Membership Record Update Report

Discussions around using and interfacing with the Church MLS program.
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greenwoodkl
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Membership Record Update Report

#1

Post by greenwoodkl »

I would like to suggest to the programmers to modify the programming for the Membership Record Update Report. Today we modified the format of our ward and stake geo codes. As a result, we later got a Membership Record Update Report that took 13 pages. I feel it would be a wiser use of resources if the program could be modified to consolidate the list for changes of the same type (i.e. new location code). I would propose listing all members/record numbers in a block followed by the shared common change description. This would eliminate waste of paper and be simpler to review and comprehend for the bishop and clerks. I would assume that if sufficient members had the same change to necessitate more than a full page of members in a list that the common change could be listed on each page with a "Continued" or similar message. Thoughts?:confused::rolleyes::D
atticusewig
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Great Idea

#2

Post by atticusewig »

This is a great idea.
In the spirit of grouping similar changes, it would be
nice if they would popup a list of types of changes
with checkmarks on whether or not we want to print them.
For example, a send/receive would show a menu that would
say:
Print ?
[ ] Geocode Changes
[ ] Address Changes
[ ] Phone Changes
[ ] Email Changes
[ ] Records Moved In
[ ] Records Moved Out

That way changes to format need not be printed. Format changes
could be as simple as changing how geocodes are named, making sure
all phone numbers follow as certain format such as (XXX) XXX-XXXX,
or ensuring that all addresses include ZIP+4 info or Street Names follow
a particular pattern. Sometimes that pattern could be as simple as
changing names from all Upercase to something more pleasing.
Anyhow, this would allow the clerk to avoid printing changes to records
that do not change the information of the record, but merely its presentation.

This list could default to all boxes checked, so all a clerk would need to do is hit the print button as normal for the majority of transmissions, but have the option to deselect categories of changes if they are known to be unnecessary to print.

- Atticus
kisaac
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#3

Post by kisaac »

kgthunder wrote:I would like to suggest to the programmers to modify the programming for the Membership Record Update Report. Today we modified the format of our ward and stake geo codes. As a result, we later got a Membership Record Update Report that took 13 pages....

This would eliminate waste of paper and be simpler to review and comprehend for the bishop and clerks.
My bishop doesn't even want to see our ward geo code changes, as these are used by us for fast offering routes. He knows the basics of what they are, but doesn't need much more info than that. Each time we adjust them, they come through on the Membership report and are "mixed" with the other stuff he needs to see, just as you say. Important info could be missed. I support your idea, and atticusewig's idea that I could select NOT to print the geocodes...

We should each send feedback via MLS message about this...

Furthermore, I really don't see the need to have my ward geo codes sent to SLC and saved on the actual record- but the stake doesn't use the stake geo code field, so my ward geo-codes auto-populate the stake blank geo code field, no matter what I've tried. Any secret tips?
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aebrown
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#4

Post by aebrown »

kisaac wrote:Furthermore, I really don't see the need to have my ward geo codes sent to SLC and saved on the actual record- but the stake doesn't use the stake geo code field, so my ward geo-codes auto-populate the stake blank geo code field, no matter what I've tried. Any secret tips?
The stake may not be using its geo codes right now, but there are ever any ward or stake divisions or boundary changes, they become quite useful. Often the information about such changes is closely held and you may not know of the change until it happens.

So I'd recommend you just let the geo codes be transmitted to CHQ and to the stake and not worry about it. At some point in the next year or decade or century they will actually be useful.
Questions that can benefit the larger community should be asked in a public forum, not a private message.
kisaac
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#5

Post by kisaac »

Alan_Brown wrote:Often the information about such changes is closely held and you may not know of the change until it happens.

So I'd recommend you just let the geo codes be transmitted to CHQ and to the stake and not worry about it. At some point in the next year or decade or century they will actually be useful.
While potential boundary changes are hush-hush, could you give me a stake perspective? Am I correct in understanding that my ward geo codes I type for my ward members would not over-write any stake geo-code data they may have entered for my ward membership in some "closely held" stake change?

I know stake geo codes don't "flowback" to wards, (then it couldn't be kept quiet!) but does a stake ever need to use my ward geo code field when they have their own stake geo code field for each member?

Can they view my ward geo code, or overwrite it on the stake level? Do they only receive/see my ward codes if their stake fields have no data?

I have read the geo code wiki
mprusse
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Location: Littleton, CO-USA

consolidating the Membership Record Update Report

#6

Post by mprusse »

Back to the original topic, I've noticed for years that a new Membership Record Update Report page gets generated for each membership change made in MLS that is processed at different times. This has happened even more frequently now that I can make changes to phone numbers & email addresses from the new online directory. Then when we sit down at MLS several days later and do a Send/Receive, page after page is printed with just one or a few MLS changes listed on each page.

MLS software needs to recognize all of the Membership Record Update Reports pending at any given time and process them one after another filling up the same sheet.
lajackson
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#7

Post by lajackson »

kisaac wrote:. . . could you give me a stake perspective?

Go here for a quick primer on geocodes.
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