e-business suite 1 | jeannie dobney | oracle project management for users of project costing...
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The most comprehensive Oracle applications & technology content under one roofThe most comprehensive Oracle applications & technology content under one roof
Oracle Project Management for Users of Project Costing / Billing
Jeannie Dobney andLoretta Bayliss – Prescience Technology
(updated paper available from jdobney.com)
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Objectives
This paper asks – and attempts to answer:
• If you already use Oracle Project Costing and Billing, what value does Oracle Project Management add?
• Are the HTML pages just another way of looking at the same data?
With the author’s thanks to the Ipswich City Council support team for the questions above.
Voltaire: “Judge of a man by his questions rather than by his answers”.
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Agenda
• Brief history of the Oracle Projects Suite
• The value Oracle Project Management proposition
• Implications of the introduction of Oracle Project Management
• Overview of some of the available ‘similar’ functionality (including gotcha’s and irritations)
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First, a little history
• Once upon a time…– Oracle released the Project Accounting application c.1993
– Included the functionality we now know as Project Foundation and Project Costing - with Billing added soon
– Those were the dim, dark ages of character based Apps, -although Projects was converted to ‘GUI Forms’ fairly quickly – so most early Projects adopters recall it as a purely Forms based product
– Projects introduced the HTML interface when the Oracle Projects Suite was introduced (c.2005)
– So just a short digression about ‘user interfaces’…
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Oracle Projects chronology …
Oracle Projects suite milestones
1996
2000
20022003 2003
2004
2005
1995
1994
1996
1998
2000
2002
2004
2006
Project
Costing
Project
Billing
Project
Foundation
Project
Resource
Managem
ent
Project
Managem
ent
Project
Collaboration
Project
Intelligence
Project
Portfolio
Planning
Original Release Date
Slide is reproduced from http://www.cronininc.com
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Character Based Apps
Note that this screen is from Oracle Cost Management, not Project Accounting
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GUI Forms Interface
Also known as the Professional User interface
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HTML Interface
Also known as the Applications Framework Interface
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Oracle Projects Apps Interfaces• Some modules are primarily designed for
HTML others for Forms
Slide is from Oracle Projects Suite- Security Options by Timothy Cronin
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Projects HTML vs.. Forms…• Selected functionality by HTML or Forms
Slide is from Oracle Projects Suite- Security Options by Timothy Cronin
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So….The initial answer to the HTML Pages question is:
• They were created to support the expanded Oracle Projects Suite.
• You must use the HTML pages if you wish to use specialised functionality such as that available through Project Resource Management
• For most of us Oracle Project Management may be the most relevant ‘new’ Application – and coincidentally has led to some of the most obvious ‘parallel’ and ‘shared’ functionality…
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Oracle Project Management• Some of the apparently similar functionality
was introduced to support Oracle Project Management, for example:
So let’s look at the value proposition for using Oracle Project Management first and then return to specific (shared) HTML functionality
Forms HTML
Budgets Financial Plans
Project Status Inquiry Project Performance Reporting
Resource Lists Planning Resource Lists & Resource Breakdown Structures
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The Project Manager’s Tools (prior to Oracle Project Management )
Information Requirement
• Cost Vs. Budget
• Work schedule (Gantt chart)
• Risk management
• Issue management
• Stakeholder comm’s
• Deliverables
• Change Requests
• Status Reporting
Software / Tool (examples)
― Oracle Project Costing
― MS Projects or Primavera
― Document
― Spread sheet
― Intranet (for storage etc.)
― Document
― Assembled laboriously from all of the above
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Imagine a Solution….• Develop your work schedule in MS Projects
• Import it into Oracle Projects to generate a budget from the work plan based on rates stored in Oracle
• Link changes in complex work plans to integrated (simpler) financial plans (i.e. update once and replicated across systems in background)
• Link the budget variation process into new budget versions
• Publish updates automatically to the team’s homepages (no more ignored emails or use of out-dated plan versions…)
• Tailor those team home pages to focus on key data – and automate the display of current tasks
• Store issue lists in the same place and add the ability to assign and track actions for them
• Workflow supported and semi-automated production and publication of project status reports from this integrated project data
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A Day in the Life of the PM• The Project Status Report is due...
– Is the project within budget?– What is the progress against schedule?– What risks does the project face?– What is the status of logged issues?– What is the status of change requests?– Where can deliverable documents be accessed for review?– Where are other project documents stored?
(Project Management Plan etc.)
• Oracle Projects can provide a repository of all this information and semi-automate the production of status reports if required.
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A Day in the Life of the PM, cont...• Time for a project team meeting, need to:
– Review the schedule for upcoming milestones etc.– Focus the team on those upcoming tasks– Identify any roadblocks, tasks which have not been completed– Review progress on issues assigned to the team– Gather input about potential risks etc.
• Oracle Projects can provide:– A team member home page which ‘pushes’ specifically relevant
upcoming tasks (and actions required for issue resolution) to each team member
– Allow decentralised updating of issues assigned to team members
– Allow decentralised percentage complete entry for tasks
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Checklist for an Integrated PM Solution• Workplans / progress tracking
• Cost against budget tracking
• Status reporting – (multiple audiences?):detail and / or traffic light status
• Sharing / repository of deliverables
• Repository of other project documentation
• Issue tracking
• Risk Register ?
• Change Requests / Orders
• Stakeholder communications (push / pull?)
• Team member home page / communication method
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Oracle Project ManagementAvailable functionality includes:• Parallel integrated WBS structures
i.e. Workplan, Financial (and Deliverables)• Integration with Project Management tools such as MS Projects and
PrimaVera• Budget generation from work-plans• Configurable HTML pages for reporting and project communication
(using page layout functionality and Framework personalisations)• Includes performance and exception reporting (incl. traffic lights)• Attachment functionality for storage of project documents• Sophisticated access control by project role• Progress reporting: Workflow supported and semi-automated
production of project status reports • Change orders that can be linked to budget changes• Issue lists etc.
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A Quick Tour of Oracle Project Management
• Gantt Chart / work plans
• Cost against budget tracking
• Status reporting
• Repository of project documents
• Issue tracking and change orders
• Team member and stakeholder communication
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Workplans – Gantt Chart View
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Workplans – Dependencies
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Workplans – Resource Assignment
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Integration: Oracle Proj Mgmt and Schedule Management Software
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Structure Mapping
Workplans may be integrated with specialised project management tools e.g. MS projects. (If you do not use workplans, some HTML page functionality may not be applicable e.g. Earned Value Management)
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Project Performance Reporting• Uses the same basic cost data as the project
status inquiry (PSI) window, however…
• It includes:
– Periodic and QTD display
– An ability to report in multiple currencies or calendars – useful for multi-nationals
– It also displays earned value analysis and progress against plan in effort terms
– Users can personalise their own views
– Requires additional update processes
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Analysis of Costs by Task
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Analysis of Cost by Resource
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Budgeting and Forecasting
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Standard Earned Value Reporting
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Earned Value Management (EVM)• A key advantage of combining work tracking
and cost tracking in one system is the ability to do EVM reporting
• EVM is a project management practice that integrates:– Schedule – Scope– Cost
• EVM measures the value of work performedFrom an Open World Presentation:
Oracle Project & Portfolio Management for DoD Earned Value Compliance
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Task One 80%
Task Two 24%
Task Three 50%
Task One 80%
Task Two 24%
Task Three 50%
Create Status Reports
• Different reports for different
audiences
• Automatic reminders for due reports
• Existing project info automatically
included
• Exec. summary with status indicator
• Enter additional textual details
Publish Status Report
• Send to stakeholders
• Online or email access
• Track history
Project
Customer
Management
Team
Project
Task One 80%
Task Two 24%
Task Three 50%
Project
Oracle Status Reporting
These slides from Carl Morley’s OpenWorld 2010 presentation
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Attachments (Project Documentation Repository)
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Issue Lists and Change Control
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Team Member Home Page
Slide is from a 2004 Oracle presentation
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Exceptions
Exception Reporting - KPIs
Financial
Schedule
Execute
Single Project Status
Overall Project Status
Key Performance AreasException
Cost Variance %
Cost Variance %
10 % and more
0 to 10%
-1% and less
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So Why Would You Not Use It?• Does it fit with your organisations project management (PMO)
practice and project development process?
• What are the preferred tools already in use by your PMO, e.g. substantial investment in the use of an Intranet?
• Who’s running the implementation and can they ‘sell’ an integrated business process to the PMO?
• How much of your project management work is outsourced and what impact will that have?
• How do contractors fit in your project process (Oracle Projects supports them – but will your IT and HR department?)
• Have you factored in the system maintenance and training required for another software tool?
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So…• Some functionality is new and unique to the
HTML pages and may offer value to existing users
• However, this powerful functionality involves complexity and there are some gotcha’s and annoyances
• Oracle Implementation and User Guides, don’t make a clear distinction between features and functions available and usable in Forms vs. HTML
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The Same or Similar• Some functionality may be used in either
Forms or HTML, e.g. project definition
• Existing users of Project Costing are probably licensed to use this type of functionality (cfMOS # 815154.1 and similar notes)
• Some Billing and Capital project functionality only exists in Forms
• HTML Dates may default in non-intuitive ways to Forms users (refer MOS # 361507.1)
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Different Name, Same Feature• Customers and Contacts in Forms is the same as
Billing Accounts in HTML pages
• Key Members in Forms is the same as Team Members in HTML pages
• DFF defined at Project-level in Forms displays in the Other Information section of Additional Information in HTML pages
• DFF defined at Financial Task-level in Forms displays in the Other Task Information section of HTML pages
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User Defined Attributes (UDA’s)
• UDAs – like context sensitive descriptive flexfields (DFFs) that are only accessible from the HTML-based application pages
• DFFs may be visible in both interfaces
• Both may require custom reporting
• Data from both can be used for AutoAccounting, Account Generation and Subledger Accounting (R12)
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User Defined Attributes: Complete Solution
User Defined Attributes appear for projects and tasks based on the
context and the level
Context Data Level Usage
Project Type Project
and/or Task
Enable a set of attributes based on
a specific project type
Class
Category
Project
and/or Task
Enable a set of attributes based on
a specific project class category
Class Code Project
and/or Task
Enable a set of attributes based on
a specific project class code
Task Type Task Enable a set of attributes based on
a specific task type
UDA slides are from a presentation by Carl Morley at Oracle OpenWorld 2010
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Budgets Vs. Financial Plans• New HTML “Plan” Types introduced in 2005
• Existing Budget Types convertible during upgrade
• Enhanced budgeting unique to HTML pages:
– Excel data input (via webADI) is standard functionality
– Budget amounts may be generated from work plans using planning rates
– Initial Forecast version created from original budget and then generated from actuals etc.. using ETC methods
• Different implementation path to use Budgetary Control and/or Budget Integration (Forms budgets)
• New HTML Plan types are not compatible with Budgetary Control and Budget Integration functionality
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Forms Budgets vs. HTML Financial Plans
• A key implementation decision
• Conceptually the same – however quite different system functionality:
– Do you need Budgetary Control / Integration? (If so, use Forms Budgets)
– Will you integrate workplans and use EVA? (Use HTML)
– HTML Financial Plans have standard Excel integration (webADI), however, More4Apps provides the same functionality for Forms (if this is the only drawcard)
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Resource Lists…
• Forms Budgets use Resource Lists for budgeting and reporting
• HTML Financial Plans use Planning Resource Lists for budgeting and Resource Breakdown Structures for reporting
• Also note: PSI implications (MOS # 405219.1)
Interface Budgeting Reporting
Forms Resource Lists Resource Lists
HTML Planning Resource Lists Resource Breakdown Structure
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Resource Lists…
• An upgrade process is available
• After running UPG: Upgrade Resource Lists to Planning Resource Lists process:
• Subsequent changes are propagated from the original Resource List to the upgraded Planning Resource List (but not the RBS)
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HTML Project Home Page
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Oracle Project Managementfor Users of Project Costing / Billing
Loretta Bayliss
Managing Director, Prescience TechnologyVice-President, AUSOUG (Qld)
www.prescience.com.au
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Agenda
• A User’s Perspective
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Oracle PjM
• Loretta’s tools of choice include:
• Oracle PjM
• Microsoft Project Server
• Primavera EPPM
• Order of the day is largely defined by client requirements and corporate PMO mandates.
Is it my tool of choice?
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Oracle PjM
• Narrowing it down further:
• Oracle PjM
• Microsoft Project Server
• Primavera EPPM
• This combination does have the potential to provide a true enterprise platform.
Is it my tool of choice?
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Words of (?) Wisdom
• Do not expect a miracle, or a golden goose‐ Either from Oracle PjM or Primavera
• Understand the impacts on/from other Oracle modules ‐ Oracle PjM does not operate in isolation
• Plan for and build up to the change ‐ an enterprise model is not achieved overnight
• Use all of the tools/reports at your disposal until the enterprise model is sufficiently robust to support project, program & portfolio‐ Costing, Billing, AP, PO, AR, OTL can all add value
System and Process
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From the coal face
Prescience Technology is on our Oracle E-Business services supplier panel. They are a
niche player who know the area in which they operate. They have a good
knowledge of the product and the market; access to skilled resources;
and a good understanding of the requirements, especially if a problem is a bit more
difficult. They apply their expertise and do the analysis, without trying to run too
fast.
My experience with Prescience Technology over the past four years gives me the absolute confidence to recommend them for Oracle related projects and support.
Prescience demonstrates professionalism and maturity and is committed to
working closely with us to deliver clear value for money and outcomes that
either meet or exceed Tourism Australia’s expectations, every time.
Hein Bouman, Information Systems Manager, Tourism Australia