VPVI-38: Adding UDFs & Workflows – Where Do You Start? Nate Brown & Barbara Bunting, Stambaugh Ness
VPVI-38:Adding UDFs & Workflows – Where Do You Start?
Nate Brown & Barbara Bunting, Stambaugh Ness
Introductions
Determine the Requirements
Document Decisions
Make A Plan
Best Practices for UDFs
Best Practices for Workflows
Questions
Come See Us
Agenda
Introductions
Stambaugh NessProvides Professional Services Firms with a Future-
Ready approach that aligns services to our client’s
needs
Years of Professional Experience
in the Architectural and Engineering industries
Years of Experience working with Deltek solutions
Nationally Recognized Deltek Platinum Partner
Clients in 43 States & Canada
Nate Brown, Senior Consultant
9+ years working with Deltek systems
Specializes in:Improving Business Processes with
Stored Procedures
Workflows
User Defined Info Centers
Custom Reports
Data Migrations
API Integrations
Barbara Bunting, Senior Consultant
20+ years working with Deltek systems
Specializes in:Resource Planning (Vision, iAccess, Vantagepoint)
Project Management Training
Project Management Process Assessments and Development
Info Center Design
Security / System Administration
Workflows
Determine the Requirements
• Determine what the request really is…get the details• Why do they want it?
• Would others benefit?
• Should others be included in the planning?
• Does it solve a problem or eliminate dual entry?
• Would it be user defined fields / grids in a standard Info Center
or a User Defined Info Center (UDIC)?
• Will workflows be needed?
• Will searches and / or reports be needed?
Determine the Requirements
• Only add fields / grids / User Defined Info Centers
(UDICs) when you can answer the following:• What is the business purpose of the field / grid / UDIC?
• What will the output be (i.e. report, search, alert notification,
dashpart, etc.)?
• Who will enter the data?
• Who will maintain the data?
• Who will QC the data (if it needs to be QC’d)?
New Field / Grid / UDIC Questions
Make A Plan
• Document the answers to the new field / grid / UDIC
questions
• Meet with appropriate people
• Decide on: • Fields to create
• Field types
• Field names
• Field controls (required, locked, hidden, tool tip, help text, etc.)
• Field placement
• Security / Access rights
Make a Plan
Document Decisions
• Create a document that• Explains the purpose
• Lists the fields and field types to be added
• Lists the workflows
• Details the workflow triggers
• Details the workflow actions
• Explains how data was initially populated
• Explains how data will be maintained
• Explains how data will be QC’d (if necessary)
• Document the process flow (if creating a process)
Document Decisions
• Share the document
• Store the document in a place that is accessible
(consider a UDIC)
• Future team members may need this information
• Update the document when changes are approved /
implemented
Document Decisions (cont.)
User Defined Fields, Grids, and Info Centers
• Can only have one value per field
• Can include many fields on a report
• Can edit
in List
view
Fields
• Grids can have one or
multiple columns
• Can only include one
grid on a report
• Cannot edit in List view
Grids
• Can only include results that match the search selection
(i.e. only certain degrees, only certain licenses, etc.)
Grids (cont.)
• Group fields together in searching by adding a common
name or an abbreviation of the name to the beginning of
each field• To identity the UDIC or the field purpose
• To keep them unique
• To prevent duplication
• Does not impact the lookups
• Easier to identify in lookups
Naming Fields, Grids, and Columns
• Do not use the same name as a standard
field
• The names should make sense as to the data
expected in the field
• Use hover help, tool tips, or text label to help
define purpose / expected values
Naming Fields, Grids, and Columns (cont.)
• Open screen designer to modify the name of the column for
screen display
Naming Fields, Grids, and Columns (cont.)
Choose the Right Field Data Type
• User Defined Fields (UDFs) have these data types to
choose from:• Dropdown
• Employee
• Equipment
• Firm [VP]
• Lead [Vision]
• Lookup [Vision]
• Marketing Campaign
• Memo
• Numeric
• Opportunity [Vision]
• Organization
• Phone [VP]
• Project
• Text Library /
Boilerplate
• UDIC
• URL
• Vendor [Vision]
• Account
• Character
• Checkbox
• Client [Vision]
• Contact
• Currency
• Date
• Date/Time [VP]
• Dropdown vs. Lookup• Dropdown Data Type
• Click on an arrow and pick from a list
• Cannot type in characters to search in
Vision but can in Vantagepoint
• Can click on the first letter repeatedly
• Can’t copy and paste when in List view
• Lookup Data Type• Can type in characters to search
• Can open a lookup screen
• Info Center Lookups• Can select record from other Info Centers
Choose the Right Field Data Type (cont.)
• Character vs. Memo• Character Data Type
• Can use alpha and numeric characters
• Can have certain symbols
• Limited to 255 character
• Searchable
Choose the Right Field Data Type (cont.)
• Character vs. Memo• Memo Data Type
• Can use alpha and
numeric characters
• Can have certain
symbols
• Can have formatting
(i.e. bullets)
• Unlimited field
• Searchable with
‘contains’ only
Choose the Right Field Data Type (cont.)
(cont.)
• Checkbox – Easy to use but..• How do you really know if unchecked means false or they just
forgot to check the box
• Can search but only if checked or unchecked
• Can’t really make it required – then it would always be checked
• Dropdown with Yes & No – May be a better option…• If empty you know they forgot
• Can search for Yes / No / Empty / Not Empty and more
• Can make it required and get a real value – or at least a
guessed one
Choose the Right Field Data Type (cont.)
• Currency• Can set minimum and maximum values
• Doesn’t allow a 0 (zero) entry [Vision]
• Does allow a 0 (zero) entry [Vantagepoint]
• Numeric• Can set minimum and maximum values
• Can set decimal places
• Doesn’t allow a 0 (zero) entry [Vision]
• Does allow a 0 (zero) entry [Vantagepoint]
• Cannot sort / group by a numeric field
Choose the Right Field Data Type (cont.)
• UDIC’s can be referenced in other Info Centers as a field
type (Data Type: the name of your UDIC)
• Consider a UDIC for anything tracked outside of Vision• Terminology / Formulas
• Workflows / Custom Programming
• Leased Vehicles
• Training
• Business Licenses or Memberships
• Applicants or Benefits
• Storage
User Defined Info Centers
Best Practices for User Defined Fields / Grids / Info Centers
• Don’t forget you can move fields between tabs
• You can make a field system required for only the
Accounting or CRM type of role
• When you add a new Date field, it defaults to Current
Date (can be removed; change column order to view)
• You can set a default value for a field when you create it
General Information
• Affects the screen and lookups only• There is a lookup / report labels option but doesn’t change
everywhere
• Can cause confusion• Viewing online help
• Contacting support
• Developing workflows
• Can create duplicates
Avoid Changing Names of Standard Fields
• May be completely different than intended purpose of
the field
• Could have unexpected results in other areas
• May cause issues with future versions
• Can cause confusion with online help / or tech support• Especially if nobody knows they were repurposed – good
reason to document
Avoid Repurposing Fields
• The UDIC Number and Name
fields are system required field
if they are shown on the screen
• They can be hidden for all
roles which makes them no
longer system required (i.e.
you don’t want to number your
records, etc.)
User Defined Info Center Screen Designer
• TIP: Create a “hidden” States UDIC; it can be used
over and over in other Info Centers instead of creating
new drop down lists• Vision uses the Data Type “Name” field as the record lookup to
the UDIC. If you want the “state” to list the abbreviation, set
the Name field to be the abbreviation
• If you want the “state” to list the state
name, set the Name field to be the
state name
User Defined Info Center Suggestion
• Clean Up Fields – Create Unused Fields Tab• Move UDFs not used – even if you are not sure if they are
used
• Move standard fields not used – you can always move them
back
• If the field was used – someone will let you know
• Remove Fields – If the Fields are Not Missed• Backup the appropriate custom fields table and store it or put
the fields into List view and export the information to Excel
• Delete the UDFs
Housekeeping
Workflows: General Information
• Available for Info Center / Hub records and Billing Terms
• Allows you to automate processes based on certain
conditions
• Allows you to generate alerts via email and / or
Dashboard
• Helps to enforce business processes and rules via
warnings or errors
• Creates Vision activities to document change or to
remind users to do something
What are Workflows?
• Reduces mistakes
• Prompts for missing data at applicable times
• Standardizes data entry
• Enforces business processes
• Saves time and reduces redundancies
• Notifies employees of certain action items
Benefits of Workflows
Best Practices for Workflows
• Add a User Defined Info Center (UDIC) to log and track
all workflows and changes to them• Upload the workflow printout to the Attachments tab
• Track who created it, when it was created, and when it was last
modified
• Why did we create it?
• What is it going to do?
• List conditions and actions
• Include the details of each action
Document the Workflows
• Add a number to the workflow description • The number can reference back to your documentation
• Add a brief descriptor to the beginning of the workflow
for easy sorting• Alert
• Button (makes it easy to find the workflow when linking it to a
button in screen designer)
• Column Change
• Stored Procedure
Tips for Organizing Workflows
• Add the workflow creator name and creation /
modification date to the end of the description
• Make sure the workflow description clearly states the
purpose
• Make sure the action description clearly states the
action
• Keep descriptions generic where possible• Avoid “Send email to Jane”
• Try “Send email to Project Coordinator”
Be Purposeful with Workflow Descriptions
• Use database field codes when possible in messages to
the users
• Avoid using specific names in the email subject and / or
email body• “Please contact Jane” to “Please contact HR”
• “Please report to Boston Office” to “Please report to [EM.ORG]”
Avoid Constant Editing
• Always make sure to test things in your test system
before using it in your production system
• Always verify the results
• Scheduled workflows must have at least one condition
• Validate Warning / Validate Error actions must have at
least one condition
• If you can’t find a field in workflow, look at the name in
screen designer or the data dictionary
Workflow Tips & Tricks
• Create a “self” field in the Employees IC to use for
workflows / emails / alerts
• Use “This change was made by [:ModUserFullName].”
when documenting data changes
• Lock fields that are populated via workflow to avoid
overwriting the auto populated information
• Enable the Workflow Log in Configuration > General >
System Settings > Miscellaneous to view whether
actions succeeded or not
Workflow Tips & Tricks (cont.)
• Checkboxes • Have a value of Y (checked) or N (unchecked)
• Cannot use Empty or Not Empty
• Must use Equals Y / N or Not Equals Y / N
• To set a checkbox to unchecked, change it to N; don’t use the
Empty Field option for Column Change
Workflow Tips & Tricks (cont.)
• Use employee fields or roles for emails (to / cc / bcc)
• Include workflow name at the bottom of the email
• Include before and after results for field change
notifications
• Use Validation Warning or Validation Error instead of
system required fields• Can’t control who can set a project to dormant, if they are
allowed to edit the project, but you can have a workflow error
that will not allow them to save the record if they select
dormant
Workflow Tips & Tricks (cont.)
• Scheduled workflows can be set to run on a specific
date / time or at regular intervals
• Can also create on-demand workflow buttons in Info
Centers
• Scheduled workflow best practices• Schedule during off hours
• Do not schedule more that one workflow with the same start
time
• Allow time between workflows – so then can complete before
the next one starts
Scheduled Workflows
• Process server is set up in Configuration > System
Settings > Servers• Cloud customers will not have access to set this up themselves
• Have IT restart the process server on a regular basis (nightly,
weekly, etc.)
• Periodically check the process queue (sometimes things get stuck)
• Make sure the process server is disabled for
test databases or that the email server has
been removed in Configuration for test
databases
Process Server
Questions
VPVI-37 Transaction Center – Which Transaction Type Should I Use?
VPVI-55 Don’t Just Fly, Soar (Dumbo) – See How Vision Customization Can Work for You
VPVI-34 Build Out a Marketing Infrastructure – More Than Just an Accounting System
VPVI-56 The Magic of AP Approvals in Vantagepoint and Vision
VPVI-87 Reduce Time & Expense Error & Delays
VPVI-33 Simplifying Your Project Planning Process
VPVI-42 Play Nice Together to be More Efficient and Effective in Our Roles
VPVI-88 Leave the Imagination to Disney – Avoid Custom Invoices
VPVI-18 Creating Actionable Vantagepoint Dashboards
VPVI-89 Eliminate Spreadsheets & Harness the Power of User Defined Info Centers
Come See Us Check out the sessions that our team will be presenting!
Contact InformationNate Brown, Senior Consultant
Barbara Bunting, Senior Consultant
Visit us at www.stambaughness.com/events
Sign up for our virtual user group meetings