The following message is being sent today to various groups involved in the ConnectCarolina project, as well as the University community.
To: University Business Managers
From: Dennis Press, Assistant Vice Chancellor and University Controller
Becky Arnold, Finance Functional Lead, ConnectCarolina
Date: January 31, 2014
We wanted to follow up on earlier communications copied below regarding the restructured chartfield structure (or string). Features of the final structure are as follows:
- The FUND chartfield has five digits. The first three digits are FUND group and the last two digits are FUND purpose. Together, these digits tell from which major fund group an entity is spending and how the funds are being spent.
- The SOURCE chartfield identifies the original source of funding and also is five digits long.
- FUND and SOURCE chartfields are used together to provide accountability and reporting.
- No additional chartfields were added.
The new Chartfield Structure 101 document, which includes the new chartfield structure, is linked here for your reference.
Please let us know if you have any questions.
Sent: Monday, October 28, 2013 9:35 AM
Subject: Restructured Chartfield String
To: Major Organizational Unit (MOU) Leads
From: Dennis Press, Assistant Vice Chancellor and University Controller
Becky Arnold, Finance Functional Lead, ConnectCarolina
Re: Restructured Chartfield String
The PeopleSoft chartfield structure is the foundation on which the University’s accounting and reporting system framework is built and is fundamental to the configuration of the system. As the ConnectCarolina Finance team began integration testing and gained a better understanding of PeopleSoft, we realized that some needed functionality was not possible using the planned chartfield structure. The initial structure of the Fund Code in PeopleSoft duplicated the current Account in the Financial Records System (FRS) General Ledger, and therefore had two meanings: “fund type” and “unique source of funds.” This prevented users from benefiting from the full functionality of PeopleSoft as an accounting system.
After further review by the project team, we have arrived at the following proposed solution, which was approved by the ConnectCarolina executive sponsors given the potential impact on the project.
New Structure:
The Fund Code and Class chartfields will be restructured by splitting the planned Fund Code into the Fund Code and Source of Funds chartfields. No additional chartfields are being added.
- Fund Code will be structured on the North Carolina Accounting System (NCAS) accounting structure and Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) rules to give us a small, stable fund population that will be shared across the University, foundations and UNC General Administration.
- Class will become the Source of Funds, allowing elimination of duplication in the current Fund Code structure. Source of Funds will be required on all transactions.
Benefits:
For Configuration
- Reduces fund-related values by approximately 60 percent
- Enables ability to configure General Ledger customizations either by fund type and/or operationally
- Simplifies General Ledger system settings and rules (trees, budget definitions, combo edits)
- Simplifies NCAS reporting
- Enables multi-level operational reporting
For Campus Users
- Reduces the number of Chartfields to learn; easier to find the correct Fund Code
- Facilitates the sharing of funds related by Source of Funds across the University and foundations; makes the identification of funds related by Source of Funds easier in the Chartfield string
For Resources After Go-Live
- Reduces the amount of resources needed to support PeopleSoft after go-live. Simplification of configuration results in fewer resources and time needed to update the system and make source of funds available in a timely fashion.
A decision on this issue was time sensitive and critical. This change to the chartfield structure will require additional work before go-live, including development, testing and campus education. However, making this change after go-live would require a re-implementation and would diminish our ability to do historical reporting within PeopleSoft based on Fund Code or Source of Funds.
More information about this structure change will be presented as a dedicated agenda topic during the Campus Working Group/TIP-Train-the-Trainer meeting to be held on October 31. The restructured chartfield string can also be viewed online.
cc: Deans, Directors and Department Chairs
Project Team Members
Finance and HR/Payroll Stakeholders
Campus Working Groups
Training Implementation Partners/Trainers
Finance Division Staff
Office of Human Resources Staff
University Business Managers
Research Administrators Support Group
Finance Advisory Council
Human Resource Officers