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FY07 - October 2006 - ISSUE 8
Records and information management are essential to protecting the University from
risk and legal exposure as well as providing access to required information and important
evidence that support actions and decisions. The University has developed a set of policies
governing the care and management of its records that all University departments must follow
and applies to records in all formats and media, regardless of their physical characteristics.
Below is a table that contains some of the most common types of documents and information that
UIS/OAS deals with and how long they should be retained at the local business Unit Level.
Click here for the table.
The full version of the UIS/OAS policy can be found at
https://www.uis.harvard.edu/staff/policies/document_retention.php ( You will be required
to log in -- the login button is in the upper right section of the page next to the home button).
Each year, during the fall, UIS businesses participate in the detailed rate setting
exercise. As a full cost recovery fee-for service organization, UIS is required to
develop and communicate rates for our IT products and services to customers, prior to the start
of the next year's budget cycle. The rate setting process is critical component of the
University-wide budgeting and planning process, as the information we provide is incorporated
into the schools' and departments' cost estimates as they develop their plans for the next
fiscal year. The UIS FY08 rate setting exercise has already begun and will end in
mid-December, when customer rate communications are sent out.
Last year, the University changed its 60 Day reimbursement policy. Since this
policy impacts so many people within the department, we will continue to reprint the
highlights of this policy on a regular basis.
- While prepaid expenses (for airfare, hotel, conference fees, etc)
made with a GE Corporate Card can still be reimbursed in advance, out of pocket
prepaid expenses cannot be reimbursed until the trip/ event or business
expense has taken place.
- Any claim submitted more than 60 days after the
completion of the trip/event will be considered taxable (and will
not be grossed up) and will be included on your W-2, unless a reasonable
exception has been obtained (please see URL below for a copy of the Reasonable
Exception Request Form)
- Any claim submitted more than 90 days after the
completion of the trip/event will be considered taxable without exception and will
not be grossed up
- All claims for expenses left unreported for six months or
longer after the completion of the trip/event will not be reimbursed
The full version of the UIS/OAS policy can be found at
Https://www.uis.harvard.edu/staff/policies/reimbursement.php (you will be required to log in).
If you have any questions regarding this policy, please see your local Web Voucher Approver or
your Financial Partner.
For a variety of reasons, UIS must charge other Harvard units for goods and services
provided to them. Some examples include telephone, network, DLS, and CAMail.
Internal billing transactions must not result in an increase in total University
income and expenses. To prevent this, internal billing transactions must not
charge an expense object code (6000-8889) to one unit while crediting an income object code
(4000-5999) to another unit. All internal billing transactions must debit and credit expense object
codes (6000-8889).
With University-wide charges from central service units (like UIS), the appropriate
object codes for tub charges are predefined to ensure consistent accounting treatment across the
University. For example, UIS telephone billings to Harvard units are charged to a specified set
of telephone object codes, which includes the range from 8510 to 8516. Please refer to the UIS
Customer Object Code list below for recommended expense object codes used by UIS units.
Click here for the list.
When taking an order for products and/or services, UIS staff should ensure that the
33-digit billing code provided by the customer includes an object code that is allowed for those
services. If the customer still insists on using an object code that is not preferred/allowed, it
is important to explain the University policy to the purchaser, or contact your financial partner
for assistance in explaining the policy.
For more information, please visit:
https://www.uis.harvard.edu/staff/policies/interdepartmental_billing.php (you will be required to log in).
Harvard's Travel Policy states, “Personal/vacation travel may be combined with business
travel provided there is no additional cost to Harvard with the appropriate departmental approval.”
Prior to traveling, an employee must have manager's approval for any personal
travel that may occur before, during, or after business travel. Before departing, an
employee must define the following with his or her manager:
- The nature of the personal expense
- The time it will occur
- The estimated incremental cost to the trip
- How the cost will be accounted for upon returning
Travelers should submit reimbursements with proper documentation that clearly
delineates business vs. personal expenses.
We hope that this issue of the UIS/OAS Financial News has been helpful and
informative. If you have any questions, or would like to see a specific topic covered in a
future publication, please email us at uisfin_news@harvard.edu
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