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Coordinating Committee Meeting

Notes - April 12, 2005

  • Report of Vacation/TDL Committee

Mary Ferlan and Jayna Cheesman, co-chairs of a committee charged with reviewing vacation and temporary disability leave policies, presented their findings and recommendations.  The Coordinating Committee learned that the hospital accounts for paid leave accruals and usage in a different manner from that followed by the campus.  The report recommends that the hospital alter its practices so that all paid leaves would be accrued and posted at the end of pay periods and made available for use in later pay periods.

The Vacation/TDL Committee does not recommend separate configuration of hospital accrual practices in SAP. Rather, the IRIS Project affords UK the opportunity in this instance to examine policies and practices for improvement and consistency.  A final decision on how leave is to be handled in the new system is required very soon, so that the HR/Payroll timeline progress is not impeded. 

Members of the Coordinating Committee present at the meeting favored the recommendations on leave. Since neither Sergio Melgar nor Murray Clark was able to attend today’s meeting, the Coordinating Committee opted for the following process for resolution:

    • Phyllis will ask for a written response/rationale from Sergio and Murray about continuing this practice;

    • Lee Nelson will check on SAP’s time evaluation system and daily accrual functionality;

    • If needed, the Coordinating Committee will hold a called meeting following receipt of the hospital response. 

  • FES and FRS

Dale Austin presented information to the Coordinating Committee on the implications and impact of the FES replacement Go Live of July 2006. Through graphic handouts, Dale illustrated the impact this proposed go live date would have with regard to additional maintenance of information in current systems, continued use of FRS chart of accounts, and the required interfaces.  Everyone gained a better understanding of the challenge of certification of effort and reallocations, given new systems and staggered implementation schedules. Phyllis will initiate a discussion with the Provost Business Office to determine the best way to manage the required dual entry of information.

  • Campus Contacts

The IRIS Project Team soon will be making many requests for information from all areas of the institution. Phyllis proposed a method for issuing such requests through the area security officers.  Using these individuals as official contacts ensures that requests will be handled systematically by those at the appropriate level and with the knowledge needed for response. It also avoids the situation of employees being bombarded with numerous questions and queries.  The area security officers include Penny Cox (Information Technology), Lisa Wilson (Provost), Teresa Centers (EVP for Health Affairs), Kristin Cheser (EVP for Finance and Administration), and Dan Wentz (Research).  The Coordinating Committee members endorsed this approach.

  • Update on Student Accounting Committee

David Hardison reported on the establishment of this committee. Chaired by Karen Combs and David, the group will examine payment options, late charges, write-offs, hierarchy of payment (for centralized billing), credit card payment matters, and the statement of obligation. Following David’s summary report, the committee discussed at length concerns over installment payment plans and SAP functionality.  As noted by Phyllis, the Student Accounting Committee must work on each of the issues in a timely fashion and bring recommendations soon to the Coordinating Committee for review.

  • Update on Personal Service Contracts

Kathy Hamperian reported on the status of the RFP for SAP programming support.  The institution received a total of 14 responses.  Of those, nine vendors were selected and contracts and Proofs of Necessity are now being processed. Some of these vendors will be engaged for writing the FES replacement.

  • Customization Requests for the Current System

Jayna Cheesman presented two customization requests from the Dean of the Graduate School.  The requests call for modifications to the Faculty Database.   One request involves the addition of teaching assistant records, including credentials, and was favored by the group. The second request, involving modification to reflect graduate faculty status in the database, did not receive a unanimous endorsement. The committee did agree, however, that both requests should be approved.

Today’s meeting concluded with a project update from Lee Nelson, who indicated that the project is still on track. He warned that the workload is about to branch off, bringing further complications and challenges, as well as additional stress, for the teams and the campus.