Eileen T. PowellEileen T. PowellcoreFLS Project DirectorcoreFLS Project DirectorDepartment of Veterans AffairsDepartment of Veterans AffairsWashington, DCWashington, DChttp://vaww.va.gov/coreFLShttp://vaww.va.gov/coreFLS

Presentation for Secretary of Veterans Affairs

April 11, 2001

Agenda

• Why Do We Need coreFLS?• What Have We Learned?• How Is coreFLS Different?• Major Benefits• Some Pain, But What Is the Gain?• Does It Work?• How Big Is It?• Where Are We Now?• What Is The Secretary‘s Role?

Why Do We Need coreFLS?

• Need to manage better• Need to integrate procurement practices with FAR and JFMIP• Need to automate data reconciliation • Need to automate consolidated financial statements • Need to preserve compliance with Federal Financial Management Improvement Act (FFMIA)• Need to align with e-Government initiatives

What Have We Learned From PreviousSystems Implementations

• Need to establish reasonable scope and avoid scope creep• Need collaboration• Need ownership and sense of responsibility• Need flexibility in schedule to accommodate delays due to mission related work• Need to balance costs and functionality• Need for functional and technical groups to work together• Need good, timely training• Need change management• Need to manage expectations

How is coreFLS Different?

• Includes stakeholders in all aspects• Meets VA’s core financial and logistics needs, including engineering• Uses commercial off the shelf software with no customization• Incorporates best practices• Uses Web-based software• Provides single source data entry• Creates a centralized database• Standardizes corporate wide inventory

Major Benefits

• Allows managers to be stewards of their funds• Increases quality of data• Reduces reconciliation effort • Provides detailed and consolidated management reports• Improves business practices• Reduces reporting lag time• Increases knowledge sharing• Reduces training for and maintenance of numerous systems• Automates more processes• Reduces learning curve when staff transfer to other VA locations• Increases standardization• Reduces inventory levels and related costs

Some Pain, But What Is the Gain?

• Can provide flexibility and ease of use• Can track actual costs against budgets for every project• Can identify unit costs to foster standardization and leverage purchasing• Can change system configuration to respond to legislative changes in policy• Can provide ad hoc management reporting of integrated data for both internal and external reporting• Can implement over 30 opportunities for business process reengineering• Can provide audit controls

Does It Work?

• Met Partially Met Not Met

1,301 90 21

Not Observed126

Partially Met90

Met1301

Not Met21

How Big Is It?

• Replaces FMS, IFCAP, AEMS/MERS and 24 other legacy systems• Interfaces with 84 existing VA systems• Affects every VA finance, logistics and engineering office; approximately 1000 sites• Estimated 100,000 users• Estimated 21,000 concurrent users

Where Are We Now?

• Completed Conference Room Pilot• Meeting with customers nationwide to obtain consensus on how the new system will look (“To Be” Processes)• Putting the technical infrastructure in place for the enterprise build• Preparing 7 Beta Sites for testing• Complying with security certification requirements

What Is The Secretary’s Role?

• Endorse as a VA project• Own the data• Charge leadership to manage better with timely, accurate data• Champion the project as part of VA’s Electronic Government Strategic Plan