Question and Answers Workforce Administration
1. Describe the organizational structure for the organization for which you are working. The fundamental organizational structure will help determine the Business Units, SetID’s, Depatments, and other configuration fundamentals.
2. How are departments defined? Are they currently identified in a system with codes? If so, can the client provide a list of codes and descriptions. Is this something that could be configured in a new way to optimize the system foundation?
3. How many Employer Identification Numbers are used throughout the Organization? Are they Automatically generated?
4. Define your current HRMS system (s): How Many? Based on what Operating System? Relational or Legacy?
5. Describe a work location as defined by the organization.
• Provide the number of work locations throughout the organization.
• Provide a list of all the work locations throughout the Organization.
6. Define the following employee types and the number of employees in each type:
• Full-time employees.
• Part-time employees.
• Seasonal employees.
• Temporary employees.
• Non-employees.
• Contractors.
• Define any other employee types that were not previously referenced.
7. Describe the current process used throughout the organization to hire an employee. (Attach any manuals or reference procedures if applicable).
• If this process is administered differently for certain employees; (Please detail the process and the employee group / type as defined in the above question).
8. Describe how employees are identified within your current HR system. (By social security number, assigned employee id).
• If by employee id, is this number system generated?
• Is this standard practice throughout the organization??
9. Describe the current process used throughout the Organization to terminate an employment?
• Is this standard practice throughout the organization?
10. Describe how employee changes are processed; e.g., pay rate changes, promotions, suspensions.
• Is this standard practice throughout the organization?
11. Describe how leaves of absences and returns are processed.
12. Describe in detail how other leaves are processed.
13. List and describe personnel actions available in the current system.
14. Describe the approval process for personnel actions.
Position Control
1. Describe how the organization identifies positions within the current HR system. (Numeric, alpha-numeric). Is the process centralized or decentralized?
2. Define the different statuses for a position. (Frozen, proposed and approved).
3. Are positions numbers re-used when the employee leaves or is a new position re-created?
4. Describe how positions are funded. (Is funding done at the department or position level).
5. Does the organization use commitment accounting?
6. Describe in detail as to how the organization currently organizes jobs?
7. Are Job Codes used throughout the organization?
8. Please attach or provide a list of all the Job Codes currently used.
9. Are all employees assigned a position?
10. Do you have multiple head count in a single job?
11. How does the organization currently use FTE’s?
12. Does the organization have multiple headcount in a given job/position?
13. Is job sharing currently practiced or allowed?
14. Do you have employees with multiple jobs?
15. Does the organization currently allow job sharing?
Compensation
1. Define your current salary plan structure.
2. Define the number of salary plans
3. Describe how salary plans are maintained.
4. Describe the process to create a new salary plan.
5. Define the different Salary Grades and Steps.
6. Describe how employees are moved to the next step within a salary plan.
7. Define the components that make up an employee’s salary.
8. Define the following employee types:
a. Number of hourly employees:
b. Number of salaried employee:
9. Define the percentage for each group.
10. Describe the criteria used for grouping employees.
11. Does the organization have contract pay?
12. Describe how contracts are defined?
13. Describe the varying frequencies and payment terms in detail.
14. Describe the process for any mass salary increase.
What are the questions you might ask when starting a 9.1 implementation for Core HR? Everyone has a questionaire stuffed away somewhere that was used in a former project. Some of us have several. In the next few posts, I will provide some of the initial questions I use when trying to get some high level information from my clients. Please feel free to comment and add your ideas as that is what makes this site valuable. Contributions that are longer than comments may be submitted for consideration. Though these questions are pertinent to a PeopleSoft Implementation, many could be used for other applications as well.
What might be some of the over arching questions that must be asked at the beginning of an implementation and what are some of the things you want your project team thinking about as they start on their adventure into implementation? Certainly a knowledge of the organizational structure is critical to understanding how the system might support the organization. Also, this is a time for looking hard at the organizational structure to envision where changes might make it more effective or integrated.
In terms of process your team members must have the ability to conceptualize and verbalize what they envision as the future state. Who will be doing what in the new process, what are the roles going to look like as the organization moves into the future? Where are the boundaries in the process? Is there a boundary between recruitment and workforce administration? Are they different systems which would require an interface? Where do processes begin and end?
What are the pre and post conditions? For example, after a termination there are actions that must be taken such as Cobra communication. This would be a post condition of the termination process.
Finally what are the business rules that must be followed in the process and are there any government regulations that will impact the way the process is implemented?
Wow, that seems like a lot of information and yet it is only a small part of the information that you must gather during project initiation.
What might be some Points of Discussion that you want your team to consider?
Investigate their pain points in the current process and how they might want to change that going forward? On every project there are pain points in the process such as dual data entry, manual processes, hand delivery rather than electronic. I am sure you can add to this list.
Are there points in the process that could be eliminated? Would automated workflow improve the efficiency of the process? If so, how and where would workflow be critical?
Are there manual processes that you would like to have supported by the system? Again, analyzing the process often uncovers areas that are still being especially where there are hand offs in the process or boundaries to cross.
Finally, what changes are most frightening in the organization? Uncover the areas of fear and trepidation and communicate the value of the new system. Enlist change agents to carry the positive message forward to the entire organization. Where are the pockets of resistance most apparent?
These are just a few of the overarching questions and concerns at the beginning of an implementation. In future blogs, discussion will center on the questions you might use in your initial questionaires.
The requirements are in place but often not well understood. The project is ready to go and it is necessary to gather information for the blueprint. Who has a template for a Blueprint? Seems they are all quite different and each application has many versions. There are Blueprint’s that are completed in Excel and those that become incredibly long, profuse documents. Personally, the excel works for me because it seems to be more efficient.
Gathering information for the Blueprint requires reviewing all the requirements. Just as you draw up blueprints for building a house, it is necessary to draw up blueprints for an implementation. Who will manage the project, who will design, build, and ensure requirements are being met? Much as you look at building construction with its myriad sub-contractors, you can translate that approach to building an implementation.
Questionnaires help to gather information to help understand what will be built, the timing and how the process will work at a high level. The implementation that is the 9.1 PeopleSoft implementation is using questionnaires for Core HR, Benefits/Ben Admin, Payroll, Time and Labor to establish some fundamental information that will be used not only in the blueprint, but also in the process as it is drilled down, the design, the build, the testing, the training and in the quality assurance to ensure the requirements are met.
Finding the questionnaires and adding information is much more difficult than a visit to google search. Questionnaires become specific to an organization where you are working. Is the project in a commercial, public sector, or education sector? Currently I am seeking a questionnaire template for Pension so any help that anyone can provide would be greatly appreciated. If you are in need of questionnaires, leave a comment and we can exchange some information.
Some information that has been gathered includes some facts:
It is the third release since the acquisition
It has 1350 new features approximately
It has 28,000 or more page enhancements
It has Web 2.0 Capabilities
Approximately 300 new web services
And a large number of industry specific enhancements
Like many new releases, there is a new look and feel to the product. You still have the My Favorites area and in addition there is a recently used area on the menu. In addition the navigation menu is only visible when pulled down.
9.1 also includes mouse over functionality on the menus. In going through some of the changes and talking with clients one of the features they seem very happy with is the ability to use zoom grids for more working space with drag and drop, grid scrolling and column locking capability. The grids are also sortable.
Some of the other items include an updated style sheet, a rich text editor, mouse-over pop ups as mentioned previously and an instant message capability with Yahoo and Beehive.
Some other features include out of the box role-based dashboards and reports. The fact that it uses PeopleSoft security is not a change.
There are some nice HR analytics dashboards including: workforce profile, Recruitment, Leave and Absence, Learning Management (a favorite mine), HR Performance, Compensation, Retention and Workforce Development. Some of these are new and some enhanced.
So why would you want to upgrade? Well, if you are on 8.8 you are going to have to get extended support which certainly is a financial reason to upgrade. Others are increasing the effectiveness of your workforce by ensuring compensation rewards top performers and you have pay for performance capabilities. Making sure that you have a strong pipeline for key talent is critical to any organization and maintaining this internally is a cost saving for recruitment. Nine one will provide executives with the ability to make better informed decisions with metrics available. Eliminating interfaces could reduce IT expenses and eliminating customizations during the upgrade usually results in cost savings and additional efficiency.
Some links that will provide additional information include:
If you are interested in some great decision trees, read this article from Gartner, it is packed with good information and would be helpful in deciding if you want to go to 9.1.
When customers are planning a new installation of PeopleSoft, Gartner suggest to implement version 9.0. “Gartner believes that v.9.1 will be released during 2H09, but most customers will not want to be the first to take on a new release. If you need the newest functionality right away (such as compensation management or succession management in HCM), then implement v.9.1 as soon as is practical for your organization. If you don’t need the new functionality, then implement v.9.0 until v.9.1 has more market traction and proof points, which Gartner expects within 12 to 18 months of release.”
This year Oracle released new versions of PeopleSoft (8.50) and Applications (9.1). Will customers start upgrading to 9.1 in 2010? If customers follow Gartner they will wait. My opinion is that the evolution steps between the PeopleSoft versions aren’t that big. Loads of fixes, patches, bundles and maintenance packs from previous versions have been included in this new release. Big functional changes haven’t been made in 9.1. The risk between upgrading to 9.0 or upgrading to 9.1 isn’t that big. If your customers are multi language users, you might want to consider the upgrade to 9.1 as it is unclear when the language pack will become available.
Do you have the Deltas? Have you started implementing 9.1? Add Comments or follow RSS.
Planning is so critical for a project and what makes a project successful is in the way you approach the first few weeks. I have conducted these strategy and implementation workshops in a week but the work of the team goes well beyond that. The first few weeks, however, are what can determine success or failure for a project. So far we have discussed how important it is to get a project right the first time, the importance of scope, and organizational impact or change. Another important factor that needs to be addressed in the first week is how you will handle issues that arise during the project and what the process will be for resolving those issues.
If you are working with a standard implementation methodology there is probably a process for issue resolution. If not, develop a database, excel spreadsheet or similar method for tracking issues. It is important that you establish what an acceptable time frame is for resolution and what will be done if the issues are not resolved in a timely manner. What are the roles involved in the resolution process, who identifies, who assigns, who tracks, how high up in the organization will you have to go to find a solution, and finally who determines if an issue is closed.
Issues should be addressed on a weekly basis at meetings. If critical you might have a process in place to identify them on your project website, or even use twitter to get information out to your team in a timely fashion.
Of course, there is a deliverable that would be associated with this part of the workshop which would be a template for tracking issues.
So we have now addressed one more small part of what would happen in Day 2 of your implementation/upgrade workshop.
Looking forward to any additions you might provide via comments.
What kind of things do you need to plan for in an implementation of PeopleSoft when working with the client and your team? It is important to communicate to your team before they come on site to inform them of the client expectations and your expectations as a Project Manager. Send a letter to the members of the client team as well and explain what the first week will entail. Explain that the first week will be a planning week to ensure that you “Get it Right the First Time.” What do you mean by that? Most projects fail not because of lack of technical or functional knowledge, but due to lack of planning.
So what are some of the questions that must be asked in the first week of team meetings?
1. Is there a direct correlation between the project manager’s leadership and the team’s productivity, effort?
2. Are the project objectives clearly defined and accepted?
3. Is the scope clearly defined and does it match the number of resources necessary and the initial timeline that has been identified?
4. Has a formal issue resolution processand tracking mechanism been established?
5. Has the client assumed ownership and demonstrated a vested interest in the project?
6. Have project performance criteria been established? What are the milestones?
It is important to assist a client in launching their implementation and a process must be in place to build on the initial charter. The charter is a roadmap and a reference for scope. The strategy and overall planning direction should be in the charter document.
One of the deliverables for the first week of planning will be a Charter signed by and agreed to by the client management or executive team for approval.
The first day it is important to communicate to the team the importance of their role and how critical this first planning week is to the ongoing success of the project. This is just the beginning of a discussion on implementation or upgrade planning that I will continue to add to as we go along. Please feel free to comment and suggest additional ideas for the Implementation Planning week for a PeopleSoft Project.
I am always amazed when I hear someone say, we don’t have time to plan we just want to get to the results. I think clients are often frustrated with planning because consultants have used planning to use reams of paper and loads of time developing documents that are never used after the initial stage of the project. The heavier the document, the more successful the project right? Planning doesn’t always entail documentation to max. However, if you aim at nothing….you will definately hit it. You must aim at the result you are seeking to achieve and planning helps identify that result. What many clients don’t realize is something can be done quickly if it is well planned. Training programs are often part of an implementation that are developed quickly, some are effective, some are not. The ones that are successful are those that are well planned and meet the needs of the client. They can also be completed quickly if you have a method to follow. We think of methodology in terms of implementations, but methodology has the root method which applies to every aspect of a project we undertake be it implementation, testing, training, or development. There is an old Japanese proverb that I think of whenever I hear that planning is not important: ” When you’re dying of thirst, it is too late to think of digging a well.” Don’t get to where you are dying of thirst in any aspect of your undertakings. Plan and you can achieve results quickly. Eliminate the reams of paper but don’t eliminate the planning.
This may not be a complete list but I thought it might be a valuable list for those of you working on 8.9 to 9 upgrades. It is a nice summary of some of the enhancements to PeopleSoft. I am trying to keep the blog posts on this site simple, with simple functional information that may be valuable for consultants working on upgrades or implementations.
Human Resources Enhancements
Function
8.9
9.0
Summary of Progression
General
New Person Model: Supports tracking employees, contingent workers, and persons of interest. Personal data is stored once, no matter the change of relationship with the organization.
- robust tools to define and maintain job attributes
- tight integration across Talent Management modules
Configurable Actions/Reasons
Person Model Enhancements:
- Contingent Worker subcontracts
- badge and security access tracking
- contract expirations
- delete employment instances
- pay Persons of Interest
New Payroll Status field in addition to HR Status
Mass Update Enhancements
Company-configurable search and results to prevent duplicate persons.
Flexible Security Configurations:
- flexible field row-level security
- assign row-level by role
- faster fast views
- future-row access
Configurable Salary Matrices
Labor Agreement Functionality:
- layoffs, recalls, tie-breakers
Administer Workforce
Absence System field on Job Data
Smart Hire:
- Template-based configuration of hiring function that speeds data entry, reduces errors, and supports centralized and decentralized hiring.
- Streamlined, automated, and configurable processes to align with organizational requirements.
- Continued advancement in adaptability to the dynamic and global workforce (Person Model, Position Mgmt, SmartHire) and ever-changing regulatory requirements.
Wage Progression field on Salary Plan
Workflow-enabled tools to collect and store I-9 related information and expiration
Talent Management Enhancements
Function
8.9
9.0
Summary of Capabilities
Profile Management
Profile Management replaces “Manage Competencies”, and allows the organization to maintain standardized attributes
Fully integrated, standardized, self-service enabled framework to manage and assess attributes for success in organizational roles.Profiles are used throughout Planning, Recruiting, Development, and Performance modules. Person profiles are assigned to individuals, while non-person profiles are assigned to organizational roles at multiple levels.
**Formerly”Manage Competencies”
New Content Catalog is a flexible framework that defines and tracks job and person profile attributes
Job Profiles can be assigned at multiple levels
Profiles can be copied and cloned
Multifaceted Self-Service Options
Configurable Workflow
Talent Acquisition
Significantly redesigned and repackaged as Talent Acquisition Manager
In addition to current batch process of recruitment letters, interview and offers letters can be generated, edited online and printed immediately.
Advanced applicant tracking system designed to automate and streamline the recruiting process from the applicant, hiring manager, and recruiter roles. Configurable processes, workflow and approvals, powerful search capabilities, and 3rd party integration,
** Formerly Recruit Workforce and eRecruit Manager Desktop
Configurable Text Catalog
Letter content in Contact Notes automatically generated each time letter generation is utilized.
Recruiting Installation Table
Interview Notes with attachments are available.
Recruiting Locations
Enhanced Recruiting templates
Configurable Application Sites
Enhanced Approval Processing
Open Integration Framework that enables integration with Resume Extractor, Staffing Suppliers, and Background Screen Providers
Streamlined Application
Candidate Gateway:
- Enhanced Search
- Multiple Applications Per Day
- Job Basket Retained
- Use Prior Applications
360 Degree views of openings and applicants
Enhanced Referral Sources
Enhanced Contact Management
Improved Applicant Lists
Support for Dynamic Recruiting Teams
ePerformance
Dual-Manager Input
Real-time integration with Learning Management
Fully integrated and interactive Performance Management solution. Support for document creating, editing, and administration, multiple raters, third party integration, writing tools, workflow, and flexible approvals. Fully integrated with Profile Management, eDevelopment, ELM, and Plan Salaries.
Employee and HR initialization
Tightly integrated with Profile Management
Group Build Integration
Expanded goal, rating, and competency descriptions
Template-driven document creation
Configurable Cloning
Multisource/multi-participants functionality (360-degree and multi rater capabilities)
XML Publisher for printing
Clear display of completion steps
Enhanced writing tools
Document Deletion
Improved Administrative Functions
Self-Service Enhancements
Function
8.9
9.0
Summary of Capabilities
eCompensation Manager Desktop
eDevelopment (Employee)
Full Integration with Profile Management
eDevelopment (Manager)
Full Integration with Profile Management
ePerformance (Employee)
Initiate Performance Process
Integrated with Learning Management to view completed and planned learning
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