ESUP Question...Will I still be able to use DeptID after the ESUP systems launch?

This article is part of ESUP’s ongoing series addressing rumors and questions about the program. Please email us at esup@umn.edu with any questions or rumors you’ve heard.

I heard that with the conversion to ZDeptID from Entity Codes, I will lose the ability to pull detailed information down to the department level. Is this true and will I be able to use DeptID?

One of the main reasons for moving to the ZDeptID value is to enable better reporting at the department level, so yes, you will absolutely be able to use DeptID for reporting. As part of the upgrade work, many HR business processes have been redesigned. As a result, certain reports need to change in both form and function. Details about specifics of what is happening in the reporting world for HR will be available soon.

Until the details are available, it’s important to understand the background of Entity and ZDeptID: 

• ZDeptID is the name of the field used to roll-up departments (DeptIDs) in the financial system (PeopleSoft Financials, or “EFS”). DeptID values are rolled up to (or grouped by) ZDeptID values in Finance using a tree structure, similar to a simple organizational chart.  Entity Codes perform the same roll-up function in the human resources system (PeopleSoft HR, or “HRMS”). Both HR and Finance use the same set of DeptID values to indicate department, and they will use the same set of ZDeptID values for roll-ups after the upgrade.

• The Entity Codes of today are based on the old financial system (CUFS) values for departments and were never converted to the “new” financial department structure and values. The ZDeptID values built in EFS in 2008 were not mapped to the Entity Codes in use in HR. There were good reasons for not mapping them at the time EFS was implemented. People have since found the use of the two terms and two sets of values confusing, especially since they don’t map nicely to each other.

As part of ESUP, collegiate leaders responsible for the HR and Finance functions are working together to reconcile these two sets of values to come up with a shared value that represents both the HR and Finance roll-ups. The roll-up value for both functions will be the same going forward and will reside in a field called ZDeptID. This will enable better reporting for departments, as combined Finance and HR data will then be more easily reported on at the department level, as well as being easily rolled up to a college, campus, and University level.