The University is transforming the Finance and HR services we all use and updating our ways of working with smarter processes and a new system for day to day tasks. This article provides an update on the changes and how you can help to get ready for them. People and Money will bring HR and Finance services together in a single system. As part of this, we’re making some improvements to our Chart of Accounts. This is the structure that underpins how we record financial transactions and allows us to track and report on finances across the University and its subsidiaries. Main benefits: We’ll have a clearer picture of our finances Supports better decision-making Enhanced reporting capabilities We’ll start using the new Chart of Accounts when we launch the finance parts of the People and Money system (reminder of timelines below). Our current Chart of Accounts records only a small amount of information for each financial transaction: Account, Cost Centre, Job Code, and in some instances, Activity. We call these segments. In People and Money, our new Chart of Accounts gives us the opportunity to record more detailed information for each financial transaction, using new segments. Our new system will automatically populate some segments for you and some are optional depending on the task at hand. There are a range of materials to help you get familiar with the new Chart of Accounts. https://uoe.sharepoint.com/sites/HRandFinanceTransformation/SitePages/Chart-of-Accounts.aspx Training and further guidance will be provided for those who need it. How you can help get ready for the changes Data is one of the main building blocks for People and Money and will help make sure that our processes run smoothly. As we get nearer to the system switchover, we must reduce the changes made to the Chart of Accounts so we carry over only the essential data we need to People and Money. Therefore, could we ask you that from now: - please make only essential changes to the Chart of Accounts over the coming months. - if there is a business need for a new code then please follow the usual processes to get them set up - please do not recycle any codes for different purposes. More information For more information on the changes to the Chart of Accounts, we have created awareness materials that you can find here: https://uoe.sharepoint.com/sites/HRandFinanceTransformation/SitePages/Chart-of-Accounts.aspx Further guidance and training for those who need it will be shared closer to the launch. If you have any questions, please contact the Finance Transformation team using the form on the page above or by emailing financetransformation@ed.ac.uk. Timelines The new Chart of Accounts will launch as part of phase 3 of our programme timeline - due to be delivered between autumn and Christmas this year. This includes: The finance parts of People and Money Changes to our processes, such as financial approvals and purchasing goods and services The formation of our new Finance Operations and Procurement Operations teams If you'd like to find out more about the Finance Transformation and keep up to date with developments, visit the dedicated SharePoint space below. Find out more about Finance Transformation This article was published on 2024-07-01
