Can the Banner system be modified to accommodate grant accounting periods as well as typical fiscal year periods?
No modifications are being made to the Banner system; it is what is known as a “vanilla implementation.” This decision was made so that the University can readily upgrade the Banner products as Sungard SCT provides enhancements and to procure maintenance services. Modifications would negate or seriously hinder UNM’s capabilities to be able to install the upgrades, which then would also require more resources. It is important to note that the Banner research accounting module does process on the term of the grant. However, the salary information originates from the Human Resources module. This means the HR processes must be reconfigured to accommodate encumbrance of salaries over the course of the grant period. Given that faculty contracts are fiscal year based, this would require a major modification to our current processes and also to the Banner HR processes. Departments will have the ability to process general encumbrances for salary and non-salary items in the Banner system. These
