- 3.30.127.1 Workload Scheduling Overview
- 3.30.127.2 Security Requirement
- 3.30.127.3 Work Plans
- 3.30.127.4 Scheduling System
- 3.30.127.5 Definitions & Codes
- 3.30.127.6 STRAWS - Administrative Duties
- 3.30.127.7 STRAWS - Work Plan Module
- 3.30.127.8 STRAWS - Work Schedule Review Module
- 3.30.127.9 STRAWS - Campus Work Schedule Module
- 3.30.127.10 Business Object Reports
- 3.30.127.11 Work Planning and Control
- Exhibit 3.30.127-1 Schedule Summary Control Record (Form 8245)
-
These instructions describe the operations necessary to develop Workload Plans and Schedules using the Suite of Tools for the Review and Creation of Automated Workplans and Schedules (STRAWS). This year, STRAWS replaced PAWS (Program for Automated Work Plan System) as the tool in preparing Work Plans. In addition, STRAWS replaced SAWS (System for Automating Work Schedules) as the tool in preparing Work Schedules. STRAWS is a National Standard Application (NSA) and became effective for all organizational use on 04/09/2007. The programming for both PAWS & SAWS are non-supported, non-standard software no longer being maintained by IRS. Both applications were retired from further use effective January 1, 2008.
-
This project is described in IRM 25.14 Integrated Management Planning Information System (IMPIS).
-
Instructions for developing data for the system hinge upon the use of unique numeric or alphanumeric codes for each Organization, Function and Program (OFP). For additional information on authorized OFP Codes please check the OFP Resource Center Online at http://ofp.web.irs.gov/.
-
Management within each campus environment must communicate security standards contained in IRM 1.16.2 Physical Security Program Functional and Compliance Reviews, to employees and establish methods to enforce them. Employees must take required precautions to provide security for the documents, information, and property they handle while performing official duties.
-
Congress is responsible for approving the Financial Plan with which the Internal Revenue Service operates. Accordingly, Business Operating Divisions and remote sites develop a resource plan through their respective Headquarters organization. This work plan identifies the amount of work to be performed in each planning period for each program. It incorporates those factors that will influence the amount of work to be accomplished at the individual campuses and remote sites in a upcoming fiscal year.
-
The work plan process originates within each respective Business Operating Division's headquarters or JOC resource planning entity. STRAWS is the new planning tool currently being used by all organizations in the IRS that develop work plans. The business owner of STRAWS is Wage and Investment, Customer Account Services, Submission Processing, Program Management/Process Assurance Branch, Resource Section, SE:W:CAS:SP:PM:R.
-
STRAWS is a database for all applicable organizations, accessed through a web browser located on a single server.
-
The STRAWS application was developed using a module format. These modules assist the user in development of their work plan. These modules can be used to control the work plan process, input the data, and print reports for review and analysis.
-
The development of the work plan is a phased process. STRAWS consists of six phases where data can be input or modified. These phases are as follows:
-
Initial Phase- Includes loading the Previous Prior Year Actual, Prior Year Actual, and Work Plan Base data, or any new planning assumptions.
-
Field Proposal Phase (FP) - The field scheduler's input their work plan proposals.
-
National Office Counter Proposal Phase (NOCP) - The respective Headquarters organization reviews the field proposal and inputs their counter proposal.
-
Field Counter Proposal Phase (FCP) - This phase allows the field scheduler's a final opportunity to formally document those unresolved issues where an agreement with the Headquarters office has not been reached.
-
Agreed Phase - Headquarters and field organizations conduct a work plan review conference to work out differences between the NOCP and FCP phases. It is at this point where the outstanding issues are either agreed or unagreed.
-
Final Phase - After the conclusion of the work plan review conferences, Headquarters Resource Planning organizations input post conference adjustments based on late changes, executive decisions or budget availability. This Final Phase of the work plan is generally used as the basis for benchmarking resources for the upcoming year. This data is loaded into the Campus Work Schedule module in STRAWS for development and comparison to the work schedule.
Note:
Not all Headquarters organizations use the six-phase work plan process approach.
-
-
The Workload Scheduling System has three interrelated components:
-
A monitoring component, which analyzes WP&C data;
-
A cumulative history component, which produces a history of all weekly WP&C data for previous reporting periods, and
-
A scheduling component, which produces the Work Schedules.
Note:
The scheduling component is the Campus Work Schedule (CWS) module in STRAWS.
-
-
The monitoring component consists of computer runs which:
-
Analyze each OFP's cumulative WP&C data, and
-
Produce the summary reports.
-
-
A weekly OFP History Report (PCB-03-40) provides a summary of the previous reporting period's WP&C data. The report may be generated and used as a planning tool for scheduling purpose. The OFP History Report data is generated by the Headquarters Submission Processing Resource Section who initialize the reporting period data by requesting a PCB 00Q Initialization run from the ECC - Martinsburg/ECC - Memphis scheduler and a PCB 03H History Dump. The Headquarters Submission Processing Resource Section must request these runs within thirty days after the previous reporting period has concluded.
Note:
See IRM 3.30.127.7.1 Initializing a Scheduling Period and Generating Prior Year History, which outlines the procedures for requesting and running the Initialization and History Dump through ECC-Martinsburg or ECC-Memphis.
-
STRAWS replaced SAWS (System for Automating Work Schedules) as the tool in preparing Work Schedules. The Work Schedule is developed using both the Work Schedule Review and Campus Work Schedule Modules in STRAWS. These modules are used by various organizations within the Internal Revenue Service that report to the WP&C.
-
The work plan provides us with the total volume, rates, and staff hours by OFP Code and reporting period. The Work Schedule allows us to schedule workload and resources on a weekly or daily basis within each period. Thus we develop a unique work schedule for each of the three reporting periods of the year. These Work Schedule periods are as follows:
-
For planning period one, encompassing the first quarter of the fiscal year (October-December).
-
For planning period two, encompassing the second and third quarters of the fiscal year (January-June).
-
For planning period three, encompassing the fourth quarter of the fiscal year (July-September).
-
-
The first step in the development of a Work Schedule is to identify any prior year reports that relate to the scheduling period you are working. While the type of reports available for your use might vary, the following is a list of the most commonly used reports.
-
OFP History (PCB-03-40) - This report will provide you with the prior year's comparable period weekly/daily data concerning the activity (OFP) you want to schedule for the same period.
-
WP&C Performance & Cost Report (Managers Report) (PCC-60-40) – The Managers Report is designed to be a tool for evaluating current actual performance against work schedule as well as receipt patterns, production rates, and inventories.
-
WP&C Program Analysis Report (PCC-62-40) - Like the Managers Report it is designed to be a tool for evaluating current actual performance against work schedule as well as receipt patterns, production rates and inventories. This report allows you to review OFPs that have volume only or OFPs that have less than 0.5 hours, which do not appear on the Managers Report.
-
Final Work Plan – The Final Work Plan provides you with the baseline planning data for your Work Schedule. This includes systemic, procedural and legislative changes that were addressed in the work plan.
-
Work Schedule Guidelines – The Work Schedule Guidelines provide you with additional program guidance that was not available during the Work Plan. These guidelines are usually issued in memorandum form by each individual Business Office Headquarter Office and will include known changes to specific programs.
-
-
Consideration of changes planned for the current Work Schedule period that are different from the same period last year is a common sense approach to developing a good Work Schedule. Some of the examples of known changes are as follows:
-
Reorganizations
-
OFP Changes
-
New Programs
-
Special Projects
-
Inventory Levels
-
Tax Law Changes
-
IRM Procedural Changes
-
-
STRAWS currently consists of five modules that will assist the Work Schedule developer. These modules are as follows:
-
Administrative Module - used to load and export data, set parameters and control user access
-
Work Plan Module - used to project the staffing needed for each office for a given fiscal year. The Work Plan process normally begins in April and is completed in August of each year. The Work Plan is used as the basis for the development of the Work Schedules
-
Work Schedule Review Module - used to develop each individual planning period (Oct-Dec, Jan-Jun, Jul-Sep). Only totals for the period for each OFP are scheduled. The Work Schedule Review is used as the basis for the Campus Work Schedule.
-
Campus Work Schedule Module - used to develop a more detailed weekly and/or daily work schedule for each individual planning period. The data generated in the Campus Work Schedule Module is exported out and used in developing the PCC-60–40 Work Plan and Control (WP&C) Managers Report. This report tracks actual data as it compares to the schedule.
-
Reports Module – Is used to setup and run the reports necessary for the Work Schedule Review process.
-
-
Two future modules are currently being planned for implementation in the Fall of 2008:
-
The first will be the Pipeline Scheduling Module. This module, similar to the "step-down" spreadsheet used by many centers, will assist the users in spreading work from function to function while utilizing various automated options.
-
The last module will be the Staffing Module. This module will be used to address weekly staffing issues based on the Work Schedule.
-
-
The Work Schedule Review (WSR) module in STRAWS is used to schedule only the totals for each period at the parent OFP level. These total hours are then loaded into the Campus Work Schedule module and spread out on a weekly or daily basis at the fifth digit level if applicable.
-
The Campus Work Schedule module in STRAWS will create a Work Schedule file (PCB 0128.OUT), which is converted to a PCB 0128 Schedule Master File and used in the mainframe PCB runs to print the daily (PCB-04-40) and weekly (PCB-05-40) workload schedules.
-
The PCB 0128 Schedule Master File is used to generate the Schedule Review Report (PCB-85-40), which is a comparative report of Work Plan, Work Schedule, and Prior Year Actual data. It is sometimes referred to as the Three-Way Comparison Report.
-
Date records, (i.e., PCB 0121 Scheduling Date Master, PCB 0122 and PCB 0124 Schedule Conversion Record), are input on the 7800 Unisys Mainframe computer system. Contact your ECC-Martinsburg or ECC-Memphis Computer Scheduler for their procedures for input.
-
Listed below are definitions that users will need to know:
-
STRAWS - Suite of Tools for the Review and creation of Automated Work Plans and Schedules. This web based application is used for the development of Work Plans and Work Schedules. It replaces PAWS, SAWS and AWSRS.
-
Julian Date – Unless otherwise noted, this date is expressed as a three-digit number, which indicates the sequential day of the year.
-
OFP – an abbreviation for organization, function, and program codes, which can be numeric or alphanumeric codes used in combination to identify work processes. For additional information on valid organization, function and program combinations, please visit the OFP Resource Center Online. http://ofp.web.irs.gov/ .
-
MCC Enterprise Computing Center - Martinsburg (ECC-MTB) provides Tier 1 computer level service to five of the ten campus locations - Andover, Austin, Brookhaven, Ogden, and Philadelphia.
-
TCC Enterprise Computing Center - Memphis (ECC-MEM) provides Tier 1 computer level services to five of the ten campus locations - Atlanta, Cincinnati, Fresno, Kansas City, and Memphis.
-
Performance and Cost (P&C) – Data that measures campus production by OFP, as described in IRM 3.25.14, Integrated Management Planning Information System (IMPIS).
-
Schedule Master File (PCB 0128) - The Schedule Master File is created after the data in SAWS is validated and an exportable PCB 0128.OUT file is saved for the 7800 Unisys System. This file is used to create the Schedule Master File (PCB 0128) to produce the various Work Schedule output reports, and is incorporated into the WP&C system. It provides the baseline against which OFPs are monitored.
-
7800 Unisys Mainframe Computer System - A computer system, which uses a stand-alone computer terminal to access the schedule records used to input or updated in a demand mode using CTS (Conversation Time Sharing).
-
WP&C – Work Planning and Control.
-
-
Listed below are new STRAWS terminology that will be used to ensure consistency of terms as they relate to OFP calculations and report outputs:
Term Definition Direct Hours All OFP's except for function 880 and 990 Overhead Hours All Function 990 Other Direct Direct less the Quality Excluded. Used to calculate the hours for a Quality OFP based on the percent to the Direct Hours. Overhead Direct Direct plus Quality less the overhead excluded. Used to calculate the hours for an Overhead OFP based on the percent to the Direct Hours Overhead Excluded Total hours for OFP's identified as excluded from Overhead Calculations. Total Direct Direct plus Quality - excluding all function 990 Quality All Function 880 programs Quality Excluded Total hours for OFP's identified as excluded from Quality calculations -
Listed below are codes users will need to know:
-
Organization Code - A unique five-character numeric or alphanumeric code identifying a campus organization level. All scheduling documents require only the entry of the first two characters, Operations (SP and CS) or Department (AM).
-
Function Code - A three-digit number identifying a work action or group of actions.
-
Program Code - A five-digit number identifying a return or document being processed.
-
Process Code Or OFP Type - An indicator that tells you how the OFP is being processed. The following are a list of the Process Codes:
Process Code OFP Type H Hours Only V Hours with Standard P Production Only S Production with Standard O Overhead Calculated Q Quality Calculated -
-
Listed below are the available assigned User Types in STRAWS. Contact your Business Unit Headquarter Office to determine which user type best fit your needs.
Group User Types User Acronym Access Level Business Unit Office / Organization 1 Business Owner BO Full Access, (Read, Write and Delete) All Business Units All Offices / All Organizations 2 Headquarters Administrator HA Full Access, (Read, Write and Delete) By Business Units All Offices / All Organizations 3 Headquarters Reviewer HR Read Only By Business Units All Offices / All Organizations 4 Headquarters User HU Read, Write By Business Units All Offices / All Organizations 5 Campus Administrator CA Full Access (Read, Write and Delete) All Business Units By Office / All Organizations 6 Campus Reviewer CR Read Only By Business Units By Office / By Organization 7 Campus User CU Read, Write By Business Units By Office / By Organization -
Listed below are the available assigned Business Unit Codes in STRAWS. Contact your Business Unit Headquarter Office to determine your assigned business code.
Bus Unit Code Description Office(s) Org(s) TAS Taxpayer Advocate Service 09 13 CLD SBSE Communications Liaison and Disclosure 49 JX AWSS Agency-Wide Shared Services All 9X L&E Learning and Education 18 17 OSMA Mission Assurance 17 15 CFO Chief Financial Officer 08 16 CI Criminal Investigation All 51 CPSBSE Compliance - SBSE 17,19,28,29,49 7X,8X CPWI Compliance - Wage and Investment 07,08,09,18,89 7X,8X AMBMF W&I Accounts Management BMF Centers 17,29 AX,BX,CX AMBREM W&I Accounts Management BMF Acct. Remote 19,29 DX,EX AMIMF W&I Accounts Management IMF Centers 07,08,09,18,19,28,49,89 AX,BX,CX AMIREM W&I Accounts Management IMF Acct. Remote 08 DX,FX 89 DX AMITLREM W&I Accounts Management IMF Tax Law Remote 07,09,18 DX,EX,FX 08,89 EX 49 DX SPBMF W&I Submission Processing BMF Sites 17,29 12,2X,3X,43 SPIMF W&I Submission Processing IMF Sites 07,08,09,18,89 2X,3X,43
-
Submission Processing is the Business Owner of STRAWS. However, each Business Headquarters Office will assign, for their organization, one Campus Administrator for each center and a backup, if necessary, to perform the campus level administrative requirements of STRAWS. Each Headquarters Office will also be responsible for the following:
-
Approving all on-line 5081 STRAWS requests for their organization
-
Establishing cut-off dates and locks for their organization
-
Importing data to setup Work Plan and Work Schedule Review modules for their organization
-
Loading and copying all of the applicable phases in the Work Plan and Work Schedule Review modules for their organization
-
Creating and deleting OFP's
-
Defining percentages to direct for related Quality and Overhead programs for their organization
-
Defining thresholds for requiring narratives and tolerance levels for the hours variance between Work Schedule Review and Campus Work Schedule for their organization
-
Validating the accuracy of their organizations data prior to final transmissions
-
-
The following lists some of the assigned duties for all Campus Administrator's:
-
Assign Scheduler's
-
Lockout / Unlock Scheduler's
-
Lockout / Unlock OFP's
-
Initialize Campus Work Schedule
-
Import / Export data in the Campus Work Schedule Module
-
Customize daily spreads in the Campus Work Schedule Module
-
Set preferences in the Campus Work Schedule Module
-
-
The Work Plan is developed to project the staffing needs for each office for the next fiscal year. The Work Plan is developed in phases allowing input from both Headquarters and the Field Offices. All three periods are planned along with the total for the fiscal year. The Work Plan normally begins in April and is completed in August each year. It is used as the basis for the development of the Work Schedules.
-
The Work Plan screens are utilized to add, update, delete and/or display Work Plan data. There are five primary screens in the Work Plan module. Each screen contains the screen title in the first row followed by a drop-down field to navigate to other STRAWS screens:
-
Query Screen
-
Individual OFP Tab
-
Mass Planning Tab
-
Hours Summary Tab
-
Query Totals Tab
-
-
All valid STRAWS users will have access to the Work Plan screens and their user permissions will determine the level of access they are granted. However, only each Headquarter Office can import/export, load/copy data within the Work Plan Module.
-
Only the Business Owner and Headquarter Administrators will have access to the data setup screen.
-
Each Headquarter Office will be responsible for setting up their organizations Work Plan data. In addition, each Headquarters Office will be responsible for establishing their organization cut-off dates in accordance with the Business Owner final transmission dates
-
The data setup screen is utilized to copy and then move Work Plan data for a selected Business Unit Office, Organization, Function and Program from one or more Phase/Period and Fiscal Year to another Phase/Period and Fiscal Year.
-
To begin data setup, each Headquarters Office will select the WP Data Setup menu option under the Administration screen. The following steps will assist the user to select, copy and then move Work Plan data at the WP Data Setup screen:
-
Select/Input a Business Unit, Office, Organization, Function and Program for the record with the data to be copied.
-
Select a Period to Copy Fromincluding the Phase, Period and Fiscal Year.
-
Select a Period to Copy Toincluding the Phase and Fiscal Year.
-
Click on the "Start Transfer" button to execute the copy setup action.
-
The screen refreshes and reopens with the Data to Be Transferred information displayed.
-
Click the "Complete Transfer" button to complete the data setup OR click the "Cancel Transfer" button to cancel the action
-
The selected data will now be copied to the designated Phase, Period and Fiscal Year for the identified BU/Office/Org/Function/Program in the Work Plan screen.
-
-
The Work Schedule Review is developed for each individual planning period. The Work Plan and any other recent data is used to develop a summary schedule for each OFP. Only totals for the period are scheduled at this time. This is also a phased process.
-
The Work Schedule Review is used as the basis for the Campus Work Schedule. All valid STRAWS users will have access to the Work Schedule Review screen and their user type permissions will determine the level of access granted.
-
The Work Schedule Review screens are utilized to add, update, delete and/or display Work Schedule Review data. There are five primary screens in the Work Schedule Review module. Each screen contains the screen title in the first row followed by a drop-down field to navigate to other STRAWS screens:
-
Query Screen
-
Individual OFP Tab
-
Mass Planning Tab
-
Hours Summary Tab
-
Query Totals Tab
-
-
All valid STRAWS users will have access to the Work Schedule Review screens and their user permissions will determine the level of access they are granted. However, only each Headquarter Office can import/export, load/copy data within the Work Schedule Review Module.
-
Only the Business Owner and Headquarter Administrators will have access to the data setup screen.
-
Each Headquarter Office will be responsible for setting up their organizations Work Schedule data. In addition, each Headquarters Office will be responsible for establishing their organization cut-off dates in accordance with the Business Owner final transmission dates
-
The data setup screen is utilized to copy and then move Work Plan data for a selected Business Unit Office, Organization, Function and Program from one or more Phase/Period and Fiscal Year to another Phase/Period and Fiscal Year.
-
To begin data setup, each Headquarters Office will select the WSR Data Setup menu option under the Administration screen. The following steps will assist the user to select, copy and then move Work Schedule Review data at the WSR Data Setup screen:
-
Select/Input a Business Unit, Office, Organization, Function and Program for the record with the data to be copied.
-
Select a Period to Copy Fromincluding the Phase, Period and Fiscal Year.
-
Select a Period to Copy Toincluding the Phase and Fiscal Year.
-
Click on the "Start Transfer" button to execute the copy setup action.
-
The screen refreshes and reopens with the Data to Be Transferred information displayed.
-
Click the "Complete Transfer" button to complete the data setup OR click the "Cancel Transfer" button to cancel the action
-
The selected data will now be copied to the designated Phase, Period and Fiscal Year for the identified BU/Office/Org/Function/Program in the Work Schedule Review screen.
-
-
Following the completion of each reporting period the Weekly OFP History will be generated thirty days after the conclusion of that period. This listing can be used as a planning tool for preparation of the next year's schedule. The Weekly OFP History contains weekly actual prior year data, by OFP code, for all organizations with Operations and/or Department totals.
-
In order to produce the Weekly OFP History, the Headquarters Submission Processing Resource Section will start the initialization process within thirty days of the end of the OFP History period. The Headquarters Submission Processing Resource Section will use the following steps:
-
Complete Form 8242 Scheduling Date Master to create the source document for the PCB 0121. The PCB 0121 establishes the date parameters for the new Work Schedule period.
-
Complete Form 8244 Scheduling Conversion Record to create the source document for the PCB 0124. The PCB 0124 establishes the date parameters for the prior year period, the week ending dates and holidays.
-
Prepare the Automated Work Schedule (AWS) PCB Run Request PCB 00Q Schedule Initialization to initialize the period.
-
Prepare the Automated Work Schedule (AWS) PCB Run Request PCB 03H History Dump to generate the PCB-03-40 OFP History Report.
-
Using procedures established by ECC-MTB or ECC-MEM, the Headquarters Submission Processing Resource Section will send the Automated Work Schedule (AWS) PCB Run forms (PCB 00Q and PCB 03H) to the Computing Center Scheduler.
-
-
The following table lists the processing dates for the Weekly OFP History (PCB 03-40) file.
Work Schedule Period Processing Date January - June 2008 July 21, 2008 July - September 2008 October 20, 2008 October - December 2008 January 19, 2009
-
The Campus Work Schedule (CWS) is used to develop a more detailed weekly and/or daily work schedule for each individual planning period.
-
The data generated in the Campus Work Schedule Module is exported out and converted to a PCB 0128 Schedule Master File which is used in the mainframe PCB runs to print daily and weekly workload management reports. These reports assist each campus in comparing, tracking, projecting and negotiating their resource usage.
-
Each Business Unit Campus Administrator will be responsible for initializing the Campus Work Schedule for the new scheduling period for their organization
-
The Campus Work Schedule screen is used to query and display loaded data by period. There are three primary screens in the Campus Work Schedule module. Each screen contains the screen title in the first row followed by a drop-down field to navigate to other STRAWS screens:
-
OFP List
-
Daily Schedule
-
Comments
-
-
The first step in creating a new schedule is to load data.
-
To begin data setup from WSR, each Campus Administrator will select the CWS Data Setup menu option under the Administration screen. The following steps will assist the user in setting up Campus Work Schedule from WSR:
-
At the CWS Data Setup screen select the Period, BU, and Office you want to load. For this first step, choose Prior Year as your source. This will set up all of the OFP's from your history and display that data in CWS.
-
Click on the View OFP List button.
-
You will now see a list of all of the OFP's in your selection.
-
Next , click on the Load OFP's button.
-
After the OFP's have loaded, click the Return button. This will take you back to the CWS data setup screen.
-
Next, you will load the WSR data by repeating steps 1–5 above, however, select Work Schedule Review as the source.
-
-
You have now successfully loaded CWS for the new scheduling period. To retrieve the data you just loaded, at the CWS data setup screen do the following:
-
Click on the black drop down menu in the upper right hand corner and select Campus Work Schedule.
-
Select the Period, BU, Office, and Org you want to retrieve and then click on the Go button.
-
You will now see the OFP list screen.
-
-
Before you can import a text file to load into CWS, you must first format your data to be compatible with the STRAWS application. There are 2 main steps to creating the file for import to STRAWS:
-
Formatting the data into the proper file layout in EXCEL
-
Converting (saving) the file in the correct format (file extension .csv)
-
-
Use the chart below in properly laying out your file in Excel.
-
The cell format for all fields other than Fields 8 through 15 should be text so the leading zeros are not lost. You will need to select the data and change the format to text by selecting Format from the menu and select Cells, choose Text from the list of categories and then click OK.
-
Other than Standard, all of the other fields from 8 through 15 should be set as numbers with no decimals and no commas
-
Note: For the those OFP's with production that won't need a daily spread, put the weekly production in both the Friday and Production fields.
Field # Field Name Length Description 1 Office 2 2-character Campus Code (07, 17, etc) 2 Organization 2 Organization Code 3 Function 3 Function Code 4 Program 5 Program Code 5 PAC 2 PAC Code 6 Program Type 1 Program Type code (P, H, S, or V) 7 Week # 2 Period Week Number 8 Monday 9 Daily Production 9 Tuesday 9 Daily Production 10 Wednesday 9 Daily Production 11 Thursday 9 Daily Production 12 Friday 9 Daily Production 13 Production 9 Total Weekly Production (Volume) 14 Standard 7 Weekly Standard (Rate) (One Decimal Point (152.4)) 15 Hours 9 Total Weekly Hours 16 Reporting Period 1 Reporting period (1, 2, or 4) 17 Fiscal Year 4 4–digit fiscal year -
The field lengths for the Production, Standard and Hours fields listed above are maximums. You will only need to put the actual numbers in these cells; leading zeros will not be necessary because these fields will be separated by commas when the file is converted.
-
Please note the following before converting your file to the correct file format to avoid potential errors:
-
Prior to converting, make sure that your daily totals combined equal your weekly production exactly. Note: numbers should be whole numbers so there are no rounding errors).
-
Prior to converting, remove the header row. Each field (1 through 17) must be entered in a separate column and each record in a separate row.
-
Prior to converting, all of the data must be on one tab/sheet and all other remaining tabs/sheets deleted.
-
-
Once all of the above steps have been taken you are now ready to save your file to a comma-delimited file format:
-
Choose File, Save As
-
Change the File Type to .csv (comma delimited)
-
You will then receive an alert inquiring about the format you chosen; as long as you have followed all of the pre-cautions prior to converting, click YES.
-
Close the file.
-
Verify that the data saved correctly by retrieving the file through Note Pad. At the start menu choose Programs, Accessories, Note Pad
-
Retrieve the file
-
You should now see every field with a comma between each field. This is important because STRAWS looks at the comma to determine which field each piece of data is copied to rather than the total number of characters.
-
The Office and Program numbers should display any leading zeros. The production and standard fields for programs that are Hours Only will all have a zero. After verification, close the file.
-
-
The first step in importing a text file is to first UPLOAD the file to the STRAWS server. To begin this process, each Campus Administrator will select the Files Upload - Text File menu option under the Administration screen. The following steps will assist the user in setting up Campus Work Schedule from an imported text file:
-
At the Text File Upload screen, click on the Browse button and find the file on your hard drive or common drive and double click the file
-
The file name should then appear in the box
-
Next click the Upload File button. Your file has now been added to the server and it should be added to the list. You will need to use a unique file name each time you upload a file unless you want to replace a file with the same name on the STRAWS server.
-
For the next step, return back to Text File Import screen. This screen will list all of te files that are located on the sever.
-
Locate your file, single click the file to select it and then click the Load CWS button. This will load your schedule data.
-
-
You have now successfully loaded CWS for the new scheduling period. To retrieve the data you just loaded, at the Text File Import screen do the following:
-
Click on the black drop down menu in the upper right hand corner and select Campus Work Schedule.
-
Select the Period, BU, Office, and Org you want to retrieve and then click on the Go button.
-
You will now see the OFP list screen.
-
-
The data generated in the Campus Work Schedule Module is exported out and converted to a PCB 0128 Schedule Master File which is used in the mainframe PCB runs to print daily and weekly workload management reports. These reports assist each campus in comparing, tracking, projecting and negotiating their resource usage
-
Prior to submission of the PCB Runs to ECC-MTB or ECC-MEM, the Headquarters Submission Processing Resource Section must submit to ECC-MTB and ECC-MEM the Form 8242 Schedule Date Master (PCB 0121), and the Form 8244 Schedule Conversion Record (PCB 0122) for the period being scheduled.
-
The Headquarters Submission Processing Resource Section will be responsible for creating the PCB 0128 Schedule Master Files for each service center and exporting each PCB 0128 file to the ECC-MTB and ECC-MEM for processing. However, each Campus Administrator will be responsible for validating their schedules via Control-D for accuracy before ECC-MTB and ECC-MEM processes the Work Schedule PCB 9011 Schedule Analysis Tape (Quarterly Data) file for their center.
-
Once validation is complete, each Campus Administrator will give the go ahead to ECC-MTB and ECC-MEM to process the Work Schedule PCB 9011 for their center. In turn, ECC-MTB and ECC-MEM will provide each center with the PCB 9011 Reel number for their center. These numbers must then be submitted to the Headquarters Submission Processing Resource Section to finalize the work schedule.
-
The following lists the PCB runs generated by ECC-MTB and ECC-MEM:
-
LC 873 – inputs the PCB 0128.OUT Schedule Data and creates the Schedule Master File PCB 0128.
-
PCB 04 – inputs the Schedule Master File PCB 0128 and Summary Control Record PCB 0129. The output is the Daily Workload and Staff Hour Schedule Report PCB-04-40.
-
PCB 05 – inputs the Schedule Master PCB 0128 File and Summary Control Record PCB 0129. The output is the Weekly Workload and Staff Hour Schedule Report PCB-05-40.
-
PCB 80B – inputs the Quarterly PC Tape PCB 7002 and produces the Quarterly PC Disc PCB 8002. The PCB 7002 is the Quarter ending data for each WP&C period.
-
PCB 80C – a continuation of the PCB 80B and inputs the Work Plan tape 540-81-11 from Work Plan #6 and produces the Work Plan Disc PCB 8001 SC.
-
PCB 80 – inputs the Quarterly PC Disc PCB 8002, the Schedule Master File PCB 0128, and the SC Work Plan Disc PCB 8001. It takes the Prior Year Actual, Work Schedule, and Work Plan and creates the Schedule Review Master File PCB 8021.
-
PCB 85 – inputs the Schedule Review Master File PCB 8021 and produces the Service Center Workload Schedule Review Report PCB-85-40, often referred to as the Three-Way Comparison Report.
-
PCB 90 – inputs the Schedule Master File PCB 0128 and creates the Schedule Analysis Tape (DCC) Quarterly Data PCB 9011, Schedule Master Tape (DCC) Weekly Data PCB 9012, and the Schedule Master Tape (DCC) PCB 9013. The Schedule Master Tape PCB 9013 is later used to create the PCB 93, which is used in the initialization process for each WP&C period.
-
-
The Weekly Workload and Staff Hour Schedule is produced by PCB 05. It contains data from the PCB 0128 Schedule Master File, displaying for each OFP code each week’s Work Scheduled volume, production standard, hours, and scheduled staff weeks. Scheduled data for each week, as well as cumulative schedule for the period is displayed. Scheduled OFPs are summarized at the fourth digit of program code, Operations for Submission Processing and Compliance Services, Operations and Departments for Accounts Management, and Branch for Area Wide Support Services Summary, and Campus total levels.
-
When a Schedule Summary Control Record PCB 0129, Form 8245, is used to specify the range of OFPs to be printed on the Weekly Workload Schedule and Summary, contact the ECC - Martinsburg/ECC - Memphis scheduler to utilize run condition work T-2. For example, to print the weekly schedule for organizations 31000 (Receipt & Control Operations), 34000 (Document Perfection Operations), and 35000 (Data Conversion Operations), the first OFP in 31000 and the last OFP in 35000 would be entered on Form 8245. If only direct programs are to be printed, several ranges of OFPs will be entered on Form 8245. There is no limit to the number of Forms 8245 that can be input to Run PCB 05. When a re-organization has occurred this might impact the OFP range, and will require a new Schedule Summary Control Record PCB 0129, Form 8245 to be input. If a Schedule Summary Control Record is not input the entire file will be printed.
-
The Daily Workload and Staff Hour Schedule is produced by PCB 04. It displays the volumes scheduled for each day. This is necessary for those areas that must schedule daily volumes and staff hours.
Note:
For guidelines in scheduling cycles for Submission Processing programs refer to the requirements in IRM 3.30.123 Processing Timeliness: Cycles, Criteria, and Critical Dates.
-
Schedule Summary Control Record PCB 0129, Form 8245, is used to specify the beginning and ending OFP range to be printed on the Daily Workload and Staff Hour Schedule and Summary. For instructions on how to prepare PCB 0129 Schedule Summary Control Record, See Exhibit 3.30.127-1. To print the weekly schedule for organizations 31000 (Receipt & Control Operations), 34000 (Document Perfection Operations), and 35000 (Data Conversion Operations), see the instructions in paragraph 3.30.127.7.3.1.1 (2). See Exhibit 3.30.127-1.
-
In addition to printing the daily schedule for the OFP’s selected, the Daily Workload Schedule and Summary for Submission Processing provides 4th digit program code, function, and operations summary and campus totals. It also provides total direct, total overhead, and total hours for operations summary and campus totals. While only the OFPs specified on the Schedule Summary Control Record are displayed on the daily schedule, the totals and summaries represent the total hours on the Schedule Master File for all OFPs, not just the selected OFPs.
-
To suppress summary printouts at desired levels, enter slashes (/) in the appropriate columns of Form 8245. If no suppression is desired, columns 1-8 may be left blank. The following Chart shows the summary levels that can be suppressed by a slash (/):
"/ " in Column Summary Level Suppressed 1 Suppresses summary at 4th digit of Program Code 2 Suppresses summary at 3rd digit of Program Code 3 Suppresses summary at 2nd digit of Program Code 4 Suppresses summary at 1st digit of Program Code 5 Suppresses summary at Function Level 6 Suppresses summary at Department Level 7 Suppresses summary at Operations Level 8 Suppresses 10000/50000 Total and Campus Total
-
Computer run PCB 85 produces the Workload Schedule Review, Three-Way Comparison Report. This report displays the total hours, volume and production standard scheduled for the period by each OFP code. In addition, Work Plan and Prior Year Actual data are displayed for each OFP, with the difference between Work Schedule and Work Plan, and Work Schedule and Actual for hours, volume, and production standard printed as a "+" or "-" . All OFPs are summarized at each digit of program code, by Function and by Operations for Submission Processing and Compliance Services, and by Department and Operations for Accounts Management, and by Branch for Area Wide Support Services Summary and Campus totals. In addition, total direct hours, total overhead hours, and total hours are shown for each Operations and Campus, with variance from Work Schedule to Work Plan and Work Schedule to Prior Year Actual.
-
Campus officials may use the Workload Schedule Review as a convenient tool for reviewing the schedule, and comparing this years Work Schedule to Work Plan and prior year actual data.
-
Business Objects is used to generate all of the STRAWS reports. This software is separate from STRAWS and requires an on-line 5081 for access. This software uses advance technology in producing reports that allows the user to track, manage and improve decision-making of their plan and schedule data.
-
Detailed instructions on utilizing Business Object reports are provided upon approval via on-line 5081.
-
All of the STRAWS reports are categorized as follows in Business Objects:
-
Administrative
-
Campus Work Schedule
-
Work Plan
-
Work Schedule Review
-
-
The Headquarters Submission Processing Resource Section will be responsible for creating the PCB 0128 Schedule Master Files for each service center and exporting each PCB 0128 file to the ECC-MTB and ECC-MEM for processing. However, each primary Campus Administrator will be responsible for validating their campus schedules via Control-D for accuracy before ECC-MTB and ECC-MEM processes the Work Schedule PCB 9011 Reel - Schedule Analysis Tape (Quarterly Data) file for their center.
-
The Work Schedule PCB Reels processed by ECC-MTB / ECC-MEM, are to be transmitted timely to correspond with the chart below. The tapes will be electronically transmitted from ECC-MTB / ECC-MEM to ECC-DET. See IRM 3.30.123 Processing Timeliness: Cycle, Criteria, Critical Dates for Work Planning and Control.
Final Campus Shipping Dates Period Covered June 23, 2008 FY 08 J-S Final WS to be Transmitted to ECC-DET by SE:W:CAS:SP:PM:R September 02, 2008 FY 09 Final WP to be Transmitted to ECC-DET by SE:W:CAS:SP:PM:R September 24, 2008 FY 09 O-D Final WS to be Transmitted to ECC-DET by SE:W:CAS:SP:PM:R December 22, 2008 FY 09 J-J Final WS to be Transmitted to ECC-DET by SE:W:CAS:SP:PM:R -
The final transmission dates are critical to insure that a good PCB 90 is available to initialize the new quarter. Without a timely final Work Schedule PCB 90 available the correct Work Schedule data will not be shown on the PCC-60-40 Work Plan and Control (WP&C) Managers Report. This would necessitate a run after the due date and delay when the correct Work Schedule data will appear on the PCC-60-40.
-
When an organization needs to run a Work Schedule through the PCB process after the due dates, as published above, they will need to request authorization through the systems business owner SE:W:CAS:SP:PM:R. ECC-MTB and ECC-MEM will not process a subsequent Work Schedule run after the due dates without authorization from the business owner.