Getting Started at Urbana

These are suggested action items for you to complete during the first several weeks as a new employee with business and financial responsibilities. Completing these tasks will help you gain the basic understanding and knowledge you will need in your new role.

Learn the Basics

• Familiarize yourself with the organizational structure of University Administration, your Campus Administration, and the Office of Business and Financial Services (OBFS). Review the following information:
  • University Administration (UA)
  • Urbana-Champaign Campus Administration
  • About OBFS
  • Organizational Charts for UA and the Campuses
• The fiscal responsibilities stated on your job description may be reflected in one or more of the roles and responsibilities listed on the Roles and Responsibilities page of the OBFS website. Find the roles and responsibilities applicable to you and review the information, which includes resources to help you fulfill them.  
• Gain a basic understanding of the University's main finance system (Banner) by taking the online, self-paced course FN100: Finance Systems Overview. Of special interest is the introduction (in Lesson 5) to the University’s Chart of Accounts used by Banner to capture transaction data, facilitate retrieval of information, and manage financial reporting.  
• The University uses several other systems and applications to process transactions and retrieve information. For a high level description of applications related to business and financial responsibilities, review the list of applications on the Web Sites and Applications page of the OBFS website.

Find Networking Opportunities

• Become a member of the Business Managers Group (BMG). The BMG is a group of employees with business and financial responsibilities from the Urbana-Champaign campus who gather monthly to exchange ideas, receive updates, and network with their peers. Visit the BMG website for information.
• The office of the Assistant Vice President for Business and Finance is an important point of contact to help you in your new role. Attend one of their WIN sessions, designed to welcome new employees with fiscal responsibilities, to meet people and gather important information. If you have not received an invitation to register for a WIN session, contact them at 217-244-1237.

Make sure you…

• Contact your Department Unit Security Contact (USC) to get access to the systems you will use to perform the tasks you have been assigned. To learn more about application access and identify your USC, go to Get Access to Enterprise Applications. You will need to set up your Enterprise login ID and password to access the page to identify your USC or request access.
• Review the OBFS Curriculum Guide to select the appropriate training courses for your role, and register for training as appropriate.
• Sign up for announcements at the OBFS News Center.
• Attend a WIN session offered by the office of the Assistant Vice President for Business and Finance.

Bookmark These References

• The Office of Business and Financial Services (OBFS) website.
  This site is an important resource that supports the business and financial operations of the University and assists units in their daily operations. The OBFS website includes access to:
  • The OBFS Training Center
    Information on types and availability of courses, webinars, materials, and other training resources to meet needs for training, knowledge and understanding of the OBFS systems, policies, and processes.
  • The OBFS Policies & Procedures Manual
    Policies and procedures to follow when conducting University business and financial activities.
  • OBFS Business Forms
    OBFS forms organized by subject area and Banner-related forms.
  • University Accounting and Financial Reporting Frequently-Asked Questions
    Contains several categories of questions and answers related to general ledger, property accounting, and financial reporting issues.
  • The Banner Alerts & Resources Page
    Contains resources for users of Banner Finance/Payroll and other OBFS systems including system notices, calendars of events, information toolkits and lists of reports.
• The Guide to Banner Finance Forms and the Guide to Banner and Other Human Resources and Payroll Forms
  Information to help you identify the appropriate forms to use according to the tasks you need to accomplish in the Banner system.
• The Decision Support (DS) website
  DS supports the University by managing the data warehouse, providing data access, supporting staff report development, and providing data education and training.
• Campus Information Technologies and Education Services (CITES)
  CITES is the provider of campus-wide computing, networking, telephone, and instructional technology services supporting academic activities of faculty, staff, and students at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

We are here to help you

If you are unable to find the answers to your questions, please call the Customer Care Line at 217-244-1237 at the Office of the Assistant Vice President for Business and Finance (Urbana-Champaign Campus).

Last Updated: February 6, 2012