Blackboard &
Stony Brook
University
SOLUTION FOCUS: FINANCE
Challenges
Stony Brook University had struggled with creating consolidated
budgeting reports and analysis from its PeopleSoft Financials data.
Combining financial data reliably and uniformly and delivering required
budget reporting and analytics was often a complex, manual process.
Stony Brook implemented the PeopleSoft Financials system with
each of the university’s four revenue sources defined as separate
business units. However, charts of accounts varied significantly from
one business unit/revenue source to another in order meet SUNY data
processing requirements. Additionally, budget cycles varied greatly
between revenue sources.
“While we had all our financial data within PeopleSoft, we still had four
very different sources of financial information,” explains Kate Larsen,
Director of Accounting. “Creating institution-wide ‘All Funds’ reporting and analysis, properly consolidating all revenue sources, required
manually compiling and reconciling thousands of accounts.”
“Also, managers and executives want to know why budget values may
have changed from previous levels,” adds Larsen. “There are many
reasons why a budget at Stony Brook might change, such as a revision
QUICK FACTS:
One of four University
Centers and one of 64
campuses that comprise
the award-winning State
University of New York
(SUNY) system
Located in Stony Brook, NY
Undergraduate, Graduate
and Doctoral Programs
Fall 2009 Enrollment
- 24,692
PeopleSoft Financials on
Oracle DBMS
One of only ten universities
given a National Science
Foundation recognition
award for integrating
research and education
in union contracts, salary increases – over 50 possible reasons in all.
Previously, we had to track this information using spreadsheets.”
“PeopleSoft reporting tools proved too inflexible and difficult to work
with. A new solution was needed to consolidate data across business
units and enable easy creation and distribution of budget reporting
and analysis online.”
1
blackboardanalytics.com
Solution
Stony Brook selected the Blackboard Analytics Financial
Impact of Blackboard Analytics
at Stony Brook
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reporting challenges.
module in place, the Stony Brook accounting team now
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easily develops financial and budget reporting views and
extracts raw data from Stony Brook’s four PeopleSoft business
analytics. “The Blackboard Analytics HigherEd Financial
units, including transactions, chart of account fields, budget
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periods and other setup information; and transforms the data
and analysis in minutes, not hours or days as before,” says
with a consistent single chart of accounts, as well as data
Larsen. “For example, we can now analyze open balances
calculations and aggregations. Finalized, customized budget
and precise details behind existing financial commitments,
reporting and analytics are now available online, on demand.
which is the most critical data at a divisional or VP level.”
Another important Stony Brook requirement was for the
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values may have changed from previous levels can now
include department-level data security. The Blackboard
track this themselves. The Blackboard Analytics solution
Analytics implementation effectively fulfills this security
manages, tracks and reports on over 50 budget change
need, ensuring each manager can view budget data pertain-
reason codes, enabling quick and thorough explanations for
ing only to his or her department.
all budget revisions.
“Using the Blackboard Analytics HigherEd Financial
Stony Brook executive management is very sensitive to
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carefully monitoring revenue to determine whether targets
location with complete data consistency for easy ‘All Funds’
are being met. Using the actual-versus-budget analytics pro-
institution-wide reporting and analysis,” says Larsen. “There
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are no data integrity issues and no need to slog through
module, they are able to easily compare current results to
complicated database queries.”
previous similar periods. Stony Brook can now quickly identify revenue variances and respond quickly and accurately
with additional financial information.
“We were recently asked by SUNY to report our disburse-
Amid this difficult economy, Stony
Brook University needs quick, solidly
reliable budget reporting and analytics.
The Blackboard Analytics Financial
Management module very effectively
fulfills our needs.
Kate Larsen
Director of Accounting
ments per quarter and explain why certain balances are
needed,” Larsen says. “Using the Blackboard Analytics
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detailed, informative response to SUNY and the Division of
Budget to justify those expenditures.
“Amid this difficult economy, Stony Brook University needs
quick, solidly reliable budget reporting and analytics. The
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very effectively fulfills our needs, enabling timely, proactive
financial management.”
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