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System Access & Training

Please note, we are working on updating or adding more training videos and resources for the following systems and cards.

For guidance on selecting between using the PantherExpress System and the OneCard, review this payment methods comparison table or contact Customer Service. Note any qualifiers, such as "in travel status."

Purchasing Fundamentals 

An introductory course designed to help new staff and faculty become familiar with the big picture of purchasing here at the University, which includes your purchasing responsibilities as defined by purchasing policies and procedures, essential purchasing information, and the support options offered by the Purchase, Pay & Travel System, Purchasing Services, Strategic Sourcing and PantherExpress System Solutions, and Payment Processing & Compliance.

Visit this page to access the Purchasing Fundamentals page on the PantherExpress System SharePoint site; this page contains all of the Purchasing Fundamentals training material for reference. Note: PittPassport SSO is required to access this training.

PantherExpress System

The PantherExpress System is the cloud-based purchasing tool and preferred procurement and payment mechanism for most goods and services purchased at the University. More information about the PantherExpress System can be found on the SharePoint site.

User Role Descriptions

Shopper ONLY – A shopper can search the hosted catalogs and vendor punchouts, and place items into a shopping cart. The shopper DOES NOT have the ability to apply an account number to an order. The cart and its contents will be sent to the designated Account Assigner(s) to review the order, attach the appropriate account information, and submit the order to the Departmental Approval workflow. NOTE: Shoppers WILL NOT be given access to the Specialty or Standard Forms.

Department Buyer – A Department Buyer can search the hosted catalogs and vendor punchouts, place items into shopping carts, and submit the orders to the supplier for fulfillment. Buyers can and must attach an account number to their orders. A dollar Spending Limit is required and can be indicated as Level 1 ($0), Level 2 ($500), Level 3 ($5,000), or Level 4 ($15,000). Standard Forms Access will provide the buyer with additional access to the Non-Catalog, Blanket/Standing Order, and USD/Quote forms. Specialty Forms Access will provide the Buyer with access to the Contract Payment form, Dues/Memberships, Other Payment Request, Refunds, Research Sub-Contract, Short Form Services Agreement, and Software Agreement Payment form.

Specialty Forms ONLY – The Specialty Forms ONLY role will provide the user with the ability to access and use the Specialty Forms (Contract Payment form, Dues/Memberships, Other Payment Request, Refunds, Research Sub-Contract, Short Form Services Agreement, and Software Agreement Payment form). The Specialty Forms ONLY role does NOT provide the user with buying abilities, nor will they have any access to punchouts, hosted catalogs, or standard forms. Any transaction placed will go to the specialty forms approver that is listed on the form.

Specialty Forms Approver – A Specialty Forms Approver reviews and approves orders submitted on a specialty form (Contract Payment form, Dues/Memberships, Other Payment Request, Refunds, Research Sub-Contract, Short Form Services Agreement, and Software Agreement Payment form) by buyers and Specialty Forms ONLY users.

Department Approver/Account Assigner – An Approver reviews and approves orders submitted by Shoppers and Department Buyers. Users who are only Approvers do not have the ability to purchase items. If you plan to both approve and purchase items for yourself and others, you must indicate that you will be both an Approver and Department Buyer. Additionally, a Department Approval Form must be filled out and submitted to indicate the codes for which you will be granted approving authority. To access the form, click HERE. Note: The form must be downloaded to access the editable fields.

Contract Requester – A Contract Requester can request any of the contracts available in Contracts +. A contract requester completes fields, answers questions, and attaches the appropriate required contract documents on the Contact Request form and submits it for approval. Contract requesters can request the creation of a new contract, the modification of an existing contract, and the termination of an existing contract.

Contract Request Approver – A Contract Request Approver reviews and approves contract requests made by Contract Requesters. Each approver will be required to review the content of the request, make any required changes, then select an action to perform. The contract request approver is also the specialty forms approver for the contract requester.

Requesting Access

PantherExpress is an enterprise-wide purchasing and financial system that permits users to purchase items against university accounts. Accordingly, PantherExpress is mandated to follow University of Pittsburgh policies that govern user access to the system, including Computer Access and Use Policy AO 10 and University Administrative Computer Data Security and Privacy Policy AO 35. Adherence to this policy is overseen by the University's Internal Auditing Department and is subject to review by internal and external entities, as well as the NIH.

Each person requiring access to PantherExpress must register for a unique user account. Group accounts cannot be created.

To gain access to the PantherExpress System you must:

  1. Complete the User Profile Form. PittPassport SSO is required to access this form. 
    • Download the form before filling in editable fields to avoid any limitations from the browser preview of the form.
    • Submit to PantherExpress System Solutions
  2.  Submit a conflict of interest disclosure through MyDisclosures to comply with University Policy FN 06.
  3. Complete the required role-based training via Pitt Worx Learning
    • You will be enrolled in the required course(s) based on the role(s) you selected on the User Profile Form. Users will receive an enrollment notification.
  4. Department Approvers must also submit the Department Approval Form. PittPassport SSO is required to access this form.
Training Resources

PantherExpress System SharePoint site 

  • Role-based Quick Reference Guides for Department Shopper, Department Buyer, Department Approver, and Specialty Forms.
Transfer or Termination of Employment

Transfer

The PantherExpress System syncs with the University’s employee record. Users who transfer from one department to another will have their user roles (permissions) from the former department removed after their employee record updates. If the individual will be purchasing for their new department, they must submit a new User Profile Form with the proper department signatures to have their user roles activated and their account codes updated to their new department’s requirements.

PantherExpress System users with the same user roles who took training within 1 year of changing departments are not required to complete further training. Requesting different roles or access may require additional training.

Termination

When an individual leaves the University, they lose access to the system when their University account (employee record) is terminated. This will inactivate their account and remove all applicable roles in the PantherExpress System.

OneCard

The OneCard is available to all faculty and staff and works in conjunction with Concur and Anthony Travel to provide you with convenient, hassle-free Travel and Expense Management.  

The OneCard is the preferred payment method for all purchases related to booking or while in travel status. It is also used for the purchase of goods only when purchase through PantherExpress is not possible. 

More information about OneCard can be found on this page. 

Obtaining a OneCard

Step 1: Complete a Required Training Module 

If you have received departmental approval to obtain a OneCard, the first step is to complete the required training within the Pitt Worx Learning LMS (Learning Management System). Access the system by logging into your Pitt Worx account, navigate to the Learning App found under the “Me” tab, then open the Course Calendar located on the bottom left. Search the Course Calendar for and complete the following course: OneCard Policies & Procedures for New Card Holders. For assistance navigating Pitt Worx Learning, review these available guides. 

Step 2: Complete and Submit a OneCard Application 

A link to the OneCard application will be available at the end of the required training module. This electronic form does all the work of routing signatures for you so there is no need to print out the form. You will need your responsibility center number to complete the form. 

Step 3: Complete OneCard Agreement 

Upon successful completion of the training module, you will receive a link to the DocuSign Agreement from the Credit Card administrator via email. The OneCard Agreement requires two signatures – the cardholder’s signature, and the cardholder’s supervisor’s signature. For faculty, the second signer would be a business manager.

Step 4: Receiving your OneCard 

After you have successfully completed training and turned in a completed OneCard agreement Form, please allow one week for delivery of your card to the address provided in your application. It is recommended that applicants use their home address for card delivery on the application, as experience has shown that cards can sometimes be lost in the mail if sent to campus addresses.

Step 5: Read the Commercial Documents 

Your Charge Card (“Commercial  Card”) is issued by JP Morgan. Please read all documentation that they send with your card. This Agreement, as modified from time to time, governs your use of the Commercial Card and the Account ("Cardholder Account") issued in connection with the Commercial Card. 

Training
  • Training for new cardholders: If you have departmental approval to obtain a OneCard, please follow the steps listed above, under Obtaining a OneCard.
  • Training for Software purchasers: Certain types of software, as defined on this page under "Exceptions", can be purchased on a OneCard by cardholders who have completed the following course in the Pitt Worx LMS (Learning Management System): OneCard Policies & Procedures for Software Purchase. This training is required to be taken annually. For assistance navigating Pitt Worx Learning, review these available guides.
Training Resources

Concur for Travel & Expense Management

The Concur cloud application is used for booking travel through the booking tool as well as reconciling and submitting all travel and business expense reports. All University OneCard charges must be reconciled in the Concur expense management system. This system should also be used for any non-OneCard expenses that are travel-related, including purchases while in travel status, as well as business entertainment expenses, such as hosting conferences or special events.

Visit this page for more information about the Concur system.

Access

Logging into Concur

To access Concur, go to my.pitt.edu and search for Concur.

Getting Started with Concur

  • Verify your name. It must match your government issued photo ID which you will present to airport security.
  • Verify Pitt and other email addresses
  • Enable e-Receipts option
  • Add delegates and travel arrangers that will help administer your travel
  • Establish a Mobile PIN and install the Concur, ExpenseIt and TripIt mobile apps
  • Activate your TripIt Pro subscription
Training

Reference Guides

Visit the Concur Travel & Expense Sharepoint site.

New Concur UI

On Friday, February 28, 2025, Concur upgraded its travel and business expense software to a new user interface (UI), the New Version of Travel. Please review the following available Concur training resources addressing the new UI: 

Vincent Payment Solutions™

Vincent Payment Solutions™ is the University’s payment solution for medical study participants and other applicable individuals. Vincent Payment Solutions™ allows for the issuance of non-personalized, re-loadable, MasterCard-branded, stored value cards.

Vincent Payment Solutions™ offers a flexible methodology to execute payments to individuals outside of a traditional Accounts Payable vendor structure. Payments using Vincent Payment Solutions™ are made in a controlled, auditable environment with minimal risk and exposure to staff or clients. More information about Vincent Payment Solutions™ and paying research participants or individuals can be found here.

Access
  • Pitt employees - Send the following documentation as a pdf to: PittVincentAccess@pitt.edu and then complete the required training.
    • User Access Request Form –  All fields are required, unless labeled optional. 
      • The form must be signed by the applicant and an Authorized Department signer.
      • Digital signatures are permitted. You can find direction on digital signatures here.
      • Approval for delegated Authorized Department signature is granted only by a VincentPay Director within Pitt’s Office of the Treasurer.
    • Pitt ID Copy, or if employed elsewhere, a copy of ID from that employer.
  • Non-Pitt employees - Must obtain a Pitt User ID before this process may begin. Access to Pitt’s Vincent Payment Solutions™ requires a sponsor and Pitt login ID to enable the PittPassport SSO with multifactor authentication. Must completet he required training once access is provided.
  • Please note: no one will be approved for Vincent Payment Solutions™ access until training is completed. 
  • Undergraduate students are not permitted access to Pitt’s Vincent Payment Solutions™ system.

Logging In to the Vincent Payment Solutions™ System

  • The Vincent Payment Solutions™ system uses the University’s Single Sign-On feature (SSO). To log in to the system, visit pitt.vincentpay.com or search for the Vincent application from my.pitt.edu
  • Vincent Payment Solutions™ will redirect you to sign in with University of Pittsburgh. On the next screen, you will be required to authenticate using your Pitt credentials. If you were already authenticated in the browser you are using, SSO will automatically log you in to Vincent Payment Solutions™ 
Training

Registration is automatic, the link with instructions to the training site will be provided to the candidate once the access documentation described above is completed. No one will be approved for Vincent™ access until training is completed. 

Training Resources