After successfully completing design activities at the end of April, Impact23 is well into the Configure & Build phase of the program, which runs from May-October 2022. This next phase is focused on configuring Oracle Budget & Oracle Financials to meet UC Riverside’s needs. The scope and complexity of the Configure & Build phase are reflected in the numerous user stories collected throughout the prior phase of the project - System Design.
Understanding the Configure & Build Phase
900 Unique User Stories
Did you know that we have approximately 900 unique user stories at UC Riverside? These user stories, developed during the System Design phase of the program, serve as the foundation for system configurations throughout the Configure & Build phase. They capture the “who”, “what” and “why” to describe requirements for different stakeholders.
User stories guide the project team’s work by:
- Enabling the project governance and workgroups to make configuration decisions
- Providing the foundation for building test scripts
- Supporting the design and build of system functionality
- Revealing opportunities to improve processes to address current pain points
- Providing acceptance criteria for system functionality during sprints to identify technical dependencies or limitations
User stories reveal our users’ business processes and unique needs through a simple and concise format:
“As a__(role)__ I want to __(do something)__ So that I__(achieve something).”
As a requester, I want to be able to create requisitions from shopping lists, so that I can re-order frequently requested goods or services quickly.
As a requester, I want to be able to get notifications when a purchase order is created and approved against my requisition, so that I am aware of the current status of the ordering process.
5 Configure & Build Sprints
An iterative sprint approach allows for early and frequent review and validation of the system functionality. Each of the build sprints will provide opportunities to prioritize system configurations, review and validate against user stories, and identify continuous improvement opportunities. Each build sprint better prepares us for System Integration Testing (SIT), the overall testing of the whole system. The main objective of SIT is to ensure that all software module dependencies are functioning correctly and that data integrity is preserved between distinct system modules.
The build sprints are focused around individual process areas and work streams. Each user story is categorized to support one of these areas:
1. Project Portfolio Management (PPM)
PPM includes contracts and grants and capital projects.
2. Enterprise Performance Management (EPM)
Oracle Budget often referred to as "EPM" includes financial planning, including budget, forecasting and labor planning.
3. Record to Report (RTR)
RTR includes general ledger, cash management, fixed assets and accounts receivable.
4. Procure to Pay (PTP)
PTP, often referred to in Higher Ed as P2P, includes procurement, accounts payable, and the supply chain.
