We will establish a center to provide the skills and tools necessary to help Cornell staff members perform their daily financial activities and implementing new internal control strategies.
Now more than ever, Cornell employees need the tools and knowledge necessary to respond to internal control risks, resolve financial issues, and implement new accounting standards, and we aim to provide the training necessary to accomplish those tasks.
DFA’s Financial Operations team will implement this initiative to disseminate the required financial expertise necessary to meet the university’s fiscal objectives. The Center of Excellence for Training will comprise three main components:
- DFA Training Courses: Identify needs across campus, design courses, and conduct regularly scheduled training sessions throughout the year.
- Response to Internal Control Deficiencies: Working with the University Audit Office, monitor internal control findings and, if necessary, develop and conduct training required to remedy findings.
- Ad Hoc Training and Consultation: Working with campus units, identify specific financial matters that require consultation or training from DFA. Respond to these needs as they are identified.
Actionable Items
The following items are tasks performed during this initiative:
- Collaborate with Organizational Development and DFA subject-matter experts to identify necessary institutional training needs and develop or update training courses.
- Obtain feedback on each course and make adjustments accordingly.
- Coordinate with the University Audit Office to identify pervasive control weaknesses and identify DFA subject-matter experts to assess the root cause of control deficiencies.
- Coordinate with units to design corrective action plans and provide guidance on implementing the appropriate policy and procedures.
- Create a central point of contact to allow units to request assistance with resolving financial related matters.
Expected Outcomes
- Working relationship between DFA and the administrative and academic units will strengthen.
- Gains in efficiency and the quality of financial reporting will be realized, as staff members will have additional resources needed to analyze and resolve financial matters.
- University units will be well-informed with on accounting standards and policies.
