Effective Friday July 14, updates will be implemented within Oracle and Concur to streamline approval workflow for Research Administrators (RA) and Fiscal approvers.
Oracle Updates
Oracle approval workflow has been updated to note that only one approver will be required for each requisition. In the case that an additional approver is required, the requestor may utilize the “overriding approver” field. Specifically:
- RA Workflow – The RA workflow approval rule is now based on the assigned RA for each project attribute. The RA workflow has been configured to retrieve the RA name from each project attribute in the Project Portfolio Management (PPM) module. Projects that require RA approval will no longer require the secondary approval of the fiscal approver.
- End user impact: The requisition approval email will now show just one (1) RA name instead of the long list of multiple RAs. The requisition will no longer route to the fiscal approver.
- Fiscal Approver – The fiscal approval workflow is being simplified to assign one fiscal approver for each department.
- End user impact: No change to the end user.
Please take note of the following advisories and reminders:
- Oracle Requisition Entry Restrictions: Please refrain from entering new requisitions from Thursday, July 13 at 5pm through Friday, July 14 at 8am.
- Should you see an error message on the requisition workflow during this implementation period, withdraw and resubmit the requisition. If the error is not resolved, please submit a DFA incident ticket.
When an approver will be out-of-office for an extended period of time, please remember to use the out-of-office delegation feature that will systematically re-assign approvals during the set time period.
Concur Updates
Travel & Expense Management has worked to develop and implement a new Concur approval workflow to streamline the approval process and ensure proper approvals are captured within the system. The current workflow requires HR Unit Approvers to manually forward reports to the appropriate RAs for expenses charged to contracts and grants.
Effective Friday July 14, expense reports and Request ID (PTA) in Concur charged to contracts and grants will automatically route to RAs for review and approval before routing to the HR Unit Approver for final approval.
- End user impact: Starting September 1, 2023, the Center for Business Services and Solutions (CBS2) will no longer require RA approval before submitting Concur-related transactions. Please ensure all items submitted to CBS2 have the necessary funding information upon submission. Individuals submitting request on behalf of a faculty member need to include documentation of faculty approval.
Should you experience an error message in Concur, withdraw and resubmit the requisition. If the error is not resolved, please submit a Travel & Expense General Inquiry.
