PeopleSoft - Interface Methodology - Part 2 - Automated Statistics

INTERFACE METHODOLOGY Part 1 - Introduction

INTERFACE METHODOLOGY Part 2 - Automatic Statistics

 PeopleSoft Financials/Payroll Interface Statistics - 2005 thru 2023

Using the Standardized Interface API/Methodology I developed it's easy to produce statistics for all inbound & outbound interfaces. For the sake of posterity I'm listing the various interface aggregates that have been processed through the years. Some interfaces drop off while others are created. In each case it's always a very simple & smooth endeavor.

NSFSPRD - Financials

The screenshots below show the interfaces that were running through the years. Some have been around since the 2005 Go-Live - AP Spreadsheet Upload, Carrier Profile & Payments, Subscriber Refunds, Etc. The slides paint a historical picture of all the inbound & outbound interfaces processed.

 

LiveLink/Content Server to Concur Invoice

With the Financial Interface statistics loaded in Excel I used the filters to isolate several processes - The LiveLink/Content Server interface (XXAPI888) and Concur Invoice (XXAPI901 & XXAPX901). LiveLink was the document management system from 2007 to 2017 - it was replaced by Concur Invoice in 2017. You can see the automatic statistics captured convey the story as well.

 

* NOTE - The XXAPI888 (LiveLink) & XXAPX901 (Concur Recycle) are not file based. The Interface Methodology is also designed to communicate directly with the Content Server Workflow & PeopleSoft page for Concur Invoice Recycling. In either case, an approval will send the invoice to a processing queue where the appropriate program is executed by Process Scheduler. Any number of invoices may be contained within these batch instances - which is similar to a file. The XXAPI901 interface from Concur Invoice is an actual file - the invoices that fail the associated edits are rejected & sent to the Recycle Page in PeopleSoft.

NSHRPRD - Payroll, HR & Benefits

Here's the same historical interface analysis for the HR/Payroll database. In 2017 HR/Payroll was switched to ADP - you can see the drop off in that year with a small number of interfaces that still are automatically processed. 

 

There's much more to the File Watcher Interface Methodology - this is just one of many beneficial highlights.

More to come...

PeopleSoft: All-Purpose Real-Time Interface File Handler - 24/7 Inbound/Outbound Unlimited Capability

File Watcher - Introduction

I've been fortunate to have worked on many interesting custom projects over the years. Designing & developing robust solutions for a variety of unique clients has been my forte. One of my favorites has been the implementation of a highly efficient Interface Methodology - known as File Watcher - for PeopleSoft Financials, HR & Payroll. Back in 2004 the organization was very large & distributed among multiple independent systems. The goal was to develop an interface system to automatically manage a sometimes chaotic amount of files. 19 years later it still runs as designed. Now in 2023 the company is much smaller & has shifted to a leaner, more economically viable NetSuite ERP - mostly vanilla with little customization. 

Looking back over my career I feel a sense of melancholy as the systems I created & nurtured are inevitably put to rest. I'm adding this blog post to keep the memory of File Watcher alive - and perhaps bring it back to life at another organization.

From my LinkedIn Projects List:

Recruited by NSS/ACSI to Design/Develop a comprehensive 24/7 automated interface file system. Custom components include Interface Dashboard (Audit/Archive), File Watcher (Detection/Queueing) & File Depot (Inbound/Outbound Server) to effectively manage all inbound/outbound interfaces. The heart of the ACSI Interface System – each business unit has inbound/outbound/archive folders, File Watcher configuration defines processing windows, file prefixes & run controls – when file detected it submits appropriate request via custom Process Request adapter. Interface Dashboard is the custom API that communicates with File Depot & Process Scheduler & regulates the processing, audit & archiving of all files. Custom Email Notifications sent to all users on Distribution List containing Report Manager HyperLink & detailed statistics. Examples include JPMC ACH payments/returns, Epiq Check Files, Hyperion Budget loads, HR/Benefit Vendor files, Debit Card processing, Concur Invoice data, PCard payments, ADP information, Payroll to GL/AP Feeds, AP Expenses to Payroll, Mactive Advertising Refunds, Circulation Carrier Payments/Subscriber Refunds, Custom AP XLS Invoice Uploads, etc... API Framework for Custom AP Voucher Edit/Build Process. Extremely Powerful One-Of-A-Kind Creation.

Files, Files and More Files

The little Blue Guy below has some real problems. He has to facilitate the automatic handling of hundreds of inbound & outbound files. ACH transactions, checks, reconciliation, invoices, benefits, vendor creation, IRS transmissions, security maintenance and much, much more... When a file is sent it must be detected, linked to a process & executed via Process Scheduler. Furthermore, each file instance - incoming & outgoing - must be archived & registered for audit & due diligence.

He definitely needs some help. The blue guy is getting buried with a daily barrage of critical files all hours of the day - and night. He's falling behind very rapidly. Just look at that mess...

 Hang in there little guy - help is here!

Simple, Elegant & Effective

No worries. The developer side API I created is very simple & easy to use. At a minimum, just include the 'xx_idb.sqc' library and call two routines - IDB_Init() and IDB_Term.

 

All his team needs to do is A) incorporate this standard API in all interface processes - and B) update the custom configuration table with the process name, file pattern & run control information. Run times can be defined for specific days & time windows - or 24/7 - configure as needed (More on that later).

No mess - no confusion - no chaos.

Mission Accomplished

Now that the Interface Methodology has been adopted & implemented all files are processed automatically & archived in an orderly fashion. File handling has never been easier.

The results have exceeded his expectations. The processes for the appropriate files are queued & successfully completed.

Mr. Blue Guy loves his new Interface Audit reports. He can produce detail level information for any file - dates, statistics, ownerids - or create variations of summary level data. Here he's reviewing a summary of all interface processes for the Financials Database. From Go-Live (2005) to the Current Year (2023). All the data required was maintained by the simple API calls.

Audit Summary Sample - Financial Interface Processes through the years.

This consolidated approach is used to regulate processing of all files relative to each database instance (Financials or HR/Payroll) which includes Production, Test, Development, Support, etc...

More to come...