Data cleanup efforts critical to HRMS success

The HRMS Upgrade Project is much more than just a technical upgrade from PeopleSoft version 8.9 to 9.2. In addition to significant new functionality and redesigned business processes, the project includes a major simplification of the appointment structure and a new reliance on Position data to drive other essential business processes.

“This is a big deal,” said HRMS project manager Kris Hause when the new appointment structure was unveiled last fall. “This new approach to appointment data lays the foundation for a number of other important changes to our system and business processes, which will simplify and streamline the way we work and improve data quality and consistency.”

The changes to core HR data and processes mean that the structure and accuracy  of HRMS data at implementation is critically important. Since last winter, the HRMS Upgrade Project team has been working with the OHR Operations and HR professionals in the academic and administrative units to “clean up” data prior to conversion to the new structure.

In this context, data cleanup means one of two things:

• In some cases, our current data is outdated, inaccurate, or missing -- e.g., when the Reports To field for an employee lists a past employee or an administrative assistant instead of the actual, current supervisor -- and needs to be updated or removed so we do not duplicate errors in the new system.
• In other cases, the data is essentially accurate but will not be supported in 9.2 and needs to be updated to transition to the new appointment structure. For example, today the Location associated with a Position does not necessarily have to match the Location assigned to the associated Job record, but going forward Job data is tied to Position, so the two locations will need to be brought into alignment.

OHR Operations staff and the HRMS team have partnered to automate the cleanup wherever possible, however, in many cases the units have the best perspective on the accuracy of the data or the ways in which it needs to be updated to fit within the new structure. The list and schedule for data cleanup tasks continues to evolve, and is being tracked on weekly basis to check on the work in progress and to monitor data that has already been updated to ensure that it stays “clean.”

The work can be time-consuming, but timely completion of specific cleanup tasks is essential in order for the HRMS project to keep pace with program-wide milestones and test conversion moves. (A test move is essentially a practice run for moving and converting data from PeopleSoft 8.9 to 9.2; updated data is essential for the conversion to perform correctly.)

The benefits of data cleanup extend well beyond the HRMS Upgrade itself, and data integrity will be an ongoing priority. For example, units are currently focused on updating Reports To data in the system, which is essential to new online time and leave approvals and is useful in workflows more broadly across the University if the data is accurate and complete. In addition, in the future, more accurate Reports To data should enable the University to report more accurately on its organization structure and to target communications directly to supervisors and managers.

“This work is important to the success of the HRMS Upgrade and ESUP overall,” said Hause. “For example, users across the University are stressing to us the importance of robust reporting to their work -- but our reports are only as good as our data. We need the help and support of every academic and administrative unit to ensure our data is as accurate as possible when the new system is implemented in 2015 and to help ensure it stays that way.”

‘One OHR’: HRMS launches high-level training for entire OHR staff

The HRMS work stream continued its high-level training schedule last week with the first of several training sessions for Office of Human Resources (OHR) staff. The purpose of the training is to provide all OHR staff with a common understanding of the upgrade project and its benefits and impacts.

Providing some level of system training and awareness to all human resource staff -- even those who are not regular system users -- is a unique approach among the ESUP work streams. Participants were introduced to the project and overall training approach, as well as major system changes and integrations. HRMS training lead Amanda Wolford also shared a few specific examples of how the system changes should enhance the work of OHR staff and encouraged attendees to think of others.

Finally, each table was asked to use what they had learned to develop an HRMS elevator speech: “If you were on an elevator and someone asked you about the HRMS Upgrade Project, what would you say?” Participants easily shared key HRMS Upgrade Project outcomes covered in the training, including:

• Streamlined processes and reduced system customization;
• Simplified appointment structure with a place for everything and everything in its place;
• A new emphasis on Position data, which drives downstream functions;
• Enhanced system integration and reducing data entry;
• Online time and absence recording and approvals, eliminating paper processes; and
• Improved data quality and reporting.

Post-training feedback was largely positive, with participants feeling better informed and equipped to communicate the benefits of the upgrade and to anticipate and prepare for changes in their work. OHR staff members are encouraged to register for training via ULearn as soon as possible.* A second round of more detailed and targeted OHR staff  training will be offered in the coming months.

-----

*Note: This training is only available for OHR staff members at this time.

HRMS completes design phase; development and testing underway

The HRMS work stream wrapped up Phase 2: Analyze & Design activities at the end of January with the completion of design and documentation for the HR, Payroll Accounting, and Time & Labor modules. While the design phase for these three modules took longer than expected, HRMS project director Kris Hause said that development and testing work is already underway where possible.

“Our project team, subject matter experts, and stakeholders have done amazing work over the past year to redesign and simplify our business processes and reduce system modifications,” Hause said. “We refer to this project as an upgrade, but in truth, we are re-implementing our HRMS system in most areas. The design work has been significant, but in many areas, we’ve started application development and are preparing to test our designs. It’s exciting to turn this corner and look ahead toward a successful implementation.”

With system design completed, the HRMS work stream will be putting additional emphasis on communications, training and change management activities in the coming months. Audience-specific training courses and materials are being developed this spring, with registration tentatively slated for late April for courses to be delivered this summer. System users can expect online and print materials to be available at system implementation, as well.

Vice President for the Office of Human Resources Kathy Brown and Director of HR Operations Lori Lamb expressed their appreciation for the efforts and collaboration of everyone involved in the HRMS project to date.

“So many people have worked hard to get us to this point, and they deserve our recognition and thanks,” said Brown. “We still have a lot of work to do over the next year—but we should all take a moment to celebrate this milestone. You’ve done a great job, and our HR enterprise will be stronger because of your efforts.”

“I’ve said it before: the level of collaboration—both within HRMS and between HRMS and other work streams—has been outstanding,” Lamb said. “That in itself is a big win for the University.”

ESUP Update, June 3 - 16, 2013

Murdoch, O’Connor complete Advanced Certificate in Equity and Diversity
Congratulations to Cynthia Murdoch and Bill O'Connor, both members of the Portal project team, who completed the Office for Equity and Diversity's Advanced Certificate in Equity and Diversity. The certificate included 10 workshops, a year-long dialogue circle, and an application project.

It is great for the Portal team and ESUP to have this strength. Thank you to Bill and Cynthia for dedicating the time and energy toward increasing your skills in these areas!
Pictured left to right: Bill O'Connor, Susan Geller, Anne Phibbs (OED certificate program director), and Cynthia Murdoch.

New servers in ESUP
ESUP Assistant Program Director Mark Powell was on hand last week to receive delivery of two new sets of servers: Exadata and Exalogic. The first set, Exadata, will house the Oracle databases. When OIT upgraded to the current version of Exadata servers, users experienced significant performance improvement.

The second set of servers, Exalogic, are new for ESUP. These servers will run PeopleSoft applications instead of the multiple servers currently used. The Exalogic and Exadata servers are designed to work together and Oracle will provide additional patching and upgrade services for these servers, which helps reduce system administration resources and costs to the University.

The servers being unwrapped.

The servers will be split into two combined sets, pairing one Exalogic with one Exadata. The set in the WBOB data center will support ESUP’s production systems, while the second set (located in the 90 Church St. data center), will support the Program’s development, testing, and disaster recovery.

Team continues to gather and analyze Portal opportunities
The Portal Project Team has completed a matrix of portal opportunities and information about each opportunity. This is the result of four months of engagement starting with the kickoff in February, including over 50 listening sessions, seven design thinking workshops, input forms and a survey. It is not the end of opportunity gathering - the portal is still listening and gathering input critical to the success of portal. The Portal leadership team will review the matrix over the next few weeks to determine priorities for phase one. More information about the opportunities and the process will be available on the Portal website soon.

Sessions scheduled for Finance
The Finance team continues to schedule sessions for Phase 1: Plan and Discover. Sessions for Expenses will begin June 3 and are scheduled to wrap-up by June 13. Some of the business processes to be covered include travel authorizations, cash advances, and expense reimbursements.

Treasury sessions also begin June 3 and are scheduled to end June 20. Some of the business processes to be covered on these sessions include bank administration, cash position/cash forecasting, bank reconciliation, settlements, financial gateway, managing and administering deals, and treasury batch processing/integration.

Development is underway
Now that some business process decisions have run through the ESUP governance process, leadership staff have approved functional specifications and technical staff have begun development. This means a big change for many of the developers on the program, who will no longer be attending as many Interactive Design and Prototyping (IDP) sessions. Instead they will write code. Developers are still available upon request to attend IDPs or to do technical research when needed, but developers are builders, and they are happy to move out of the consulting role. Let’s all join the developers to toast the beginning of Phase 3: Configure & Develop!

Quick hits and reminders from across the work streams

• The Executive Oversight Committee will present an update on the status of ESUP to the Board of Regents at their June meeting. The Board meeting begins at 9 a.m. on Friday, 6/14 and is open to the public. The full schedule is available on the Board of Regents website.
• The HRMS work stream has launched its project website at z.umn.edu/hrms. The site will grow and evolve in the coming weeks, so check back often for the latest information on the HRMS upgrade!
• The Student project has been working on team well-being, identifying ways in which team members can take care of themselves and prevent burnout. Kudos to the Student work stream for tackling such an important issue!
• The Finance work stream’s General Ledger module has completed their Phase 1: Plan and Discover sessions and are completing the required deliverables. 

Weekly Update for the week of May 6, 2013

EOC approves 2 change requests
The Executive Oversight Committee approved two change requests from the Student work stream earlier today. These approvals (Course Catalog and Course Approval) represent the first changes that require new development and signal the official transition to Phase 3, Configure and Develop. Project Director William Dana said these approvals are “a significant milestone... let the development begin!” Congratulations, Student work stream!

HRMS, Finance work streams tackle joint Payroll Accounting IDPs
Beginning in late April, the HRMS and Finance teams began joint Interactive Design and Prototyping (IDP) sessions on Payroll Accounting. Each session includes more than 50 invitees, representing a variety of stakeholders from across the finance and human resources user community and central offices. ESUP Reporting team members are also in attendance to understand and identify reporting implications and requirements. Dennis Bortolus (CCI) is leading the sessions, bringing tremendous experience implementing PeopleSoft payroll accounting functions at other large research institutions.

This cross-functional team is working together to identify solutions that best meet the needs of the University community while also addressing ESUP objectives of simplifying business processes and reducing system modifications -- paying particularly close attention to the specific requirements around research and grants. During the week of April 22, the group discussed combo codes and account mapping; last week, the focus was on salary distribution entry. Upcoming topics include encumbering, fringe processing, and historical salary adjustments. This is important work requiring strong collaboration across work streams. The Program is excited about the process and progress to date!

Quick hits and reminders from across the work streams

• The Portal team presented to the Student work stream at their bi-monthly all-Student team meeting on May 2. The two project teams will work together more closely to ensure they understand how to think about Portal when looking at alternatives to filling gaps.  
• The HRMS work stream will begin their Time & Labor and Absence Management IDP sessions in mid-July. The Recruiting Solutions (the University’s name for recruiting business processes within PeopleSoft’s Talent Acquisition Manager) will begin their IDP sessions in September.
• The Portal team is looking for input on some of the opportunities that have been identified through plan and discover activities. A survey will be available from May 13-20 to gather this input. The link will be in next week’s posting.  
• Gophers, Gators, and Horses, oh my! Florida Gator die-hard fan Walter Terrell (CCI) came face to face with Goldy Gopher last week. The pair seemed to get along well enough for a photo... 
• During last week’s trip to the Crookston campus, the ESUP group was treated to a tour. In addition to great feedback from Crookston ESUP participants, a highlight was the Equestrian Center where JP Hagerty and Santiago Fernandez-Gimenez stopped to horse around for a few minutes. (Get it, horse around?)