PeopleSoft Term

PeopleSoft Definition

Account

A PeopleSoft ChartField that identifies the specific type of asset, liability, fund balance (equity), revenue, or expense in each transaction line.

Actuals Ledger

The Actuals Ledger is where detailed transactions are stored. (Other types of ledgers include Budget, Summary, Consolidated, etc.).

Asset

The entries on a balance sheet showing all properties, both tangible and intangible, and claims against others that may be applied to cover liabilities of the business.  Assets can include cash, stock and inventories.

Attribute

Attribute is an optional feature that can be used to provide additional information about a ChartField.  An attribute is not tied to an individual transaction and cannot be used in trees or combo edits.

Balance Sheet Account

Balance sheet account indicates assets, liabilities, and fund balances within a fund.  Assets minus liabilities must equal fund balance within each fund.  When transactions are made between funds, the system automatically creates an offsetting balance sheet account entry (intraunit processing).

Budget Reference

A ChartField used to identify unique budgets where there are overlapping budget periods.

Business Unit

An identification code that represents a high-level organization of business information.  A business unit maintains its own set of books, ledger and financial transactions

Carryforward

Carryfoward is the sum of inception-to-date revenues, less expenses, less net transfers.  Carryforward will be key to defining balancing within PeopleSoft. All ChartFields are capable of “balancing” within PeopleSoft; however, there is a need to separate the need to balance from the ability to roll forward an end of year balance.

ChartField

A PeopleSoft term describing a field that stores a value, chosen from a table of valid values. PeopleSoft uses ChartField functionality to capture, access, and report its financial information; a sequence of ChartField values identifies a financial transaction.  Each ChartField operates independently functioning similar to a “slot machine” and may have a many-to-one relationship with other ChartFields.

ChartField String 

Indicates a combination of ChartFields and the level at which accounting charges/credits are applied. The terms  “ChartField string” and “account string” are used interchangeably.

Class

A ChartField that identifies the purpose of a program or project.  Class codes are defined based on reporting requirements from external sources.  For example, a value for Class would be established for the purpose of instruction.  This is similar to the function code in CUFS.

Combination Editing (Combo-Edit)

The process of editing journal lines for valid ChartField combinations based on defined rules.

Commitment Control

A feature of PeopleSoft that controls various financial activities based on available budget or other budget rule sets, often referred to as the “KK” ledger.

Conditional

Containing, implying, or depending on, a set of circumstances; not absolute; made or granted on certain terms.

A ChartField that represents an academic or administrative unit that has programmatic, operational, and fiscal (including budgetary) responsibility.

DeptID Affiliate

ChartField that is used to correlate transactions between departments when using intraunit processing.

Drill Down

To return to the original source of transactions through various hyperlinks on PeopleSoft screens.

Expense

Account type used to describe an item of business outlay chargeable against revenue for a specified period.

Fund

Funds indicate the manner in which revenue is obtained. Used to classify resources according to uses and/or regulations, restrictions, and limitations.  Use of fund codes assists with compliance reporting for GASB, NACUBO, and other external entities.  Examples include Restricted, Unrestricted, Loan, and Plant Funds.

Fund Affiliate

ChartField that is used to correlate transactions between funds when using intraunit processing.

Fund Balance

Fund balance is equal to assets minus liabilities within a fund.

General Ledger

The General Ledger of the U of MN is the official record of the University’s budgeting and financial transactions.  The General Ledger includes budget transactions, revenue and expense transactions, encumbrances, assets, liabilities and fund balances.

General Ledger Group

Ledger group defines the ledger to which a journal will post (e.g., Actuals).  A ledger stores the posted net activity for a set of ChartField values by accounting period and fiscal year.  (Other types of ledger groups include Budget, Reporting, Consolidated, etc.).

Infer

An activity performed in drawing conclusions that are not explicit or being stated outright.  This functionality may be used in PeopleSoft to programmatically populate certain ChartFields, given other value combinations.

Inquiry

Delivered on-line reporting tool to view financial information from the journal or ledger.

IntraUnit Transactions

System generated entries to keep detail transactions balanced (debits equal credits) when balancing by ChartField.

Journal Entry

Journal Entry (JE) represents a document type and journal source.  The document type JE would be used to indicate journal entries involving transfer of funds, moving expenses and correcting entries.

Journal Header

The first page entered to create journal entries in PeopleSoft General Ledger, which includes the overall journal information such as the ledger, the journal source, and descriptions.

Journal Lines

Detailed information within a transaction including the ChartField string and dollar amount.

Journal Status

This field represents the current status of the journal entry.  Status codes include:
N=Edit Required, journal entry has not been edited therefore cannot be posted.
E=Errors, journal entry has been edited and contains errors.
V=Valid, journal entry has passed editing and is ready to be posted.
P=Posted, journal entry has been posted to the ledger.
T=Journal Incomplete, journal entry has not been edited.

Liability

A financial obligation recorded in the general ledger.

nVision

A PeopleSoft reporting tool.  It brings together the power of the PeopleSoft financials database and the flexibility of Microsoft Excel.

Process Monitor

Link to the process list page in PeopleSoft to view the status of submitted process requests.

Product ID

Captures additional information useful for profitability and financial analysis by product sold or manufactured.

Project

Project is user-defined in PeopleSoft.  Other Universities use the Project field for activities that are temporary in duration and for which revenues and expenses must be accumulated.

Program

Program is user-defined in PeopleSoft and is used differently by many Universities.  Some use for activities that need to be captured system-wide, campus-wide, or interdepartmental purposes.  Others use to group related transactions within cost centers, revenue centers, responsibility centers and academic programs.

Query

A PeopleSoft reporting tool used to extract financial information.  Queries produce raw data results that can be downloaded into Excel and manipulated using sorting, filtering and pivot tables. 

Report Manager

Link to the report list page in PeopleSoft to view report contents, check the status of a report, and see content detail messages that describe the report and distribution list.

Run Control ID

An unique ID to associate each user with his/her own run control table entries.

SetID

An identification code that represents a set of control tables or TableSets.  A TableSet is a group of tables (records) necessary to define the structure and processing options for the University.

SpeedType

A user defined code representing a combination of ChartField values.  SpeedTypes simplify the entry of ChartFields commonly used together.

SQL

SQL is the acronym for Structured Query Language.  A standard database programming language used to retrieve and manage data in relational database management.

SQR

SQR is the acronym for Structured Query Reporting.  It is an SQL based programming language, which PeopleSoft uses to run some of its most sophisticated offline processes and reports.

Stat Code

Used to define statistical data, such as number of units, when statistical accounts are not used.

Tree

Trees are structures that define various roll-ups in PeopleSoft by using levels and nodes.  Each tree applies to a specific ChartField.  Reports access tree nodes to specify selection criteria and use tree levels for roll-ups and subtotals.

User Defined

ChartField that is used, on an optional basis, for financial reporting needs not addressed by other ChartFields.

Valid Values

Values set up within a table and accepted by the PeopleSoft financial system.