Electronic Records Based System

This system is based on how the document flows through the process. Several folders in the department shared drive will need to be set up for each fiscal year. This system will work for departments where there is one person who handles all the steps AND in departments where various people take care of different aspects of the process.

Required technology to make this system work well:

• Scanner that creates PDF's either to file or to email;
• Full version of Adobe Acrobat so PDFs can be modified if needed.

Box #1 = a physical box to collect invoices to pay, supplies/services to invoice, JVs to do, etc.

Collecting these items together allows for batch processing on a daily or weekly basis which is usually more efficient.

Physical documents are needed at this phase for two reasons: (1) they get sent to UFS in paper form, and (2) physical documentation is required for the p-card under current policy rules.

Box #2 = electronic file for processed documents that need to be reconciled.

Rather than make a paper copy of documents when they are processed and sent to the next step, scan it to PDF. Some scanners are able to create a file name simply by "reading" the document. If yours does this AND you like what it names the file, then go with it. However, if not then you will need to establish a file naming convention to use on all financial documents. The naming convention should accomplish the following:

• You should be able to know all that is needed to reconcile the document WITHOUT having to open the file; and
• The documents should sort in an order that is easy to review WITHOUT any extra effort.

Component parts to a good file name:

• vendor or payee name
• date processed or invoice date --> use YYYY-MM-DD for a true chronological sort
• amount
• BANNER document reference number (for invoices using a lowercase "i" makes it a little easier to read)
• index code(s) and activity code if applicable

Examples of what this could look like using underscores to separate the component parts for easier reading:

OfficeDepot_2013-06-08_1015.25_i123456_ANTG01

or

ANTG01_Office Depot_2013-06-08_1015.25_i123456

or

2013-06-08_Office Depot_ANTG01_1015.25_i123456

Please Note: The sort order of the documents will read from Left to Right, so what you put first in line is the primary sort factor.

Box #3 = electronic file for reconciled documents

The simplest method is to have one folder for the fiscal year that all documents go into. When using a naming convention as described above, the search feature can be used to find and retrieve documents without needing to use sub-folders. As the reconciliation process progresses, files can be dragged and dropped into the "reconciled" folder as shown in the image below.

To keep the whole reconciliation process electronic, run the Organization Detail Report to "web" and open the CSV file. Save that as an Excel workbook and use the spreadsheet as the reconciliation document. These can also be saved in the "reconciled" folder.

DONE! No further filing or document processing needed.

For most financial records at PSU, it is UFS and not the department who is the primary records keeper EXCEPT for the p-card.