Business Matters August 2016

Quarterly Business Forum

Thank you for attending the Business Forum on Tuesday, August 2. The August 2016 Business Forum Presentation Slides are available on the Business Forum web page .

The next Business Forum is scheduled for Tuesday, November 8, 2016 from 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm in Baker University Center 240. The meeting will be broadcast via Adobe Connect and can be accessed here: November Business Forum Broadcast . Please mark your calendars.

Questions? Contact VPFA Communication & Training at finhr@ohio.edu .

New STRS Member Form Available

Collecting new hire information for incoming faculty has gotten easier. STRS combined the New Hire Information and Reemployed Retiree Information forms into one easy to use form. The new STRS Member Information form is available for download from the payroll website in the Downloadable Forms section. Please start using the new form as soon as possible.

New faculty are still required to submit a signed Statement Concerning Your Employment in a Job Not Covered by Social Security (SS-1945) form .

Questions? Contact the Employee Service Center at uhr@ohio.edu or 740-593-1636.

Qualifying Life Event in MPI

Enhancements are underway for the Self Service Benefits option of My Personal Information (MPI)that was used to conduct the annual Benefits Open Enrollment in April. This enhancement will enable employees to make midyear changes to their benefits in the event of a qualifying family status change and will support online benefits enrollment for new employees. The release for these enhancements is planned for September. Instructions for utilizing MPIto change and elect benefits will be announced closer to the launch date.

Outside of the annual open enrollment period, employees can only make changes to their benefits if a qualifying event occurs. 

Questions? Contact Benefits at benefits@ohio.edu or 740-593-1636.

HR Offers Student Onboarding Sessions

In a continued effort to improve the student employee onboarding process, Human Resources will host a series of open sessions for the completion of new student hire paperwork. These sessions will provide centralized support during the student hiring rush at the beginning of Fall Semester. No appointment is necessary for these sessions and they will operate on a first come, first served basis. Students may be directed to complete their paperwork at their convenience at a time that works best for their schedule. 

Hiring managers should refer to the student hiring web page for guidance regarding what information should be given to students to prepare them to complete their paperwork at these sessions. The website includes sample offer letters that hiring managers may provide to student employees at the time of hire. These sample letters contain useful information for the student employee about the documents needed to complete the onboarding process and important information about decisions they will need to make regarding tax forms and participation in OPERS.

Open Sessions

Date	Time	Location
Monday, August 29	9:00 am - 4:00 pm	Baker University Center 237
Tuesday, August 30	9:00 am - 4:00 pm	Baker University Center 237
Wednesday, August 31	9:00 am - 4:00 pm	Baker University Center 237
Thursday, September 1	9:00 am - 4:00 pm	Baker University Center 237
Friday, September 2	9:00 am - 4:00 pm	Baker University Center 237
Tuesday, September 6	9:00 am - 4:00 pm	Baker University Center 226
Wednesday, September 7	9:00 am - 4:00 pm	Baker University Center 237
Thursday, September 8	9:00 am - 4:00 pm	Baker University Center 237
Friday, September 9	9:00 am - 4:00 pm	Baker University Center 333
Monday, September 12	9:00 am - 4:00 pm	Baker University Center 237
Tuesday, September 13	9:00 am - 4:00 pm	Baker University Center 237
Wednesday, September 14	9:00 am - 4:00 pm	Baker University Center 237

Questions? Contact UHR at uhr@ohio.edu or 740-593-1636.

STRS Employee Contribution Rates Increase

As communicated previously to impacted faculty and staff via e-mail, in the June and July issues of Business Matters , and the Faculty Contributions article in Compass , the State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio (STRS) announced a one percent increase to employee retirement contributions for work performed on or after July 1, 2016. This is the final year of the three-year phase-in period which increases the member contribution rate to 14%.

All changes to retirement contributions enacted by STRS apply to both STRS plans and the Alternative Retirement Plan (ARP).

Changes will be reflected in Faculty pay for any work performed on or after July 1, as follows:

Employment Type	14% Rate Change Effective Pay Period	Deferred Pay
Faculty paid over 9 months	Beginning with first pay for the fall semester, which will be on August 31, 2016	N/A
Faculty with deferred pay over 12 months (9 over 12)	Beginning with first pay of the fall semester, which will be on August 31, 2016	Deferred pay for academic year 2015-2016 will continue at the old rate through the August 15, 2016 pay
Faculty paid 9 over 12 months with summer appointment	Second summer session pay beginning with the July 15, 2016 pay	Deferred pay for academic year 2015-2016 will continue at the old rate through the August 15, 2016 pay

Questions? Please contact the Benefits Office in Human Resources at benefits@ohio.edu or 740-593-1636.

Holiday and Winter Break Closures

As indicated in Ohio University’s Policy #41.125 , Human Resources annually issues an official list of holiday observance dates. Please note that Winter Break Closure (WBC) is not considered holiday leave. Refer to policy #41.001 , Vacation and Winter Closure Time for Administrative and Classified Employees for details .

Following is the schedule for the holidays and Winter Break Closure dates during the years 2016 through 2018.

Holiday	2016	2017	2018
1: Depending on your years of service and employment type, you may be required to use one day of vacation time during the WBC. Please refer to Policy #41.001 , and to the Guidelines for Vacation and Winter Closure Time .
New Year’s Day	Friday, January 1	Monday, January 2	Monday, January 1
Martin Luther King Day (third Mon. in Jan.)	Monday, January 18	Monday, January 16	Monday, January 15
Memorial Day (last Mon. in May)	Monday, May 30	Monday, May 29	Monday, May 28
Independence Day	Monday, July 4	Tuesday, July 4	Wednesday, July 4/td>
Labor Day (first Mon. in Sept.)	Monday, September 5	Monday, September 4	Monday, September 3
Veterans Day	Friday, November 11<	Friday, November 10	Monday, November 12
Thanksgiving Day (fourth Thurs. Nov.)	Thursday, November 24	Thursday, November 23	Thursday, November 22
Floating Holiday (Columbus Day)	Friday, November 25	Friday, November 24	Friday, November 23
Christmas Day	Monday, December 26	Monday, December 25	Tuesday, December 25
Floating Holiday (Presidents’ Day)	Tuesday, December 27	Tuesday, December 26	Wednesday, December 26
WBC 1	Wednesday, December 28	Wednesday, December 27	Thursday, December 27
WBC 1	Thursday, December 29	Thursday, December 28	Friday, December 28
WBC 1	Friday, December 30	Friday, December 29	Monday, December 31

Questions? Contact UHR at uhr@ohio.edu or 740-593-1636.

Save the Date – P2P Supplier Fair 

Procure to Pay Services will host their first annual Supplier Fair Wednesday, September 7, from 10 am - 3 pm in the Baker University Center Ballroom. Come meet many of Ohio University’s preferred suppliers. The “County Fair” themed event will feature refreshments, give-a-ways and drawings.

Questions? Contact Finance Customer Care at financecustomercare@ohio.edu or 740-597-6446.

Supply Catalog Changes

In October, the Office Max catalog will convert to the Office Depot platform. The punch-out from Bobcat BUY will have a new look and feel, with better search capabilities and features. Stay tuned for more information and training webinars.  

Classic Solutions catalog will convert from a hosted catalog to a punch-out catalog with electronic invoicing later this month. Classic Solutions offers a wide variety of janitorial and paper supplies. The punch-out catalog will have more items, pictures of items and enhanced search capability. 

Questions? Contact Finance Customer Care at financecustomercare@ohio.edu or 740-597-6446.

Employee Reimbursement Guidelines

All Employee Reimbursement reports and PCard Reconciliation reports are to be submitted through Concur. Below are a few reminders of the guidelines and processes for submitting these reports.

Employee Non Travel Reimbursements (RE Report)

The report name in Concur should be entered as RE (Reimbursement), followed by first four letters of the employee’s last name and the date of the expense.

Example: RE SMIT080114.

If combining multiple non-travel receipts on one report (recommended), please use the date of the oldest expense.

Employee Travel Related Expenses and Reimbursements (TR Report)

The report name in Concur should be entered as TR (Travel), followed by first four letters of the employee’s last name and the first date of travel.

Example: TR SMIT080114.

If additional expenses are incurred for the same travel event that necessitate additional reports at a later date, the naming convention will continue to include the addition of the letter “A”, “B”, “C”, etc. to the original report name. 

Example: TR SMIT080114A, TR SMIT080114B

Employee PCard Expenses for Non Travel Expenses (PC Report)

The report name in Concur should be entered as PC (PCard), followed by first four letters of the employee’s last name and the date of the expense.

Example: PC SMIT080114

If combining multiple PCard receipts on one report (recommended), please use the date of the oldest expense.

Additional Guidelines

• For all requests for payment or reimbursement, it is important to note the “who, what, when, where and why” on the request in addition to uploading copies of itemized and detailed receipts. Please include thorough details regarding the business purpose of purchases.
• PCard transactions should not be combined with RE Reports (Use RE Report process defined above).
• Payments for Professional Services cannot be submitted in Concur
  • The process begins with collection of a W9 & W8-BEN (If applicable), appropriate contract (if applicable) as indicated by the nature of service on the Contract and Insurance Matrix, and then completion of a New Supplier add/update form in Bobcat BUY attaching this documentation.
• Gift Certificate purchases can be submitted in Concur via RE Reports. 
• Employee recognition must be reported to Payroll for all gift card purchases. Include the name of the gift certificate recipient(s).
• Payments to individuals cannot be submitted in Concur.
• Follow Research Advance Process for research participants.
• Shipment of purchases must be to a university address, not an individual’s home address.
• All purchasing policies still apply.

For more information see Employee Reimbursement Travel and Non Travel . Questions? Contact Finance Customer Care at financecustomercare@ohio.edu or 740-597-6446.

Independent Contractor Requisitions Form Changes in Bobcat BUY

Several fields have been removed from the Independent Contractor (IC) forms to save time. The form contained duplicate information that is available on the completed IC agreements. We did have to maintain some fields to gather metrics; however, the fields removed should save a considerable amount of time when completing these IC requisitions.

Questions? Contact financecustomercare@ohio.edu or 740-597-6446.

SciQuest 16.2 Enhancements to Bobcat BUY

A SciQuest 16.3 upgrade was implemented on August 1. This upgrade will have minimal impact on the overall user experience. The appearance of supplier search within all forms, has changed slightly, however no changes have been made to the search functionality.

Questions? Contact financecustomercare@ohio.edu or 740-597-6446.

Utilize US Dollars for International Contracts

All contracts should utilize US dollars as the currency, whenever possible. Most international suppliers will accept USD which will hasten payment and reduce the challenges inherent to international wire processes. 

Questions? Contact Finance Customer Care at financecustomercare@ohio.edu or 740-597-6446.

OPERS Reporting for Independent Contractors Updated

A new field has been added to the requisition titled OPERS Reportable. This field, OPERS Reportable, will be changed to YESfor Independent Contractors (IC) as defined in Ohio Revised Code (ORC) 145.036-145.038 effective June 30, 2013. The ORC requires a clause regarding Ohio Public Employees Retirements System (OPERS) be present in all contracts and that Independent Contractors employing four or fewer employees be provided with the OPERS PDACKN Form (Independent Contractor/Worker Acknowledgment), which will allow them to affirm or disaffirm directly with OPERS their status as an Independent Contractor. This form is to be completed if the IC is an individual who begins providing personal services to a public employer on or after Jan. 7, 2013 but is not considered by the public employer to be a public employee and will not have contributions made to OPERS. This form must be completed no later than 30 days after the IC begins providing personal services to the public employer, Ohio University.

There is no action needed by campus users. This information is being provided for informational purposes only. 

ORC 145.036 - 145.038 requires that OHIO identify and mail the PDACKN Form to each IC who provides services for OHIO. Procure to Pay Services will identify each covered Independent Contractor within the requisition moving forward and the required OPERS document will be sent to each supplier along with the approved purchase order.

Questions? Contact Finance Customer Care at financecustomercare@ohio.edu or 740-597-6446 .

Customer Service Training Planned for September

As a result of the joint effort between HR Organizational & Talent Development and Communication & Training to identify campus training needs, the Creating a Customer Service Culture training series will begin in September. A customer service culture represents shared values across the entire organization and the design of this series includes successes in customer service across a variety of OHIO departments. Creating a Customer Service Culture will cover customer service basics that are cultural standards and how OHIO successfully supports a customer service culture. The training series will be broken into two sessions:

Part 1: Defining customer service and customer culture

Participants will identify customers and their individual needs and practice active listening to improve communication. Empathy and the use of positive language will be discussed.

Date	Time	Location
September 12	1:00 - 3:00 pm	Alden Library 319 (Friends of the Library Room)
September 13	8:30 - 10:30 am	HRTC 141/145
September 20	3:00 - 5:00 pm	Baker University Center 240
September 27	1:00 - 3:00 pm	Alden Library 319 (Friends of the Library Room)
September 28	10:00 am - 12:00 pm	HRTC 141/145

Part 2: The importance of communicating a consistent message to staff

Participants will practice techniques to diffuse the angry or difficult customer. Service measures and metrics will be highlighted and participants will develop creative ways to show appreciation.

Date	Time	Location
September 14	1:00 - 3:00 pm	Alden Library 319 (Friends of the Library Room)
September 15	8:30 - 10:30 am	HRTC 141/145
September 21	3:00 - 5:00 pm	Baker University Center 240
September 29	1:00 - 3:00 pm	Alden Library 319 (Friends of the Library Room)
September 30	10:00 am - 12:00 pm	HRTC 141/145

Please register for any of the above sessions at the Customer Service Training Registration Page . When registering please select sessions for both Part 1 and Part 2 since they are designed to be taken consecutively, with knowledge from the first session leveraged in the second. 

Questions? Contact Communication and Training at finhr@ohio.edu .

Budget Updates

FY16 Fund Balance Upcoming Dates

• August 9:Final templates will be provided following third close
• August 22:Templates due

FY17 Budget

The Budget Office plans to upload FY17 budgets by August 5.

FY18 Budget Planning

The fall forecasting cycle for FY18 planning begins in September. Communication regarding the timeline will be sent in August and will be presented at the August Budget Partner Group meeting. An FY18 Budget Planning kickoff/training meeting(s) will be scheduled for the fall.

Questions? Connect with your Budget Planning & Analysis contact or e-mail budgetplanning@ohio.edu .

Chart of Accounts & Financial Systems Enhancements

The Chart of Accounts project is the first building block, one of several initiatives, to improve Financial Systems across the University. These initiatives will now be referred to as “Financial System Enhancements” (FSE) and will encompass the Chart of Accounts Redesign (COA), Financial Approvers and the new Oracle Grants Accounting module. Each of these building blocks will be supported with thorough training and detailed reporting capabilities.

Financial System Enhancements Project Updates

Mapping activities have been occurring with Planning Unit representatives since June 2015. Currently, the focus is on the General Ledger (GL) Account Strings and the identification of the combinations that Planning Units would like to use in the Oracle Grants Accounting module. It is expected that the GL chart mapping will be completed in late August.   

Accounts identified during the summer that planning units want to track in the Oracle Grants Accounting module will be mapped according to the following schedule:

Mapping Timeline for Oracle Grants Accounting

Mapping	Mapping Period	Updates	Participants
Sponsored Projects	Fall 2016	Refresh through go-live	Grants Team
Capital Projects	Fall 2016	Refresh through go-live	Capital Projects Team
General Ledger combinations to map to Grants Account Module	Winter 2016		Planning Units & Internal Awards Tea

The new Oracle Grants Accounting module will allow for the tracking and viewing of Internal Awards, Sponsored Projects (Grants), and Capital Projects. Demonstrations of the functionality of the Oracle Grants Accounting module are occurring with the RC Strategy Group, RC Technical Group, Post Awards Partner Group and the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs Office in late July and early August. Consistent with the Chart of Accounts project approach, collaboration with campus representatives will validate the design and implementation of the new Grants Accounting module within Oracle. 

The Object code values (currently natural account) and the Function values will be distributed to Planning Units for review in mid to late August.

Enhanced reporting capabilities will be a major focus in the coming months and will go live with the new Chart of Accounts and the new Oracle Grants Accounting module. These reports will be available via dashboards within OBI (Oracle Business Intelligence). Each dashboard will have multiple tabs for various inquires and reports and will replace the current FMS Reports. Currently, the Campus Partner Groups are reviewing the proposed dashboards and providing recommendations and feedback to ensure that they meet the reporting needs of the various users across campus.

Campus Support Activities

The Financial System Enhancements (FSE) Awareness Sessions are scheduled to occur through August 18. Please register to attend using the FSE Awareness Session Registration page . These sessions will increase user understanding of the FSE project timeline and goals, the Chart of Accounts (COA) segment structure, the new Oracle Grants Accounting module, and provide an overview of the communication and training support that users can expect. Training courses and job aids will be available for all users between January and March 2017, leading up to the planned go-live scheduled for spring.

In addition to the Awareness Sessions, a User Impact Analysis is being conducted with each Planning Unit to understand the granular and unique impacts with each Planning Unit and then map individual users to the appropriate training. The goal of this exercise will be to ensure that users receive the appropriate training and communication.

For additional project-related updates and information on the COA Redesign Project, refer to the Chart of Accounts Redesign website for the newly added FAQs and the List of Change Networks Members in each Planning Unit.

Questions or feedback? Contact the Chart of Accounts Project Team at coa@ohio.edu .