The document discusses the evolution of Guardian Life Insurance's processes for reconciling project costs from Primavera to the general ledger. It describes their previous systems using a mainframe and Remind software, and their current system using EcoSys Project Management software and EcoSys Financial Manager. The presentation provides an overview of the current EcoSys process, from timesheets and expenses being logged in Primavera to the general ledger feed and reports generated by Financial Manager.

1. Chargebacks: Reconciling Primavera Enterprise
Actuals to the General Ledger
Presenters:
Matthew Friedman, Director of Integration Services - EcoSys
Management
Jeffrey Finkiel, Senior Financial Analyst - Guardian Life Insurance

2.  Primavera Service Provider and Technology
Partner
 Have supported over 130 enterprise project
management Implementations
 EcoSys Financial Manager software: bridges
project management with financial management
 Headquarters in New York; Branch offices in
London, Atlanta, San Francisco
EcoSys Management

3.  Headquarters in New York City
 $41 Billion including subsidiaries
 5000 employees, 700 in IT, incl. Consultants
 Provider of life, health, disability to individuals
and businesses
 Has rigorously reduced IT spending through
strong financial control
 Fifth largest mutual life insurance company in
US
 85 agencies around the country
Guardian Life Insurance

4. Agenda - M

5. Providing Project Accountability via Chargebacks
Primavera Timesheets
& Expenses
• Justification of Costs: Charging back to Department Profit Centers
• How to determine in your GL how to calculate the actual cost of
doing business for a given month, by project
• Reconciliation: From Primavera Timesheets & Expenses to
PeopleSoft General Ledger
PeopleSoft
General Ledger
RECONCILIATION

6. Guardian Chargeback Rates & Costs
Rates are area specific. E.g. separate rates for Group, Life, Equity, etc.
Outside Svcs. - Emp, Expenses
Based upon the direct expense that needs to be recovered through project work
Method
Matt: See Excel SS (Sheet 2)

7. Current Guardian Financial Processes
Chargeback costs segregated
Business units split project funding by percentage
Results fed monthly through general ledger
Consolidated bill provided to business units by each IT division
Budgeting process incorporates commitments and targets on spending types (i.e. New
development vs. Production support)

8. Tying Project Mgt to Financial Results - Overview - M
3. Resources Enter/Submit Timesheets
> Log Tiemsheet Hours to Projects
> Submit Timesheets or
> Revise and Resubmit Timesheets
4. Timesheet Approval by COB Mondays
> RMs Review Timesheet
> RMs Reject/Approve Timesheets or
> RMs Approve Resubmitted Timesheets
$$
4a. Actuals Applied to Projects
by COB Tuesdays
> PMs Apply Timesheet Actuals
> PMs Update Project Plans, if needed
$
$
$
3a. PMs Log Expense Actuals
> Start Activities
> Log Actual Costs
6. Project Plan Updates
> PMs Update/Clarify TeamPlay
Information per Jeff Fikiel's
Email Requests
$
8. General Ledger
> CB App. Dev. Prog. Chargebacks Processed to ABC MainFrame Database
> Reconciled Consultant Invoiced Costs Processed to CDS (Cash Disbursement System)
Pay to
$
4b. VIC Feed
> Consultant Timesheets Fed to Vendor
Invoice Control Interface
> Consultant Timesheets Reconciled to
Received Invoices
8a. CB Reports
> Monthly CB Project Actuals
> Consolidate CB Report
> YTD CB Aanalysis Report
> Spend Type Analysis
7. Financial Manager – Final Run
> Jeff Finkiel Generates Final FM
GL Feed File for FM&C
(PeopleSoft) 5. Financial Manager – Test Run
> Jeff Finkiel Begins 2 Iterations of
FM GL Feed File Test Runs.
> Jeff Finkiel contacts PMs
Required to Resolve Questionable
Entries.

9. Evolution of a process - M
Better Detail – Can catch many smaller issues.
Police the Projects – beyond the scope of what the CPMO does.
Ease of use for Non-PMs i.e. Finance People
Reports are scalable and easier to manipulate.
Improved Efficiencies from start to finish.
-No need to create individual SQL queries and export to Excel. Than combine
these spreadsheets to come up with the required data that needs to be
validated.

10. Past Method - MainFrame

11. Past Method - Remind

12. Past Method – 1st EcoSys Method - M
Resources enter
timesheets
Project Managers
enter expenses
Resource
timesheets
approv ed
Timesheets applied
to project plan by
project manager
First Business Day of Month: Financial Reporting runs
1) Script to Check Data
2) Run script to execute stored procedure that generates G/L
Feed Records and creates G/L f eed f ile
G/L Feed f ile imported into ABC G/L sy stem by FM&C
which contains chargeouts and chargebacks

13. Current EcoSys FM Method

14. Financial Manager (FM) is the financial repository for
Primavera Data

15. Import Labor Costs and Expenses from Primavera into FM

16. Costs are Summarized by Budget Category in FM

17. A Debits/Credits Report Is Generated from FM in a format
ready for Input to PeopleSoft

18. Graph of 4 Systems – Accuracy & Labor Estimates
Business Days to Complete
14 days
5 days
10 days
2 days
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16
Mainframe System
Remind by Changepoint
EcoSys PM
EcoSys FM
65% Accuracy
85% Accuracy
95% Accuracy
97-99% Accuracy

19. Questions?

20. Timesheet to General Ledger - Overview
Resources Records Project Work by COB Fridays
> Log Tiemsheet Hours to Projects
> Submit Timesheets or
> Revise and Resubmit Timesheets
Timesheet Approval by COB Mondays
> RMs Review Timesheet
> RMs Reject/Approve Timesheets or
> RMs Approve Resubmitted Timesheets
$$
Actuals Applied to Projects
by COB Tuesdays
> PMs Apply Timesheet Actuals
> PMs Update Project Plans, if needed
$
$
$
PMs Log Expense Actuals
> Start Activities
> Log Actual Costs
IT Finance Administrator Processes a Test GL Feed
> GL Feed Test Runs.
> Contact PMs Required
to Resolve Questionable Entries.
Project Plan Updates
> PMs Update/Clarify Primavera
Information as per administrators Requests
IT Finance Admintrator Process GL Feed
> Administrator Processes GL Feed File
from EcoSys FM
$
General Ledger
> EcoSys FM generated file is entered into PeoplSoft GL
CB Reports from FM
> Monthly CB Project Actuals
> CB and Non CB Project Costs
> YTD CB Aanalysis Report
> Spend Type Analysis
> Reconciled Consultant Invoiced Costs
7. Financial Manager – Final Run
> Jeff Finkiel Generates Final FM
GL Feed File for FM&C
(PeopleSoft)
5. Financial Manager – Test Run
> Jeff Finkiel Begins 2 Iterations of
FM GL Feed File Test Runs.
> Jeff Finkiel contacts PMs
Required to Resolve Questionable
Entries.

21. Profit Center Budget Allocations to IT Projects
CB System Timeline – Evolution Slide – SS – SS #1
Mainframe - ~1960’s – Dec. 1999
Changepoint Remind – Jan. 2000 – Dec. 2001
Guardian Purchases Primavera TeamPlay
EcoSys PM (SQL based process) - Jan. 2001 – Dec. 2006
EcoSys Financial Manager – Jan 2007 - Future

22. Remind System

23. Here's a screen shot of what the charges were for a project from Remind.
Remind System

24. Mainframe Method
People entered timesheets into a crude spreadsheet on the MF.
All calculations done through the MF
MF sent file directly to ABC financial system (ABC was the insurance industry standard ledger system)
You were able to enter time to any project in your area.
Only check was a once daily generated report
Adjustments were completely manual
Needed to rely on the MF programmer to make adjustments
Standard reports