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Vendor Manifest Overview Guide

  • Updated

Overview

This guide teaches you how to use Prism's Vendor Manifest to search for vendors across your entire portfolio, view vendor details and service areas, and create new vendor records without duplicating existing ones. You'll learn to filter vendors by location and services, access vendor profiles to check geographic coverage, and properly add new vendors to the system while associating them with relevant properties.

The Vendor Manifest represents the first time in Prism's history that users can share vendor data across the portfolio without property association restrictions, enabling better vendor consolidation and discovery.

Prerequisites: Required Permissions

Before accessing the Vendor Manifest, ensure you have the following permissions:

  • Can manage vendor manifest - Grants access to view and interact with the vendor manifest
  • Can create vendor companies - Allows creation of new vendor records
  • Edit vendor companies - Enables editing of vendor details (separate from create permissions)
  • Can manage vendor property associations - Allows associating vendors to properties

Note: If you have "create" permissions, you automatically receive "edit" permissions. However, you can have edit permissions without create permissions, allowing some users to modify vendor details without creating new vendors.

Part 1: Accessing the Vendor Manifest

Step 1: Navigate to Vendor Manifest

  • Go to "My Company" in Prism
  • Click on the "Vendor Manifest" tab (located next to "All Companies")

Understanding the Difference

  • All Companies: Shows vendors associated with properties you have access to
  • Vendor Manifest: Shows vendors across the entire portfolio, even if not associated with your properties, enabling portfolio-wide vendor discovery and consolidation

Part 2: Searching and Filtering Vendors

Step 2: Access Filter Options

  • Click on the Filter button to open filtering options

Step 3: Filter by Geographic Location

Countries Served:

  • Select the country where you need vendor services
  • Provides access to vendors outside the US (e.g., Japan, Lebanon)

States Served:

  • Choose the specific state (automatically set to US unless country is changed)
  • Example: Select "New York" if looking for New York-based vendors

Step 4: Filter by Services

  • Services: Select the type of service needed (e.g., "Air Conditioning" for HVAC vendors)
  • This narrows results to vendors offering specific services

Step 5: Filter by Preference Status

  • Preferred Vendor: Toggle to "Yes" to show only preferred vendors
  • This helps consolidate vendor usage across your portfolio and follows company protocols for vendor preferences

Part 3: Reviewing Vendor Details

Step 6: Examine Search Results

  • Review filtered results showing vendors matching your criteria
  • Note the "States Served" column to confirm geographic coverage
  • This replaces property associations in the manifest view

Step 7: Access Detailed Vendor Profile

Click on a vendor name to open their detailed profile and review:

  • Contact details (if available)
  • Properties (only those you have access to)
  • Services offered
  • Custom fields
  • Settings and descriptions

Important: You cannot see contracts, certificates, or property information for properties you don't have access to.

Step 8: Check Areas Served

  • Navigate to the "Areas Served" section within the vendor profile
  • Review states and cities where the vendor operates
  • Use this to confirm the vendor can service your specific location
  • View detailed geographic coverage beyond basic state information

Part 4: Creating New Vendor Records

Step 9: Search Before Creating (Type-Ahead Prevention)

  • Click "Create Vendor Company"
  • Begin typing the vendor name
  • The system shows existing vendors with similar names to prevent duplicates
  • This type-ahead search shows vendors across the entire account portfolio

Step 10A: Use Existing Vendor (If Found)

If the vendor already exists:

  • Click "Include" next to the existing vendor
  • Select the properties where you want to associate this vendor
  • Complete any required fields
  • Click "Save Company"

Step 10B: Create New Vendor (If Not Found)

If creating a truly new vendor:

  • Continue with the new vendor name
  • Fill in vendor details
  • Note: Property associations are now optional
  • Set preferred status if applicable
  • Click "Create Company"

Important: Vendors created without property associations won't appear in "All Companies" until associated with properties.

Part 5: Managing Vendor Geographic Coverage

Step 11: Add Areas Served

  • Access the vendor profile you want to update
  • Go to "Areas Served" section
  • Add states or countries where the vendor can provide services
  • This information helps other users find vendors for their locations
  • You can add coverage areas even without property associations in those locations

Step 12: Property Associations (Optional)

  • Navigate to "Property Associations"
  • Select properties where this vendor will be used
  • Automatic Population: When properties are added, cities are automatically populated in Areas Served
  • Click "Save" to confirm changes

Step 13: Managing Large Geographic Areas

  • The system displays three cities per state initially
  • Click "More" to see additional cities in that state
  • No limit on the number of cities you can associate with a vendor
  • Add new geographic coverage manually for areas where you don't yet have properties

Key Benefits and Features

Portfolio-Wide Vendor Sharing

  • Access vendors used across the entire portfolio, not just your properties
  • First-time capability in Prism to share data without property association restrictions

Vendor Consolidation

  • Reduce duplicate vendors and standardize usage across the portfolio
  • Type-ahead search prevents creating duplicate vendor records
  • Preferred vendor functionality helps consolidate vendor usage

Geographic Insights

  • Clear visibility into vendor service areas through "Areas Served"
  • Detailed city-level coverage information
  • Ability to indicate potential service coverage beyond current property associations

Enhanced Search and Filtering

  • Filter by countries, states, services, and preference status
  • Advanced geographic filtering capabilities
  • Custom field integration for organization-specific filtering

Important Notes and Limitations

Data Privacy and Access

  • Property-specific information (contracts, certificates) remains restricted to users with property access
  • Only properties you have access to are visible in vendor profiles
  • Contact information and service details are shared across the portfolio

Vendor Visibility

  • Vendors created without property associations won't appear in "All Companies"
  • Areas served can be managed independently of property associations
  • Geographic coverage indicates potential service areas, not just current associations

Automatic Data Population

  • Cities are automatically added to "Areas Served" when properties in those cities are associated
  • States and countries can be added manually to indicate service capability
  • System prevents data duplication through intelligent automation

Best Practices

  • Search Before Creating: Always use the type-ahead search to check for existing vendors before creating new ones
  • Use Specific Filters: Combine location, service, and preference filters for targeted results
  • Maintain Geographic Data: Regularly update "Areas Served" to help other users discover vendors
  • Leverage Preferred Status: Use preferred vendor functionality to consolidate portfolio usage
  • Check Coverage Details: Review detailed geographic coverage before contacting vendors
 

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