The University of Colorado is beginning a project to replace its current, homegrown timekeeping system, My Leave, and all third-party timekeeping systems with a more standard, modernized and user-friendly platform. The transition will take place over the next two years.

Timekeeping is one of the most crucial components for any organizational workforce, and there are many reasons why this change is necessary at CU. The university’s My Leave platform is a custom-built platform, meaning the university is responsible for maintaining and updating with each new regulatory change in leave or wage policy. This presents a substantial cost for the university.

The My Leave platform’s limitations and incompatibilities with other platforms made it impractical for many university departments to use. Those departments instead adopted alternative systems and, as a result, there are nearly 20 different third-party timekeeping systems in use across the four campuses.

Replacing all these third-party systems alone is anticipated to save the university approximately $500,000 a year.

The new timekeeping system

The system chosen to replace My Leave is PeopleSoft Human Capital Management’s Time and Labor. This timekeeping module is a complement to the platform CU already uses to run payroll — PeopleSoft Human Capital Management (HCM).

The Time and Labor (T&L) module was chosen, in part, for its native compatibility with the existing payroll system. T&L’s implementation will eliminate potential errors created by miscommunications between the two disparate platforms. This, in turn, will reduce manual review and corrective actions and save on manpower needed to process accurate payroll.

Additionally, PeopleSoft will develop the software updates needed to keep the software up-to-date with state and federal regulations. Currently, with the custom-built My Leave platform, this responsibility and related expenses rest with the university. Responsibility for updates to the many third-party timekeeping systems rests with the department owners, adding cost and complexity there, too.

What this means for you

The new timekeeping system will be rolled out in two stages. First, T&L will be tested at CU Boulder and the System office over the next year with an anticipated implementation go-live date in Spring 2023. Second, the platform will be implemented on the remaining campuses — CU Denver, Anschutz Medical Campus and CU Colorado Springs — later in 2023, though a specific go-live date has yet to be established.

For end-users, including employees and supervisors, the new system will offer greater flexibility, a more user-friendly interface, navigation and utility. The T&L module includes an optional app, through which employees and supervisors can log time, request or approve leave, and approve timecards from their mobile devices.

For more detailed information, CU faculty and staff are encouraged to visit the Time and Labor Project, which outlines the project’s scope and provides a list of FAQs. The T&L webpage, on the CU IT Governance site, will be updated as the project progresses with more answers to FAQs, information on timelines, training opportunities and user guides as those materials become available.