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Upgrade of University administrative systems planned for June top
Over the weekend of June 11-14, a major upgrade to University administrative systems will take place. It will entail:
- replacement of the AWS3 system for HR reporting with CREW (the Common Reporting Environment for the Warehouse);
- an update of PeopleSoft HR systems, most notably the electronic routing of personnel actions submitted using the Job Data Change form;
- new functionality in HIRES that will electronically acknowledge job applications;
- improvements in Oracle financial systems to enable notification of users when key transactions occur, automated posting of lockbox receipts, and customizable coding picklists in Web Voucher and the PCard Settlement System.
A detailed schedule of the systems outages required to perform the upgrade is available here. In a nutshell:
- financial systems will be down from Friday (close of business) to Monday morning;
- HR systems will be down from Friday at 2 p.m. to Monday morning. This will require early time entry for the workweek ending Saturday, June 12. (As always, local deadlines may be earlier);
- AWS3 will be retired the evening of Thursday, June 10, with CREW going live on Tuesday, June 15.
If there are any unexpected events, delays, or problems during the upgrade, information will be posted on the UIS Help Desk's Systems Status page.
Getting ready for CREW top
As described in the May 12 e-News, CREW will replace AWS3 for HR reporting from the warehouse. Please note that the AWS3 system will be taken down for good on the evening of Thursday, June 10, as the first step in the cutover.
We expect that for most AWS3 users, CREW will be quite intuitive. To get you started, we recommend that you take the web-based tutorial available in the CREW area of ABLE. Additional “how to” documentation (such as quick reference guides to running reports as well the icons, home page features, data status types, and error messages you'll find in CREW) is also available on ABLE.
If you have taken the tutorial and would still like some help to get up and running, hands-on workshops are being offered. To participate in the workshop, you will need to register and be ready to log into your own CREW production account (that is, you will need your HUID, PIN, and an active account). Users of the AWS3 system as of June 4, 2004 will automatically be issued CREW accounts; others will need to request a new CREW account through their local authorized requestor. At the workshop, facilitators will be available to guide your exploration of the system, the tutorial, and the ABLE documentation, and will answer questions about running and interpreting reports.
Please follow this link for a list of workshop dates and times, and to register.
Changes to PeopleSoft HR and Payroll systems in Release 7 top
| System
changes |
Explanation |
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Job Data Change form automated |
The most significant change coming in Release 7 will be the automated routing of job data changes in PeopleSoft. Job data changes – which include promotions, reclassifications, transfers, and pay rate changes outside of the Annual Salary Increase Process – account for 30% of all personnel actions submitted in a year. At present, HR administrators and managers request job data changes by filling out an online form in PeopleSoft (or a local system such as ASPERIN), printing it out, getting it signed, and routing it. The data ultimately gets re-entered into PeopleSoft by FAD Payroll. In an attempt to eliminate double data entry and speed up cycle time, the Job Data Change form will be automated. The new process will be similar to the “Quick Hire” process implemented successfully this year.
All HR administrators who are currently authorized users of the PeopleSoft-enabled forms will automatically be assigned to the preparer role. Local authorized requestors will be asked to provide the names of users who should also have the approver role. Beginning on Friday, June 4, you can go to ABLE to take the web-based tutorial for preparers and approvers. Important: Once the PeopleSoft system is taken down for the release, Job Data Change forms created and saved in the current format will no longer be available online. If you need to retrieve information from Job Data Change forms you've created in the last few months, you are urged to print out copies before June 10. |
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| Reduced navigation options for employees to reach self-service forms | A minor security change will be made in Release 7 so that employees will now have only one navigation path to the Emergency Contact and Direct Deposit forms. As shown here, the path will be Home > Self Service > Employee > Tasks. (Up until now, employees could also reach these forms using a second navigation path, which sometimes caused confusion.) The Self Service path will also provide access to the forms that allow employees to submit changes in home address and W-4/M-4 withholdings. Access to the Personal Data Change form will continue to be provided to all employees using the navigation path Home > Harvard Forms > Maintain Harvard Forms > Use. Access to forms for HR administrators will remain unchanged. They can still submit all of this information on behalf of employees, or ask them to do it themselves via employee self service. |
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| Several new system-based notifications will be implemented | Benefits elections: The PeopleSoft system will automatically remind any new employee who has not made benefits elections 45 days after being hired. Payroll completion: To lay the groundwork for stopping paper pay advices in August, new system-based email notifications will be sent to affected employees when each payroll is completed, beginning June 11. The email will notify the employee that their online pay advice can be viewed, and will provide a link to PeopleSoft. |
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| New standards established for Primary Office Address (University Mailing Address) | Each of us has a Primary Office Address in PeopleSoft. This address is used for many “official” University mailings and directories, and is the one that the U.S. Postal Service and the Harvard Mail Services Group encounter most often when handling the mail. Lack of consistency in how the address fields are being used is a longstanding problem that causes delays and an excessive amount of manual handling. Mail with an especially cryptic address even goes to a “mail jail” until it can be researched. To improve the situation, a cleanup of the “Location code table” in PeopleSoft is being done, and the results can be seen online beginning on June 14. At that time, the name of the "Primary Office Address" field will also be changed to "University Mailing Address" to make its purpose clearer and to align terminology across systems. When filling out PeopleSoft-enabled personnel action forms, if you are asked to choose a location code for the employee, the address associated with the location code defaults in. This "default" address should then be supplemented with employee-specific address information. Beginning in June, the default University Mailing Address will follow this convention: Address Line 1: Major Harvard Affiliation (55 characters
available) Address Line 2: Building Name (55 characters available) Address Line 3: Street Address |
HIRES system to automate applicant notifications top
Beginning with the June release, new functionality in HIRES will automate acknowledgement of applications to jobs posted at jobs.harvard.edu. The process has been redesigned to be more self-service oriented, in part due to the closure of the walk-in OHR Employment Office on June 30.
Here's how it will work.
All applicants who provide an email address when they submit their resume and cover letter will get an automatic email generated from HIRES at the following points:
| Email
automatically generated when... |
Details |
| A HIRES job application is completed and the applicant clicks the “submit” button | This notification will be sent to all candidates with a valid email address. We have also updated the acknowledgement screen to address those applicants without email addresses. |
| The applicant is removed from consideration from that particular requisition | This happens when:
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The HIRES team wishes to thank users for their input and suggestions. We are always willing to address your needs when possible. We look forward to improving your recruiting and applicant tracking experience in the future.
Also of note: access HIRES through HARVie
You may access HIRES as well as PeopleSoft, AWS3/CREW, and ABLE from the HARVie home page at harvie.harvard.edu. Providing access to all of the administrative systems on Harvard's employee intranet is intended to make it more useful and frequently visited.
Enhancements planned for University financial systems top
The June release will also bring these enhancements to University financial systems:
System/functional
area |
Enhancement |
Description |
General Ledger
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Unposted journals notification | General Ledger will send users an email notification of journals in closed periods that were not posted. The notification will contain the journal name, the create date, and the status. Users should correct their journal and make sure it is in an open period. If no update is made on the journal within a month, the journal will be deleted. |
| Reversed journal notification | General Ledger will send users an email notification to the creator of a journal that has been reversed by another user. The notification will contain the original journal name, the original create date, and the name of the person who reversed the journal. Harvard policy states that users are not to reverse journals created by another user without the creator's permission. This enhancement will ensure that users know that their journal has been reversed. | |
| Accounts Receivable | Auto-lockbox feature | In early June, FAD Accounts Receivable will be implementing a new Oracle feature called Auto Lockbox. This functionality will allow Central to post receipts to customer accounts or invoices via electronic file transfer from our bank lockbox account rather than having to do the posting manually. The Accounts Receivable office has made some (mostly cosmetic) alterations to its invoice and statement forms to facilitate automatic lockbox receipt processing. The most significant of these changes is the addition of an OCR (Optical Character Recognition) line at the bottom of the Invoice and Statement remittance coupon, which the Bank will use to scan the receipts. The Invoice Copy Report available from HUDINI and AWS2 will also reflect these cosmetic changes. The result should be a decrease in the amount of manual data entry required by Central AR staff and faster overall application of receipts. |
| Automatic notification and deletion of incomplete AR transactions | Beginning in June, the Accounts Receivable system will send users an email notification of transactions that have a status of Incomplete. The notification will contain the transaction number and the date it was created. Users should complete their transaction and make sure it is in an open period. If you do not make any changes to the transaction it will be deleted after 45 days. | |
| Web Voucher | Customized account coding with picklists, with defined names | Effective June 14, Web Vouchers users will be able to set up an Account Code Quick Pick List. Once set up, this customized Pick List displays the ten 33-digit code combinations you use most often, with a name (or “alias”) you assign to it. Read this article for all the details. |
| PCard | Similarly, PCard will have new functionality to make reviewing and assigning coding to your PCard transactions easier and more intuitive. Click here for a description of the new account code “alias” feature in PCard. |
Apply now for the Harvard GE MasterCard corporate card top
As most people know by now, Harvard-provided American Express “corporate cards” will be deactivated on July 30, 2004. To make sure cardholders have uninterrupted access to a Harvard corporate card, they must obtain a new Harvard GE MasterCard by filling out a profile and submitting it to the FAD Travel and Reimbursement Office in Holyoke 380. The profile may also be faxed to 6-6777. Those who have already submitted a profile should expect to receive the card in the beginning of June. Cards may be used as soon as they are received and activated. It is recommended that American Express no longer be used when a cardholder receives the new GE MasterCard.
Those who do not currently have a corporate card but who have been authorized by their local unit to get one should complete the application form.
Questions? Call the Travel and Reimbursement Office at 5-7760 or consult the following web pages.
- For information about the corporate card program generally: vpf-web.harvard.edu/ofs/travel/cor_main.shtml
- For information about the introduction of the GE MasterCard: vpf-web.harvard.edu/ofs/travel/Ge_corp.shtml
New Central Administration stationery program top
In the last issue, we described a new policy in Central Administration (CA) mandating use of Expedia Corporate Travel for University-funded airfare, and suggested that it might provide a useful model for local units who want to make better use of Harvard's strategic vendor partnerships.
In a similar vein, this article describes efforts in CA to standardize, consolidate, and simplify our purchasing of stationery, business cards, and other routine printed matter. The goal was to realize cost savings and to present a consistent printed image for CA.
FAD Procurement and a committee representing units from across CA created a graphic standard for business cards, letterhead, envelopes, and mailing labels. A purchasing policy was also developed and approved that mandates:
- use of an online ordering system
- a set of standard templates for these printed materials, and
- use of plain paper (with letterhead information in the Word header and footer) rather than bond for internal communications.
Shea Brothers, which supports the Business School, Radcliffe, and the Graduate School of Design, was selected to support this program. They are providing the ordering system, which is now live and available to all CA departments, as well as aggressive pricing that is expected to result in savings ranging from 20%-30%.
Please contact Eileen DeVincent (5-5461, eileen_devincent@harvard.edu) in FAD Procurement for information or a consultation on how to implement a similar program in your school or department.Sponsored equipment management process is decentralized top
As a recipient of federal research funding, Harvard is obligated to track and manage capital equipment that has been acquired with federal funds, or furnished by the federal government.
In the past, Harvard's equipment management responsibilities have been executed by the FAD Office for Sponsored Research (OSR), with the participation and cooperation of research administrators and lab managers across campus.
Going forward, responsibility for managing the inventory, fabrication, transfer, and disposal of federally funded or furnished equipment will reside with local units. The new approach primarily concerns the major research schools (e.g., FAS, HMS, SPH) where nearly all of Harvard's federally funded or furnished equipment is located.
OSR will continue to respond to requests for equipment information from sponsors, auditors, and other parties. OSR will also provide overall guidance on policy and federal compliance, as well as policies, procedures, and forms. This web page also provides a list of local contacts for matters relating to equipment management. As always, local units will manage capital equipment funded or furnished by non-federal sponsors according to the terms and conditions set forth in their funding agreements.
For further information about the revised equipment management policies and practices, contact John Bain (john_bain@harvard.edu).
About the e-News top
The Office of Human Resources publishes this semimonthly electronic newsletter for users of Harvard University's financial, HR, and reporting systems, policies, and procedures. Generally, the e-News is published on or around the 12th and 26th of each month.
It contains:
- updates on projects underway to build or improve University administrative systems;
- information about new University policies, procedures, and forms;
- reminders about upcoming deadlines and cut-over dates;
- tips and tricks for working more easily or productively.
We welcome questions and suggestions for improvement from readers. If your questions are of general interest, we will answer them in future issues.
Please send comments, questions, or suggestions for improvement by email to us at: admin_systems_enews@harvard.edu