PeopleSoft users/developers

In My Humble Opinion
1

In the next few months I will most likely be taking a new position as a PeopleSoft (PS) developer at my current company. I was curious if anyone around here as any kind of experience and hence any opinions regarding this particular software package. I am being urged by a co-worker who has worked exclusively with PS for the last 10 years to make the move. This guy is quite a salesman and that’s the issue; I want a little more perspective to get me ready. It’s pretty much a done deal, after my current project is smoothly in production, I’ll be allowed to make the transition. I’m just a little skeptical given the poor state of this company’s finances. Just to screw me, it’ll probably go bankrupt. :wink:

For those who don’t know PeopleSoft is sofrtware package that handles things like payroll, inventory, human resources and the like for medium to large companies. It allows for customization and thus requires training in its native language, programming tools and database structure.

And the big news item is that compared to developing with Microsoft tools (which is sorta where I am now) the pay scale is higher, I’ve heard anywhere from 10% to 30%. And the real money comes after a few years in the consulting market, but only if you travel. Money is a concern for me and I’d like to have more of it. :smiley:

Thanks.

2

I’ve used the HR side of PS. I thought it was great. I’m an HR Admin, not a programmer, but I did help out with testing when we first went to PS. Everything went smooth as silk when we went live.

3

I used PS for 6 years in a payroll capacity (recently laid off). The query function can sometimes be slow and tricky, but other than that, I found it to be very easy to use.

4

We just started using it for our payroll and right at the moment, I’m not really impressed with it. The main concern with our users is how slow it is, it takes double the time to make payroll entries, and the report function isn’t as adequate as the last program we used.

However, alot of this could just be growing pains.

5

We’ve used it at our company now for about 3-4 years. All our HR, payroll, etc. is on it. I love it. At any time I can pull up how much vacation I have taken, how much I have left, all my paychecks for the last 2 years, any and all info the company has on me. It’s a wonderful tool but like anything else if it’s not set up right and used probably it can just be a pain in the butt. The company I work for is small-medium based company about 14,000 employees.

6

IAAPC-I am a PeopleSoft Consultant (independent now, was with a consulting company)- have been for 7 years, worked with the product for 3 years before that in the corporate world. I wouldn’t worry about the company going anywhere, they are very strong in many market segments and considered “best of breed” with many of their products. They are strongest in the US and expanding internationally, worldwide SAP is dominant.

The HR/Payroll product line is their oldest and most mature. They continue to extend the product offerings in this line and also expand the country specific functionality for foreign markets. They also have product lines for Financials, Customer Relations Management, Higher Education, and Government.

I am not a technical developer, I am strongest in the functional/PM area, but I find their technical toolset and capabilities to be very easy to use and intuitive. Much of my experience is in implementing the system and converting clients from their old systems. So, I’ve seen a lot of people go from no knowledge to very competent on the system in a short time. Their most recent platform upgrade takes their system from client/server to pure web. It is rather sweet, if you ask me.

As ultress said, if it’s not set up right and used properly, it can be a pain in the butt. (So, set it up right and use it properly, m’kay?)

Regarding the career aspects, I was lucky enough to ride the early wave of rapid consulting business growth. The business has shaken down with the dot com collapse and y2k project completions. Add to that the ever increasing number of people who gain experience on the products, the idea that PeopleSoft skills being a ticket to financial reward is not a sure thing. I know a lot of PS consultant who have moved on to other things. Also, overall the consultant market has seen a downward pressure on rates over the last few years. You still get a bit of a premium from employers but not what it was. That said, definitely go for it! With the constant system upgrades you will always have work for years to come.

If you ever get interested in the consulting world, you could work independent locally, or join a consulting firm and travel (I’ve been stationed all over the US, in Hawaii, and around Europe.)

Good luck!

7

Thanks for the input Icarus. I;m not expecting to be instantly billing $150 per hour, but I do think think and have been told that 20 -30% beyond what I could earn as a garden-variety Visual Basic developer is reasonable. I was concerned about the company I work for going under not PS, sorry for not being clear.

CanadianSue, sounds like you need some stronger servers and some serious fine-tuning. Good luck.

I would be working on the Financials package, I think. The Payroll and HR is going live here in a few months, this goes along side of several other modules already installed (Manufacturing/Inventory/Accounting, I forget what else). So, when/if the move actually comes about, I’ll certainly have work to do!

8

DTT - To get an idea on rates, go to Dice.com and search for jobs using “PeopleSoft”, you’ll see what some folks are paying. A lot of the postings don’t list salary, only “market” or “negotiable”. But a few of them do list a range. I see anywhere from $50k (lowball) to $100k (experienced) for full time, and $35 to $100 per hour for contractors, all depending on experience. Adjust the numbers for your local market too (Boston pays more than Louisville).

9

Well, I’m a user from the Higher Education side and that’s where PeopleSoft gets some of its louder gripes. BUT–most insitutions which have committed to it have committed in such a big way that there is no turning back. So yes, I’m certain the company has a hell of a future.

I like some things about it. I hate others, but that’s mainly because they didn’t take my office’s use/research needs into consideration when setting up the databases. Grrrrrrrrr.

10

Ah those pesky users, always wanting to poke their nose in when us “experts” are setting up the system. Don’t they have some filing or data entry to do? :smiley:

11

Well, their software once made the Interface Hall of Shame!

(sorry, no link, iarchitect.com seems to have died off).

12

PeopleSoft user here. I was involved in the rollout in my company in 1999, and every upgrade since then - currently on v 7.5.

As a user, the most important thing I can recommend to developers is testing. Test everything, with the most complete data set possible, then when you think you have tested it enough, test again. Also - no upgrades, customization, etc. should be rolled out without heavy heavy HEAVY user testing. Be sure to meet with your users at all points in the development process, and please pay attention to their feedback. If you don’t, you will have system errors and very unhappy users.

Personally, I like PeopleSoft - and like it was mentioned before, if it is set up correctly and you have dedicated servers to handle the load, it is a wonderful tool.

13

CrankyAsAnOldMan, as I understand it, PS is completely configurable. This underscores the need in any software project to do as austen describes:

It seems that in many places there is never enough time to do that now, but there will be time to fix it later. Usually on a weekend. :rolleyes:

Clearly defined requirements, user involvement and complete testing before going live. Some say it’s a goal, usually it’s a journey.

And AHunter3, that sounds like a poorly designed implementation, or maybe a really old version. The stuff they use around here now doesn’t look like that.

14

No honey, I promise you they still use the scrollbars that way. At least they do in some of our view windows.

15

PPS on a resume is a net +. Their market penetration is growing, and they pyramid their products - kinda like a pusher - get you hooked on the payroll, then you need the a/p to go with it…