FI$Cal Implementation Update to continue reading on Page 3 Gold Level Certificates on the Way — Page 5 FI$Cal Implementation Update A message from Neeraj Chauhan, Chief Deputy Director

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Getting Ready Early Is Key: FTBLeaders at the Franchise Tax Board (FTB), one of the largest 2018 Release departments, recognized early that their transition into the FI$Cal system would require true focus and commitment.

Micki Moody, manager of FTB’s accounting section, reports they’ve been attending as many forums and workshops as possible since Wave 1. As a result of observing and learning from the onboarding process of previous wave departments, FTB understands the impact that entering the system will have on its business processes.

Moody recommends departments make sure their designated super users understand their end-to-end processes come July 2018. That may mean having

The Department of FI$Cal recently released its Special Project Report 7 that outlines the steps and timeline for the final phase of implementation of the FI$Cal system, including onboarding of departments and implementation of State Controller’s Office (SCO) and State Treasurer’s Office (STO) functionality.

Whether you’re currently transacting in the system or a future user, you may wonder what this means to you. Following is an informational update on where we are with implementation and a look at what functionality that new and existing users can expect after Go Live:

• Our 2018 Release departments are currently in the midst of their secondround of testing. This is the first time we’ve offered departments more thanone opportunity to validate their data in the system before Go Live and ourdepartments are taking advantage of it.

In this issue...

April 2018

News, Events and Announcements from FI$Cal

Click to continue reading on Page 4

End User Spotlight — Page 5

Fact vs. Fiction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

FI$Cal Remains Committed to Timely Incident Resolution . . . 2

Updated FI$Cal Job Aids . . . . . 3

Career Opportunities . . . . . . . . . 4

Identity Self-Service Portal for User Access Requests . . . . . . 6

Events Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

FI$Cal Receives Certificate for Food Drive Efforts — Page 4

Click to continue reading on Page 3

Gold Level Certificates on the Way — Page 5

FI$Cal Implementation UpdateA message from Neeraj Chauhan, Chief Deputy Director

Four employees from the FTB take procurement validation training at FI$Cal.

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The FI$Cal Service Center (FSC) is committed to responding to customers and resolving issues within a timely manner.

In February, 82 percent of all service requests from departments were resolved in less than seven days. Some took only hours. Fewer than 2 percent took longer than 30 days, and those were Priority 4 problems, the least-urgent priority.

More than 60 departments and 8,000 users will enter the system in July 2018, and ticket volumes will increase dramatically. Please help us keep ticket volumes down and service levels up by using self-service tools whenever possible. Remember, users can reset passwords on the FI$Cal login page, and take advantage of the Identity Self-Service Portal for user access requests. This tool allows quicker end user role provisioning by automating the process.

For “how to” questions, please consult job aids and quick fix videos, or talk to your department’s super users who have in-depth knowledge of unique business processes as well as expertise in the FI$Cal system. Take a look at FI$Cal’s User Support Guide for a full range of support options to try before contacting FSC.

If you do need to make an FSC service request, please provide a clear description of the issue, the application the issue is in

(i.e., PeopleSoft; Hyperion, etc.), screenshots that include the “bread crumbs” and/or menu path, and the User ID associated with the transaction.

Starting in July, the FSC will assume all Level 2 support responsibilities from Accenture, including accounts payable and purchasing, the two modules with the highest volume of incidents. FI$Cal will maintain service level targets set in the Accenture Service Level Agreement for its Service Level Objectives (SLOs).

FI$Cal Remains Committed to Timely Incident Resolution

Service Level ObjectivesPriority 1 – Extensive, widespread impact. Multiple departments affected with no workaround available. SLO: Four hours.

Priority 2 – Significant impact. Entire department affected or business process functionality only partially available, with no workaround. SLO: Eight hours.

Priority 3 – Moderate impact, limited to a single group or team. Workaround is available. SLO: Five days.

Priority 4 – Minor impact, usually a single user. Resolution is not time-sensitive. SLO: 30 days.

vs

FACT: The per person cost to use FI$Cal may vary year to year depending on the number of users and FI$Cal costs to be recovered. Departments are not charged directly by FI$Cal for their usage; instead, costs are recovered via the Statewide Cost Allocation Plan (SWCAP) and ProRata mechanisms administered by the Department of Finance (Finance).

As part of the regular budget building process, departments work with their Finance Budget Analyst to identify and plan for their SWCAP and ProRata assessments for the upcoming fiscal year.

Please consult Budget Letter 17-25 and/or your Finance Budget Analyst for additional information.

FICTION: There is a direct, per-user, annual charge for FI$Cal.

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Module Job Aid Title Job Aid DescriptionDate Published

Accounts Payable

Processing Late Payments Interest Penalty Vouchers 3.0

Provides instruction to the Department AP Processor on how to process a late payment interest penalty voucher in FI$Cal. 03/27/2018

Accounts Payable Create an Employee Salary Advance 4.0 Provides the instructions for creating a Salary Advance in FI$Cal. 03/26/2018

Accounts Payable Create Voucher for a Reportable Payment 3.0 Provides Departmental AP Processors with instructions on how to

create a payment that will be 1099 reportable. 03/26/2018

Accounts Payable Create a Regular Voucher for Refunds 3.0 Provides Departmental AP Processors with instructions on how to

create a Regular Voucher for the payment of a refund. 03/26/2018

Accounts Payable

Cancel Payments Made From a Department's Office Revolving Fund 4.0

Provides instructions for voiding an Office Revolving Fund (ORF) check or placing a stop payment on an ORF check. 03/26/2018

Accounts Payable

Schedule Multiple Payments For a Single Voucher Over $99,999,999.99 3.0

Provides Departmental Pay Cycle Processors the instructions for scheduling multiple payments for a single voucher over $99,999,999.99.

03/26/2018

Accounts Payable Create Single Payment Voucher 3.0

Department AP Processor can use to generate a Single Payment Voucher for one-time refund payment, tax refunds, and confidential non-reportable payments.

03/26/2018

Identity Self Servce

PERT Team Requesting Additional Information from Department for a SOD Conflict Request in Identity Self-Service 1.0

How the PERT Team requests additional information from a department for a SOD conflict request waiting for approval in Identity Self-Service.

03/27/2018

You may view all new and updated Job Aids here.

New and Updated FI$Cal Job Aids

FI$Cal Implementation Update Continued from Page 1

• FI$Cal staff are on scheduleas planned to complete theintegrated solution that will allowSCO/STO legacy systems andFI$Cal to run in tandem.

• The following STO controlfunctions are on track to go livein October 2018.

- Deposit Slip Functionality:FI$Cal departments will record deposit slips, receipts and remittances in FI$Cal using an updated customer receipts interface (INFAR018). The previous interface (INFAR001) will be retired.

- New Deposit Types: New Deposit Types that align to Deposit Slip Types will be available to departments.

- Remittance Advice for Demand Deposits: New extension EXTCM023

(Remittance Advice for Demand Deposits) will give departments the ability to view and track their Controller Receipts associated with their Remittance Advices submitted to STO/SCO.

- Deferred and Exempt Departments will continue their current business processes. Deposits entered with the Electronic Deposits

Form will be interfaced into FI$Cal. Deposits entered into legacy systems will be keyed into FI$Cal by STO.

We aim to keep all of our end users informed with relevant and timely communications. Keep an eye out for informational emails from FI$Cal’s Change Management Office. If you are a Department Liaison, please be sure to share these messages with staff in your organization.

FI$Cal Production Release NotesProduction Release Notes are brief, high-level descriptions of enhancements and defect fixes in the FI$Cal application. The Release Notes include date of deployment, relevant incidents or ticket numbers, the modules or business areas impacted, and the Operational Decision Making Framework (ODMF) numbers, when applicable. You may view all Production Release Notes here.

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employees attend every training module for accounting, or every training module for purchasing, so they can understand how each step of a transaction process affects the next.

When it comes to 2018 onboarding tasks, FTB is submitting its configuration, workflow and role mapping on time in order to have productive validation sessions and take full advantage of the second round of testing this spring. Like many departments, FTB would like some more hands-on-keys opportunities for practice in the system. Though FI$Cal can’t provide an unlimited “sandbox,” it is offering Learning Labs to help users get a feel for how transacting in the system will look and feel and to provide an opportunity for departments to better understand their business processes.

Because they have been highly engaged, FTB leaders were not

Getting Ready Early Is Key: FTBContinued from Page 1

surprised when they encountered some frustrating challenges late last year. Their super users have learned this can be part of the change process.

“You have to be your department’s advocate,” said Moody. “You have to dig to find the information, and sometimes when you find it, it doesn’t necessarily fit your scenario. You need to ask a lot of questions.”

Working together with Department of Finance and the FI$Cal team, FTB is working out solutions to some anticipated reporting issues.

Looking ahead to Go Live, Moody knows there will be bumps in the road. “We don’t have any unrealistic expectations that this is going to be a perfectly smooth transition,” she said.

This knowledge is inspiring FTB to come as prepared as possible. FI$Cal appreciates their commitment through the process.

FI$Cal Receives Certificate of Appreciation for Food Drive EffortsFI$Cal is proud to have finished among the top five of all state agencies and departments in the food donations category during the 2017 State Employees Food Drive. Despite employing fewer than 500, FI$Cal contributed nearly 4,000 pounds of food directly to the Sacramento Food Bank and Family Services.

Business Operation and Solutions Division

• Information Technology Associate On-Site Support Office, Procurements Section Final filing date: April 9, 2018

Information Technology Division

• Information Technology Manager II Enterprise Security Services Office Final filing date: April 9, 2018

For the most current list of career opportunities, visit the CalCareers website.

Career Opportunities

UPCOMING FORUM:

SoCal FI$Cal User Community Forum

Thursday, April 19, 2018 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

Caltrans Office Building 100 S Main Street

Los Angeles, CA 90012

Space will be limited.

Please register by Tuesday, April 17, 2018

at the FI$Cal website.

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Gold Level certificates are coming to University of FI$Cal (UF). It’s the last stage in the UF program that awards certificates (currently Bronze and Silver) across eight different modules of functionality.

Completion of coursework is required for Silver and Bronze certificates but users will have to pass a two-part test to qualify for Gold. Part 1 will be a written exam with multiple choice and true-false questions. Part 2 will consist of an assessment where users will use the modified “Know It” mode to demonstrate their understanding of some widely used processes in each module.

To qualify for the test, users must have previously earned Bronze and Silver certifications and have studied the job aids for the module. Bronze indicates a basic level of training required to transact in the FI$Cal system. Silver certificates,

which made their debut last fall, mean users are able to execute more complex transactions. The certification program allows users to take training and build skills beyond the regular requirements of their job.

The exams and assessments will be self-paced and users can take them as many times as they need to pass.

Gold Level certificates can be earned in any of eight modules — solicitation and contracts; purchasing; asset management; accounts payable; accounts receivable/billing; cash management; projects, grants and contracts; and general ledger.

UF is aiming for a May deployment of the Gold Level certificate test.

For more information, go to the University of FI$Cal page on the FI$Cal website. For support, users can send an email to the Change Management Office at FI$Cal.

Gold Level Certificates on the Way End User Spotlight

Each month we ask an end user a question to get to know our department users better.

Sarah Sing is an Accounting Administrator I (Specialist) with the Department of Business Oversight. She has been with the department for three years in the General Ledger Unit where she works on reconciliations and reports as well as some special projects. Once onboarded, Sarah will be using FI$Cal for performing accounting activities.

Q: What training have you taken recently and how do you use it at work?

A: Outside of training for FI$Cal, I’ve mostly been involved in year-end close refresher training for accounting. With the end of the 2017-2018 fiscal year coming up soon, it’s important that I’m up-to-date and well informed on everything involved with reconciling and balancing my department accounts. This will enable us to have a smoother transition into FI$Cal.

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APRIL 2• R18 Department Configuration,

Data, and Role Validation Sessions — 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

APRIL 3• R18 Department Configuration,

Data, and Role Validation Sessions — 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

APRIL 4• R18 Department Configuration,

Data, and Role Validation Sessions — 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

APRIL 5• R18 Department Configuration,

Data, and Role Validation Sessions — 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

• R18 Data Extracts Strike Team Make-up Session — 10 a.m. - 12 p.m.

APRIL 6• R18 Department Configuration,

Data, and Role Validation Sessions — 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

APRIL 9• R18 Department Configuration,

Data, and Role Validation Sessions — 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

APRIL 10• R18 Department Configuration,

Data, and Role Validation Sessions — 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

APRIL 11• R18 Department Configuration,

Data, and Role Validation Sessions — 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

APRIL 12• R18 Department Configuration,

Data, and Role Validation Sessions — 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

APRIL 13• R18 Department Configuration,

Data, and Role Validation Sessions — 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

APRIL 19• SoCal FI$Cal User Community

Forum (CalTrans, Los Angeles) — 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

Listings as of 3/30/18. For current information, and the full schedule of Touchpoint Meetings, please visit the Events Calendar on the FI$Cal Resources Page.

APRIL 2018 EVENTS CALENDAR

FI$Cal’s Identity Self-Service (ISS) portal streamlines access request processing and improves customer service for Departmental Authorities/Designees (DADs) by allowing them to input end user access requests online. The portal is available to all departments that are now live in the FI$Cal system.

Using the ISS portal provides faster end user role provisioning by removing the manual steps of completing the paper based form and emailing it to the FI$Cal Service Center for processing. The more streamlined process allows FI$Cal’s Access Management team to quickly identify this category of access management ticket and prioritize it with a goal of completing the access/provisioning request within one business day.

In addition to speeding access request processing times, ISS

provides DADs with greater control over the requests they submit. Through the portal they can view their department end users and their roles in the FI$Cal system as well as track the requests the DAD has submitted or approved. DADs from departments already

in the FI$Cal system can access the ISS portal by using their primary FI$Cal production user ID and password.

2018 Release departments will be able to use ISS after Go Live in July. For additional questions on the ISS portal please email FI$Cal’s Information Security Office.

Identity Self-Service Portal for User Access Requests