[Physstaff] FW: Financial Management System: Next steps

Tue Dec 22 09:28:14 GMT 2015

Dear All,
I received this FMS update yesterday but needed a bit of time to calm down before I shared it with you.
I have now had an email exchange with Hugh Darby, where I made it clear that I do not feel that the big problem with FMS is lack of training but rather a somewhat inadequate system. We are now best of friends again and Hugh assures me that the intention of this is not to blame us as users. He is very much willing to work with us developing the system. Equally, I think it would be good if we were to take part in whatever relevant training they are putting on.
On the specific issue of suppliers not being paid Finance are currently not aware of any still outstanding. If you come across any please write directly to Hugh Darby (cc to me doesn't hurt) and ask him to deal with it. That has worked quite well on a few occasions.
Best wishes
Erling

===============================================================
Professor Erling Riis
Head of Department
Department of Physics,               tel: 0141-5483490
Strathclyde University,
John Anderson Building,             e-mail: e.riis at strath.ac.uk<mailto:e.riis at strath.ac.uk>
Glasgow, G4 0NG
UK

The Department is a partner in SUPA, the Scottish Universities Physics Alliance
The University of Strathclyde is a charitable body, registered in Scotland, number SC015263

From: acaheads-bounces at lists.strath.ac.uk [mailto:acaheads-bounces at lists.strath.ac.uk] On Behalf Of Hugh Darby
Sent: 18 December 2015 15:59
To: 'deans at lists.strath.ac.uk'; 'directors at lists.strath.ac.uk'; 'acaheads at lists.strath.ac.uk'; 'admheads at strath.ac.uk'
Subject: [acaheads] Financial Management System: Next steps

Dear Colleagues,

In my email to you last week providing an update on progress with the FMS implementation, I indicated that I would write to you to outline the steps we are taking to continue embedding and enhancing FMS as we move out of the project phase and into ongoing use and support.  Please share this information with colleagues who may be using the system.

Training and support
We are aware that there is an appetite for additional face to face training in a number of areas, and are currently looking at potential session content and scheduling now that the operational position is improving.  We intend to deliver these sessions from early 2016.  We will also continue Finance Forums on a regular basis from late January onwards, as a key enduring mechanism for disseminating information about the system and helping obtain and prioritise user feedback.
Helpdesk arrangements<http://www.strath.ac.uk/finance/generalinformation/fmslandingpage/fmsknowledgehub-support/> remain in place to handle user queries.  As of mid-December, over 4,800 support calls had been logged.  Call volumes were initially averaging in excess of 350 per week, but have progressively reduced to around 150 per week.  Many calls are responded to within 24 working hours - for example, simple user access requests.  Turnaround times remain longer on more complex queries, such as some of those relating to supplier or payment processes, where investigation and configuration or workflow changes might be required.
Online self-help resources continue to be developed.  The Knowledge Hub<http://www.strath.ac.uk/finance/generalinformation/fmslandingpage/> has been refreshed and restructured with a view to making information easier to find, reflecting user feedback.  Training material within the FMS training portal<https://moss.strath.ac.uk/developmentandtraining/FMS/Pages/Home.aspx> is also being refreshed and re-presented in 'Quick Guides', which a number of users have indicated would be more readily accessible, sitting alongside the full training manuals.  Some of the original material does now need to be revisited in light of certain system changes, and we will be arranging this in early 2016.

Looking ahead
Overall, while FMS and the related changes to our ways of working are beginning to deliver improvements in some business cycles - and in particular for transactions initiated on FMS - settled and effective processing still needs to be achieved across all business cycles.
Much of the user feedback to date focuses on the user interface being less intuitive than it could be.  In some areas of a system as extensive as FMS, a certain degree of complexity will be unavoidable, and a level of training will be always be necessary for users to get the most out of the system.  However, wherever possible, we are committed to simplifying and enhancing the user experience, to minimise both training requirements and transaction input time.  Based on user feedback to date, the project team is actively working to explore potential user interface changes, reporting enhancements and process simplifications that might improve ease of use.
Many technical changes have already been applied to remedy common configuration issues, and an increasing number of reports are being developed and released in response to user requirements.  We are working to document more fully the reports that are available, to help users understand which reports are most appropriate for different needs.
The FMS team's current areas of focus are expenses, ordering and goods receipting.  We hope to be able to release a number of changes to enhance expenses input at the start of January 2016.
The team is also in the final stages of testing purchase card transaction upload and approval, the release of which has proved more involved than was initially thought.  We have had to balance the need for prompt reconciliation and recharging of purchase card expenditure with the potential risks of releasing the functionality before it has been satisfactorily tested.  We have now undertaken a successful test of this functionality and are developing user documentation to support a proposed release at the start of January.
Additionally, we have been reviewing and confirming the best approaches to more complex ordering and invoicing scenarios.  The training sessions to be delivered from January onwards will aim to clarify the most effective ways to process and reconcile orders and invoices.
Finally, we have also begun to look at specific challenges that have arisen with some of our key suppliers, with a view to simplifying the way these suppliers bill us, and the way we pay them, in order to avoid future service interruptions as well as to improve the efficiency and ease of the payment processes.  We will update you as this work progresses.

Regards

Hugh Darby
Financial Controller

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