Chapter 9 - Federal Agency Case Study: Role of Modernization in a Greenfield Replacement/COTS Project

Abstract

This chapter presents a case study focusing on the subsequent phases of the ongoing replacement and Core System deactivation effort. A financial system for an agency of the U.S. Federal Government “Agency,” “Core System,” with numerous other systems, people, and business processes, accounts for the transfer of billions of dollars in transactions on a year-to-year basis. Key functions include billing, asset accounting, and accounts receivable functionality for the Agency. The longevity and robustness of the Core System is a testament to the durability of old software systems and a living example of how enterprise systems reflect business complexities and realities while tying an enterprise to decades-old business practices. In the mid-to-late 1990s, the Agency embarked on a project to replace the Core System. The first phase of this project transitioned certain financial accounting functions from the Core System to a commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) software package (“Software Package”). The Software Package became the new system of record for accounting transactions as performed across the Agency. The Core System still runs in parallel to and interfaces with the Software Package. The functions shifted over to the Software Package constituted a small portion of the overall functionality originally supported by the original Core System. As a result, the Core System feeds transactions into the Software Package and, in some cases, receives transactions back from the Software Package. Subsequent phases of the replacement initiative began to tackle the more customized and challenging aspects of the Core System replacement effort.