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B. Diane Blackwood
Accomplishments
My Accomplishments Include:
·
Bringing the financial statements
package from manual downloads in Excel to a fully automated process, intranet
web-enabled and automatically emailed to the Finance Committee.
This includes seven reports in all, including the Balance Sheet, Cash
Flow, Income Statement, Activities Analysis and Expense Analysis reports by firm
and individual office. This data comes from our financial system running in
Rippe & Kingston LMS software on an iSeries 720 (midrange IBM computer).
·
I have
realized the Chief Financial Officer’s vision of a Management Dashboard
opening with four quadrants representing: Financial Position, Time &
Billing, Key Operating Metrics and Billable Hours and leading to detailed
information. I even created the graphics for the top banner.
This runs using GEAC Decision application server to deliver Java applet
views of Microsoft Analysis Services (OLAP) cubes through Microsoft Internet
Information Services. To ease web enablement of the Key Operating Metrics target
data, I used a Microsoft Access interface to update a SQL Server 2000 table that
is then pulled back directly to the web. I administered security through a
combination of access to the web server and cube roles on the Analysis Server
for both the Management Dashboard and the Budgeting web sites.
For the
first time in a number of years, due to my budgeting automation, the budget has
been prepared on time for the new fiscal year. Budget collection in Excel
spreadsheets that must be manually consolidated was a problem for Kirkland &
Ellis LLP. I implemented a GEAC MPC
web-based collection and consolidation system based on Microsoft Analysis
Services. Then, during the off-season, I upgraded the software from 4.5 to 6.0
to include currency conversion and individual Excel interfaces allowing data
submission back to Analysis Services. I
was responsible for designing the data collection structure based on our current
general ledger coding and testing the upgrade before rolling out the budgeting
interface to budget holders.
·
Two other manual processes that I automated during this time
period were the Daily Activity and Monthly Activity reports. I created daily and
monthly timed jobs to update the data in the iSeries data warehouse that I
implemented and manage for delivery of financial analytics.
The updated fact tables are then processed into Analysis Services cubes
and appear on the web. Now, instead
of running a query, updating an Excel spreadsheet, printing and making
photocopies for delivery to the Finance Committee, the administrative assistant
responsible emails a link to the web page where the daily activity data is
displayed.
·
Automated the daily transmission of Corporate Express supply
orders from PurchasingNet-SQL (Microsoft SQL Server-based purchase order
creation software).
·
Automated the data transfers from the
Pitney Bowes Ascent software (running in Fox Pro) to the iSeries financial
system for rebilling to clients.
·
Integrated a SharePoint team services
web site into the Management Dashboard web site for paperless delivery of the
Personnel Level Reports.
