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- Ad Hoc Report
- Formatted output created as needed by an end user of a system. See
Query,
Crystal
Reports, Report,
Standard
Report.
- Advancement (Alumni Development)
- PeopleSoft application not purchased by University of Houston
System. The BSR Advance CS product is being utilized by the University
of Houston.
- Application
- See PeopleSoft
Application.
- Batch Processes
- Background programs in the client/server environment of PeopleSoft
modules. Batch processes perform operations, such as pay confirmation,
on groups of records and are usually scheduled to run on a regular
basis. These processes are run from a Process Scheduler and are executed
through process-specific programs.
- Best Practice
- A particular way of doing business that has a positive impact on one
or more of the following: customer satisfaction, employee satisfaction,
or financial results. Best practices involve top-level commitment, a
linkage to strategic planning, process adaptations that reinforce
desirable behaviors and outcomes for the organization, and measurements
to tie the initiatives to critical business practices.
- Campus Community
- PeopleSoft-specific term that refers to shared data and shared data
processes, as University of Houston System defines them. See Shared
Data, Shared
Data Process.
- Change Control
- Method of identifying and tracking any activity that alters the
scope, deliverables, cost or schedule of a project.
- Change Management
- Methods and processes that assist individuals in adjusting
constructively to new systems, procedures, processes, workflow,
organizational relationships and other differences as they occur.
- Charter
- Document that outlines the principles, functions and organization of
a body, such as the ASSC, FAST, or Project Office.
- Client Support
- A help desk that assists end users in solving equipment or
application-related technical and functional problems, either directly
or by referral to the appropriate function.
- Client/Server
- Computer systems in which the workload is split between desktop
personal computers (PCs) (the client) and one or more larger computers
(the server) that are connected via a network. PeopleSoft is a
client/server product. See Desktop.
- Constituency
- Group affected or served by the FAST project; for example, students,
alumni, employees, faculty and administrative staffs.
- Consultant
- Third-party provider of specific skills, information and/or advice,
such as a Communications consultant, Project Planning consultant, or
PeopleSoft consultant.
- Core Team
- The individuals who perform required tasks to accomplish a specific
work effort from beginning (planning) to end (deployment), such as
release of a PeopleSoft module; the functions (individuals) on an
Implementation Team that do not change. See Implementation
Team.
- Cost Savings
- Measurable savings resulting from cutting down the time to perform
administrative processes, for example, the paperwork saved as a result
of better process or workflow, and/or use of individuals to perform more
added-value or revenue-generating work.
- Crystal Reports
- Third-party reporting software that works with PeopleSoft (as well
as other systems) and is used to format, group, summarize and arrange
data into the desired report format and results; used in both standard
and ad hoc reporting. See Ad
Hoc Report, Standard
Report.
- Data Administration
- Function responsible for ensuring definition, integrity,
consistency, accuracy of institutional data and identifying data
maintenance responsibility; develops and monitors rules and standards
that apply to data model; ensures data security policies and procedures.
- Data Conversion
- Rules for mapping data from a software application for use by
another and writing programs to execute the adaptation, for example, a
program that systematically adapts data in the current HR system to
populate PeopleSoft tables.
- Database
- A set of data that is structured and organized for quick access to
specific information.
- Department Tree
- In PeopleSoft, a hierarchical structure that defines an organization
and its reporting relationships; the tree has multiple levels
represented by nodes, each of which must exist in the Department table
where its attributes are defined. An individual may be assigned to a
Department at any level of the tree.
- Deployment
- Sixth step in a release life cycle in which a module is delivered to
end users for use in performing their jobs. It includes providing
connectivity and desktops, help desk support and end-user training and
documentation. Deployment tasks must start in advance of actual
production in order for the first scheduled user(s) to go live. For a
release to be completed, deployment must be completed for all scheduled
user(s) so deployment may be phased.
- Desktop
- Personal computer (PC) that sits on a user's desk. End users' PCs
must conform to a certain configuration if they are to perform specific
PeopleSoft functions, such as data entry, viewing data and reporting.
The Project Office is responsible for specifying this configuration.
Also a metaphor for the on-screen computing environment that includes
the screen background and the windows, icons, documents and tools that
appear on it. See Workstation.
- Development
- Fourth step in a release life cycle that includes performing the
steps necessary to fill the gaps identified in the fit analysis and do
additional design and programming for requirements not met by the
software. Includes process adaptation, user and client support
activities, test plan and unit testing, module modifications, interface
and conversion programs, desktop setup, etc.
- Document Repository
- Location on a shared network drive and duplicated on an
ID/Password-accessed web site that contains documents of interest and
use to specific PeopleSoft Implementation Project team members.
- Drilldown
- Act of moving from the general to the specific; enables the
examination of the data underlying any summarized form of information in
PeopleSoft or from PeopleSoft to other systems from which information
was received, for example, nVision is a PeopleSoft [drilldown] tool used
with financial data.
- End User
- Individual who uses a computer system(s) in the course of performing
job duties.
- Executive Sponsors
- Group comprised of the VC/VP for Administration and Finance and the
VC/VP for Information Technology who function as project champions. This
group provides general oversight, guidance and direction as needed
approve scope of the project and own the overall project budget, resolve
major points of dispute that cannot be resolved at a lower level of the
project organization.
- Financials
- PeopleSoft application purchased by University of Houston System;
includes the following modules: General Ledger, Receivables, Payables,
Billing, Purchasing, Asset Management, Inventory and Projects.
- Fit Analysis
- Second step in a release life cycle that includes identifying how
well current business processes are satisfied ("fit") by the processes
delivered by PeopleSoft. Outcomes include identification of fit and gap
items, interface, reporting and conversion requirements and open issues;
also includes confirmation of the scope of the release and the
development work to be done in the next step. See Gap
Analysis, Issue.
- Function
- Area of business, such as student admissions or employee benefits.
- Functional Need
- Requirement of a business function that is identified prior to
software selection and further defined during the Fit Analysis.
- Future Administrative Systems Team (FAST)
- Name of a University of Houston System-wide initiative whose vision
focuses on improvement of student-related functions, outstanding
customer service delivery, and effective use of modern technology.
PeopleSoft is the primary technology tool being implemented to support
and enable this vision.
- FAST SubCommittee
- Team that meets regularly with the Project Office to review and
provide guidance and support in resolving critical and operational
project topics.
- Gap Analysis
- Identification of required business functions that must be
implemented, are not delivered by PeopleSoft and will require
modification to the software or other solutions. Gap identification is
one of the outcomes of a Fit Analysis. See Fit
Analysis.
- Grants Management
- PeopleSoft application not purchased by University of Houston
System.
- Human Resources
- PeopleSoft application purchased by University of Houston System;
includes the following modules: Human Resources, Benefits
Administration, Payroll and Time and Labor. This application This
application shares the same database with the Student Administration.
- Implementation
- Completion of a release, which means that a module is in production
and if applicable, is deployed to all end users identified for the
release. See Release.
- Implementation Team
- A group of people who represent both functional and technical
expertise and who work together to release a PeopleSoft module(s). The
composition of the team may change over the release life cycle. See Core
Team, Project
Team, Release
Life Cycle.
- Infrastructure
- Underlying foundation of the system, including workstations, other
supporting equipment, facilities, network communications and the help
desk.
- Institutional Data
- Data that is acquired or maintained by University of Houston System
employees in performance of official job duties. Typically this is data
that is: relevant to planning, managing, operating or auditing a major
function at the University; or referenced or required for use by more
than one functional area (Shared Data); or included in an official
University administrative report.
- Integrated System
- System that relies on a single database to store required data that
is then accessed by various end users to meet their functional needs.
Ideally data is defined once, entered once at its source and stored once
in the database.
- Integration Test
- Controlled evaluation performed by system developers to ensure that
a collection of programmed units work together to produce expected
results as defined in the functional requirements.
- Interface
- Electronic transfer of data, either from or to, the PeopleSoft
database. For example, an interface program will transmit PeopleSoft
human resource and pay calculation data in a form that is useable by the
current Payroll system in order to produce paychecks.
- Issue
- Unplanned situation, action, problem or question that arises during
the performance of a project that affects the project's scope or
schedule in some way but that may not be efficiently resolved by an
individual or the implementation team.
- Legacy
- System that currently supports any University of Houston System
business functions, such as admitting students, for example, the
Registration and Records, Admissions, Payroll and Alumni Records
systems. PeopleSoft modules will replace many of the legacy systems.
- Modification
- Change or addition to a PeopleSoft module as it is delivered;
identifying the need for modifications is one of the outcomes of Fit
Analysis. See Fit
Analysis, Gap
Analysis.
- Module
- See PeopleSoft
Module.
- Navigator
- PeopleSoft functionality that enables its customers to preprogram a
business process so that a user can automatically move through the
sequential steps of the process when using PeopleSoft. See Workflow.
- Network
- A group of computers linked together to share resources. Common
types are Local Area Networks (LAN), Wide Area Networks (WAN) and
intranets.
- Operating System (OS)
- The master software that controls a computer's fundamental
operations. The server operating system for PeopleSoft is Unix.
- Panel
- A screen that displays related PeopleSoft information, for example,
personal data, job data, course data.
- Parallel Testing
- Process in which both the old and new modules run at the same time
so that performance and outcomes can be compared and corrected prior to
deployment; commonly done with modules like Payroll.
- PeopleSoft
- Company that produces the administrative software applications that
University of Houston System is implementing. The software itself is
also referred to as PeopleSoft.
- PeopleSoft Application
- PeopleSoft-licensed software; applications include Student
Administration, Human Resource, and Financials, applications are
comprised of specific functional modules.
- PeopleSoft Module
- Computer software that supports specific business functions and
enables users to perform specific tasks. Name given to the components of
a PeopleSoft application, for example, the Student Administration
application consists of these modules: Admissions, Student Records,
Student Financials, Financial Aid and Academic Advisement.
- PeopleTools
- A tool set that enables system and functional users to tailor
(develop, deploy, maintain) PeopleSoft to meet unique business
requirements.
- Pilot
- Release strategy in which a module is put into production in a
limited and very controlled environment; usually involves people,
hardware, and software working together with the express intent of using
the pilot period to learn what works and what does not work. A pilot is
usually run for a specific period of time; the results are documented
and used as input to finalize the module before a larger deployment.
- Policy
- A plan or course of action that is intended to influence and
determine decisions, actions, and other matters.
- Procedure
- A set of established forms, methods and/or steps for conducting a
business or specific business process.
- Process
- Set of linked activities that create a result, for example, hiring
an employee or admitting a student.
- Process Adaptation
- The activity of revising workflow, forms and other methods of
performing procedures and completing work in order to facilitate, or
make possible, the implementation of a system module.
- Process Analysis
- First step of a release life cycle that includes reviewing and
developing baselines for the current environment and identifying the
high-level business processes and requirements to be addressed. It also
includes assessing organization and network readiness, identifying
current business processes, assessing the module as delivered by
PeopleSoft, and confirming the scope of the release. See Fit
Analysis.
- Project Office
- A subset of the PeopleSoft Core Team, headed by the Project Manager,
that is responsible for scope and strategy development; project
planning, tracking and status reporting; project communications,
training and development; system-specific report development; resource
acquisition; and project budget administration.
- Project Plan
- Integrated view of all functional and technical work required to
complete a project as defined by its scope. The plan details the tasks,
schedule, cost, resources, milestones and deliverables needed to
complete the project. Progress is tracked against the plan and measured
by work complete, by reaching milestones and completing deliverables.
Reports can be produced at different levels of detail about any
component of the plan, for any level of management use.
- Project Schedule
- Sequence of tasks that must occur to complete a project by a
specific date; one of the components of a project plan.
- Project Team
- Group of individuals responsible for implementing PeopleSoft
functionality at University of Houston System. The Project Team consists
of the Project Office, additional Implementation Team members,
consultants and other project support personnel. See Implementation
Team, Project
Office.
- PS Query
- PeopleSoft ad hoc reporting tool that provides a method for
selecting and arranging data on multiple records; query specifications
can be saved as private queries (accessible only to the creator) or
public queries (available to all users with appropriate security
access). Access is defined by the user's security profile; query results
can be viewed online, sent to Excel, or sent to Crystal Reports. See Ad
Hoc Report, Crystal
Reports.
- Relational Database
- An integrated repository of data in the form of tables that have
rows and columns to show the relationship between items, and in which
information can be cross-referenced between two or more tables to
generate a third table.
- Release
- A set of functionality delivered to a particular audience or
audiences by a specific target date.
- Release Life Cycle
- Work that must be performed to implement a software module; includes
seven steps: 1. Process Analysis 2.Fit Analysis, 3. Design and Set Up,
4. Development, 5. User Acceptance 6. Deployment. Some or all of each
cycle step is repeated for each module release.
- Report
- The presentation of a formatted collection of information; can be
presented on paper, on the web, on diskette, or online.
- Reporting
- The act of specifying and producing formatted information; in
PeopleSoft, reporting can be done with preprogrammed reports (called
Standard Reports) or done as needed by the user (called ad hoc
reporting). See Standard
Reports, Ad
Hoc Report.
- Resource Plan
- Part of the project plan in which resources, typically people, are
identified and assigned to perform project tasks. When matched with time
estimates for completion of tasks, a Project Manager can plan and manage
resource requirements within the project budget.
- Risk Management
- An event, factor or action that may cause harm or loss; a hazard; a
project planning step in which these possibilities are identified and
prioritized in terms of probability and impact. The risk identification
step is followed by a "what if" analysis and recommended contingency
plans.
- Roll-out
- See Release.
- Satellite System
- See Shadow
System.
- Scope
- The amount of work to be accomplished within a given time period and
with a given set of resources. Scope, time and resources are in constant
relationship to each other. If scope expands, then either time
(schedule) must increase or additional resources must be allocated. If
time is shortened, then either scope must decrease or resources must
increased. If resources are decreased, then either time is increased or
scope must be decreased, etc.
- Security
- Definitions of system access for end users. Security can be physical
(equipment-related), module-related or data-related.
- Shadow System
- A system that is not centrally administered but which supports
required business functions. There is no comprehensive list of these
systems that may include Microsoft Access databases, spreadsheets, other
third party software like Paradox, File Maker Pro, etc., and other
homegrown systems.
- Shared Data
- Data that is updated by more than one functional area and/or is
critical to more than one unit's business processes; for example,
Employee ID, Department, Location and Address. See Shared
Data Process.
- Shared Data Process
- The processing rules that ensure control and accountability over
data maintained by more than one functional area. See Shared
Data.
- Standard Report
- Preprogrammed specifications designed for repetitive execution that
produce a formatted output. In PeopleSoft, this output may be
automatically scheduled as a result of a batch process, or may be
produced on demand from a drop-down Reports menu available within a
module. A user may need to provide specific parameters, such as an
effective or "as of" date or a range of values. See Ad
Hoc Report, Batch Process.
- Step
- One of the six groups of tasks that make up a release life cycle. In
the project plan, a Step may be further defined as Sub-Steps, Activity
Groups, Activities, Sub-Activities, and Tasks. See Release
Life Cycle.
- Student Administration
- PeopleSoft application purchased by University of Houston System;
includes the following modules: Admissions, Student Records, Student
Financials, Financial Aid and Academic Advisement. This application
shares a database with Human Resources application.
- Table
- Collection of data in an organized structure; comprised of columns
that represent fields and rows that represent data; PeopleSoft stores
all data in various types of tables. See Relational
Database.
- Translate Table
- Table delivered with a PeopleSoft application that contains coded
values that meet specific criteria, including values with no additional
attributes besides a code and a long and short description; there is a
limited number of each type of code; values change infrequently, etc.
Yes or No, Ethnicity codes, Regular/Temporary, and Part/Full-Time are
examples of Translate Table contents. Also called the XLAT Table.
- Tree
- Indented hierarchical structure (branches, leaves) with multiple
uses in PeopleSoft; for example, use to define an organization structure
or chart of accounts, or use to display reporting relationships or
dependencies
- Unit Test
- Controlled evaluation performed by a system programmer in the
Development step to ensure that a piece of program code performs as
defined in the specification.
- User Acceptance
- Fifth step in a release life cycle in which module functionality is
tested, performs the required functions at a level acceptable to the
function owner, and goes live to become the system of record for the
function. This step and the "go live" milestone are synonymous.
- User Acceptance Test (UAT)
- Controlled evaluation performed by end users of a module against
specified criteria to ensure that the module meets acceptable
performance standards and produces outputs as defined by the end user's
business requirements.
- User Support
- Activities or deliverables designed to enable end users to learn and
use new processes, procedures, systems and other tools efficiently and
effectively in the performance of their work; includes training,
documentation and communications.
- Valid Values
- Predefined entries stored in PeopleSoft tables that define and
present the choices of possible entries in specific PeopleSoft fields.
See Table.
- Vision
- Imagination of what could be accomplished or is possible at some
future time.
- Workflow
- Order in which specific work is performed; in PeopleSoft, a
background process that creates a list of administrative actions based
on the user's criteria and specifies the procedure associated with each
action.
- Worklist
- In PeopleSoft, an automated "to do" list that Workflow creates. From
the Worklist a user can directly access the panels needed to perform the
next action, and then return to the Worklist for the another item.
- Workstation
- Computer, usually a personal computer (PC), that sits on a user's
desk. End users' workstations must conform to a certain configuration if
they are to perform certain functions, such as data entry, viewing data
and reporting, with PeopleSoft. The Project Office will specify this
configuration. See Desktop.
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