Adaptive Planning 3.0 Launches July 28

This summer is the season for launches in UVAFinance.  Shortly after Workday Financials launches on July 5, Adaptive 3.0 will go live on July 28.  

The FST Adaptive Team and partners across Grounds have been working hard to bring you the "future state" version of Adaptive Planning -- one that will integrate with Workday Financials and also offer many new features. 

We're excited to share with you the possibilities for budgeting at UVA.  But wait!  There's more:

Adaptive Planning 3.0 Training is Coming

The FST Training team is putting the finishing touches on web-based, on-demand training for using Adaptive Planning 3.0, including quick reference guides.  

Adaptive Planning 3.0 Resources are on the FST website

We've collected resources, dates, checklists, and more to help you with the transition from Adaptive 2.0 to Adaptive 3.0.   Visit the site to learn what you can do now to prepare for Adaptive 3.0, where you can get assistance, and what FY23 will be like.  Check it out: https://uvafinance.virginia.edu/adaptive-planning-resources

Just a few quick things to remember: 

• You won't see your budget in Workday Financials on July 5.  That will happen on August 17.  
• Remember that after Workday Financials launches, you might find yourself very busy with important tasks such as loading fund transfers or working on fund balance realignment.  Now is the time to prepare for the launch of Adaptive 3.0.
• Questions or concerns?  We want to hear them!  Reach out to us at askfinance@virginia.edu

Workday Finance Fun to Boost your Brain

Experts say games like World are great for brain health and can help boost our mood when we're feeling low.  

If you're a bit stressed out today, take a break that is fun and productive with our Workday Finance Wordle and Workday Finance Word Search.  Share them with your colleagues who could use a breather and little more Workday knowledge :)

• Workday Word Search
• Workday Word Search Answers (no cheating!)
• Workday Finance Wordle

The Time for Training is NOW!

There are just a few business days to complete your training prior to the July 5 launch of Workday Financials! 

With few exceptions, training is required. For all required courses, there are self-paced options available. If you will be assigned a role, you should find the required learning program in Workday Learning. 

In addition to the self-paced options, there will be limited instructor-led sessions available in July as well as office hours. Required training must be complete by July 31, 2022, to maintain the assigned role. 

If you have any questions about training, please contact askfinance@virginia.edu.

Visit our Workday Finance Training page to learn more.

Keep or Delete from Records & Information Management

If you're cleaning up your file storage, are you sure you know what you're supposed to keep and what you can delete?   RIM can help you sort yourself out, literally and figuratively!

The July 7, 12:00 to 12:30 session introduces strategies to clean up legacy electronic storage. Participants will review practical steps to remove clutter and chaos of department electronic storage to a well-managed repository. Attendees will learn about the RIM offered electronic records clean-up service.

This 30-minute class is part of a six-part series covering specific topics in managing information and records in the electronic environment. Attendees can complete all sessions or only those sessions to help with specific issues or transformations.

Register on the RIM webpage: https://recordsmanagement.virginia.edu/clean-it-keep-or-delete 

Bookmark this page: FDM Validator!

Do you use the Oracle PTAO Card Generator?  

When Workday Financials goes live on July 5, the new Workday FDM Validator will replace it!  

Use it to validate your FDM worktags or to print barcode/QR code representations of your FDM string.

Here's where it will live when we go live: https://uvafinance.virginia.edu/fdmvalidator

The Art of Problem Solving: Meet Financial Planning's Myron Ballard

Myron Ballard has ten plus years of experience in a variety of administrative roles across UVA and the health system, from Darden to the Department of Biology to SEAS and Printing and Copy Services.  This June, UVAFinance welcomed him to the Office of Financial Planning and Analysis as a Project Associate.  

Ballard is a natural problem solver, dedicated to making colleagues' jobs easier and finding solutions for problems.  In fact, his interest in his current position only came about because he was helping someone else locate that perfect job when he encountered the listing.

"The role just seemed so focused on helping to innovate and modernizing work, and helping to carry a department into the future," he says.

In other words, it was a perfect fit for someone with his career background and skillset.

In addition to the depth and breadth of his professional experience, Ballard also brings the skills of an avid fiction writer, the perception of a prolific visual artist, and his bachelor's degree from UVA in Anthropology.

Ballard finds that his studies and his artistic pursuits complement his chosen career very well. 

"Anthropology taught me to think more about how people think," he says.

"In all the different positions I've held, I have been able to think about how people behave as a reflection of how they think of themselves in their environment, and how that work environment, in turn, shapes them as an individual."

Ballard takes that insight into the story behind the person into his art and his day-to-day work. 

"Whether I'm painting or drawing, or writing a piece of fiction, I think of the story behind how people operate; and in my job, I think of how the department operates, or the school.  I try to understand the relationship of the parts to the whole," he says.

He also finds that he can bring his innate creativity into his work life, as he identifies ways to make his colleagues' work more efficient and enjoyable.

Launching alongside Workday Finance: The completed UVAFinance Website!

The redesign of UVAFinance's suite of websites into a single, user-friendly site is a project over a year in the making.  Undertaken during the Finance Strategic Transformation and led by the Finance Strategy Team, the website redesign is an ambitious, ongoing project that now has a launch date in sight:  July 5, the same day Workday Financials goes live. 

If you haven't visited the site in the last month or so, stop by and take a look.  

UVAFinance colleagues have been working hard in partnership with the Strategy Team to update and transition content to the new site in a way that allows our stakeholders to get the information they need quickly.  The new site is organized by function, not department, meaning that you no longer need to have an understanding of Central Finance's structure in order to find the forms, training, and other resources you need.

Thank you to everyone who has worked so hard (during a major implementation project, no less) to make this happen!

UVAFinance in Action

Mark Cartwright, Director of Supplier Diversity, was a guest on Envision Radio, a partnership between WINA and the United Way of Greater Charlottesville, that focuses on racial equity, especially economic mobility as it relates to education, health, housing, and workforce development.  Cartwright's 45-minute discussion with hosts Ravi Respeto and Price Thomas took place on May 21.  Listen in to get to know more about Cartwright and UVA's Supplier Diversity efforts.

You can listen to the podcast conversation here.

Addie Coe, Procurement Systems Manager, presented at the National Association of Educational Procurement Annual Meeting in Texas earlier this June.  Coe's topic was "Optimizing Procurement's Revenue Streams."  During the talk, higher ed purchasing officers from across the USA learned more about UVA's innovative efforts to use contracts, technology, and other methods to generate revenue in order to become a self-sustaining administrative support organization to our partners across Grounds.

Augie Maurelli, Associate Vice President for Financial Operations, presented at the Southern Association of College and University Business Officers Annual Meeting in Texas this May.  Maurelli discussed endowment spending policy, administrative feeds, and required investment return.

Reach out to Brandi Van Ormer if you or someone on your team should be featured in UVAFinance in Action.

Caregiving Resources for UVA Employees

UVA established the Family Support Collab in June 2021, bringing together a cross-functional group with experience and insight into caregiving needs and resources. 

The Family Support Collab aims to better understand and evaluate the needs, challenges, and resources involved in employees’ caregiving needs. You can learn more on the HR website.

Five Things to Know about FST: June 13, 2022

 

1.  The Finance Solution Center is now reachable by phone!  In addition to responding to your emails to askfinance@virginia.edu, our User Success Agents are taking your calls starting Monday, June 13, Monday through Friday, 8 am to 5 pm.  Got a question?  Give them a call at 434-924-3400.

2.  We're in the stage of the Finance Strategic Transformation project called cutover, which means there are many deadlines to take into consideration as we switch over from Oracle to Workday Financials.  An interactive chart of cutover deadlines is available online.

3. Workday Financials Training is available.  Don't wait to take your training!  Know that you can refresh your knowledge using course materials, quick reference guides, and on-demand web-based training.  These resources are linked from the Workday Financials Training page. 

4. New resources related to the launch of Workday Financials are available.  You can check out further guidance regarding fund balance ownership (look under Training and FAQs) as well as more detailed information for faculty and PIs.

5.  Workday Financials isn't the only system launching in July -- Adaptive Planning 3.0, the version of our budgeting software that will integrate with Workday, will launch on July 28.   If you want to read more, check out this blog piece.

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FST Update: June 13, 2022

 

No time to read all the text? Check out Five things to Know about FST

Or listen in to WFST, the FST Radio News Broadcast

Oracle to Workday Financials Cutover

On July 5, when Workday Financials replaces Oracle as the University’s financial system of record, we’ll not only be using the same system for all of our operational needs – both finance and human resources – but also, we’ll finally have a modern, cloud-based financial system that allows the kind of flexibility and strategic planning that we’ve long-needed.

We’re now in the cutover phase of the project, where some types of transactions are temporarily paused so that we can make the switch from Oracle to Workday – this affects things like travel and expense, purchases and payments, budgeting research awards, and even some HR-related transactions.  If you haven’t already, we encourage you to visit the Cutover Resources page on the UVAFinance FST website to see what deadlines affect you and your area.

Cutover Considerations from the blog:  Chrome River Cut-Off Dates, Payroll Deadlines

Workday Financials Training

Training users of the Workday Financials system continues to go well, both in terms of the number of people who’ve completed training relevant to the roles they have within Workday Financials and also in terms of how they feel about the training.  Remember that you can refresh your knowledge from instructor-led courses by taking the on-demand web-based courses, too.

Read the Training Update in the blog. / New training and support information for Faculty & PIs

Finance Solution Center Call Center Launches

 Since it launched in March, the user success team has logged more than 3700 email requests.  They’ve been learning on the job and doing great.  Today they add a key feature to their support:  A phone number! You can always reach out via email, but as of Monday, June 13, the team will also be taking your calls from 8 am to 5pm.  You can speak to a live agent by calling 434-924-3400.

Read the full FSC update in the blog.

Fund Balance Ownership

Schools and units are also working on fund balance ownership and how budgets and actuals will be different in the future state.  Our Budget Process redesign group has developed some resources that will help folks view their expendable fund balances and navigate the change in some types of transactions in Workday. 

Read the update and access the resources for fund ownership.

Adaptive Planning

Adaptive 3.0 goes live on July 28. This is the version of Adaptive Planning that integrates with Workday Financials.  Schools and units have several things they can be doing now to prepare for the launch date, even before Workday Financials goes live (when many other things will need their attention).  

Read the full update on the blog and learn how to get help planning for Adaptive 3.0.

GL Balance Conversion

After Workday Financials goes live, fund balances in the new system will require adjustment because we are transitioning from a two-ledger system to a flat ledger system.  Schools and Units are planning for this effort to last a couple of months after the system launches.  

Read more about how fund balances will change and how to see funds in the transition time.

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The Finance Solution Center is Ready to take Your Calls

While the Training Team is ensuring staff understand their work in Workday Financials, the Finance Solution Center is readily preparing to handle support requests after go-live.

The Finance Solution Center is our centralized, first human point of contact for most support requests leading up to and post go-live. In preparation for the launch of Workday Financials, the Solution Center was launched in March and we began consolidation of support e-mails that existed in UVAFinance. We have made tremendous progress over the past three months—streamlining pathways for support, refining our ability to respond promptly to routine questions, escalating complex cases more efficiently, and improving performance on service standards.

Since launch, the user success agents have fielded more than 3,700 email requests and we are excited to announce that our call center will be live on Monday, June 13th. Users will now be able to speak with a live agent by calling (434) 924-3400 between the hours of 8am and 5pm, Monday through Friday. Agents will be ready to intake new support cases and provide status updates on existing cases. Of course, you may continue to email your questions and issues to askfinance@virginia.edu and we encourage that particularly for more complex questions or issues requiring a high degree of context.

At present, the bulk of the cases being handled by the team relate to procurement, accounts payable, and the financial strategic transformation. As we expect a much higher volume of inquiries at and shortly after go-live, surge support plans are being developed and activated to ensure that users continue to get the support that they need in a timely manner. We encourage you to provide feedback through your responses to our surveys or by emailing the User Success Manager, Joey Carls at jcarls@virginia.edu. This feedback allows us to continually improve service to the UVA community and our external partners.

Thanks to each of you who have engaged the Solution Center for your grace and patience as we have worked to establish a top-notch support framework!

Workday Finance Guidance for Faculty

Oracle will be sun-setting as of July 5, 2022, replaced with the cloud-based Workday Finance system. Financial information on your sponsored projects from the Oracle system will continue to be available via UBI reports after transitioning to Workday. If you were certifying transactions on your awards using the Oracle Recon@ system, you will be using the Account Certification process in Workday. Multiple Workday Grants reports have also been configured and tested to provide sponsored programs-related information to you as the PI.

See below some resources that will make the transition and stabilization period smoother for you and enable you to focus on your important work:

• Faculty Resources Webpage: this site contains details about the cutover from Oracle to Workday, information about fund balance visibility after the launch of Workday Finance, and more.
• Principal Investigator Resources: Linked from the Faculty Resources page, this site contains a reference guide that will assist you in navigating Workday, learning how Awards work within Workday, setting up delegations, approving invoices, and more.
• Workday Finance Training Resources: this site, also linked from the Faculty Resources page, details the wealth of training and learning resources available for you and your financial support teams with instructions on how to access them.

Financial officers from your school and unit have been working with Central Finance and the Office of Sponsored Programs for over two years to ensure that the needs of your area are met. Finance staff in your area have been exposed to Workday Financials and have received training on the business processes they perform.

Thank you in advance for your patience with both your area finance professionals and the UVAFinance team as we navigate this transition and stabilization period over the next few months. 

 If you have questions or concerns, please reach out to us at askfinance@virginia.edu

UVAFinance Welcomes David Nelson as Assistant Director of Payables

David and his family

I was interested in this role at UVA for a number of reasons,” David Nelson said when asked what attracted him to his new role as Assistant Director of Payables. 

“From a career perspective, this was an opportunity to step further into a leadership role and have increasing levels of responsibility.”

Nelson’s previous position was at the non-profit Simons Foundation in New York, NY.  At SF, he performed technically focused initiatives as a Senior Accountant and Systems Administrator. In his current position in UVAFinance, he wants to shift to a more strategic approach with an advocacy mindset for his fellow team members and what will make them successful:

“I always like to keep in mind the mantra ‘when you shine, we shine.’ From a Payables perspective, my vision for the future is to create cohesion so that the team can better communicate and collaborate with other departments in UVAFinance so that we all benefit. I am excited to see what contributions I can make to this great organization and to partner with people to ensure that everyone has a chance to share their knowledge and ideas, and have their voices heard.”

As Assistant Director of Payables, Nelson currently works most closely with Jenn Glassman, Addie Coe, Alita Salley, and the rest of the Procurement and Supplier Diversity Leadership Team. Though he has a strong vision for the future of Payables at UVA, he acknowledges that he still has much to learn from Jenn, Addie, Alita, and others.

David's children, Frankie and Reuben

From a personal perspective, Nelson and his wife of 11 years, Suzanne, wanted to come to Charlottesville because they were looking for a healthy change that would benefit their growing family and allow them to establish strong roots. The couple has two children, a 3-year-old daughter named Frankie and a 9-month-old son named Reuben, and they also have a dog named Gherkin. For Nelson and his wife, who used to live in Charlottesville before moving to New York City in 2014, moving back to Virginia with their family was a calling that was hard to resist.

In his free time, Nelson makes the most out of living in Virginia. First and foremost, he loves spending time with his family. He also enjoys getting outdoors and hiking the numerous trails near Charlottesville. When possible, he enjoys traveling with his family and has a spoon and magnet collection from all the places he has visited. 

Yvonne Metheny's Diversity of Experience enhances General and State Accounting

Yvonne Metheny has been with UVAFinance for her entire 14 years at the University. She's gained experience and functional knowledge in positions including Accounting & Financial Analyst, Cost Analyst, and Manager of Debt.

Recently promoted to a new position, Metheny is now the Director of General and State Accounting. Debt Management, State Accounting, Bank Reconciliation and Accounts Receivable all report to the Director of General and State Accounting.

Metheny says she never really wanted to be an accountant. In college, she started with some accounting courses and did well in them, but she joined the Air Force and turned her attention to computers. Eventually, she earned her Bachelors’ degree in teaching and education (business education). A short stint teaching high school classes wasn’t a good fit, so she went back and got an MBA with a specialty in accounting. That path led her to a fulfilling career with UVAFinance.

"My position is very fluid and ever-changing, and will be even more so with the upcoming launch of Workday," Metheny says. "There will be a lot of change in the way we process and analyze data. I will

continue to work closely and collaborate with other departments in Finance and across Grounds."

So far, she enjoys the diversity of work that her position entails.

"I like knowing the big picture and the challenge of solving problems," she shares. "I like that no two days are the same and I am able to work with so many different people."

Aligning with her propensity for adventure in her work, it is no surprise that she enjoys traveling, and exploring different places in Virginia. She also loves spending time with my family and friends and doing anything that has to do with water.