5.3.1. ENTITY Case Management System (ENTITY)

(1) The ENTITY case management system (ENTITY) is a current database of Field Collection (FC), Field Offer in Compromise (OIC), and Advisory inventories. ENTITY case management system is an Collection inventory management tool. The information in ENTITY comes from daily recordation of employees' Integrated Collection System (ICS) time and activities, and from weekly Integrated Data Retrieval System (IDRS) account information channeled through ICS. It also contains the most current lien information from the Automated Lien System (ALS). This information creates a unique database, which combines employees’ case activity, employees’ time, and taxpayer account information.

(1) ENTITY is a current database tool that is authorized and used per direction of Collection management.

(1) "Responsibilities:"

(2) The Director, Headquarters Collection Inventory Delivery & Selection Inventory Delivery & Selection is responsible for the ENTITY case management system.

(3) The program manager, Collection Inventory Delivery & Selection, Collection Case Delivery is responsible for day-to-day ENTITY operations.

(1) Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) controls, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) regulations and guidance.

(1) List of defined terms and list of significant acronyms follows:Defined Terms

(1) Related resources include the resources in the list below.

(2) The ENTITY website is on Share Point. User Guides, Job Aids and other helpful tools are located at: https://irsgov.sharepoint.com/sites/SbCHqCids_Entity/Pages/default.aspx.

• The Collection Systems Knowledge Base (KM) at https://portal.ds.irsnet.gov/sites/vl123/Pages/default.aspx. Click the ENTITY option.

• ENTITY at Knowledge Management (KM) athttps://portal.ds.irsnet.gov/sites/vl123/lists/entity/landingview.aspx.

• ICS at Knowledge Management (KM): https://portal.ds.irsnet.gov/sites/vl123/lists/integrated%20collection%20system%20ics/landingview.aspx.

(1) ENTITY receives information from other programs. ENTITY Extract Table

(1) User guides, job aids, FAQs, calendars, and contacts are found at ENTITY Share Point.https://irsgov.sharepoint.com/sites/SbCHqCids_Entity/Pages/default.aspx Information and guidance about accessing, navigating, using, and researching in ENTITY is outlined for users of all levels. Please go to the site to determine if ENTITY meets your business needs. The user guides clearly outline what is displayed in different views and reports and queries; the end of month (EOM) process is explained; and guides are available for administrative professions, Field Collection managers and Information Technology.

(2) ENTITY can only be accessed when the user is connected to the local area network (LAN) via an IRS office connection or enterprise remote access project (ERAP).

(3) ENTITY may be used to analyze Field Collection inventory and activity using a range of criteria. Data is available for case inventory, module inventory, time, activity, and employee parameters.

(4) The queue inventory consists of all cases in status 24 (TSIGN 7000). Queue research capabilities are available to users at group level and above. Open inventory consists of cases assigned in ICS.

(5) ENTITY is a current data base that includes data that is sensitive and non-sensitive. Non-sensitive data can be viewed, printed and emailed. Sensitive data can only be viewed and printed.

(1) The manager can assign cases that do not appear in the group manager's queue such as notice status and related/cross-referenced cases in the following manner. Additional Case Assignment Actions

(1) The case code is a three-digit code used to categorize inventory. The case code identifies the type of taxpayer. The subcode identifies the kind of case. Review and update codes weekly and as needed to ensure accurate end of month reports. For example, check the codes when the case is assigned; when time is charged to the case; and monthly before the end of month Friday.

(2) Case codes are set and defined by Collection headquarters. A list of case codes is below:ICS/ENTITY Case Code Table

(3) Subcodes (Field Collection) are set and defined by Collection headquarters or the area office (with headquarters consent). Instruction on selection and use of subodes and time reporting is inIRM 5.2.1.9, ICS and ENTITY Sub Codes (Field Collection Areas only). Time tracking for non-IDRS cases and some specific programs are controlled by subcodes. Also, the subcode will match the time code on the Form 4872 Collection Activity (Non-ACS Report). Time charged to a case with a time-tracking subcode is added to the appropriate time code.

(4) Review and update case codes and subcodes weekly and as needed to ensure accurate end of month reports. For example, check the codes when a case is assigned; when time is charged to the case; and monthly before the end of month Friday.

(5) Most subcodes 500 and below are national subcodes.

(6) The first 20 digits of subcode series over 500 are reserved for use by headquarters, e.g., subcodes 500 - 519 ,600 - 619, etc., are reserved. Most subcodes over 500 are local subcodes. These subcodes may be used by areas to track cases of local interest.

(1) Time is reported by Field Collection in ICS. The ICS User Guide, Chapter 26, TIN Based Time Reporting provides instruction on how to report time in ICS. The data entered in ICS is extracted to ENTITY. ENTITY receives daily, weekly, and monthly extracts from ICS. Those extracts, when compiled, produce end of month data files of Field Collection time, inventory, and activity information. CTRS extracts the files from ENTITY during end of month processing to produce Collection time and inventory reports.

(2) TIN-based time means time is charged directly to an assigned taxpayer case when applicable.

(3) Time code (direct, non-direct, informational, overhead, etc.) definitions and usage guidelines are in IRM 5.2.1, Collection Time Reporting.

(4) Time needs to be correctly input and finalized in ICS. Employees and managers need to accomplish this using the ICS End of Day (EOD) function. Employee and manager absences need to be planned or addressed promptly (if unplanned) so time reporting is not delayed or negatively impacted. Some time such as leave, training time, and detail out time can be input prior to the employee absence per IRM 5.2.1.8.1, Collection Time Reporting, Field Collection Procedures.

(5) ROs and other Field Collection ICS users will finalize their time on ICS using the EOD function at the close of business each day, but no later than the next business day, except at the end of the monthly time reporting period.

(6) On the last Friday of the monthly time reporting period, ROs must connect to the local area network (LAN) via ERAP or at an IRS office to upload their time by close of business.

(7) If an employee is unexpectedly absent when the month end time report is due or is having difficulty connecting to the LAN, the employee will make every effort to report time via telephone or fax no later than the last Friday of the monthly time reporting period. The group manager or group secretary can input, correct, and EOD time for the employee. Only the group manager, acting group manager or the group secretary can edit time that has been EOD'd.

(1) S-ROC, short for Category A SB/SE - Request for Organizational Change, are organizational realignments to promote productivity, efficiency and meet overall Collection goals. IRM guidance for Category A realignments are found in IRM 1.53.1, Managing Organizational Change, Small Business and Self-Employed Division.

(2) The SROC Program is administered by the SROC Team in the Leadership Development and Support Office located in the SB/SE Human Capital Office. Successful realignments require planning, coordination, and communication between business units. Due to the significant impact of SROCs and the rules and timeframes for implementation, anyone considering an SROC should visit the Human Capital Office (HCO) Work Source Management Resources website: https://irssource.web.irs.gov/SBSE/Lists/HumanCapitalOffice/DispItemForm.aspx?ID=35 and the HCO SROC SharePoint site: https://organization.ds.irsnet.gov/sites/SbseHCOWFPR/LR/SROC/default.aspx.

(3) The HCO SROC SharePoint site contains all necessary documents needed for a successful organizational change request. The site contains specific instructions for Field Collection SROCs and lists names of Program Coordinators. Documents on the Share Point include:

• Field Collection SROC Supplemental Desk Guide - a step-by-step guide for Field Collection realignments in folder S-ROC Documents for Field Collection on the HCO SROC Share Point site.

• required Field Collection realignment form, Realignment Request for ICS ENTITY CTRS.

(4) The five common Category A - Collection Realignments implemented in ICS and ENTITY are:

• Create a new group or new territory

• Collapse a group or territory

• Move a group to another territory

• Change a group type: for example from OIC to RO

• Rename a group or territory: for example, change the name of the group Post of Duty (POD) or territory name

(5) All realignments require 45 days advance notification. The 45-day clock starts AFTER the Director, Field Collection has approved the SROC and HCO has assigned an SROC control number. Failure to timely notify Collection Systems analysts in CASS, ENTITY, ICS, and CTRS of Collection group changes may prevent or delay the implementation of the requested changes and may result in inaccurate data.

(6) Individual employees moving between groups or territories are not Category A realignments, but they use the same Category A timeframes noted in the Field Collection Realignment Actions and Timetable below *.

(7) The following table outlines the type of realignment and associated time frames:Field Collection Realignment Actions and Timetable

(8) Communication with the Collection Systems Analysts in CASS, ENTITY, ICS and CTRS is strongly recommended as soon as the area begins planning a realignment. Changes requested less than 45 days before the implementation date may result in the realignment not being processed for the requested implementation date.

(9) All area offices will provide the name and telephone number of an area realignment coordinator from within the area director’s staff. This person will be responsible for submitting all necessary information (request forms, spreadsheets, list of affected personnel, etc.) with the realignment package.

(10) The perfected SROC package must be submitted to the Collection systems analysts in CASS, ENTITY, ICS and CTRS at least 45 days prior to the desired action date. The desired action date must fall on the first Monday of a monthly reporting period. Refer to the Field Collection SROC Supplement Desk Guide located on the HCO S-ROC SharePoint page for more information.

• Category A Streamlined SROC Change Template*

• Copy of Form 14036 and NTEU notification**

• Realignment Request for ICS ENTITY CTRS , Exhibit 5.3.1-1*

• Current and proposed organizational charts including the eight-digit ICS assignment numbers for each employee

• Employee Moves Spreadsheet

(1) Moving employees from one group to another is not considered a formal realignment. However communication between business units and specific actions must be completed for successful outcomes.

(2) Review the Field Collection SROC Supplemental Desk Guide on the HCO SROC SharePoint site https://organization.ds.irsnet.gov/sites/SbseHCOWFPR/LR/SROC/default.aspx. Select the folder S-ROC Documents for Field Collection to determine actions required for individual employee moves.

• The area realignment coordinator must prepare the Action Plan for Individual Employee Moves with appropriate dates, distribute to impacted group managers, and ensure described actions are taken for successful implementation of the change.

• Send a copy of the Action Plan for Individual Employee Moves to the ICS/ENTITY quality analyst (IQA) and Collection Automation Coordinator (CAC). The employee(s) move will not be completed on the systems until after the end of the month process in ENTITY.

• Advise the employee(s) who are moving from one group to another that time must be input in their current group through the end of the monthly reporting period prior to the individual move. For example, if the “current” reporting period is June, the employee move will be effective for the reporting month of July. Refer to the Selection of Effective Dates chart in the Supplemental SROC Desk Guide (Field Collection / Specialty Collection).

• Advise employee(s) who are moving from one group to another that they must keep a manual log of their time after the effective date of the employee move until the new employee record is active in ICS. They will input the manually logged time in ICS once they are notified the employee record is active.

(3) The employee will be moved after the completion of end of month processing in ENTITY. For example, if the “current” reporting period is June, the employee move will be effective for the reporting month of July.

(1) The group secretary responsibilities are:

• Group secretaries or designated personnel are responsible for weekly time entry, monitoring, and verifying for the group, per IRM 5.2.1.5.1, Field Collection and Field OIC Specialist Responsibilities.

• Use Weekly Time Verification to determine if ROs are finalizing their time on a daily basis.

• Use the Hours Verification Report to check time for the group EOM process.

• Provide group manager with reports generated in ENTITY in a timely fashion.

• Generate EOM Reports on Monday or the first business day following the last Friday of the monthly reporting period.

• Correct or re-extract time on ICS as needed.

(1) The RO responsibilities are:

• Review case codes and sub codes for correctness. Any incorrect codes must be changed in ICS.

• Report time and finalize it at the conclusion of each business day using the EOD function on ICS, but no later than the next business day. Upload transactions to the LAN daily if using ERAP.

• Those who do not have ERAP access will connect to the LAN at an IRS office to upload time at least once per week. The only exception to this requirement applies to the last Friday of the monthly reporting period, when ICS users will EOD their time by COB that day. They will either connect to the Lan via ERAP or an IRS office connection to up load their time.

• Users can input and EOD training and leave hours in advance.

• Review time for errors and correct them before the EOD process is complete. A manager, acting manager and group secretary are the only personnel who can correct a time report once it has been EOD'd.

(1) The group manager responsibilities for end of month processing are in IRM, 1.4.50.2.3, ENTITY end of month (EOM) Processing. The IRM section for workload management is IRM 1.4.50.8.2, Using ENTITY for Workload Management.

(2) Other common uses are listed below:

• Identify trends

• Identify cases for review

• Analyze closed and open case data

• Provide feedback regarding case actions

• Determine effective use of time

• Monitor employee time charges, e.g., the use of Non-Case Direct Time Codes: 809 (Miscellaneous Direct), 810 (Assisting Another RO), 611 (Administrative Time)

• Monitor the timely reporting of information

(3) The group manager is responsible and accountable for accurate and timely EOM Reports for their group. Running EOM reports or making necessary time corrections is timely if it occurs on Monday or the first business day following the last Friday of the monthly reporting period. The group manager is responsible for reviewing the reports, and ensuring the accuracy of the reports. Once the group manager verifies the accuracy of the EOM reports, the group manager will approve/finalize the group's EOM. Finalizing the EOM is accomplished by selecting Approve EOM under Month End on ENTITY. The Approve EOM action in ENTITY will constitute the group manager's electronic signature that the EOM reports are accurate and completed.

(4) Managers should review the use of case codes periodically to:

• Ensure that open inventory is coded correctly, e.g., a case coded 202 - Corporation Out of Businesses is a corporation and not an LLC Out of Business (case code: 602).

• Ensure that cases are correctly coded before closing (e.g., a case coded 202 should be closed using TC 530 CC 10: Defunct corporation and not TC 530 CC 13: In - Business corporation).

(5) For ENTITY assistance, group managers can find help from the following sources:

• *ENThelp in ENTITY or Outlook at *ENThelpor sbse.entity.enthelp@irs.gov

• ENTITY at Share Point https://irsgov.sharepoint.com/sites/SbCHqCids_Entity/Pages/default.aspx

• ICS/ENTITY quality analyst (IQA)

(1) The territory manager responsibilities are:

• Review group EOM reports for consistency among groups

• Review the time utilization for all groups

• Note anomalies on the reports

• Discuss anomalies during group operational reviews

• Ensure proper training on ENTITY for managers, ROs, group secretaries and other users of ENTITY

(2) The territory manager is responsible for notifying the area realignment coordinator of any requested group changes which affect ENTITY. Examples of some situations requiring notification are below (not all inclusive):

• Personnel changes

• Group movement to new territories

• Collapse of groups or territories

• Creation of new groups or territories

(1) The area office responsibilities are:

• Ensure that all the group EOM ENTITY reports are completed and transmitted to the area by close of business on the Wednesday following the last Friday of the monthly reporting period. In the event a report is found to be inaccurate, the group manager or designee, must correct the errors and transmit the reports t to the area the following day. All corrections should be identified and corrected prior to Wednesday so that area and national EOM reports can be completed timely. Report inaccuracies and / or late reports in any group EOM report to the territory manager of the group for follow-up.

• Choose a contact person for Collection group realignments, e.g., area realignment coordinator.

• Follow the guidance above at IRM 5.3.1.3.4 Field Collection (Category A ) Realignments for a planned SROC or realignment.

(2) The area realignment coordinator must contact the Collection Systems Analysts in CASS, ENTITY, ICS and CTRS as soon as realignment / SROC changes are planned by the area.

(3) The area office will ensure all request forms for group changes, refer to IRM 5.3.1.3.4, are submitted to headquarters in a timely manner. The area director or designee is the approving authority for any changes which affect ENTITY.

(4) Realignments will generally take place the first week of the new quarter.

(1) Collection Automation Coordinators (CACs) are under Functional Automation Support (FAS) in the Collection Automation Support and Security (CASS) program within Headquarters Collection, Quality and Technical Support (QTS).

(2) The CAC responsibilities are:

• Act as a liaison with ENTITY analysts and headquarters on realignment issues. Create and distribute the appropriate SROC Action Plan to facilitate approved SROC realignment.

• Schedule and facilitate an SROC call with impacted stakeholders to review the Action Plan(s) for approved employee realignments.

(1) The ICS/ENTITY Quality Analysts (IQA) are under the IQA function in the Collection Automation Support and Security (CASS) program within Headquarters Collection, Quality and Technical Support (QTS).

(2) The IQA responsibilities are:

• Serve as a liaison between area offices, headquarters, and campus staff, to coordinate resolution of software application problems for assigned systems.

• Resolve problems with cases listed on the Queue Inventory report without a Group Zip Code Assignment.

• Establish and maintain CTRS software modules and related systems.

• Validate month-end CTRS data and prepare CTRS month-end reports.

• Timely transmit EOM Reports no later than the Friday following the end of the monthly reporting period.

• Collaborate with the assigned Collection Automation Coordinator (CAC), headquarters staff, ENTITY support staff, Information Technology (IT) services system administrators, and other stakeholders on realignments and SROCs.

• Establish and maintain the ICS employee and ZIP code assignment tables.

• Ensure new group numbers do not duplicate any previously used group number or ensure the group numbers have been inactive for the prescribed period.

• Add new group numbers and set individual moves no later than Friday of the week following the monthly time reporting period.

(1) The Collection policy analyst role varies based on assignment:

• The area Collection policy analysts are on the area director’s staff and supports a specific SB/SE area.

• Other policy analysts support Collection according to their on organizational defined roles.

(2) Collection policy analysts may utilize ENTITY data, reports and queries to perform a wide range of analysis; for example to identify trends and evaluate workflow.