Dear colleagues,��

In 2022, the University Information and Technology (UIT) team enabled the first phase of York’s new ticketing portal – Halo – which allowed members of the community to interact with existing tickets directly through the Halo website. As of Dec. 8, 2022, community members with Passport York IDs could: 

• Check the status of their submitted tickets. 
• Reply to open tickets directly through the Halo portal. 
• View the communication history of a ticket. 
• Close an open ticket. 

As part of the University Service Centre’s (USC) efforts to ensure we are evolving to meet the needs of community and staff, the USC has been collaborating with UIT and the Service Excellence Program (SEP) to expand the use of Halo in other university services.   

It is with great pleasure that we announce the launch of new Halo enhancements for the Contact Centre, Pension & Benefits (PB) and Payroll & Records (PR) teams within the USC. With the integration of PB and PR processes into the Contact centre – which will be the first point of contact for all community inquiries within the USC – community members can now get quicker resolutions for their inquiries.  

Some of the changes you will notice include: 

• Improved service delivery and faster response times for all PB and PR inquiries.   
• A smoother standardized process with valuable analytics that allow you to assess service delivery for short and long-term business needs. 

•  Enhanced metrics that empower the USC to create operational reporting dashboards, giving managers new insights into the actual time spent on each activity carried out by staff serving the community.  
• The ability to identify potential causes for delays, monitor performance against service level agreements (SLAs), and proactively adopt additional process improvement initiatives.  
• A data-driven approach that supports informed decision-making and fosters continuous improvement within the USC. 

This launch expands the availability of Halo processes to other teams within the USC. We would like to extend our appreciation to everyone who supported the implementation including Catherine Parks, Gillian Colleen Cameron and Josie Singh for their input and direction, and for the important roles their various teams played in adopting this change.  

If you have questions, concerns and feedback about PB and PR processes within Halo, please feel free to reach out to me at dmirvine@yorku.ca or to the Service Excellence Program Team at servicee@yorku.ca.  

Sincerely, 

Diane Irvine��
Director, USC People Services����

Meagan Heath��
Director, USC Operations����

Dear team,

I am pleased to share that another important upgrade has been made for the School of Continuing Studies. Starting April 12, 2024, a new streamlined process will be in place for refunding international students and approved refunds will be processed directly through Convera GlobalPay to accounts issuing payments or accounts selected by students, such as wire payments.

International wire money transfers are among the most complex and labour-intensive payment channels at York. The SCS Project team for this activity has worked side by side with York’s Service Excellence Program to minimize the time and effort involved in processing incoming and outgoing wire payments by enabling our School to receive and refund international student tuition payments through the Convera online portal.

Convera GlobalPay will provide our international students with a reliable, seamless and faster refund experience. The system offers strong security measures, real-time tracking, and dedicated support to help ensure that students are satisfied with their refund experience and agents experience smoother coordination with York.

Convera GlobalPay will also be offering ongoing post-implementation support to our staff to ensure the successful uptake of the new process. Also, international students can direct questions or concerns to Convera should they need assistance.

It’s important to note that the process for requesting a refund and eligibility criteria will not change – it is simply that this will be a more streamlined approach to completing eligible refunds.

Training materials and recorded demos on this new feature are available for those that are involved in the various aspects of the process. You are encouraged to familiarize yourself with Convera GlobalPay's features and capabilities so that you can confidently manage inquiries related to this refund method. International students will be informed and encouraged to use Convera GlobalPay, and information about the enhancements to the payment platform will be made available on the SCS Funding & Payments webpage.

This update to Convera aligns with our ongoing efforts to enhance both efficiency and the overall student experience. If you have any questions or require assistance, please contact Jessica Denenberg at jrdenen@yorku.ca.

Thank you for your dedication and commitment to providing excellent service to our international students.

Best regards,

Tom Nicolopoulos 

Executive Director, Operations & Administration  

School of Continuing Studies

Dear colleagues, 

In keeping with York’s mandate to improve service delivery, the Service Excellence Program has been working with Budgets and Asset Management (BAM), Financial Services, Human Resources (HR), the University Services Centre (USC) and partners to create streamlined Service Level Agreements (SLAs). These agreements put in place a consistent process to deliver quality services while ensuring the accountability of service providers across the University.  

What are Service Level Agreements?  

Service agreements outline the timeline for when services will be provided to ensure expectations are met when it comes to quality and timeliness. If a manager wants to onboard a new employee or establish a new cost centre, these agreements provide information about when services will be rendered to improve transparency for service delivery and support planning for those who are requesting services. They have been created to ensure that most community-facing services provided by BAM, Financial Services, HR and the USC:  

• Provide clear references around service ownership, accountability, roles and/or responsibilities; 
• Present a clear, concise, and measurable description of the service being provided to clients; and 
• Align the expected service provision with actual service support and delivery. 

How will these agreements be refined and improved over time? 

Services provided by the University are routinely reviewed through service table discussions, with the opportunity to revise SLAs as needed. Service commitments may also shift over time to align with institutional priorities and other internal and external factors. 

The launch of refined SLAs is a starting point to improve transparency and set expectations around service delivery levels. More aspirational targets and reporting on service commitments will be introduced over time, in conjunction with process and technology enhancements. 

Where can I find these agreements? 

For more information on established service objectives, commitments, definitions, dependencies, and opportunities, please see the service level agreements for andfor finance and budget services. To learn more about other SEP initiatives, please visit the SEP website. We hope this effort continues to improve your experience with York’s services as we prioritize service quality and efficiency across the University. 

Sincerely, 

Carol McAulay 
Vice-President Finance & Administration 

Laina Bay-Cheng 
Interim Vice-President Equity, People & Culture 

Please forward this information along to anyone on your team who may be impacted by this change.

Dear Colleagues,

The University Services Centre (USC) is announcing the launch of an online process that will simplify the community’s experience with making non-catalogue purchases using Sm@rtBuy. Developed in collaboration with the Service Excellence Program (SEP), this new process will reduce the amount of time it takes for purchases to be processed, while giving users better visibility into the status of their purchase order requests.  

Sm@rtBuy will now become the primary platform for purchasing all goods and services at York, eliminating cumbersome practices like the need for manual, email-based approval processes. 

What is changing? 

Starting today, all new purchase requisitions (catalogue and non-catalogue) must be completed in Sm@rtBuy, except for Facilities-related purchases which will continue to be initiated through a service request in Maximo.  

This launch is an important milestone for how purchase requisitions are requested and processed at the University. Some of the primary benefits include: 

• Providing a single source for all Purchase Orders (POs) through Sm@rtBuy 
• Faster order processing through a fully digital Purchase Order requisition form 
• Improved accuracy by eliminating duplicate manual data entry 
• Improved and consistent approval workflows within Sm@rtBuy for purchase requisitions and associated invoices, removing the need for separate email-based approvals 
• Improved visibility into the status of Purchase Orders and improved reporting capabilities

Information and Training 

In addition to the training sessions that have already been held, the University Services Centre team has scheduled more optional drop-in sessions in YU Learn to provide a demonstration of the process in Sm@rtBuy, share information about the resources available to support people using the new process, and answer questions. Details on these sessions are below:  

Additionally, there will be monthly training sessions available to community members who are unable to join the sessions above. We invite you to register for the session that is most convenient for you. Please note that a Passport York (PPY) username and password is required to register for training sessions through YU Learn.  

For more detailed guidance on this process, several resources have been created including FAQs, job aids, and video guides, which can all be accessed on the Strategic Procurement Services Website. Please bookmark this page for easy access to updates when available.  

For more information on this change or general inquiries, please contact Procurement Operations in the University Services Centre: SmartBuy@yorku.ca.  

Sincerely, 

Anthony Barbisan 

Assistant Vice-President 

University Service Centre 

This work began by focusing on the expense reimbursement process, and we have shared a link to a video that explains what an improved expense reimbursement process at York might look like in the future. This process was codesigned over a series of workshops in collaboration with community members that provided critical input and perspectives across the expense reimbursement end-to-end process. This is an initial draft meant to elicit feedback, and not a finalized design for implementation.

The York community’s feedback on the draft document is invaluable to help improve the design and ensure the best solutions possible are implemented. We invite you to review the document and provide us with your thoughts using . The form will remain open until the end of the day on Friday, Nov. 24^th, 2023.

Should you wish to discuss the document with us in more detail, we have planned three drop-in sessions during the week of Nov. 20^th for anyone from the community to attend and share their thoughts:

• Tue., Nov. 21^st from 9:00am to 10:00am ()
• Wed., Nov. 22^nd from 1:00pm to 2:00pm ()
• Thur., Nov. 23^rd from 11:00am to 12:00pm ()

After extensive consultation with the York community, we heard that purchasing goods and services was a time-consuming process and there was room for improvement. Through measures to simplify and digitize purchasing, we’re increasing usability and overall efficiency while reducing cost, effort and process time. These are considerable impacts that are aligned with our Vision for Service Excellence. 

What’s��changed so far��

• The “single quote threshold” under which departments are permitted to determine fair market value will increase from $10,000 to $25,000. 

• Departments will no longer be required to solicit three quotes for payments under $25,000, except for consulting services which require multiple quotes regardless of value. 

For more information, you can view the Procurement Services bulletin��here.����

Benefit to the York Community��

Based on benefit analysis,��the update to the single quote threshold��is expected to��reduce the time to purchase goods and services��valued between $10,000 and $25,000��by up to four weeks.��This results in less time-consuming administrative work and frees��staff for more important��tasks within their respective departments.����

What's next

To��stay up to date about the latest��improvements in the SEP’s Finance��Stream, join our mailing list.����For any questions or feedback, please reach out to our team.��

What is the Finance stream improving?

Based on a review of benchmarking data and past and current initiatives and feedback from community, the Finance Stream has focussed its work on three key areas:

1. Simplifying and digitizing purchasing
2. Simplifying and digitizing expense reimbursement
3. Modernizing budgeting, forecasting and reporting

What specific improvements have we made so far?

• Sped up reimbursement of expenses by ~4.8 business days by reducing Finance reviews
• Sped up reimbursement of expenses by a further ~3 business days by simplifying approvals and standardizing the process across York.

What improvements are coming next?

• A number of other improvements across the three focus areas are currently in implementation.
• We will also shortly commence work to speed up the processing of grant funding for researchers.

Further blog posts will follow as more improvements are implemented. For more information on the work of the SEP Finance stream, join the SEP mailing list for regular updates or contact SEP.

The design, stand-up and roll-out of a USC is a three-year stream of work within the Service Excellence Program (SEP), that launched in July 2020. The USC will play a key role in driving a client-focused culture at York, bringing together currently disparate teams into a single service delivery entity with a dedicated focus on service and continuous improvement.  

The SEP is committed to embedding a client perspective in the design of the USC. To guide the development of the USC’s operating model, in September, the SEP established a working group comprising faculty and administrative stakeholders.  

The working group provided critical contextual input to shape the design of the USC, and provided input to four key elements of the USC operating model and implementation approach: 

1. Design criteria and desired cultural attributes 

2. Service delivery model and services suitable for delivery from the USC 

3. Governance model and structure 

4. Implementation barriers and enablers  

Building on this foundational work, we are now engaging with functional leaders to identify services that may be suitable to move to the USC. We are collaborating with relevant functional leads and managers to identify suitable services, understand current processes, systems and ways of working and understand transition risks. Once this process is completed, recommendations for services for inclusion in the USC will be presented to the SEP Steering Committee for approval.  

Once approval has been secured, transition plans will be developed that will support the successful transition of an initial selection of teams to the USC in mid-2021. We’ve already received valuable perspectives from the community on how to get the design and implementation of the USC right, and we will continue to engage with the community to ensure that the USC reflects and delivers on the objectives of the SEP.  For more information on the work of the SEP University Services stream, join the SEP mailing list for regular updates or contact SEP.

Through the discovery phase of work with the Facilities Services team, which included quantitative analysis and stakeholder interviews with service providers, community members and management, we found that there is low satisfaction with the current process to request work from Facilities Services. Additionally, Facilities Services management has identified this process as a top priority for improvement.  

Focusing on the specific opportunities for improvement 

In late 2020, an Expert Team (from Property Management and Ancillary Services) decided on focus opportunities for improvement within the request for service process. The selected opportunities are: 

• Creating a progress tracker to inform clients about the status of their requested service. This opportunity will increase communication with clients and transparency into work progress. 
• Providing front line Facilities Services staff remote access to Maximo to receive assignments, record work progress, order materials, etc. through mobile devices. By digitizing processes that are now largely paper-based, Facilities staff will be able to record information in real time to support the client-facing progress tracker. 
• Revising the Facilities Services website and Maximo service catalogue and forms to make it easier for clients to request service.  
• Creating surveys to understand (1) client satisfaction at work completion, and (2) client effort required to submit a request for service. The surveys will be supported by a feedback loop process for responding to client concerns, tracking and analyzing feedback, and sharing the results with the �첥��Ƶ community. 

Designing solutions with clients 

For each of these opportunities, we’ve returned to clients and service providers to better understand the pain points and to identify potential solutions. We are now working with clients and service providers to design, test, and revise prototypes to address the identified pain points.  

Stay tuned for updates as the prototypes progress toward implementation.  For more information on the work of the SEP Facilities Services stream, join the SEP mailing list for regular updates or contact SEP.

The stream kicked off in September, led by stream Co-Sponsors Mary Catherine Masciangelo, AVP, HR and Chief Human Resources Officer and Jane Goodyer, Dean of the Lassonde School of Engineering. 

The HR stream is currently implementing our first wave of process improvements. These include: 

• Removing unnecessary layers of approval for low-risk employee transaction forms (ETFs). This means approximately 63% of ETFs will no longer require more than one approval. 
• Accepting digital signatures (eliminating wet signatures) where feasible from a legal, risk and audit perspective. 
• Reducing effort and increasing quality in CPM recruitment through a streamlined Job Summary and Evaluation Form (JSEF). This single new four-page form is being piloted with service users and will replace the current job summary and job information questionnaire forms consisting of approximately 20 pages combined. 
• Setting up hiring managers for success with a best practice job creation guide. This guide will support the new JSEF to provide hiring managers tips and tricks for designing new roles, as well as examples of “what good looks like”. 

The HR stream is also scoping up the next wave of opportunities and will begin their design post implementation of the first wave. These opportunities include: 

• Reducing paper and effort through digitizing and work flowing all employee transactions. 
• Reducing paper and effort through digitizing and work flowing time reporting for unaffiliated and research casuals. 
• Reducing the need for job creation and evaluation in CPM recruitment through the design of pre-evaluated, standardization of common CPM roles.