DFL weekly update - July 15, 2022

Upcoming Deadlines at a Glance

  • Friday, 7/15 - Submit chartstring for deficit clearing to Financial Planning and Analysis (today)
  • Friday, 8/12 - Submit final corrections to class schedule and instructional record data for summer sessions
  • Wednesday, 8/17 - Submit completed and approved org tree change requests
  • Friday, 8/19 - Complete Q4 Key Controls

Budget Process

Budget process update

Thank you for all your hard work submitting your budgets. CalPlan and HCP will remain closed until mid-August while the Financial Planning and Analysis team reviews submissions and finalizes the FY23 Operating Budget. We are finalizing the budget decision meetings and are working on the budget allocation letters, which we expect to distribute in mid-August. If you have any questions, please contact the VCF Immediate Office at vcfinance@berkeley.edu.

Action Items

Submit chartstring for deficit clearing to Financial Planning and Analysis by Friday, July 15

The deadline for divisions to submit deficit clearing chartstrings (DeptID and Fund) to the Budget and Financial Operations team is Friday, July 15. If there are deficits in the division that cannot be cleared by the automated process, we will use the chartstring provided to manually clear any remaining deficits. Submit chartstrings to dfl_concierge@berkeley.edu or contact the Budget and Financial Operations team with any questions.

Final corrections to class schedule and instructional record data for summer sessions are due by Friday, August 12

The Office of Planning and Analysis (OPA) will be reaching out to your department schedulers and managers and asking them to review their class schedule and instructional record data entry for summer sessions. This information must be finalized in Student Information Systems (SIS) by Friday, August 12. Please contact OPA Research Analyst Kira Blaisdell-Sloan or Beatriz Brando with questions at opa-csir@berkeley.edu.

Submit completed and approved org tree change requests by Wednesday, August 17

If you would like to submit changes to the Org Tree, please submit your completed, Budget and Financial Operations (BFO) Committee approved request by Wednesday, August 17. As a reminder, the May 18 submission date was the last day that approved change requests could be submitted for entry to the May Master Org Tree. Allowable changes through May 31 included New DeptIDs, New Org Nodes, and Description Changes. The Org Tree is now closed to all changes through fiscal close. We recommend that you submit your change request form for review as soon as possible to allow time for the BFO team to review your request, follow up with you for any necessary clarification, approve your request, and allow you time to obtain all required signatures before the submission deadline. The time needed to review change requests will vary, depending on the complexity of the request. For more information:

  • A high-level summary of the process to approve org tree changes is available on the DFL concierge webpage.
  • An overview of the org tree change submission deadlines is available in the Org Tree Submission and Processing Timeline.
  • Please review the Org Tree Calendar for the timeline of allowable org tree changes throughout the year.
  • Please submit questions and requests for changes to the Org Tree to dfl_concierge@berkeley.edu. Note: If you plan to request an Org Node change or Entity Hierarchy redesign, please contact dfl_concierge@berkeley.edu and explain what you would like to change before completing the request form because these changes are typically more complex and involve longer consultations.

Complete Q4 Key Controls by Friday, August 19

Please complete and submit the Financial Reporting Review and System Access Review by Friday, August 19. Please visit the Division Key Controls page for instructions and more information. Note the GL Summary Report is now broken out in three tabs: Current Funds Excluding Contracts and Grants, Contracts and Grants, and Agency Funds. Email questions about the financial reporting review controls to the Financial Accounting and Controls team at gao@berkeley.edu and questions about the system access review controls to the BFS System Access team at secbfs@berkeley.edu.

Informational Updates

Join us for a Common Chart of Accounts Q&A session on Thursday, August 4

In July, we implemented a set of changes related to the Common Chart of Accounts Project. Mike Riley, the Controller, Natalie Garkusha, Director of Financial Accounting and Controls and Elizabeth Chavez, Director of Contracts and Grants Accounting, will host a 30-minute question-and-answer session to answer questions about these changes on Thursday, August 4, from 2 pm - 2:30 pm. Please register to attend and we will send you a calendar invitation. You may submit your questions in advance when you register.

IX settlement agreement - UCOP journal correction

The May journal (UCP1046373) posted by UCPath to account, among other elements, for the IX settlement agreement debited the department instead of debiting the central ledger. We are working on correcting this issue before fiscal close. Contact dfl_concierge@berkeley.edu with any questions.

CGA has processed the direct retros for C&G funds and two financial journals, ZACAM643F (for earn code LSN lump sum non retiree) and ZACAM651F (for earn code LSP-lump sum retiree), were posted to address non-C&G funds. For the small number of individuals whose pay was processed to a departmental suspense chartstring, the Controller’s Office is working to resolve the suspense activity through a direct retro to UCPath. Financial Accounting and Controls, a department within the Controller’s Office, expects this will be processed early next week. Contact dfl_concierge@berkeley.edu with any questions.

Delay in processing time for new suppliers

The Vendoring Team is experiencing an extremely high level of requests for new supplier setups. We work on requests on a first in, first out basis and our goal is to add a new supplier and respond to questions by no later than five business days, preferably sooner. Currently, because of the volume of new requests, the processing time to add new suppliers is roughly 20 business days and the response time for questions has increased to over 30 business days. We apologize for the extended response time and acknowledge that it is well beyond the usual time period. We understand this is frustrating and are working to address this. We are hiring additional staff to help with the vendoring workload (essentially doubling our vendoring full-time workforce) and in the interim, we have reassigned an experienced resource to help so that we don't have to wait to bring the new team members up to speed. We've also restructured our approach to managing the vendoring support in-box so that we can better expedite vendoring activity. If someone has already waited several weeks for a response to a vendoring request, we are working to make sure that any further communication on this request is prioritized. Long term, we are also working to implement a simplified vendor process for visitors seeking reimbursement and for vendors processing honorarium payments. We appreciate your patience while we work to resolve the delay and meet your need to add new suppliers.

Office Hours for CalPlanning and Smart View

Office hours are available so that you can ask specific questions about CalPlanning and Smart View. Request office hours and indicate the topic for which you are requesting support. Office hours are an opportunity to get individual support for a specific challenge your unit is facing; they are not a replacement for training.

Cal Answers Training

Please review the self-service learning resources on the Cal Answers website, where Cal Answers users will find a complete course in basic navigation as well as short videos, job aids, wiki documentation, and a list of Frequently Asked Questions. Additionally, the two-hour instructor-led classes build on the basic navigation skills covered in the self-study. There are separate courses focusing on financial dashboards and student data dashboards. In the class, a subject matter expert will guide a deep dive into the reports and data available in the dashboards and answer specific questions.

Changes to the DFL in your division?

If the DFL role in your division is changing, email fpa@berkeley.edu to ensure our website, communications, and training plans are updated.

DFL Weekly Updates Page

As a reminder, these updates are regularly posted to the DFL Weekly Updates page so you can reference past updates at any time. Additionally, the Operational Deadlines page provides an overview of deliverables by quarter.

Thank you,

Office of the Vice Chancellor of Finance