BOSR Monthy Newsletter August 2007

Purpose of this Newsletter

BOSR is a project to replace the information systems that support a number of key government-wide expenditure management processes such as Estimates and Annual Reference Level Updates (ARLU), collectively known as Expenditure Management Information System (EMIS). This newsletter is intended to provide updates on the progress of the BOSR Project, issues encountered and milestones achieved. It is distributed to direct users of the existing budget office related legacy systems and other parties interested in BOSR.  

In this Newsletter

1.       Status Update
2.       Peer Review
3.       Training
4.       Your Questions
5.       For More Information

1)       STATUS UPDATE

• The project remains on track for the November Go-Live.
• A demonstration of the EMIS functionality was given on July 23 ^rd to the Program Sectors and was generally well received; however, a number of detailed process questions remain.
• The project team is continuing to compare the existing and updated EMIS-related processes in an effort to identify precisely how processes will change, evaluate the impact of the changes and identify actions to manage the changes.
• The project team is beginning in-depth testing cycles.  

2)       PEER REVIEW

• The Expenditure Information Division (EID) will be hosting Peer Review sessions (a form of end-user testing) for selected EMIS modules from August 22 to September 14, 2007 .
• Through the Peer Review sessions, end user participants selected by Program Sector representatives and Business Owners will have the opportunity to execute functional tests and to provide feedback on the usability of the system prior to the EMIS implementation. This will help EID to confirm that requirements have been met and allow for the refinement of work deliverables if required.

3)       TRAINING

• The Training Team is in the process of developing a comprehensive training program for the new EMIS.   Future EMIS end users will be required to complete both online and classroom training, where the online training will be a prerequisite to the in-class session.   All training (online and classroom) will be mandatory – you will be unable to gain access to the new system if you have not completed the required training.  
• The online training module will be made available on the EMIS website ( http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/emis-sigd/index_e.asp ) as of September 24th and classroom training sessions will commence on October 15th, ending in early December of 2007.   Future sessions will be offered on an as needed basis (e.g. for new employees).  

• All attendees will require their Government of Canada Digital Certificate (commonly know as PKI key).   We encourage you to obtain the PKI key well in advance of the sessions as this process may take up to 2 weeks.
• Classroom sessions will be held in the National Capital Region.   The detailed training calendar, along with registration information, is being finalized and will be made available on the EMIS website as of September 24th.

4)       YOUR QUESTIONS

• As a department, we are currently on version 4.6C of SAP and therefore do not have the BCS module.   Do you have information on how the BOSR project will impact departments that do not have the BCS module, or similarly departments that are not using SAP?
• The BOSR implementation of SAP is completely separate from departmental implementations of SAP. Departments do not need to have the BCS module, nor SAP for that matter. In addition, access to the new EMIS (SAP) will be through SAP-Business Server Pages (SAP-BSP), which works through the web; therefore, all departments will require is an SCNet (Secure Channel Network) InterGov connection to access EMIS.

How to obtain a PKI key   Contact your department’s Local Registration Authority (LRA).  For TBS employees, you can reach Trinet’s LRA services at 947-8172 or by email at “Services – IT Security”.  If your department does not have an LRA, please contact the EMIS Help Desk at 948-1901 or by email at “EMIS-SIGD”; The LRA may use the One Visit process where s/he will fill out the PKI application for the user and send it by fax to PWGSC; Once the user and the LRA have received their reference number and authorization code in an e-mail from PWGSC, they must arrange a face-to-face meeting; At the meeting, two pieces of photo identification will be verified and the user will sign the form; The LRA will then send the completed form back to PWGSC by fax with the One Visit Completed check box checked.

 

5)       FOR MORE INFORMATION

• For more information, please contact:
  
• For past editions of the newsletters, please visit:
  http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/emis-sigd/news-comm/month-mois_e.asp