|
||||||||||||||
AWS2/HUDINI financial reports move to CREW on March 14 top
Click here for a printable PDF version of this article
On March 14, 2006, financial reports currently available in AWS2/HUDINI – including the Detail Listing, Budget Variance, and Summary Actuals reports – will be migrated to CREW (Common Reporting Environment for the Warehouse), culminating a multi-year, cross-business project to create a single reporting environment.
What's CREW Like?
CREW is a web-based report submission interface that combines all your favorite features from applications like AWS2 and HUDINI, as well as reports from other disciplines (Human Resources and Sponsored) into a single-integrated whole.
With this release CREW users will enjoy one-stop shopping for financial, human resources, and sponsored reporting along with advanced application features, such as the ability to:
- Log in to CREW and navigate directly to the Home page to view and download your reports.
- Save multiple sets of parameter values per report.
- Designate frequently run “favorite” reports.
- Access report documentation from within CREW.
- Use robust report parameter lookups that help you quickly narrow in on the values you want to include.
- Get help using resolvable dates like “Most Recent Month” or “CFY to Date.”
- Schedule reports to run “as of” an event like the month-end close, in addition to dates.
- Create named sets of chart of accounts values that can quickly populate financial report parameters.
- Create named groups of requests that get scheduled and run together.
- Copy a report request's parameters (not its output) to another CREW user, allowing them to run it under their own security restrictions.
- Launch key Harvard websites from within the application.
- Preparing for the March 14 financials migration to CREW
- Changes for AWS2/HUDINI users who are new to CREW
- Changes for current CREW users
- Detailed timeline for the financials migration
- Training and Support
- Questions and Comments
Preparing for the March 14 financial reports migration to CREW back
- Allot yourself some time between March 14 and April 30 to take the updated on-line CREW tutorial and learn how to recreate in CREW any scheduled requests, chart sets, and request groups you now have in AWS2 or HUDINI.
- Identify any requests you have scheduled to run in AWS2 or HUDINI that you're going to want to set up in CREW. Print out a copy of the parameter page from the report, including the HDW responsibility you use to run it.
- Review your saved HUDINI Chart Sets and/or Request Sets (if you have created any) so that you are prepared to recreate them in CREW before the April 30 deadline.
Changes for AWS2/HUDINI users who are new to CREW back
Report Enhancements
- Report Parameters – CREW provides more specific parameter “types” and greater functionality in using parameters, such as list boxes, date pop-ups, and value lookups.
- Report Codes – Every report in CREW is given a code which is displayed on the Report Library and Home pages to help distinguish between similarly named reports. The Report Code is always a link to the related Report Catalog page.
- “Responsibility” Parameter on every page – on every financial report requiring a reporting responsibility to limit data results, the report page will include a dropdown parameter with your reporting responsibilities relevant to the report.
- Summary Actuals and Summaries Actual and Budget report – a new checkbox parameter called “Include Beginning Balances?” to signal to the report when period begin balances should be included in the results.
Combining date periods with the new Include Beginning Balance? parameter |
|||
Date period |
Date range |
Data returned w/ Include Beginning Balances = Y |
Data returned w/ Include Beginning Balances = N |
Current Fiscal Year to Date |
Default Start Date = JUL of current FY |
Combines the net begin balance with the net period balance of the End Date period for all accounts retrieved. | Sums the net period balance for each period in the range for all accounts retrieved. |
Current Fiscal Year to Last Closed Period |
Default Start Date = JUL of the current fiscal year |
Combines the net begin balance with the net period balance of the End Date period for all accounts retrieved. | Sums the net period balance for each period in the range for all accounts retrieved. |
Prior Fiscal Year |
Default Start Date = JUL of the prior fiscal year |
Combines the net begin balance with the net period balance of the End Date period for all accounts retrieved. | Sums the net period balance for each period in the range for all accounts retrieved. |
Other… |
User selects Start and End Period from picklists. |
Combines the net begin balance with the net period balance of the End Date period for all accounts retrieved. | Sums the net period balance for each period in the range for all accounts retrieved. |
- Other parameter “translations” – will be documented and be made accessible to report users prior to the March 14 th release; they will also be covered in the training workshops planned for the March / April migration period.
Scheduled reports, saved Request Sets, and CoA Sets back
For users with saved Request Sets and Chart of Accounts Sets, these will need to be re-created using the CREW Request Group and Selection Sets functionality. Scheduled reports also need be re-created in CREW and can take advantage of the new events-based scheduling options (such as upon the accounting period close dates).
Security Simplification back
Local unit chart security authorized requestors conducted a review of user access during the fall and, as a result, many duplicative and overlapping reporting responsibilities have been eliminated. For users where numerous limited responsibilities were combined into a more comprehensive single responsibility, you will need to use chart of accounts parameters to limit your report results.
Session Timeouts back
CREW has functionality called a session timeout that logs a user out after a fixed period of inactivity. This functionality is employed to guard against unauthorized access to confidential or sensitive data. AWS2 and HUDINI have this functionality, but the session timeout only occurs after the user's session has been inactive for longer than 8 hours. Because of the additional sensitivity of the human resources reports, CREW's session timeout is set at 30 minutes, which is consistent with the PeopleSoft application. If your session “times out” you will be prompted to re-enter your PIN to reaccess the application.
Changes for current CREW users back
Other than enjoying the new application features and accessibility to the entire suite of University standard reports in one place, CREW users should not experience any changes to the HR, GMAS, or IU reports themselves, nor to any request schedules they have established. Unless a report has been specifically targeted for an enhancement with this release, the report names, parameters, output types, and general functionality should be the same as they were prior to the release.
Detailed timeline for the financials migration back
Date(s) |
Activity |
March 11 - 13 |
System Outage: The AWS2, HUDINI, and CREW applications, as well as the HDWPROD and DWCENPRD ad hoc environments will be unavailable for reporting while installations are in process. |
March 14 |
Go Live! CREW up and available with financial, HR, GMAS, and IU reports. AWS2 and HUDINI running in parallel with CREW. All data current through Monday, March 13. |
March 14 - April 29 |
AWS2/HUDINI run in parallel with CREW. |
April 30 |
User access to AWS2 & HUDINI ends. |
Training and support back
- Take the on-line CREW Tutorial (http://able.harvard.edu/crew/).
- Consult the “How To's” and “Quick References” available on the CREW ABLE site.
- Hands-on workshops will be scheduled for March and April at the Center for Workplace Development (CWD). Workshop dates and prerequisites will be announced in the February e-News.
Note: The new functionality being introduced in the March CREW migration release will be integrated into the existing CREW training documents and tutorials in early March. Again, look for the February e-News issue for updates.
Questions and comments back
Additional detailed communications will follow as we approach the go-live date. In the meantime, if you have any questions about the impact of this transition, please direct them to the project team via the UIS Helpdesk at 617-496-2001, or via e-mail to helpdesk@harvard.edu.
What's CREW like? Access and Logging in... back
- If you are a current AWS2 or HUDINI user, you will automatically be given the same access you have in these applications in CREW. As always, if you need changes made to your financial reporting responsibilities, contact your local authorized requestor.
- Like the AWS2 and HUDINI application links, CREW is accessible via the Financial Administration's Financial & Reporting Applications page. Your financial reporting access will be activated on March 14, 2006.
What's CREW like? The Home Page... back
The CREW home page offers you:
- easy navigation to create a new report request
- the ability to sort your requests by request #, report name, request name, or date
- request ID hyperlinks that let you quickly view information about the request including creation and run times, the number of rows returned, and the parameters you entered
- the ability to edit your scheduled requests, create and schedule new requests based on others, cancel scheduled requests, and delete completed requests
- completed request icons that signal the output type (PDF, CSV, etc.) and whether your report returned any data
- the ability to create named “request groups” that get scheduled and run together
- the ability to copy report requests and request groups to other CREW users (allows you to copy a report request's parameters — not its output — allowing the recipient to run under their own security restrictions)
What's CREW like? The Report Library Page... back
The Report Library page is accessed by selecting 
from the CREW homepage. The Report Library page lets you:
- click a report name to open the parameters page and submit or schedule a report request
- click a report code to view the report catalog
- search for reports and limit your results by entering any part of a report name or report code
- add frequently used reports to the “My Favorites” reports tab
- delete favorites
What's CREW like? The Report Catalog Page... back
Is accessible by clicking on the Report Code of any given report and displays helpful information about the reports, such as:
- Business Purpose
- Detailed Description
- Parameter Descriptions/Comments
- Security needed to view report and report data
What's CREW like? The Lookup Pages... back
Provide robust parameter filter lookups that help you quickly narrow in on the values you want to include.
What's CREW like? The Date Help Page... back
Describes what “resolvable” dates like “Most Recent Month” mean. The page is scaled to just those resolvable dates that appear in the date picklist for a given report, and includes:
- hot links to each date on page
- date definitions
- static examples illustrating the range of dates or fiscal periods
- special hints
What's CREW like? The Schedule Page & Events-Based Scheduling... back
Schedule reports to run as of an event like the month-end close, in addition to options like:
- Once Now
- Once Tonight
- JUN period Close
- Every Accounting Quarter Close
What's CREW like? Selection Sets... back
Create named sets of chart of accounts values that can quickly populate financial report parameters.
- create selection sets to establish sets of chart of accounts values that you can use with different reports
- copy selection sets to other CREW users
What's CREW like? Request Groups... back
Create named groups of requests that get scheduled and run together.
- aggregate your report requests into meaningful groupings and schedule them together as a block
- copy request groups to another CREW user
What's CREW like? Copy to User... back
Copy a report request's parameters (not its output) to another CREW user, allowing them to run it under their own security restrictions. This functionality also makes it possible for you to:
- copy selection sets to other CREW users
- copy request groups to other CREW users
What's CREW like? The Application Help and Other Links Page... back
Select 
from any page to access quick links to support documentation (CREW Action icons, Tips & Tricks, or Load Status) as well as other helpful sites across the University, including:
- the CREW ABLE site
- HARVie
- the Research Administration site
- the CoA Validator
About the e-News top
The Office of Human Resources publishes this monthly 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 15th 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@harvardedu