Business Procedures Tips
General
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Have a Business Procedures Tip to share? Please send it to Bob Miller.
If an approved off-campus caterer is used and the food is only dropped-off (the caterer does not set-up anything), the 10% surcharge should not be charged to the department. The 10% surcharge is only applicable when the caterer performs duties in addition to bringing the prepared food to the designated location.
Please make sure the Business Purpose listed on BEFs lists the business purpose of the event, not a specific action of the event. Also, please include a meeting agenda with the BEF.
Example: The [name of student group] retreat provided operational and risk management training to enhance daily work and improve skills. To maximize time, lunch was provided during the one-day retreat and was complemented by a networking skills exercise during lunch.
An example not to use is: [Name of staff member] purchased food for [X event]. (This doesn’t provide a business purpose for the event.)
Tips for success with Business Expense Forms (BEFs)
• Please make sure the number of attendees is included on all BEFs so the cost per attendee properly
calculates. Please do not submit a BEF with "infinity" as the cost per attendee. (It will default to that
if the number of attendees section is left blank.)
• Please do not list "open to the entire student body" – please use a realistic estimate.
• If you buy a specific quantity of something (say 500 t-shirts at $3.00 each) for giveaways at a
student event (like Roadrunner Days) and at the end of the event, all of the t-shirts have been
distributed, but you’ve had 850 attendees, in this BEF’s case the number of attendees is 500, not
850 because 500 people each got one shirt with a per-person cost of $3.00 (850 people did not
share 500 shirts at a per-person cost of $1.76).
• Please provide names (first name and last name) and titles (business affiliations) for participants for groups up to 100
student participants. Names are not required for student groups greater than 100. For staff and faculty participants,
business affiliations are required – please use both first and last names. (e.g. Bob Miller, Edna Dominguez, and Jackie
Hobson not Bob, Edna, and Jackie)
• For more information about BEFs, please visit
www.utsa.edu/financialaffairs/Forms/disbursements/BEFinstructions.pdf
On a daily basis, we receive meeting requests and invitations to various business meetings and official functions. Most of the time, we are asked to RSVP so an accurate count can be established for determining quantities for handouts, food, beverages, seating, etc. What does RSVP mean?
RSVP is a French abbreviation for répondez, s'il vous plaît, or "respond, please." It is frequently used in business settings for a response to functions.
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RSVP: "Ré́pondez s'il vous plaît," a French phrase that translates to "please respond" or "respond if you'd please" and word for word means "respond if it pleases you."[1] It is with this meaning that invitation cards and similar documents are often marked with "RSVP." In Western and European culture, not replying to an RSVP request, whether confirming attendance or declining it, is often considered rude.
[1] "répondez s'il vous plaît" Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. 2008. Merriam-Webster Online. 29 June 2008 http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/repondez%20s'il%20vous%20plait
• Where possible, please do process BEFs, etc., as early as possible.
• When routing BEFs (whether early or with normal routing), as always, please include back-up documentation (invoice/quote, PO, etc.) so the BEF can be approved. (BEFs cannot be approved nor routed forward without back-up documentation.)
• If BEFs are for future service, but are being completed around the end of August/first part of September, these can be routed for approval, but should not be sent to Disbursements until closer to the service dates*. VPSA will return approved BEFs to the department after they are approved by VPSA and then the department can send these to Disbursements closer to the service dates.
* Disbursements has many transactions occurring during end-of-year processing, so we don't want to add paperwork at that very busy time for service that is not in the immediate future. We do not want business to be "held" at any time of year, but special considerations should be given during fiscal year-end.
As always, Jackie and I are here to help. Please call or email us with any questions. It is our pleasure to work with you to make your business items route smoothly and efficiently. Have a great fiscal year!
Recent additions to UTSA’s building inventory have been added to the HR Building Code table in DEFINE. Following are the new buildings and their codes:
BUILDING CODE
University Heights Tech Center IV UH4
University Center III UC3
Engineering Building II EB2
South Thermal Energy Plant STP
You may update the employee records for those employees who have moved to these new buildings using either DEFINE (EI1 command) or via UT Direct to reflect their correct locations. If you have any questions, Cheryl Nunn can be reached by email or phone x4649.
Please check names and titles on forms (such as Business Expense Forms) when you have pre-loaded titles into the documents. If you have pre-loaded your forms with titles, make sure if another individual signs that the title is updated. Returning forms to departments causes delays in processing.
Business Procedures Tip submitted by Nikki Lee in the Events Management and Conference Services Office.
If you have a Business Procedures Tip to submit, please email Bob Miller.
The Events Management and Conference Services Office oversees permission for faculty/staff/students to sell food/items on campus. We are the point of contact for all events like this request. We will be happy to assist anyone directly regarding food sales.
All outdoor space should be requested as a table space through our online request form found at www.utsa.edu/uctr/events, to include location, type of item sold, $ of item, where it is coming from, etc.
All drinks must be Pepsi products
Tables can either be ordered through a Facilities Work Order (cost incurred) or requested through the above reservation and picked up from the EMCS office (UC 1.04.02).
Table locations selling food cannot be placed blocking walkways or near Aramark locations (see map attached).
If selling a food not purchased from an establishment with a food permit, or cooking/handling raw food, a health permit is required to be purchased from the San Antonio Metro Health Department
Sandtraps and trash cans are required from Facilities Services for all bbq pits. Once the reservation is sent to EMCS, we will notify if the health permit is necessary.Pot Luck items cannot be sold or distributed on campus.
All policies may be found at pertaining to Grounds Use, Solicitation and Safety http://utsa.edu/hop/chapter8/
Please call us at 458-4155 with any questions regarding events on campus and we’ll be happy to help!
2009 Pad Map Food Service Restricted Area (pdf)
Save time and save resources by going paperless! Utilize the non-payroll direct deposit option for reimbursements from UTSA to you. Please complete this form and return it via campus mail (or by fax to x4829) to Dorothy Cheatham in Disbursements.
This Business Procedures Tip was submitted by Deby Bailey in UTSA’s Disbursements and Travel Management Office.
Please note the new general BEF (posted 08.11.10) and operational guidelines as related to the new BEF. Thanks.
http://www.utsa.edu/financialaffairs/forms/details.cfm?form_number=2
Because there have been recent changes and updates to forms, it’s always best to go to www.utsa.edu/financialaffairs/forms
<< Back to the Business Procedures Tips Archive
Have a Business Procedures Tip to share? Please send it to Bob Miller.