Upgrade Blog: January 2015

Thursday, January 29, 2015

MyU Preview: HR Tabs

MyU Preview is a series giving a peek into pages within the new MyU. Keep in mind that MyU content is still in development and some things will be updated between now and Go Live.

If you’re an employee, after the Upgrade goes live, you’ll perform many of the tasks you currently complete at the HRSS website in the new MyU. These tasks include viewing your paycheck, enrolling in benefits, and viewing your supervisees’ information. Click the images to enlarge.

My Time: 1) Use “My Time” to report hours worked, overtime, and paid time off such as vacation or sick time. You can also see your paid time off balances. Depending on your job, you may see a button to Submit a Timesheet or Request Time Off (sick, vacation, personal holiday, comp time). When you submit a timesheet or absence request, it electronically goes to your supervisor or a delegate, for approval. No more paper forms. 2) Balances are from the most recent pay end date. You will only see a balance if you are eligible. 3) Training and other resources will be provided to faculty, staff and unit administrators.

My Pay: 1) “My Pay” will provide high level paycheck information. Employees will be able to see gross pay, total deductions, total taxes, net pay and direct deposit info. For all details, a link will go to the employee self-service paycheck. 2) Every employee will see an expense reimbursement link at the bottom of "My Pay" if they receive an expense reimbursement. The link will take them to information about that reimbursement, similar to what you see today on the HR Self Service pages. 3) You’ll also see a link to "Traveling on University Business" with travel policy information, access to travel tools, and other helpful resources.

My Benefits: 1) On “My Benefits,” you’ll see information and links to your Medical and Dental coverage, life insurance and other benefits. 2) Open enrollment will occur in November every year, as usual.

Manager Info: 1) Supervisors will go here to approve time or absences electronically. They will only have access to the links on this tab if they have the role. For example, if a Supervisor is a Time Approver, but not an Absence Approver, they won't see the Absence links. 2) This tab will also have a training section, with training for Approving Time & Absence, Managing Schedules, and Delegating Approvals for Time, Absence or Recruiting. 3) On the “Manager Info” tab, managers get a snapshot of the people they supervise, with links to deeper information.

Previously:

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

After The Upgrade: Entering Appointment Data Before Employee’s First Day Is Critical for Payroll

With the PeopleSoft upgrade, new capabilities will require changing our processes, including entering Appointment data into the Human Resources Management System. In fact, accurate and timely Appointment Entry drives pay and virtually every other important HR function.

Currently when an employee is hired, the entry of that person’s data may happen at any point after we know their start date, up until the deadline for Pay Entry for their first paycheck. This is changing: After The Upgrade, the Appointment must be entered into the system before a new employee’s first day of work.

In simple terms, Appointment Entry will drive payroll. If someone is not entered into the system before their first day of work, they cannot report time or absence, and their pay will be affected.

For online training about Appointments, Position Management and other functions, go to The Upgrade Training & Education site.

Thursday, January 22, 2015

What's Changing?

U Catalogs will remain

Course descriptions will be able to include URLs

The Course Guide will be retired

After The Upgrade, students will have many ways of finding course and class information when they search for classes. Course descriptions from University catalogs--the public source for all academic offerings--will appear in class search results.

Additionally, faculty, instructors, and their proxies will be able to add a website address with additional course or syllabus information to appear in the class notes section of class search results. This ability to include a website address is the replacement option for the Course Guide, which will be retired after The Upgrade.

Faculty and student groups, collegiate and department administrators, and technology staff were consulted at length about the technical limitations of the Course Guide, and the significant resources needed to maintain it. Ultimately, the Student Team made the decision to retire the Course Guide with the support of those consulted. All academic offerings will still be publicly available in University catalogs at http://www.catalogs.umn.edu/.

Read about ending the Course Guide, and adding URLs to course descriptions.

Training will be delivered online, accessible at Upgrade Training & Education. You can also reach out to your area's Advance Team members for additional information.

Thursday, January 8, 2015

Welcome to 2015!

Every new year brings both constancy and change, and this one is no different.

The constancy: the PeopleSoft upgrade is still expected to launch this spring.
The change: we are shifting from February to a goal of March or April. We plan to announce exact dates by January 28th.

When determining timing for such a large, complex program, we weigh a wide range of factors and trade-offs, from payroll periods to student registration to grant processes, and many, many more. Depending on the timing, the implementation will affect some areas more than others, so we truly appreciate your flexibility.

Greater reach to the University community

With The Upgrade's implementation on the horizon, we are focusing on spreading the news to everyone (yes, everyone) at the University.

-An awareness campaign will be posted throughout the campuses.
-You can help! Visit the Awareness Campaign page to download, print out, and post materials in your offices.
-College and unit leaders will ask you to participate in readiness.
-Visit our website and take the weekly poll.

High-touch events

Starting with the OIT-sponsored “Get Upgrade Ready” event (see pictures below) this week, we are hosting events that prepare users for the change. The IT event was so well attended and so engaging, we wished we had sold tickets!

Soon-to-be-announced is the upcoming “Upgrade Fair,” a day-long event for PeopleSoft users to get a feel for what the upgraded systems will be like. [Update 4/8/15: here is a link for more information on the Upgrade Fair]

[Around 500 staff and faculty attended IT's Get Upgrade Ready event on January 7th in the Great Hall, where t-shirts were provided, and attendees listened to Upgrade presenters. To see more pictures and Tweets from the event, search #upgradeready.]

Enhanced support and diligent preparation

We will equip existing helplines and call centers with information and training to answer your questions during Cutover and Go Live. Behind the scenes, we continue testing and refining the systems, and releasing relevant information as it becomes available. Please make sure you are preparing by checking out training on the Training & Education page.