UVAFinance Welcomes Ryan Ellis to Accounts Payable

The Ellis kiddos

Ryan Ellis recently joined the UVA Finance team as manager of accounts payable, bringing a wealth of experience from the nonprofit sector to his first role in higher education. Ellis's journey into the world of finance and accounting began with a foray into business and marketing at California State University San Marcos.  Although he initially found accounting too dry; he soon discovered he enjoyed accounts payable.

“I’ve always been drawn to the checks and balances of accounting,” Ellis shares. “But what really excites me is the customer support aspect. It’s about organizing information in a way that makes sense to non-accountants and ensuring we’re taking care of our relationships, whether that’s with suppliers or internal teams.”

Ellis has held finance roles at Foothills Child Advocacy and the Southern Environmental Law Center, and has served on the board of Meals on Wheels. His previous roles allowed him to see firsthand how close-knit and connected communities can be, a sentiment he feels UVA embodies as well.

“Charlottesville is a place where everyone wants to work at UVA,” he comments. “It’s a huge institution, deeply rooted in the city’s identity, and it has the same sense of community that I loved about nonprofits. But in smaller nonprofits, you can sometimes feel stuck. I was ready to expand my skills, start managing a team, and share my insights with others who want to grow.”

Though he’s only been in his role at UVA for a week, Ellis is already diving into new projects, including the OCR tool implementation. “My focus right now is ensuring invoices are paid on time, ideally in less than a week,” he explains. “It’s about making it easier for suppliers to see where they stand from purchase to pay."

Ellis’s path to UVA was a winding one. Born in Germany to a military family, he spent his childhood moving across the U.S., eventually settling in California (but enjoying visiting relatives in Virginia).

Outside of work, Ellis is an avid outdoorsman with a particular love for national parks. “We’re national parks pass holders and have done cross-country tours to visit them,” he says. “We even got married in Yosemite!” His wife, Mary, a librarian at Northside Jefferson-Madison Regional Library, shares his love for the arts and the outdoors. Together with their three children—Scout (13), Pip (7), and Sunny (1)—and their beagle, Rufio, they enjoy the natural beauty of the East Coast, from skate parks to beaches.

Ellis's enthusiasm for trying new things extends into the kitchen, where he’s always hunting for new recipes and seasonal ingredients. He’s even planning to enter his perfected fried chicken recipe into the Fried Chicken Festival in Gordonsville this year.

Federal Work Study Updates and Reminders

FWS reminders from SFS

At the last Fiscal Administrators' meeting, our colleagues in Student Financial Services (SFS) shared some crucial reminders about hiring federal work-study (FWS) student workers. (Fiscal Administrators' meetings are full of useful information.  See the schedule and past meeting coverage on the UVAFinance website.)

Here are the highlights: 

• Resources are available on the SFS FWS Administrators website.  (This includes a video and slides from their recent FWS training session.)
• Remember to pre-verify students in Workday.  Awards are available in the FWS QlikSense app.
• Choosing the correct job family and job profile is critical.
• Be mindful of hiring and costing allocation dates.
• FWS Grant for 2024-25: GR103008 IN-SFS FFA Federal Work Study (FWS) Program FY25

Questions about FWS?  Reach out to uvaworkstudy@virginia.edu 

____________________________________________________

See SFS's slides from the August 7 Fiscal Admin Meeting

Alerts for Missing Roles

When Workday roles are empty, business processes stall.  To help avoid this, the Business Intelligence Team has initiated a series of alerts generated on Monday mornings.  The purpose of the alerts is to proactively inform cost center managers and senior finance department approvers where critical roles are unfilled (no need to run reports to discover the gaps).

Currently, alerts are sent when the following roles are empty (either unassigned or assigned to an unfilled position):

• Senior Department Financial Approver
• Cost Center Fiscal Specialist
• P2P Approver
• Expense Support Specialist
• Cost Center Manager:  Senior Department Finance Approver will be alerted
• Project Budget Specialist or Project Budget Manager
• Unit Gift Manager

The alert messages, which list the cost centers that need to be addressed, will look like this: 

There are Cost Centers (noted below) in your unit which are missing one or more critical approval roles - CC Fiscal Specialist, P2P approver, Expense Support Specialist, or Senior Finance Dept Approver. This can cause delays in Business Processes approvals. Please have someone assigned to these roles ASAP.

You can drill into the Cost Center(s) listed below and go to the Roles tab to see the status of all roles related to this cost center. Alternatively, you can run the Workday report "Cost Center Role Assignments - Security".

If there are other roles which also need to be assigned, please correct those as well.

Roles should be requested through the System Access Requests app in Workday.

The team has similar alerts for Grant roles in progress; we'll post updates when those have been added.  If you have an idea for an alert or message in Workday that would be helpful, let us know at askfinance@virginia.edu 

Introducing UVAFinance: Angela Coleman & Joey Carls

 

Introducing UVAFinance is a recurring blog feature created to introduce our team to our team, a couple of members at a time. Every other week, we present readers with a team member or two to get to know. To understand how these colleagues are situated within the greater UVAFinance structure, check out this resource on the UVAFinance website.

NEW Resource: UVAFinance by Department

__________________________________________________________________

Angela Coleman, Director of Payroll Services

What do you do as Director of Payroll Services?

I really am the backup for the managers. What comes to me are exceptions, level 3 type questions from Ask Finance. I'm in the customer service business and I'm here when the Payroll team needs me. I also act as the liaison with other leadership (exec). I work on delivering information back and forth, to and from the Team to leadership.

Who are the people/departments you work with on a regular basis?

If you asked me who we don't engage with, it would be a shorter list! Finance leadership and HR are the two biggest departments we work with, but the reality is, when SOM or Wise or Athletics needs something, it's any and all folks who we can interact with. We touch every department so our client base is the entire institution. Most of those things come up through the team and end up with me when they require some kind of escalation. We also interact with AP (they pay the vendor deductions that come out of Payroll - Fidelity, TIAA, ADP for taxes and garnishments), and Procurement (taxable expenses, gift cards, etc.).

What seasons are busiest, or what rhythms exist in your job?

In my mind, my first gut reaction is the W-2 season, which is huge for our team (we start reviewing and prepping in November, processing in January, then January through April it's a litany of W-2 questions). However, when I reflected a bit more, when the academic year starts in August, faculty and students start coming back and that's a definite peak season for us. So is the end of the academic year - bonuses, the last of period activity pay for wage and temp workers, etc. We have a steady rhythm all year round, but each season has a different focus. 

What might surprise people about the work you do/this role/your department or area?

From a team perspective, I think it would be surprising that we actually don't control compensation. People hear "payroll" an think they should call us. But we don't set salaries or hourly rates; there is an HR compensation team that initiates all of that. Workday does that by design as an internal control. People are shocked when we have to send them to another unit for answers. 

What do you like best about working in UVAFinance? 

It's the people. I really have not met anyone on the team who isn't genuine, invested in being here, and committed to the academic mission. People are here because they want to be - and they STAY! Most have been here 25 or 30 years. That's the best part, but I also enjoy the responses I get when I tell people I work for UVA, even those on the West Coast. I love being proud of where I work. 

How do you connect your work with the UVAFinance Values? 

The value that strikes a chord with me the most, the one we really lean into on the Payroll side, is being an impeccable source of data. When checks are wrong, it impact people at a personal level. Being accurate and timely are non-negotiables in our line of work and we have a stellar team that really leans into that. The message we deliver is the same if you're talking to someone on Lori's team or Marcy's team. We want accuracy, articulate work, and clear and concise data. That whole pillar of being an impeccable source of data is a cornerstone for us. 

 __________________________________________________________________

Joey Carls

Joey Carls, Service Experience Manager

What do you do as Service Experience Manager?

I see my role as an enabler for both my team's success and the customer's success. My job is to ensure that we're always finding ways to do right by our customers and when things go awry, my job is to do everything in my power to make it right. 

Who are the people/departments you work with on a regular basis? 

Obviously, I lead a team of hardworking service experience associates. My work also entails close collaboration with our training, communications, systems support, and functional teams in UVAFinance. 

What seasons are the busiest, or what rhythms exist in your job? 

Our busiest seasons are fiscal year-end and tax season, but as you might imagine, there are always suppliers looking for payment information or departmental personnel seeking support on routine transactions so the work really does not slow down regardless of the season. 

What might surprise people about the work you do/this role/your department or area?

People may not know that we have established a strong quality control program on my team to enable the team's development and in turn, allow them to provide increasingly high-quality service to our customers. It is so important to me to not only intake feedback, but use it for the good of everyone who interacts with us. 

What do you like best about working in UVAFinance?

I highly appreciate the opportunity to experiment and iterate without fear of failure. Over the past two years in the solution center, we have constantly iterated on our processes and procedures, structure, and systems based on feedback from the team, our customers, and UVAFinance partners. We could not be where we are without the ability to try new things and learn from our successes and failures. 

How do you connect with the UVAFinance Values?

How doesn't our work connect with the UVAFinance vales? The spirit of impeccable information, collaborative partnership, service excellence, continuous improvement, and respect for others runs deep in our processes and evaluative tools. There is not a day that goes by that my team is not living these values. 

_________________________________________________________________

UVAFinance Mission & Values / UVAFinance Organizational Structure / Past Introductions can be found on our site under "Resource Shelf"

Would you like to be featured in Introducing UVAFinance? Want to suggest a colleague to be featured? Email bv8h@virginia.edu

Reporting & Data Tips & Tricks

Save Filters, Save Time!

Did you know that most reports in Workday allow you to save filters so you don't have to select them each time you run the report?  Use the "Save Filters" options on the Prompts page to save frequently used filters and you won't have to re-enter!  Just select your saved filter the next time you run the report.

____________________________________________________

Reporting & Data Tips & Tricks is a recurring series.  See links to all past posts on the UVAFinance website. 

UVAFinance in Action: August 22, 2024

Joey Carls, Angela, and Jack Jensen 

Angela Knobloch has left UVA after six years; throughout her time here, she was a champion for our partners across Grounds and a constant advocate for people-centered leadership.  As a driving force behind Finance Strategic Transformation and various other projects, guiding us through challenges with unwavering dedication and vision.  We'll miss her leadership, insight, and warmth.  We're sad to see her go, but excited for the next step on her journey as she returns to the Midwest to be closer to her adult children. 

The Office of Sponsored Programs is about to achieve an important milestone with ResearchUVA: integration with Workday Financials!  This integration will eliminate the double data entry that must currently be performed in both ResearchUVA and Workday.  The IT Integrations team built the connections between Workday and Huron, and the UVAFinance Workday Support Team assisted with testing.  Collaborative effort wins again!

The annual Day of Caring is set for September 18.  If you are interested in participating, please reach out to Stacey Rittenhouse as soon as possible so that we can pick a project on August 21.  See more details on the Finance Team page.

The 2024 Travel & Expense Expo was a great success!  Thank you to everyone who came and those who helped plan the event and volunteered that day.  See our video recap here. 

Exploring Finance at UVA: Justina Duncan

Welcome to 'Exploring Finance at UVA'! This is a recurring blog feature that will highlight finance professionals from across Grounds, beyond UVAFinance. Meet a diverse array of staff members and delve into their roles and insights in the world of finance within the greater UVA framework.

If you or someone you know would like to be featured in Exploring Finance at UVA, please email bv8h@virginia.edu

__________________________________________________________________

Justina Duncan, Business Manager

What do you do as Business Manager? 

The President's Office is a fairly small department, which means I have the opportunity to be involved in a lot of different activities. I handle the transfers of the president's discretionary funds to other schools and units at the University. I prepare account certifications for some cost centers while also approving them for others. I also review a lot of pay expense reports. I enter purchase requisitions for larger purchases, supplier invoice requests, payroll accounting/adjustments, accounting journals/adjustments, and ad hoc bank transactions. Additionally, I oversee the institutional dues process for many of the University's memberships to organizations and help manage our budget in Adaptive. 

Having spent 50% of my time on the Finance Strategic Transformation (FST) project for more than two years and another two years using Workday, I'm able to serve as a good resource to the President's Office and areas reporting to the President for all things Workday Finance, but especially expense reports. I keep myself updated on policies, procedures, and spend categories to ensure our office remains compliant. We try to set a good example!

Who do you work most with in Central Finance? 

I'm quite resourceful and am often able to find answers to questions on the Finance website or quick reference guides (QRGs). I try not to bother the busy folks in Central Finance if I don't absolutely have to. When I do reach out, I frequently work with the Travel & Expense team, Procurement, or the wonderful trainers if I'm in a serious jam!

What rhythms exist in your work? Is there a busy season?

We stay consistently busy as there is an undercurrent of all the usual day-to-day things like expense reports and account certifications, but then there are also more seasonal tasks that we are working on at any particular time. As in many other areas, there is an uptick in activity at the end of the fiscal year when we're wrapping up graduation and other year-end expenses. As soon as that's over, it's the beginning of the next fiscal year (who could have predicted that?), which means making final adjustments to last year and new year funding distributions. We also have an annual internal audit of our operating expenses that takes place in the summer. Soon thereafter, budget development season begins... and so it goes!

What do you like most about what you do?

I like challenges and helping people solve problems. It's satisfying to know that I can usually help when someone comes to me with a question - or at least I know how to find an answer. Additionally, working in this office provides great exposure to so many of the amazing things people are doing at the University. I'm constantly impressed.

How does your work further UVA's mission? 

On a smaller scale, I am "advancing, preserving, and disseminating knowledge" to the President's Office and occasionally to the University finance community. On a macro level, I am getting funds to student groups, staff, researchers, and faculty so they can do the good work of furthering UVA's mission in their own ways.

What's something interesting or funny about your team?

Justina's cozy spot in Madison Hall

My favorite annual traditions that the President's Office does as a team are the United Way Day of Caring and moving first-year students into their new dorms. They are excellent ways to get outside the office and get to know one another in a different environment. Plus, it's a great exercise and the recipients of our assistance are always so appreciative!

Budget Updates

Need some budget help this season? 

• Budget Office Hours:  Biweekly on Wednesdays, beginning August 14, 3-4 pm. (No office hours on September 11 due to Budget Kickoff).
• FDM Office Hours:  Biweekly on Wednesdays, beginning August 21, 3-4 pm.
• First Quarter Snapshot in Adaptive: October 1.

Check with the dean's office or finance office of your school or unit if you'd like to attend.

UVAFinance Introduces Venissa Nieves as Senior Payroll Specialist

Venissa Nieves

Venissa Nieves recently joined the UVAFinance team as Senior Payroll Specialist. With over 20 years of experience in Payroll and a passion for connecting with the people she collaborates with, Nieves brings extensive experience and dedication to her work that will be a valuable asset to the Payroll team at UVAFinance.

Nieves was born and raised in Jamaica and moved to New York when she was 14 years old. She attended Monroe college, where she received both her associate and bachelor degrees in business administration and accounting. Nieves has a true passion for learning and is currently furthering her education by working on her master’s in project management at Aspen University, which she is interested in transferring over to UVA soon!

Throughout her time in the workforce, Nieves has worked in Payroll with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), March of Dimes, Teach for America, and most recently, New Visions. New Visions works with public schools and educators to provide adequate tools, resources, and support within school systems. Nieves remarks that she has always loved education and working with schools, and while she says she couldn’t be a teacher, her contribution to the world of education through Payroll is something she takes “great pride in.” Through her work with New Visions, Nieves attests that she learned more about building up her customer service skills and explored the business aspect of schools and school systems, which she says was a great prior experience for her role at UVA and working in higher education.

Initially, Nieves went into college under the field of liberal arts, but after taking her first accounting class, she recognized her passion for finance- working with numbers, debits and credits, and “putting things in their place,” and she aptly switched her major to reflect that. Nieves claims that she “hates math… but this isn’t your usual math!” when it comes to Payroll. 

Nieves’ choice to join the UVAFinance team was a “happy coincidence,” she says. While moving out of New York to Texas, she spotted the job on the market, and after talking with Angela and Marcy, she was truly excited about the opportunities UVAFinance had to offer. She acknowledges that this position is a huge move for her and her family, as it allows her the ability to work and attend school in the same place. Nieves says she is looking forward to the chance to grow in her work, collaborate alongside a fantastic team that has made her feel at home immediately, and provide personalized customer service to the employees she’ll work with in Payroll. 

Nieves

As Senior Payroll Specialist, Nieves will join the Payroll Solutions Team, who addresses all things pay and tax compliance. The team's work crosses many components that impact employee paychecks, their take-home pay, and the many facets that must be considered to get from worked hours to net paycheck- whether through direct deposit or check.

In her free time, Nieves loves hanging out with her family. She has a big family that loves get-togethers and spending time with each other, and she remarks “family time is a must!” She also loves spending as much time as possible outdoors and finding ways to combat the Texas heat (“it’s a little different from the New York climate!”). Her two girls are in Girl Scouts and STEM clubs, and love any and all bugs- she currently has butterflies growing in her living room! Nieves is also a huge fan of roller coasters, and has spent plenty of time at Six Flags, where she has ridden Kingda Ka multiple times (for all you roller coaster lovers out there!).

New Sustainability Opportunities!

from UVA Sustainability

UVA Sustainability has shared two new sustainability-related opportunities with the UVA community. 

Community Opportunity

Fall 2024 Special Collection Days: Ivy Solid Waste & Recycling Center will be hosting special collection days for Albemarle County and Charlottesville residents throughout the fall. Special collection days provide community members opportunities to properly recycle or dispose of e-waste, residential hazardous waste, mattresses, tires, and household appliances. Check out the flyer below for more information.

Click on image for larger view

UVA Sustainability Opportunity

The Office for Sustainability has launched a new Green Purchasers Community of Practice on Teams. The community aims to connect UVA employees with purchasing responsibilities (T&E card holders/Marketplace shoppers), enabling all of us to share ideas and resources related to sustainable purchasing, ask questions, and learn from one another. All are welcome to join. Sign up here!

If you have any questions or ideas for sustainability events for employees this fall, please reach out to sustainability@virginia.edu.

New Program: Travel & Expense Card Misuse Monitoring

New for T&E Cards

Travel & Expense is introducing a new program called Travel & Expense Card Misuse Monitoring. We hope that this program will allow us to help cardholders better understand card policy and procedures. Our goal is to educate with penalties being a last resort. 

We have partnered with a third-party audit and review company which gives us better visibility into card misuse. 

We will review personal transactions (self-reported and potential), split transactions, restricted vendors and items, and duplicate payments. This page on our website outlines the schedule of occurrences and violations. 

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

Reporting & Analytics Release Notes for August 2024

Finance Reporting & Release Notes for August 7 have been posted to the UVAFinance website.  

Updates to the Workday Payroll Costing UBI app.

• Major enhancements include bringing in Payroll Actuals & Obligations data into the app, and a couple new reports/visualizations that will display payroll transaction amounts by pay period for analysis. (This data is available for academic employees only).
• Another new report – Employees with Uncosted Salaries – will identify salaried employees without a current costing allocation record (Worker Position) – either ended has ended or has not been set up.
• Modifications to existing reports include:
• Improved calculations for Per Pay Period Distribution and Annualized Pay Amounts.
• Enhanced Job Family Group data dimension that will now enable you to identify different employee categories like student workers, temporary employees or faculty, and filter your data accordingly.
• In addition to the employees’ primary supervisor, we have also added the Position Supervisor data element to the reports to help those of you who manage/review costing allocations for employees with multiple positions.

For any finance reporting questions or feedback, please reach out to AskFinance@virginia.edu.

Exploring Finance at UVA: Joe Kuykendall

 

Welcome to 'Exploring Finance at UVA'! This is a new, recurring blog feature that will highlight finance professionals from across Grounds, beyond UVAFinance. Meet a diverse array of staff members and delve into their roles and insights in the world of finance within the greater UVA framework.
__________________________________________________________________

Joe Kuykendall

Joe Kuykendall, Assistant Athletics Director of Business Operations

What do you do as Assistant Athletics Director for Business Operations?

The biggest thing we try to focus on is being a customer service epicenter for all 27 sports and the numerous other units we have in Athletics. Having been at UVA for five years now, and through a lot of changes, I do a little bit of everything from a “business office” standpoint including processing payments, reviewing expense reports, etc. But the areas I am mainly focused on in our office include leading our procurement and risk management efforts – two areas that are a major part of UVA Finance. One area unrelated to UVA Finance that I do in my role is representing UVA as our ACC ADID (Athletics Diversity and Inclusion Designee). This Athletics Director appointed position is someone who “serves as the conduit for information related to national-, local- and campus-level issues of diversity and inclusion and supports diverse and inclusive practices related to athletics.” We, as an ACC ADID group meet monthly, and then within the Athletics Department, we have our own Inclusive Excellence Committee that I lead. I like this role as it allows me to explore and involve myself in some non-finance areas and it also provides interaction with student-athletes – something we don’t always get in a business office setting.  

Who do you work most with in Central Finance?

Honestly, I feel like I work with everyone in Central Finance at some point (many of them are probably sick of hearing from me by now!). But I am communicating weekly (and sometimes daily) with the Services and Athletics team within Procurement and Supplier Diversity Services (shoutout to Kevin, Devon, Patrick, Sara, Garrett, and Krista!) as well as the Risk Management team – on things like insurance requirements in contracts and filing claims. We also have a lot of interaction with the Travel & Expense team because of the amount of travel we do in Athletics, of course. Because of my work on the Athletics purchasing side, the Fixed Asset Accounting Group is one I seem to work with at least once a week as well – especially with all the construction we have going on currently, with our two new operations center and the new football scoreboard, we have been purchasing a lot of capital equipment! I communicate a lot with Andrew Clark on supplier management items because in addition to traditional suppliers, almost all our athletes must get registered for reimbursements/payments of some kind, so we have a high volume because of the number of registrations we have to process for that. There are many many more (great) folks and groups that I didn’t list by name or unit but know I acknowledge and appreciate your work and our interactions!

What rhythms exist in your work? Is there a busy season?

June is easily our busiest month because of fiscal year-end. We try to be the best stewards of our dollars that we can in Athletics and a major part of that involves waiting to spend on major projects until the end of the year when we have a better idea of our financial position. This means lots of late June purchases. We keep the PSDS team busy up until the PO Invoice Cutoff deadline. July is then our slowest month because there are no major fiscal deadlines and none of our teams are in season. Outside of those two months, things stay relatively steady but there are busier times when crossover season happens (when the end of one season overlaps with the beginning of the next – e.g. Fall/Winter Sports, Winter/Spring Sports).

What do you like most about what you do?

It’s definitely getting to work with an interact with all the sports and units within the Athletics Department. Our office gets to work with all the aforementioned 27 sports and units which isn’t the case for all employees in an Athletics Department (e.g. Employees in marketing work with a handful of assigned sports and not all 27).  It makes attending events more fun when there is that personal connection to them. From a work standpoint, my favorite thing is getting asked to help with something that is a new issue or a problem to solve. I love all puzzle-type things and new problems that I have to find a solution to are like a puzzle to me!

Joe's work space

How does your work further UVA's mission?

Admittedly, sometimes Athletics can seem like it doesn’t belong in the higher education landscape, especially at an ACC school where many of our teams operate and compete at a professional level. That said, I genuinely think and feel UVA tries to use Athletics as just one of the many components of a holistic education experience for its athletes. And we have coaches who believe in and support this mindset, too! With that in mind, the more I can do to help alleviate the coaches of some of the finance and administrative burdens, the more they can focus on winning and educating which is ultimately helping to further UVA’s mission. Part of UVA’s actual mission statement is “development of the full potential of talented students from all walks of life.” For some of our athletes, their full potential is a professional sports career, and no time is a better example of this than all the UVA Athletes (and coaches) competing in the Olympics right now. If not for UVA, those athletes wouldn’t be competing at that level. Again, by helping their coaches in the administrative areas, they get more attention and focus from their coaches which leads to national championships and gold medals!

What's something interesting or funny about your team?

We have a mini-basketball hoop in our office which creates some fun/friendly competitions and distractions! Come check it out – we are always open to visitors and showing folks around our office space and other athletics facilities. Just reach out! But be ready to be required to make a trick shot on the mini-basketball hoop.

_____________________________________________________________________

If you or someone you know would like to be featured in Exploring Finance at UVA, please email bv8h@virginia.edu

Optical Character Recognition for Invoice Processing

Nimbello, our OCR solution, is coming!

As you may know, the Procurement Team has been working to implement Nimbello, a technology solution for optical character recognition (OCR) to streamline invoice processing and better use the expertise of the Accounts Payable Team.  Go live for OCR has been slated for the week of August 19.  

What to Expect

• There will be no impact on suppliers. 
• The Accounts Payable Team will still be learning a new tool (we appreciate your patience!).  Because it's a tool that only Central Finance uses, there is nothing for our partners to learn in terms of the system.
• You could see an increase in match exceptions due to the move to an automated tool.  Remember that departments are responsible for managing match exceptions.  Central Finance cannot approve or override those due to audit requirements.  
• This will be a phased rollout, so it may take a little while to see widespread results.

_______________________________________________________________________

Questions?  Contact the Accounts Payable Team at askfinance@virginia.edu

System Access Requests: canceled if pending longer than 90 days

contributed by Danielle Hancock

To do their job, employees need the correct system access.  We know you want these requests to be granted as soon as possible, and so do we!  Although requests can sometimes stall, we're working on ways to help the process along.

 The requests are tied to the employee position ID, and if something changes from the time the request was submitted and when it is approved, it can cause issues with the request. To avoid some of those issues, the security team will send a reminder when a request has been pending for 60 days, and then will cancel the request after 90 days. 

The security team is working on adding reminder notifications, but in the meantime, you can check your requests in the System Access Requests area in Workday in the FIN Access Requests link or in the Reports tab.

If you select the blue link that says: Create FIN Security Request: [Your Name], you will be able to select the Process tab to see where the request is.

Where most delays occur in the system access request process and what you can do to help the request move faster:

1. Initiators not approving the request.

Some people who request system access don't realize that they are required to approve the request after the Security Administrator. Managers can request access for their employees, so this ensures that the employee getting the security role approves the request. When you get a WD task to approve your system access request, make sure you go in and approve. 

2. Managers not approving the request.

Managers are busy, and not all know the process well. Please send an email to your manager asking that as soon as they get the request to please approve it in their Workday inbox (My Tasks). You can also keep an eye on your request, and send the email when the request has moved to your manager. 

3. Training hasn't been completed.

Some system access requests have required training. It can be helpful to know what if any, training is required before submitting the request. You do not need to complete the training before you submit your request, but you should be prepared to complete the training within 30 days of the request. You can find the list of security roles and required training HERE. The training team will assign the Learning Program for each role once the request gets to their queue, but you don't have to wait for it to be assigned. If you have already completed the training, you do not need to retake the training.

It is important to know that you must complete the training for ALL the roles requested in a system access request. If you have a role you need immediately and have already completed the training or will complete it soon, you will want to put that role in a separate system access request.

______________________________________________________

Questions?  Contact askfinance@virginia.edu

UVAFinance in Action: August 8, 2024

Harouff and Hench at GBTA

Raegan Harouff Gaye and Chailey Hench of the UVAFinance Travel Team represented UVA at the 55th Annual GBTA | Global Business Travel Association Association Convention in Atlanta. 

The GBTA is the world's premier business travel and meetings trade organization, and the convention draws over 5,000 attendees from 58 countries. 

Thanks for your dedication to providing UVA with the best travel program possible, Raegan and Chailey!

Kimata

NACUBO recognized seven higher education business officers with their prestigious 2023-24 Nacubo Awards at last week's annual meeting in Chicago. One of the awardees is Steve Kimata, who received the 2024 Student Financial Services Award. Steve is associate vice president for enrollment and student financial services at UVA, and his long and successful career has been marked by enduring contributions that will have a positive influence for many years ahead.

UVAFinance is proud to see one of our closest collaborators honored this way! Congratulations, Steve!

Weider and the other NACUBO Fellows

Congratulations to the 2023-24 NACUBO Fellows who successfully completed their Fellows journey at the annual meeting in Chicago!  We're especially proud of our own Olga Weider for this monumental achievement.  

Over the past year, the Fellows worked together and with higher education leaders to deepen their understanding of the chief business officer role, to explore their own leadership skills, and to examine how veteran chief business officers have addressed institutional and professional challenges. 

Location Change: Check Pickup Moves to Carruthers Lobby

Any of several friendly faces will be happy 
to help you with your hold for pickup check.

As of August 5, "hold for pickup" checks will be available in the Carruthers Hall lobby (the main entrance facing Barracks Road Shopping Center) instead of at the front desk in Student Financial Services (south entrance of Carruthers Hall).

You'll know your check is ready when you receive an email from the "Ask Finance" team. 

For more information on the "hold for pickup" check printing schedule, visit the UVAFinance website. 

Wellness Resources: August 2024

Last Chance to join Free Fitness Classes this Summer!

There's still time to join a free Hoos Well fitness class in August! Classes include Body Pump, Barre, Yoga, Aqua Jogging, Pilates (virtual), and Cycle, Strength & Core. 

Classes run through August 9, 2024

Check out the schedule by week HERE.

FEAP Recorded Webinars Available for Viewing

Have you missed a previously held FEAP webinar due to a schedule conflict or maybe you'd like to rewatch one you attended? Recordings of past webinars are available for viewing when it's convenient for you. There are a variety of interesting topics including: 

• Welcoming Different Viewpoints
• Mental Health Awareness in the Workplace
• Enhancing Brain Health
• Sustainable Well-Being Strategies
• The Gift of Gratitude

Click HERE to view the complete list and watch a recording. 

August Emotional and Financial Well-Being Classes

• Live With Confidence in Retirement: Five Steps to Creating Your Retirement Income Plan
• August 8, 9AM & 12PM - Presented by TIAA
• Quarterly Market Update
• August 28, 10AM & 6PM - Presented by Fidelity

The above emotional and financial well-being classes are eligible for earning $25 Hoos Well rewards. You must be enrolled in a UVA Health Care Plan to earn awards.

Virtual Offerings (ongoing) 

• Hoos Well Virtual Resources - Suite of virtual resources to help you remain physically and emotionally well during the extraordinary challenges 
• IM-Rec Virtual Recreation - Range of quality programs, services, and venues that support all dimensions of wellness through sport, fitness, and recreation. (Also in-person classes).
• FEAP Virtual Resources - Collection of resources to support mental and emotional wellness 
• WW (formerly Weight Watchers) - Digital subscriptions and virtual workshops are available at a discounted price. You may also be eligible for 50% reimbursement. 
• eM Life - Online mindfulness platform to promote health, happiness, stress management, and self-care
• UVA Walking Paths (not virtual) - Interactive walking paths throughout the university. Use the interactive map on your smartphone or print a PDF.

Kale Caesar Salad

No doubt Caesar salads are yummy, but they also tend to be filled with a lot of unhealthy fats. You can make a delicious Caesar salad with healthy fats (think cashews and tahini) that can be just as satisfying, or more-so! Try this Kale Caesar Salad with Tofu Croutons that drives up the nutritional score while maintaining all of the mouth-watering taste. Walnut Parmesan complements this salad perfectly. Bon Appetit!

Introducing UVAFinance: Wanda Breeden & Sue Clements

 

Introducing UVAFinance is a recurring blog feature created to introduce our team to our team, a couple of members at a time. Every other week, we present readers with a team member or two to get to know. To understand how these colleagues are situated within the greater UVAFinance structure, check out this resource on the UVAFinance website.

NEW Resource: UVAFinance by Department

__________________________________________________________________

Wanda Breeden

Wanda Breeden, Senior Financial Analyst

What do you do as Senior Financial Analyst?

I manage the UVIMCO Long Term Pool investments, including the monthly unitization process, endowment distribution, and the reconciliations related to that process. Additionally, I manage the gift and endowment accounts in Workday. Another big part of my work is performing year-end reconciliations of the endowment/investment balances and investment earnings that appear as line items on the financial statements. 

Who are the people/departments you work with regularly?

I work most closely with Gift Accounting for the creation of new gifts and questions related to posting of gift activity, Treasury for LTP investment activity, OFPA for endowment-related budgeting issues, and Schools and Units for questions related to gifts and endowment. 

What seasons are busiest, or what rhythms exist in your job? 

I would say that July through January is the busiest time for me because I am juggling the following: fiscal year end activities, the creation of gifts and endowments as we get closer to calendar year-end (donors making gifts for tax purposes), monthly LTP investment activity, and quarterly endowment distributions. 

What might surprise people about the work you do/this role/your department or area?

I have been in UVAFinance my entire UVA career, which is 38 years. I started as an intern and the rest is history! Of course, systems, processes, and people have changed over time. However, I still love what I do and there is always something new and different when keeping four systems in balance (UVIMCO, Mellon, Workday, and Fundriver), which can be challenging at times. It's like putting a puzzle together.

What do you like best about working in UVAFinance?

The people. Everyone here is so friendly and always willing to collaborate and offer assistance when questions arise. 

How do you connect your work with the UVAFinance Values?

I connect my work with the UVAFinance values by constantly striving to always provide accurate, consistent, and reliable information.

__________________________________________________________________

Sue Clements

Sue Clements, Director of Finance Systems & Data Support

What do you do as Director of Finance Systems and Data Support?

I oversee a team that provides functional and configuration support for the Workday Finance system.

Who are the people/departments you work with regularly? 

Our primary stakeholders are right her in Finance. However, when Workday functionality is impacted or implemented that touches users across the University, we often work with representatives from schools and departments to test and provide feedback. 

What seasons are busiest, or what rhythms exist in your job? 

We are generally busy year-round, but responsibilities that the team has related to fiscal year end certainly makes that time of year a bit busier.

What might surprise people about the work you do/this role/your department or area?

It might be surprising that just a few years ago, many of my team members, myself included, didn't have any Workday Finance knowledge. It's amazing how far we've come, and how much we've learned!

What do you like best about working in UVAFinance?

Really there are two things - the people and the way we all collaborate. We work together to identify the root cause of issues, problem solve together, and look for opportunities together that can lead to more effective and efficient processes.

How do you connect your work with the UVAFinance Values?

The Workday Support team is constantly working to provide innovative solutions to our stakeholders, and to partner with them to streamline our business processes through system tweaks and new functionality implementation. We are constantly reviewing newly delivered fixes and functionality releases to determine what might add value for our business partners. As a result, I feel like the team is always working on relationship building. The one thing I know is that every person in Finanace has something to offer, and we try to take advantage of as much as we can!

_____________________________________________________________________________

UVAFinance Mission & Values / UVAFinance Organizational Structure / Past Introductions can be found on our site under "Resource Shelf"

Would you like to be featured in Introducing UVAFinance? Want to suggest a colleague to be featured? Email bv8h@virginia.edu

Expense Update August 2024

contributed by Raegan Harouff Gaye

Please note these upcoming Travel & Expense updates slated for this month.  Watch this space for more information!

New Expense Items

"Water Jug Services" maps to Services Bottled Water (SC0197)

"Passports & Travel Programs, Taxable" maps to Passports & Travel Programs, Taxable (SC0821)*

• To be used for fees for passports, TSA PreCheck, Global Entry, Clear, airline club memberships, or similar travel programs/memberships that may be used for business and personal travel. These expenses are taxable.
• For more information, view this page.

"Immigration Documents" maps to Services Visa and Immigration Fees (SC0179)

• To be used for fees for employer-sponsored immigration documents and lawyer fees including green cards

"Visas & Travel Immunizations" maps to Services Visa and Immigration Fees (SC0179)

• To be used for fees for visas, health immunizations, and testing for travel related business activities

The Expense Item Descriptions page has been updated to reflect these changes.

Spend Category Changes

Services Visa Fees/Passport (SC0179) has been renamed Services Visa and Immigration Fees (SC0179). 

Passports & Travel Programs, Taxable (SC0821) has been created. 

Report Upgrade

The Find Expense Report Lines report in Workday has been updated to include all work tags. Previously, this report only showed the Cost Center, but now it includes all work tags such as Gift/Grant/Designated/Project, Fund, Function, Program, Activity, and Assignee. 

You can also run the report based on specific work tags. Additionally, a new column has been added, "Is Out of Pocket Expense," to indicate whether an expense was a reimbursement. 

If you have any questions, please reach out to Travel@virginia.edu.