The Business Operations Center (BOC) team gathered with county directors (CDs) from Cooperative Extension offices statewide on May 22 in the 2nd Street building in Davis.
To kick off the BOC's activities, CDs joined their BOC Business Partner Teams to compete in a game of BOC Jeopardy! Su-Lin Shum, BOC director, presented a range of skill-testing questions (in the form of statements) related to fiscal close, purchasing, travel and entertainment, contracts and grants, and even BOC's variety of training opportunities.
An example from the Travel and Entertainment category was "Business purpose and attachments of agenda and attendee list." If you guessed, "What additional documentation is needed when submitting business meeting entertainment expenses?” you'd be correct. Useful information for any ANR employee submitting work-related entertainment expenses.
Shum prepared the CDs and area directors for fiscal close, including important dates to pass on to UCCE office and program staff. She covered the new Aggie Enterprise Catalog Approval Routing Instructions, which BOC developed to streamline procurement efficiency for directors and their offices.
After answering questions, Shum updated the group on the ANR Credit Card Machine Program, and explained policies regarding retirement events, gifts and required purchasing processes/approvals.
Tracy Roman, BOC associate director, updated the CDs and area directors on the monthly trainings she offers for office managers and other UCCE staff. In addition, BOC staff discussed many top-of-mind topics with the directors in their portfolio teams.
“There were lots of smiles and laughter shared during this high-energy, interactive and educational session,” Shum said. “The BOC team is grateful to have had this face-to-face time with the people they work with and serve.”