Advanced Benefits
	Benefits Consideration During an Upgrade to 11i When upgrading to 11i from 11.x or 10.7 users must decide whether or not to move from Basic Benefits to Standard or Advanced at the time of the upgrade. The upgrade itself is complex enough without having to completely redesign benefit management.  Because Basic Benefits still functions under 11i, users should seriously consider postponing this benefit redesign until they have completed the migration to 11i. This will allow time to resolve all 11i issues before undertaking this complex project. It might also allow the new benefit functionality to mature, as there are some initial quality issues. There will also be more resources to draw from when you need assistance with your implementation. This includes resources that come cost-free such as listservers and user groups. Standard and Advanced Benefits offer many choices and decisions that should be studied carefully without the pressure of completing an 11i upgrade project. Use Fast Formulas Both Standard and Advanced Benefits provide many opportunities to use Fast Formula.  Virtually every definition screen allows you to write a Rule if the basic functionality doesn’t exactly meet your requirements.   Oracle has published a handy Fast Formula guide with examples of each type of formula that can be used in the Benefits module.  This document can be downloaded at http://metalink.oracle.com. Troubleshooting Errors with Enrollment During the testing phase in your Advanced Benefits implementation you are bound to encounter never before seen error messages.  Many times, while testing enrollment on the Flex or Non-Flex enrollment form, a generalized error will appear, that doesn’t lead you directly to which plan, option, rate or coverage is causing the problem.  If you don’t have an experienced technical resource on hand, there is a simple work around. Navigate to the Program Form Change all the plans to “Inactive” status Activate one plan and process a Life Event for an employee. Continue to Activate plans and process an event until you receive the error.  This is the plan (or its associated Rates or Coverages) that is causing the problem. Rolling out Life Events in Phases Generally, legacy systems do not have the automated Life Event processing that Oracle brings to the table.  OAB Life Event processing manages the tasks normally controlled by the users. This can take some getting used to.  Depending on the number of Life Events and Database Triggers that are required by your business, it may be a good idea to implement your Life Events in phases.  This will allow your team to adjust to the workload and change in process.  In addition, you should have worked out most of the bugs and be aware of any potential issues which will allow you to roll out the additional functionality with little difficulty.