About BEACON: Program Background

The State's current core business systems have limited functionality. They rely on dated technology, do not communicate well with each other, are difficult to change for new operational requirements, and are hard to operate and maintain. Moreover, they do not provide information needed for management decision-making in today's business climate, and they are at risk of failure due to old age, withdrawal of vendor support, and being run by a workforce that is rapidly reaching retirement age.

These concerns prompted the State to begin developing a new business infrastructure. In the 2001 session of the General Assembly, legislation was enacted to authorize a State Business Infrastructure Study. Session Law 2001-491 directed the Office of the State Controller (OSC) to determine the feasibility of developing and implementing a new business infrastructure for the State. The study, under the direction of the OSC with assistance from the Office of State Budget and Management (OSBM), the Office of Information Technology Services (ITS), and the Office of State Personnel (OSP) commenced in February 2003. Deloitte Consulting was engaged utilizing competitive bid processes to complete the study through a two-phased approach.

• Phase I - Inventory and Assessment - Completed April 4, 2003
  Goal: To develop a high-level inventory and assessment of the business systems, subsystems and integration/ interface components that provide financial, human resource, and payroll information and support to programs in state government. This included the identification of technical and business requirements, problems and risks, and an approximation of present costs incurred for operations and maintenance.
  
  Executive Summary (PDF, 222 kb)
  Complete Report (PDF, 1,233 kb)
  
  
• Phase II - Blueprint for Selecting Improvement Approach - Completed October 31, 2003
  Goal: To determine and document viable options for implementing a business infrastructure that would include integrated operations for budgeting, accounting, payroll, human resources, revenue collection, cash management, investments, and other business functions of state government. Descriptions and risks for each alternative approach are provided, along with benefits, constraints and other relevant considerations.
  Executive Summary (PDF, 926 kb)
  Complete Report (PDF, 4310 kb)

The study concluded that continued use of the current business systems may adversely impact the fiscal integrity of state government, as well as the efficiency and effectiveness of its operations. Therefore, the State decided upon a replacement strategy that carefully weighs the risks of potential system failures with the current State budget condition and State funding priorities. The strategy involves an extended implementation approach with the first focus on replacing the Human Resources and Payroll Systems.