results are available to view. For more information, see the Surveys Manual and Service Management Manual.

Track addresses for the vendor, of various types as needed.

You may maintain banking details for the vendor. Multiple bank accounts can be maintained per vendor.

Each Bank Account allows for three sets of information; Intermediate Bank Information, Final Bank Information, and Further Credit Information.

Note documents on file related to the vendor. For example, the Contract, W-9, or W-8. Document Types can be maintain via Lookup Maintenance.

Maintain key data related to any contracts you may have with this vendor.

If a data feed is defined and configured, when creating a Service Order Note/Communication for the Service Order Type of the appropriate Communication Order Type specified in the configuration for the selected vendor, an option of <Data Feed> is available in the Type drop down list. This will send a record to AssignmentPro’s data feed queue. Self-hosted clients can write a process to grab these records to send to vendors as needed. We strongly recommend integrating with vendors via the Equus Ecosystem, rather than using this Data Feed method. The Equus Ecosystem does not require custom development by client.