Upcoming Deadlines at a Glance
- Friday, 3/17 - Submit completed and approved org tree change requests (today)
- Friday, 3/17 - Complete External Audit Certification for Q3 (today)
- Friday, 4/28 - Form A due (from divisions with ladder rank faculty)
Budget Process
Budget process update
We met with the Divisional Finance Leaders and Chief Administrative Officers last week to provide a budget update. We will continue to work with the Finance committee to define budget assumptions and prepare to launch the budget process.
Form A templates are in the shared Divisional Folders and are due Friday, April 28
Form A templates are now in your Divisional Folders under the FY2023-24 Budget Process folder. Please download, review, and upload your completed Form A to the same folder by Friday, April 28. Then email the Financial Planning and Analysis team at dfl_concierge@berkeley.edu to let them know you completed it.
CalPlanning availability
As we prepare to kick off the FY2024 budget process, the CalPlanning tools CalPlan and HCP will be made unavailable for edits starting at 7 pm today, Friday, March 17. The CalRptg and HCPRptg reporting applications will continue to be available to run reports and Smart View queries. Please visit the CalPlanning website for updates.
Action Items
Submit completed and approved org tree change requests by Friday, March 17 (today)
If you would like to submit changes to the Org Tree, please submit your completed, Budget and Financial Operations (BFO) Committee approved request by Friday, March 17. 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. This is for all org changes with the exception of Org Node and DeptID moves.
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 update on the estimated processing time for journal source configuration of new L4 org node codes. As a reminder, journal source configuration for new L4’s is required if there is a need to prepare and approve journals.
- 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 External Audit Certification for Q3 by Friday, March 17 (today)
To ensure the completeness and accuracy of the quarterly Controller's report on the campus' external audit activities, please help us identify the campus' external audit activities. The Controller's Office is sending a separate email with additional information to DFLs with known external audit activity. By Friday, March 17, 2023, please submit the materials below to gao@berkeley.edu:
- All DFLs: External Audit Confirmation Form (You must return the completed External Audit Confirmation Form even if you do not have any external audit activities so we can certify campus responses.)
- DFLs with external audit activities: External Audit Confirmation Template (Include any related documentation with the template, i.e. notification of the commencement of the audit, audit report, etc.)
If you have questions, please contact gao@berkeley.edu.
Informational Updates
Accounts Payable Training Session - April 11
A new session will be held on Tuesday, April 11 at 10 am where we'll continue the discussion we started at the last session on the Supplier Onboarding process, and we'll provide a session on how departments can arrange travel for visitors or guests to campus (air, hotel, ground transportation, and more) without any need for reimbursement of expenses. We'll also discuss some updates that have been made to the Purchasing and Payment Matrix. If time allows, there will be a question-and-answer opportunity for any Accounts Payable-related processes. Information about the training sessions will be posted to the Accounts Payable Training Sessions webpage.
FY24 Budgeted recharge rates are available
The Recharge website has been updated to include a file capturing all the FY24 recharge rates approved for budgeting purposes only. We will be reviewing the submitted rates in detail in the coming weeks and will approve the rates for use in FY24 by June 16. Thank you to all the recharge units for their effort in submitting their recharge rate for FY24. Please email recharge_certification@berkeley.edu with questions.
Update from Controller re Silicon Valley Bank/Signature Bank of New York news
As you may have heard recently in the news, Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and Signature Bank of New York have been shut down by the FDIC. The Controller's Office has already identified all UC Berkeley suppliers and other payees that had a bank account set up for payment with either of those banks. Those accounts have been placed on hold and we are reaching out to all suppliers and payees to identify their preferred alternate payment method before resuming payments. If you have further questions, please contact us at disburse@berkeley.edu. We are continuing to closely monitor the situation and if additional banks ultimately face similar outcomes, we will immediately take the same action.
CalPlanning training - classes available for new users
CalPlanning and Smart View training classes for new users are available for enrollment. The curriculum uses a blended learning model. Courses begin with self-study using online “books” divided into chapters supplemented with practice exercises and short videos. Courses culminate with a group session using Zoom in which participants work on case studies in small teams to apply the material covered in the self-study. The self-study materials are available on the website for everyone to use; they can be a helpful resource for those that have already completed the training and are looking for a refresher. Review the CalPlanning training page for schedules and links to enroll and access the self-study materials.
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