IT Glossary

At ITS, we work with so many technologies with complicated names that we often shorten them in conversation and documentation. Jargon can be confusing and unfamiliar, so here is a helpful list of terms you may encounter while using IT services at Weill Cornell. 

ACG Administrative Computing Group
Agent A member of a phone queue that gets sent calls based on the priority
Analog Line Traditional phone line usually required for legacy stand-alone fax machines
ARCH Architecture for Research Computing in Health
BI Business Intelligence, a reporting function within the Weill Business Gateway (WBG).
BobJ Business Objects, a suite of reporting tools owned by SAP, but used for a variety of reporting functions
BRB Belfer Research Building
CAB Chang Advisory Board. This group meets every Monday to discuss any proposed system maintenance and ensure there are no conflicts that would negatively impact systems and users.
Call Recording Feature that allows us to record calls of agents on the phone queue that can be reviewed at a later time
CDR Call Detail Reporting - Reporting system that reports on calls you make and receive (excludes the phone queue)
CMS A content management system, or CMS, is a web application designed to make it easy for non-technical users to add, edit and manage a website.
Coeus The proposal preparation and submission module that provides internal proposal touring and approval, proposal and award tracking, research compliance, and conflict of interest approvals.
COI Conflicts of Interest: WCMC’s web-based application for annual surveys of external interests and study specific reports
CREST Clinical Research Enrollment & Study Tracking: WCMC’s application for managing subject enrollment and study accruals and invoicing for clinical research
CUMC Columbia University Medical Center. This can be confusing since, until the late 1990s, we were called Cornell University Medical College. Occasionally, you still see CUMC referring to WCMC. Both Cornell and Columbia are affiliates of NYP.
CWID Centerwide ID, used to log into various WCMC services (e.g. abc2001)
DR Disaster Recovery
Drupal An open source content management system, used to streamline management of a website. WCMC has standardized on Drupal as its sole content management platform for sites built after July 1, 2013. Pronounced "droo-paul."
EDC Electronic Data Capture
eduroam eduroam is a wireless network that allows any user from an eduroam participating school or university to get network access at any other institution connected to eduroam.
EHR Electronic Health Record
eIRB Electronic Institutional Review Board: WCMC’s electronic submission system that WCMC and NYP researchers use to submit documentation related to research proposals involving human subjects
EMR Electronic Medical Record
EnCCoMPass A suite of integrated applications developed used by WCMC and MSKCC for the animal research community, facilitates and streamlines researchers’ interactions and transactions with both the Research Animal Resource Center (RARC) and the IACUC.
Epic Epic Systems is the company that makes our electronic medical record (EpicCare) and practice management system.
ERP Enterprise Resources and Planning, the main function of WBG/SAP
ESO Events Services Office
ETG Education Technology Group
eTime The system used to submit time sheets and personal leave.
ETS Effort Tracking System: A research compliance tool that maintains all committed effort expended by WCMC personnel on federally funded, non-federally funded, and institutional award projects, as well as tracks effort expended on other actives including administration, teaching, and clinical care.
External Caller ID Name (when possible) and number that shows up when dialing a phone OUTSIDE the institution (i.e. cell phone)
FI The Financial Accounting module of WBG/SAP. It includes the general ledger, accounts receivable, and asset management functions.
GRC Governance, Risk, and Compliance, part of Weill Business Gateway
HANA High-Performance Analytic Appliance, an in-memory, column-oriented, relational database management system developed and marketing by SAP
HDI Help Desk Institute, a professional association and certification body for the technical service and support industry
HIPAA Health Information Portability and Accountability Act
HITRUST Health Information Trust Alliance
i2b2 Informatics for Integrating Biology and the Bedside
IA Information Architecture; the structural design of websites, including the organizing and labeling of content for optimal performance
IACUC Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee
IDEAL Imaging Data Evaluation and Analytics Lab
iLab A web-based software program that stores data for Core Facility management, Lab management, and Inventory management lab services.
Internal Caller ID Name and number that shows up when dialing another phone within the institution
ITIL Information Technology Infrastructure Library, an IT management structure which provides a cohesive set of best practices
ITS Information Technologies & Services
JCTO Joint Clinical Trials Office
Jenzabar The student information system used to track courses for the medical and graduate school
JIRA An issue tracking system used for multiple business functions, including some financial workflows and Web maintenance requests.
MDM Master Data Management, a system and process used to keep key data synchronized between systems. This uses a module of SAP.
MFC/MFP Multi Function Copiers/Multi Function Printers – office sized copier/printers that usually come with the ability to perform server fax
MoDM Mobile Device Management, a system used to manage smartphones
NYC-CDRN New York City Clinical Data Research Network
NYP NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, one of the largest health systems in the US, created from the merger of New York Hospital (Cornell's affiliate) and Presbyterian Hospital (Columbia's affiliate)
NYP/WCMC NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center, the 68th Street campus of NYP affiliated with Weill Cornell
PCI Network Payment Card Industry Network
PCORI Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute
PDF File type that our fax service uses to delivery received faxes via email
PGP Pretty Good Privacy, used to encrypt laptops at WCMC
PHI Protected Health Information, a set of data about patients covered by HIPAA just as diagnosis
Phone Queue/ACD Queue/Skillsets A virtual waiting area that leverages a pool of agents, sending calls through when an agent is available on a first come, first serve basis. Callers that are waiting for agents will hear music and will have the opportunity to hear marketing/informational material about your practice/group. This system also provide a great amount of key metrics, allowing you to gain a deeper understanding of how your calls are treated.
PII Personally Identifiable Information, protected information about all people (not just patients) such as driver's license and social security numbers
PMO Project Management Office
POBO Physicians Organization Business Office
POFO Physicians Organization Finance Office
POIS Physicians Organization Information Systems
POMCO Physicians Organization Managed Care Office
POPS The Physician Organization Profile System, used for managing provider and practice profiles on weillcornell.org.
QA "Quality Assurance" is a standardized set of testing performed on a web property to ensure errors are corrected prior to launch of that property. This is commonly known to be "bug fixing."
RAC Research Administrative Computing: The ITS team responsible for maintaining, supporting and enhancing the functionality of various applications that automate, amplify and support the central and de-automated administration of research projects, contracts and grants.
RCT Research Compliance Training: a research compliance tool with web-base modules that facilitates the education and training of faculty, students, and staff involves with research.
RDR Research Data Repository
REDCap Research Electronic Data Capture: the system in which researchers complete Part B of the CSEC Submission form for the CSEC review process prior to protocol submission in eIRB
RFP "Request for Proposal" is the solicitation for outside vendors to provide technology services via a formal document outlining all technical and business requirements. This document is broadcast to a set number of identified participants for return of proposal responses.
SAML Security Assertion Markup Language; a technology used to allow applications to leverage institutional authentication and single-sign-on.
SAP Systemanalyse und Programmentwicklung ("System Analysis and Program Development" in German); SAP is the software vendor that drives WBG, HANA, and BobJ
SCM Supply Chain Management, the purchasing module of WBG/SAP
Server Fax Ability for fax machines to send faxes over the network to our fax server. Usually a feature of MFC’s.
Site Map A diagramed blueprint of the total number of website pages that will exist in a website and how those pages fit together. The diagram includes details as to specific content (ex(s): photos, text, videos, etc.) that each page will hold. The document is created by the Web Communications designer and approved by the customer.
SN ServiceNow, used by our Service Desk to track tickets, and our PMO to track projects
SRM Supplier Relationship Management, used in purchasing
Static Comp (also known as a "mockup") A non-interactive visual design of specific pages of a website intended to display colors, layout and aesthetic of a web property. Normally supplied as .jpg graphics.
T&C Training & Communications, a division of the User Support Group
UI User Interface: the physical layout of a website or an application. This may include, but is not limited to fonts, colors, design of actions (such as buttons), use of images and overall functional architecture of the website/application. Not to be confused with "user experience."
USG User Support Group
UX User Experience: the means by which a human user interacts with a website or an application. Measures of user experience are ease of use, intuitive layout of the user interface and content relevance to that specific user.
Virtual Office/Hot Desking The ability to log onto another WCMC phone and have your personal lines appear wherever you are sitting
VIVO A faculty profile system for the Weill Cornell research community.
VMX Voicemail box
Voice Menu/Phone Tree/Auto Attendant An automated response system that allows callers to be directed to the appropriate parties by selecting options, reducing the need to transfer calls within your department
VoIP Voice over IP – the underlying technology that allows our telephones to operation on a network. This is as opposed to a traditional telephone line from Verizon.
VPN Virtual Private Network
WBG Weill Business Gateway, our internal name for the web portal used to access SAP and related systems
WCM Weill Cornell Medicine
WCMC Weill Cornell Medical College
WCMC-Q Weill Cornell Medical College - Qatar
Wireframe A skeletal schematic (normally black and white) used in website production to a) show specific functionality and/or b) display general organization of website page structure. This diagram, displaying boxes, lines and simple annotations is intended to show broad user interface layouts as opposed to aesthetic specifics (i.e. fonts, colors, etc.)
WRG Weill Research Gateway, an online portal used for research administrative applications.