ANNUAL REPORT

FY 2001-2002 

Business Information Technology Services (BITS)

ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT DEPARTMENT

 

 

I.     Department Mission - The Business Information Technology Services (BITS) provides planning, implementation, enhancements, maintenance, and technical support to the Business & Finance Division for all its Information Systems needs such that the Departments can best serve our customers: Students, Faculty, Staff and Community. 

 

II.     Department Goal - Our Goal has always been to publish as much information as our departments have to the web. We will continue to update and add information as we gather it.
We strive to respond to all communiqués we receive in a timely manner to ensure that all hardware and software is in good working order.
To effectively move forward we must study and understand future enhancements to Information Technology Systems and create a Strategic Plan for the division. We are also part of the Campus Strategic planning team and will be closely tied with the campus plan.
To ensure the viability of office equipment and ensure that the software advances we receive do not tax this equipment, we inventory and track the usage of the computers in the division and maintain a 3-year rollover of inventory.
To strive towards the above goals, the Staff must be aware of Information Technology Possibilities and Constraints. In that regard we see it as our duty to help train the staff in further understanding of the tools they have available or will need. This training is needed for both BITS staff members and all our customers.

 

III.     Department Statement of Outcomes - Web Budget Reports, emails, phone messages, and two special open training/discussion forums provided a constant feedback loop to create and attain reports that the campus could successfully utilize to maintain their Departmental Budgets.
By monitoring the general information questions we receive on the division web site (via www@bf.westga.edu), and a survey we conducted for our Business Process Redesign last year, we are able to track what new information is needed on the web site (which is added if possible). Most of the requests we have received are specific to other departments outside this division. These requests were promptly forwarded to the appropriate department so they could respond.

 

IV.  Example to Change/Improve a Process – During the open discussion sessions, and subsequent emails and phone calls, we were able to take a suggestion to add a date range search on the Budget web reports. This change eliminated the need for certain sections on the reports, thereby simplifying them while giving the end-user greater control over what was being reported.

 

 

V.    General Statement of Department Condition: With the departure of the Director of Business Information Technology Services (BITS) at the beginning of the FY02, BITS was short staffed for most of the year, coupled with a major deployment of a new Accounting and Purchasing software package (PeopleSoft) we were not able to move ahead on some of our projects as we had hoped. In mid-spring we were able to hire on an EDP Tech Specialist II, and we are now getting back on track.

 

VI.     Departmental Achievements - In FY2002, BITS successfully deployed the PeopleSoft Financial ERP product to our Accounting and Purchasing departments (with integration to Banner, the PeopleSoft HRMS system, and other systems on campus). We redeveloped and deployed the financial web applications (unique to the University System of Georgia) to provide each department on campus the most up to date financial information concerning their budget. We also aided in the deployment and support for the newly created Budget Module. There has been continued support and enhancement of the PeopleSoft HRMS ERP product.
We expanded the use of our Food Service System into the Retail Market at our Centre Shop and Bookstore. So students are now able to put money on their ID cards for use beyond just food services. This is in preparations of the One Card System, which we’ve been working towards this past year.
We have been integral in the planning and preparation for the campus-wide ‘One Card System’ which will be deployed this fall.
BITS successfully upgraded all ‘in-house’ applications to web based applications and successfully upgraded the Job Announcement web application.
In addition to these major projects, the Business and Finance Division utilizes a myriad of specialized software packages to help all of our customers: the students, faculty, visitors, and staff of the campus. These packages, just like the better-known software packages, require on going support, service, and upgrades.

 

VII. Staff Productivity - One of the EDP Technicians earned her A+ Certification this past spring. The new director attended the first year of SACUBO’s College Business Management Institutes Courses.