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Alma Workflows

This guide will help you learn about all of the different workflows in Alma that are specific to Miami Dade College, Learning Resources.

Overview of Workflow
The purpose of receiving items in Alma is to help you verify that all items invoiced have been shipped by the vendor and successfully arrived at the intended campus destination. Additionally, it can help us to spot billing errors and other problems, such as incorrect editions, processing, and defects that can be resolved by each receiver at each campus. Below is a graphical representation of what our current workflow looks like.

 

Receiving Items

Whenever a package from a vendor is received, you should check to make sure that the items sent match exactly what was invoiced. In addition to this, you also need to receive the item in Alma.

  1. Start by logging in to Alma and selecting your campus Acquisitions Desk, if you have not done so already. For example: Miami Dade/North - North Acquisitions Department. Alma will always ask you when you first login what desk to login to. This is required to receive items. Otherwise, Alma will not know what campus has received the items. If you need to change your desk, you can click on the top right icon to change your desk, as seen below.


    If you are missing the correct acquisitions desk for your campus, please contact aherna19@mdc.edu for assistance.
     
  2. Open the Acquisitions menu from the left bar and select Receive under the Receiving and Invoicing subsection.

     
  3. If you have the correct desk for your campus selected, you will see a list of items that are waiting to be received for your specific campus. You should only be working in the One Time tab, as we do not process subscriptions through this workflow. Before you begin to verify information, always click on Clear all to ensure that you don't have any special filters inadvertently applied. Notice that all items received should be in Sent status, which should be automatically selected by default (if not, change it). Next, ensure that the Received Date at the top right is the correct date, which should reflect the actual date that you physically received the package from the vendor.

     
  4. You can now filter items in multiple ways:
    • Filtering by Invoice (Recommended) - Change the drop-down menu from All to Invoice number. Enter the vendor invoice number and press enter or the search button to see only items for one specific invoice at a time. This is the fastest and safest way to receive items.
    • Filtering by Barcode - Change the drop-down menu from All to Common Fields and scan the item's barcode. This way is slower, but allows you to verify each item, one at a time.
    • Filtering by ISBN (Not Recommended) - This method allows you to search for items by ISBN when all else fails, but you run the risk of arriving the incorrect item, especially if multiple copies have been requested or if there are multiple orders.
    • Filtering by Vendor - This filter should only be used in conjunction with any of the above filters and should not be used by itself. Using it can help you reduce the amount of orders displayed, especially when there are many orders pending arrival. Simply click on Filter by vendor, type the vendor's name from the list ("YBP" or "Midwest"), select the name from the list (usually ending in -EDI) and click on Apply.

       
  5. Next, verify that all of the information is correct by clicking on the POL number and reviewing the Summary tab. Below are some of the most common things to look for:


    Fix any inaccuracies in the order record. If you see any inaccuracies with the item record, you can click on the ellipsis next to the item in the Ordered Items section which will allow you to edit the item record.

     
  6. Next, ensure that the item has associated to an invoice by clicking on the Invoice Lines tab.

     
  7. REQUIRED STEP: If all of the above is correct so far, click on the Description tab. Then, click on the Reload Bib Data and click on and click on Save to save all of the changes. You must complete this step for every single item, regardless of any changes or inaccuracies, so that the order record correctly reflects the most updated Bib data!

     
  8. Finally, you can receive all the items as follows:
    A) In bulk by clicking Receive all on the top (ONLY do this as long as you still have the items filtered by invoice AND you have followed all previous steps above for each item in that invoice)
    B) By selecting specific items AND clicking on C) Receive at the top right or,
    D) By clicking the ellipsis for a specific item, and manually choosing Receive.

  9. The receiving process is now complete and is ready for follow-up tracking for payment of its invoice! Once an item has been received, it cannot be reverted to a previous status.

Marking Items as "Canceled"

When an item is canceled, for any reason, with any vendor, the purchase order line will not automatically update to reflect this. Each receiver must pay close attention of any items that are canceled and must update Alma accordingly using the steps below.

  1. Search for a Purchase Order Line using the persistent search bar at the top of Alma.
  2. Click on the ellipsis and select Cancel from the drop-down menu.

     
  3. Select the reason for cancelation from the drop-down list. If we have canceled the order with the vendor, select Library Canceled. If the vendor has canceled the order, select Vendor Canceled.

     
  4. Optionally, add a cancellation note. Click on Confirm when you are done and the order will be canceled in Alma.