|
March 2006
SVU springs forward with planning and design this season
SVU Core and Extended Process teams followed up their 2006 kickoff with additional planning sessions. In early March, the project team gathered the Center Implementation Project Managers (CIPM) in Huntsville. Together they began working on a variety of activities including the development of Center Project Plans and Risk Management Plans. The following day, the Preliminary Design Review team also met in Huntsville, as they looked forward to their April deadline. Also underway this early spring, the SVU team is now holding center change management calls on alternating weeks.
The SAP Version Update (SVU) Project has been established to update NASA’s Core Financial software to mySAP ERP 2005. The new software will contribute to improvements in NASA’s financial recording and reporting, support the goal of achieving financial management integrity, and expand Core Financial functionality to better meet the needs of the project management community.
Specifically, SVU will enhance capabilities with a new Budgetary Ledger, new Budget Control System, new Payment Update, and new Year End processing. Targeted process reengineering will incorporate recommendations from both the Financial Integration Team (FIT) Program/Project Management Information Task Team and the FIT/One NASA Distribution Transfer Task Team, and will include improving program/project management information (without compromising sound financial management principles), as well as re-designing funds control and funds distribution processes.
Back to Top
eTravel team moves forward towards 2nd BPR workshop
The eTravel team rescheduled their 2nd Blueprint Kickoff and the Business Process Reengineering Workshop (BPR) for mid April. The eTravel team held their first BPR workshop in February with the goal of developing a single, unified process for domestic and local travel. Moving forward, the same focus will remain at the core of the 2nd workshop. All NASA Centers are represented within the BPR workshop. The team also plans to concentrate on major travel decisions and determine how eTravel can best meet the needs of the Agency.
The eTravel team has also obtained a formal General Services Administration (GSA) approval for delaying the implementation until after the Agency’s financial system is upgraded. As a result, the application’s extension was approved for full deployment until March 2007.
eTravel is one of the original 24 eGovernment initiatives outlined by President Bush in July of 2001. The effort was designed to make better use of information technology and to eliminate billions of dollars in federal spending, reduce paperwork and improve government response time to citizens. As a result, FedTraveler.com, an integrated application, will be implemented to give NASA online booking, travel authorization, and travel vouchering capabilities.
Back to Top
AMM gets a flying start under the IEMP umbrella
The Aircraft Management Module Project (AMM) is a new project set to provide an integrated toolset for the management and oversight of NASA’s mission management aircraft, mission support aircraft, and research aircraft. The AMM project will be managed at Johnson Space Center but will report to the Integrated Enterprise Management Program (IEMP) Director. The application is intended to eliminate the risk of operating aircraft with overdue inspections, grounding discrepancies, with unqualified or non-current aircrew, or in aircraft not properly configured for the mission. AMM also expects to provide positive control and reporting of all aircraft-related assets and reduce the cost of operations. Likewise, AMM is intended to give users timely and user-friendly access to the data and information they require to carry out their jobs.
Over the next year, the AMM team will be focusing on the major milestone date of January 2007, when they are scheduled to complete their Phase 1 requirements. In the more immediate future, the team expects their Framework Documentation to be completed on April 24th. Towards that end, the team has most recently succeeded in distributing the AMM Center Budget Guidance and preparing the Interim MMA for go live. Initial drafts of all the Center Receiving Site Implementation Plans (RSIP) were also received. Also noteworthy, the Center/Aircraft specific crew currency requirements were received by the IEM Program Office. Together this month’s varied achievements have given the project team more than a significant start towards reaching their ultimate goals.
Back to Top
MdM team updates tool with two major maintenance releases
The Metadata Manager (MdM) team delivered two significant maintenance releases in the past month. Early February saw the team launch the MdM to SAP interface. The enhancement provides a real time synchronous interface which updates SAP instantaneously as code requests are approved in MdM. This new process replaces the much antiquated and slower procedure of a two day turn around as codes were manually entered into SAP at the Competency Center. Later in the month, the MdM provided a structure rollover from the 2007 Formulation structure to the 2008 Formulation structure. Both releases help to streamline the speed and overall ease of the tool.
The MdM team delivered their first maintenance release on January 13, 2006. The upgrade contained a few minor enhancements, defect fixes and one piece of exciting functionality – the Excel Import feature for NSM code requests. More recently, the team hosted a special WebEX session with Center and Mission Code Requesters to discuss the proper way to build NSM codes.
MdM is the new web-based tool which contains NASA’s official NSM data elements and associated codes. Lead by the OCFO, the MdM project consisted of establishing a methodology and workflow for aligning the Agency’s technical WBS with the finance coding structure. Additionally, the MdM project consists of the design, development, implementation, training, and operation of the MdM tool.
MdM is the only tool on which NASA relies for identifying, creating, tracking, organizing and archiving of Appropriation, Mission, Theme, Program, Project and WBS 2 through WBS 7 NSM structural elements. MdM feeds NSM codes to budget formulation (N2), core financial (SAP), and project management systems that require coding structure data.
Back to Top
i-View launches support for MdM; trains more new users
The i-View team has been busy working to further develop i-View, the IEMP internal portal. The site continues to be the main focal point for all communications within the IEM Program.
To provide greater accessibility to other project information through i-View, the team created a new Metadata Manager (MdM) page for the project team to use. The MdM team has been publicizing the page and ensuring that all MdM users are accessing the application and all information from the portal page. The page provides access to the application, as well as all MdM related documents, and the latest Excel MdM Import Template.
The i-View team has also been working with their many new users to include them in the electronic IEMP community. A webex was held for as many as 25 new i-View users at IV&V Fairmont, the NASA facility in West Virginia that manages all NASA IV&V activities for the Agency. Glenn Space Flight Center also worked to educate many of their new i-View users and more than 100 users received i-View training at Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC).
i-View provides single sign on access (SSO) to all IEM applications and many other applications employees need to use, such as Employee Express, WebTADS, USA Jobs, and the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP.) SSO will simplify and reduce, but not totally eliminate, user ID and password management requirements. i-View also provides the means for the IEM Program Office to communicate effectively to all IEM users without relying on email. In the coming months, the i-View team will continue to focus on adding new users and additional functionality. Looking ahead, the team will be supporting the Contract Management Module Project (CMM), and i-View plans to play host to the Agency Standard Financial Reports, which will soon be moved to a production environment.
Currently, more than 4,000 users are accessing i-View on a regular basis and the site is accessible at all ten NASA Centers. A much anticipated upgrade is planned for i-View in May 2006.
Back to Top
|
