Modernization Program

MAY 2022

What we're working on right now...

Talking about Frances

What's the difference between Frances and Frances Online?

Frances is the name of the new system that staff will use to support UI and Paid Leave Oregon contributions beginning in September of this year. By 2024, Frances will also support UI and Paid Leave benefits. If you work in areas that support UI and Paid Leave contributions, on September 6, 2022, you will begin using Frances to do your work.

Frances Online is the e-services portal OED customers will log into for things like filing payroll taxes, submit applications for Equivalent Plans, read letters, and make changes to their business account. In the future, Oregonians applying for UI and Paid Leave benefits will use Frances Online to submit their applications, learn about the status of their claim, file appeals, and communicate with the UI and Paid Leave programs.

What about Blocked Claims?

At our April MODist Open House, we showed a demo of what the blocked claimed process will look like after Rollout 1 in September.

Right now, when staff identify a blocked claim they must fill out a Blocked Claim Request form. This form is routed through our imaging system to our Contributions (previously staff in UI tax) team to work. While the case is being worked, benefits does not have a way to track the progress unless staff enter comments in mainframe or they reach out directly to Contributions for an update.

When Frances goes live on September 6, Contributions staff will no longer use the legacy systems to work these types of cases. This requires a new process to allow for investigations between Rollout 1 and 2. As part of the process, Benefits staff will be granted access and be trained to use the Frances system for the new blocked claims process before Rollout 1 go-live. After September, they will be able to submit blocked claim requests directly through Frances and track the progress through the entire investigation. The early exposure will help Benefits staff get familiar with the look and feel of Frances while enjoying the benefits of real-time tracking.

Getting ready for testing and training

Testing

Business Testing began May 2, and is the first major phase of testing. 34 staff from business areas are testing the new system using scenarios written by Modernization project business staff. Each scenario will be tested by a minimum of two different people to make certain the system is working correctly.

Training

Ten trainers have started working on presentations and curriculum design in preparation for training to begin for our internal users on June 27.

The trainers are also preparing for Super User Training, beginning June 13, 2022. Managers will identify super users to start training early and then those super users will support their teams as training continues.

The training team is creating demo module videos, which will show specific functionality, including letters and task management. The videos will be shared with staff as part of the e-learning resources in Frances. Stay tuned for more information around training as we get closer to summer.

Here are the answers to some recent questions...

Have a question? Email us at employment.modernization@employ.oregon.gov

Question	Answer
How will imaging be integrated in Frances?	Tax InfoImage is no longer where documents will be stored or where staff will manage their workflow. Those images will be available directly in Frances. The images will be attached directly to the corresponding case, customer, or account.
Will the benefits employees go through Wage Investigation training?	All staff who will be using Frances after Rollout 1 on Sept 6, 2022 will be trained before we go live. Ask your manager if you have questions about if you'll be included in this training.
Is there a place that logs attempted contacts for a Wage Investigation?	Contributions staff will be able to use the Contact Log to record contacts during a Wage Investigation.
Can attachments be modified, deleted, or overwritten?	Frances will display the most recently uploaded version of a document and will store any previous versions without overwriting or deleting them.

Learn more about the Modernization Program!

We are committed to continuous learning, including improving how we communicate with you. Please share comments and suggestions with our team.

This communication is part of our ongoing commitment to keep you informed of the progress of our agency’s Modernization Program. The goal of our Modernization Program is to replace or establish computer systems supporting receipt of UI taxes and Paid Leave Oregon contributions, payment of UI and Paid Leave benefits, and delivery of employment services to take advantage of opportunities and benefits available through new system capabilities and better meet the needs of our customers - Oregonians and Oregon businesses.

The Oregon Employment Department (OED) is an equal opportunity agency. Everyone has a right to use OED programs and services. OED provides free help. Some examples are sign language and spoken interpreters, written materials in other languages, braille, large print, audio and other formats. If you need help, please call 503-947-1444. You can also ask for help at OED_Communications@employ.oregon.gov.

El Departamento de Empleo de Oregon (OED por sus siglas en inglés) es una agencia de igualdad de oportunidades. Todas las personas tienen derecho a utilizar los programas y servicios del OED. El OED proporciona ayuda gratuita. Algunos ejemplos son: Intérpretes de lenguaje de señas y lenguaje hablado, materiales escritos en otros idiomas, braille, letra grande, audio y otros formatos. Si necesita ayuda, llame al 503-947-1444. Los usuarios de TTY pueden llamar al 711. También puede solicitar ayuda en OED_Communications@employ.oregon.gov.

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Modernization

Modernization Project Updates-May 2022