CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A big, big switchover of all of West Virginia’s state computer systems has gone on for six years, over five phases and, by now, an estimated $150 million.
But new state Auditor J.B. McCuskey says he’s going to make sure wvOasis gets done within the next year.
“This program has been long needed, and completion was anticipated to take another year. But my objective is to see it through the final phase, including Phase E, before the end of the year,” McCuskey said on Wednesday, his second full day in the office after being sworn in Monday.
The project, wvOasis, started its planning phases in 2010 and its initial steps in 2011.
Project planners at first thought wvOasis might be mostly ready by fall of 2014 and at one point thought might be completed by June 2017.
Early this month, Gale Given, the state’s chief technology officer and a liaison to the wvOasis project, estimated the final phase might be complete by middle of 2018.
Its initial cost estimate was $98 million, but the Auditor’s office says complications and delays have meant blowing past that amount and about $50 million more.
That’s why McCuskey says it’s time to hit the gas.
“To date, the citizens of West Virginia have spent approximately $150 million on the wvOasis program,” he said. “The time is now to finish this crucial piece of technology. The people of West Virginia deserve to see the return on the investment we’ve all made and the results that were promised. I’m committed to finalizing this project as quickly and efficiently as possible.”
The project has been meant to update and inter-connect the state’s various, aging computer systems into something called an “Enterprise Resource Planning System.” It’s supposed to help the state’s computer systems talk to each other, to help state employees better track data and to manage those with whom the state does business, such as vendors and retirees.
But because state government is big, so is wvOasis.
It’s so big and crosses so many different areas of government that a three-headed monster — the governor, the Auditor and the state Treasurer — share responsibility on a board that oversees the project. A 16-member steering committee was set up to report to them.
The state contracted with a company called CGI to be the vendor deploying the work but also contracted with another consultant called ISG to help the state understand the process.
There have been various lags along the way, but one of the biggest was during “Phase D,” which dealt with the state payroll. That part got complicated — and hit state employees in the wallet — when a legislative audit showed the state would be paying an additional $50 million over 10 years because of a calculation error as state employees moved to a new biweekly pay schedule.
The calculations have been fixed but Phase D, which was so big that it was broken down into three waves, is still under way. It’s expected to be complete by May or June.
That leaves Phase E, the final phase that mostly covers the Transportation department and its many projects and contracts. Parts of Phase E are already under way but the bulk has been on pause while the kinks in the earlier phases were smoothed out.
Lisa Hopkins of the Auditor’s office has been along for the wvOasis ride at every step. She was general counsel for the Auditor’s office when the project started. Then, last May, she was appointed to be Auditor when Glen Gainer III left office. McCuskey is moving her back to general counsel. She’s also deputy commissioner of security for the state, which refers to keeping a watchful eye over stocks and bonds.
Hopkins says completing the final wave of Phase D — the payroll part — can be accomplished in relatively short order. Then it’s on to Phase E, which largely deals with the Department of Transportation.
“I certainly think it’s realistic to get all of the state’s payroll put in place,” Hopkins said in a telephone interview. “That’s going to be a significant achievement for the state. But getting all of those agencies in the third wave transferred over will be a big move for the state.”
One new factor in the coming months will be fresh faces. McCuskey and Gov. Jim Justice are new to their roles. Justice has a new chief of staff, Nick Casey, and a new secretary of transportation, Tom Smith.
“Any time you have changes in administration, you have a fresh look at things,” Hopkins said. “I think everyone involved will see it’s the best scenario for the state to complete the project. I think that’s everyone’s end goal. That’s the vision that needs to be completed.”
The big incentive is to start taking advantage of the efficiencies that have been promised and to bring the cost of development to an end.
Keeping track of the cost of the project has been a challenge because it crosses so many departments and so many moving parts. But Hopkins says the estimated figure of $150 million put out by the Auditor’s office seems to be in the ballpark.
“Any time you have delays or problems that occur in implementation, that can change the numbers because you are requiring more time and effort from our vendors,” Hopkins said. “I think that number seems to be realistic.”
She is optimistic about how the system is working — and will work in the coming rollouts.
“Any time you go from an old process to a new process, it’s a challenge,” she said. “I think it will achieve those efficiencies and provide a lot more transparency and accountability.”
She added, “A lot of times people tend to focus on the things that were frustrating, like the bumps in the road, rather than how far we have come. I think we have accomplished a lot with the Oasis system. You’ve got to look at the positives, sometimes, to keep your sense of perspective.”
McCuskey also praised wvOasis for its potential.
“The system has successfully paid more than 80,000 vendors under the supervision of my office and now enables me to account for the state’s financial transactions and payroll in a more modern and transparent manner,” he said.
The final phase, E, will help the state Department of Transportation connect all of its computer systems, some of which were built off a program first installed in-house in 1986.
The coming upgrade will help the department keep track of its assets and to more systematically set priorities for paving or upgrades. It will also put the Department of Transportation in line with federal requirements.
Phase E was placed, officially, on “pause” while the prior phase was straightened out. But some work had been done before that. And planning has continued even while the actual programming was placed on hold.
“To Transportation, they’re really important,” Hopkins said. “And to some parts of Administration, they’re really important to them. The first goal is to finish the payroll system and then turn to getting what we need up and running in E.”
Hopkins has been interviewed for and read a lot of stories like this one over the years.
She’ll be excited to read one final angle.
“I’m looking forward to the one that says, ‘Yeah, it’s done.'”