All electronic financial systems at Carleton implicitly utilize Fund-Orgn security. This means that to view or create a transaction against any FOAPAL, a user must have the appropriate level of authority to successfully pass the security checks. There are three types of authority:
Query: This level of authority only allows the user to view transactional details in FAST Finance Reporting. The individual cannot commit any funds on behalf of the fund holder and cannot use the fund and/or orgn for any electronic transactions, such as those for FAST Purchasing Card reconciliations or Web Requisitioning transactions.
Signing: Signing authority on a research fund can only be granted by the owner or Principal Investigator of the fund, and must be done using a Delegation of Authority Form found on the Finance website. This level of authority means the individual can make purchases or commit funds without the permission of the fund owner, create electronic transactions in our systems, and view any details associated with the fund.
Posting: This level of authority is granted for individuals who need to be able to post an electronic transaction through one of our systems. Individuals are responsible for submitting evidence that the fund holder requested the purchase prior to the posting of the transaction. All transactions of this nature will be reviewed for such documentation.
Note: An individual cannot hold both Query and Posting authority without being upgraded to full Signing authority.
How does this impact our new systems?
Effective March 1, 2011 holders of Carleton University Procurement Cards (PCard) will be using the Purchasing Card reconciliation application within the FAST Portal. Moving to this system will enhance fund holder security by requiring that a PCard holder have posting or signing authority on a fund before an expense can be posted to that particular fund.
To make it easier for PCard holders using their cards on behalf of individuals who do not have a PCard, such cardholders are being given “posting” authority on groups of funds. Posting authority allows the individual to charge an expense to a fund without having to redirect the approval to the fund holder, but does not permit that individual to have full signing authority or query authority over the details of the fund and cardholders will still be required to submit evidence of authorization for the purchase from the fund holder with their monthly reconciliations.
For individuals who do not hold their own card but complete the reconciliations for a researcher who does hold a purchasing card, posting authority is still required; however, these individuals will not be required to submit any supporting documentation.
To be granted posting authority, the cardholder must contact Research Accounting and indicate which funds they need access to. The Manager or Assistant Manager in Research Accounting will communicate with that individual to assess the level of access required, and then discuss and agree to the responsibilities associated with posting authority. Once an individual has been approved for this level of authority, fund holders will see the individual listed with Posting authority in the “Other Authorities” section of the Grant Details in MyResearch for the associated fund.
Posting authority also allows an individual to use the Web Requisitioning/ICB system to order supplies from sources both within and outside of Carleton.
To self-identify as an individual who requires posting authority at the ORG or Fund level, please send an e-mail to accounting@carleton.ca to initiate the process.