Administrative Systems ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report (March 2022)
Summary
The Administrative Systems ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report for March 2022, an American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund report of the Virginia Department of Health (VDH), dated 3/31/2022. It states that VDH is transforming and updating its core administrative systems and processes. For January to March 2022, it reports that VDH initiated the procurement process for a service request solution and that a Robotic Process Automation (RPA) project is underway. The project budget section lists a total appropriation of $50,000,000 and an FY22 appropriation of $10,000,000, by project groups including Business Systems, Web F&A Modernization and Product Suite.
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“Administrative Systems ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report (March 2022).”
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ADMINISTRATIVE SYSTEMS
American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund (SLFRF)
3/31/2022
Administrative Systems
ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report
March 2022
Page 2 of 10
Table of Contents
Report Mandate 3
Context for ARPA Initiatives 3
Executive Summary 3
Objective(s) 4
Overview of Quarterly Progress (January – March 2022) 4
Service Request Solution Activities 4
Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Activities 5
Product Suite 5
Initiative Roadmap Refinement 6
Comments on Alignment to Quarterly Report Submitted in Dec 2021 6
Anticipated Next Quarter Activities (April – June 2022) 6
Service Request Solution Implementation Activities 6
Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Activities 7
Product Suite 7
Initiative Roadmap Refinement 7
Risks and Risk Management 7
Change Management Considerations 9
Project Budget 10
Total Appropriation 10
Cumulative Actuals, Obligations, and Appropriations, through March 14,2022 10
Administrative Systems
ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report
March 2022
Page 3 of 10
Report Mandate
Chapter 1 Enactment Clause 1, paragraph B.2.P.7., of the amended 2021 Acts of Assembly states, “The
department shall communicate a detailed plan and implementation schedule to the Governor, the Chairs
of the House Appropriations and Senate Finance and Appropriations Committees, and the Director of the
Department of Planning and Budget by September 30, 2021. Additionally, the department shall report
quarterly to the Governor, the Chairs of the House Appropriations and Senate Finance and Appropriations
Committees, and the Director of the Department of Planning and Budget on progress made, with the first
progress report to be delivered not later than December 31, 2021.”
Context for ARPA Initiatives
The Virginia Department of Health (VDH) is excited about the opportunity presented by the appropriation
of ARPA State Fiscal Funds in the August 2021 Special Session II of the General Assembly to improve public
health in Virginia. VDH views this investment as a once in a generation opportunity and will work diligently
to maximize use of funds to create and sustain these initiatives. Simultaneously, VDH remains fully
engaged in responding to COVID-19 and protecting the health of Virginians. Currently, VDH is creating
project plans to minimize the impacts of the public health emergency on local health departments in the
first year and will maintain flexibility as a priority for the duration of the public health emergency.
Modifications to VDH’s plans will be reflected in future quarterly reports.
Executive Summary
VDH is transforming and updating the Department’s core administrative systems and processes to
increase efficiencies and modernize the Department. The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a significant
pressure on the VDH’s outdated administrative processes and systems. These outdated processes and
systems rely on manual workarounds and have created challenges to VDH’s ability to effectively react and
respond to the pandemic.
VDH will improve operational efficiencies and effectiveness over the next three years through updates in
business systems, IT Service Management (ITSM), IT Asset management (ITAM), Product Suite, Financial
and Accounting systems, and the introduction of Robotic Process Automation, as appropriate. These
modernized systems will enable new capabilities and increase productivity and decrease manual
processes, thus mitigating errors and increasing VDH’s readiness to respond to future public health
emergencies.
Over the last three months, VDH has initiated the procurement process for a service request solution and
has assessed the current processes and opportunities for ITSM, ITAM, and security incident requests as
the initial focus areas for service request platform. As part of VDH’s efforts to automate where possible,
a Robotic Process Automation (RPA) project is underway to identify manual processes that are good
candidates for automation. Additionally, the team has developed an RPA solution called ROT (Redundant,
Obsolete, Trivial) Bot to remove electronic files to free up and reduce costs for the shared drives.
Administrative Systems
ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report
March 2022
Page 4 of 10
These activities are planned to continue into the next quarter, with an expected focus of designing future
state processes and preparing for the implementation of the service request solution; further developing
the vision and roadmap for VDH’s service management; and further refining the overall initiative
roadmap, project selection, and sequencing. The Administrative Systems Initiative is on track to
successfully meet the objectives within the three-year ARPA SLFRF funding window.
Objective(s)
VDH aims to assess, upgrade, and/or develop Service Management, Grants Management, Budget
Management, and other agency systems to:
● Increase the functionally of existing back-office administrative systems to improve customer
service while increasing operational efficiencies
● Connect existing systems to streamline workflow processes and reduce duplicative efforts
● Develop new automated systems to replace manual processes through new technologies and
Robotic Process Automation
● Implement a Product Suite package to address VDH needs for daily communications, document
management, and content sharing
Overview of Quarterly Progress (January – March 2022)
Since the submission of the December 31, 2021 quarterly status report, VDH has accomplished the below
activities associated with the Administrative Systems Initiative. The activities completed have been
important components in preparing for the Phase 1 implementation of a service request system,
developing the department’s overall service management vision, continuing efforts to increase
automation through ongoing RPA projects, selecting a product suite, refining the initiative’s overall
roadmap, and continuing efforts to increase automation through ongoing RPA projects.
Service Request Solution Activities
• Service Request Solution
o Initiated process to procure agency wide service request solution (with the Phase 1 of
implementation covering ITSM, ITAM, and security incident requests)
o Coordinated system security assessment via VITA’s ECOS approval process to ensure that
the proposed ServiceNow system complies will all Virginia security requirements
o Began gathering business and technical requirements necessary for the successful Phase
1 implementation (ITSM, ITAM, and security incident requests) of a service request
system in the following quarter
Administrative Systems
ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report
March 2022
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o Began developing a longer-term service management vision and roadmap, which will
inform future service management solution phases, service offerings, and integration
with other systems across the department
• IT Service Management (ITSM) and Security Incident Request Analysis
o Developed a catalogue of service requests that are being processed via email, the existing
Submit a Technology Request Now (SATRN) system, and the SBS Tracking Logging and
Reporting (STLAR) system
o Analyzed the agency’s IT service requests to document the current processes for request
fulfillment
o Identified ITSM and security incident stakeholders to engage them in decision making
and future state design, as well as ongoing project communications
o Began identifying broader service categories that will be included in the subsequent
phases of the service request platform implementation
• IT Asset Management (ITAM) Analysis
o Identified the agency’s asset management stakeholders to engage them throughout the
project
o Gathered information and created the current asset management processes, including:
▪ Process diagrams mapping the step-by-step process for managing assets from
procurement through retirement
▪ Maturity assessment that compares the current state of ITAM processes with
industry standards to identify short-term and long-term improvement
opportunities
▪ List of findings and pain points related to ITAM strategy, and corresponding
considerations for each
Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Activities
• Continued automation project for a Redundant, Obsolete, Trivial (ROT) Bot to analyze and clean
VDH’s legacy digital file storage
• Continued conducting a feasibility study to identify opportunities for future automation projects
Product Suite
• Began assessing potential product suites with VITA, basing the assessment upon existing
department uses, product suite pricing, and expected future needs
Administrative Systems
ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report
March 2022
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Initiative Roadmap Refinement
• Reviewed department priorities and existing roadmap to begin developing a refined project
selection and prioritization to maximize impact while minimizing resource strain on the
department when implementing projects
• Identified a Grants Management System, Budget Management System, and Travel
Reimbursement System as the next set of priority projects for the next 12 months
Comments on Alignment to Quarterly Report Submitted in Dec 2021
In alignment with the anticipated activities for this past quarter as outlined in the December 2021
Quarterly Report, VDH has conducted and finalized current state assessments and discovery documenting
existing IT Service Requests (inside and outside of existing systems such as SATRN and STLAR) and Asset
Management Requests, initiated the procurement process for a service request system and initiated a
VITA cybersecurity assessment of the system, selected a product suite, and began developing a service
management vision to integrate VDH’s service management vision across existing systems.
Anticipated Next Quarter Activities (April – June 2022)
The following outlines the activities and tasks planned from April through June 2022:
Service Request Solution Implementation Activities
• Procure Service Request Solution
• Establish a working group with stakeholders involved in the implementation of Service Request
Solution implementation, including VITA
• Complete high-level service request design to improve service request management across VDH
• IT Asset Management (ITAM)
o Develop ITAM implementation roadmap, detailing the asset types and categories to be
tracked in different system rollout phases
o Complete ITAM business and technical requirements
o Begin data cleanup effort to prepare for ServiceNow implementation
o Design and implement future state processes and procedures
o Develop Concept of Operations for future state
• IT Service Management (ITSM)
Administrative Systems
ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report
March 2022
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o Develop ITSM implementation roadmap, detailing the ITSM request types and categories
to be included in different system rollout phases
o Complete ITSM business and technical requirements
o Begin data cleanup effort to prepare for ServiceNow implementation
o Design and implement future state processes and procedures
o Develop Concept of Operations for future state
• Security Incident Requests
o Develop Security Incident Requests implementation roadmap
o Complete Security Incident Requests business and technical requirements
o Begin data cleanup effort to prepare for ServiceNow implementation
o Design and implement future state processes and procedures
o Develop Concept of Operations for future state
• Further develop longer-term service management vision and roadmap, identifying additional
services and capabilities to roll out in subsequent phases
Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Activities
• Operationalize ROT Bot to begin cleaning file drives
• Complete pipeline feasibility RPA study to identify potential opportunities for automation using
RPA at VDH
Product Suite
• Finalize a product suite selection and begin developing the change management and
implementation strategy for the new messaging suite offered by VITA
Initiative Roadmap Refinement
• Conduct working sessions with VDH leadership to refine the selection and prioritization of
subsequent projects under the Administrative Systems Initiative to ensure alignment on scope,
consideration for project dependencies, and availability of resources when beginning future
projects
Risks and Risk Management
● Risk 1: Alignment on scope and priorities of projects is important in refining and further detailing
the multi-year Administrative Systems Initiative roadmap
Administrative Systems
ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report
March 2022
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o Mitigation Strategy: Preparing to conduct visioning session to align on the overall vision,
priorities, and timeline for the administrative systems initiative while considering
resource constraints and other dependencies
● Risk 2: Broadband upgrades to provide sufficient bandwidth are required for the successful
operation of the upgraded administration systems may be impacted
o Mitigation Strategy: Develop accurate project schedules with sufficient detail to track
initiative progress. Identify critical dates from other initiatives to ensure broadband
upgrades are complete in time. Upgrades will also need to be incorporated without
interference of day-to-day operations within the specified schedule. Communication with
VITA to align on the implementation schedule of Verizon technology tools will also be
necessary to ensure proper security and operation of VDH administrative systems.
● Risk 3: Resource constraints on the department’s technical staff may impact ability to have
sufficient personnel to architect and develop the administrative systems updates discussed
o Mitigation Strategy: Proactively coordinate resource needs and expected delivery
timelines for proposed solutions requiring VDH technical staff resources. Any short-term
fixes must be evaluated against long-term system replacements. Additionally, align the
initiative roadmap with resource availability
● Risk 4: Hardware infrastructure (cloud storage, processing power) may not meet the needs of the
proposed software upgrades and additions
o Mitigation Strategy: A variety of hardware infrastructure options will be considered and
software upgrade options will be analyzed and with the technical requirements - API
connections, browser compatibility, storage, etc. The VDH technical team will be a critical
stakeholder in the evaluation process for any potential software upgrades.
● Risk 5: Staff may be slow to adopt the new set of systems and processes for many of their day-to-
day tasks
o Mitigation Strategy: A change management communication plan will be created for each
Administrative System. The plan will incorporate anticipated training, education, and
communication materials to ease transition into new business processes and digital
platforms.
● Risk 6: VITA’s approval for infrastructure (such as ECOS approval) is needed to support the
implementation timeline
o Mitigation Strategy: VITA approval will be a critical component of software
development/integration timelines. VDH and Commonwealth cybersecurity
requirements and VITA approval must be included in solicitation language for potential
procurements and the approval process will be initiated as soon as procurements have
closed, and responses opened. VDH has involved VITA and initiated the ECOS approval
process for the service request platform.
Administrative Systems
ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report
March 2022
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● Risk 7: Project risks, actions, issues, and decisions (RAID) will be documented, assessed, and
assigned on a bi-weekly basis
o Mitigation Strategy: RAID will be escalated to stakeholders and product owners for
awareness through status reporting and regularly scheduled meetings. RAID meetings will
be planned without overlapping with or impacting current systems operations.
● Risk 8: Governance meetings will be conducted to review: impact, urgency, priority, likelihood,
and mitigation plans
o Mitigation Strategy: Governance meetings will be planned without overlapping with or
impacting current systems operations. Any concerns will be escalated as necessary.
● Risk 9: Hardware infrastructure (cloud storage, processing power) may not meet the needs of the
proposed software upgrades and additions
o Mitigation Strategy: A variety of hardware infrastructure options will be provided for
alternatives. All software upgrade options must be analyzed and presented with technical
requirements - API connections, browser compatibility, storage, etc. The VDH technical
team will be a critical stakeholder in the evaluation process for any potential software
upgrades.
Change Management Considerations
VDH understands that successful transformation initiatives rely on more than just the right technology,
processes, and resources. They also depend on effective change management, engagement, and training
strategies to equip impacted stakeholders with the information and guidance that they need to support
the changes being implemented.
In developing and executing a robust Organizational Change Management (OCM) Strategy and Plan, VDH
will prepare stakeholders to adopt new administrative systems by helping them understand the changes
taking place, the impact of these changes, and the resources and information available to prepare. This in
turn will accelerate the adoption of new processes while enhancing the capabilities of offices across VDH,
minimizing disruptions to daily operations, and reducing the risk of project delays. As indicated in the
overview of quarterly progress above, the agency has begun to develop the necessary resources –
including an initial analysis of initiative stakeholders – that will serve as the foundation for the OCM plan.
VDH is also currently developing a “Case for Change” that will equip VDH Leaders with a clear and
compelling narrative to effectively communicate with and engage stakeholders on the importance of the
change. Additional activities may include a change readiness assessment, Change Champion network,
communication/engagement strategy, and training plan to guide VDH in its efforts to prepare
stakeholders for adoption of the new systems.
Administrative Systems
ARPA SLFRF Quarterly Report
March 2022
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Project Budget
The following appropriation is broken down by the project categories defined in the work plans
submitted on 9/30/2021. Please refer to this documentation for further clarification.
Total Appropriation: $50,000,000
FY22 Appropriation: $10,000,000
Cumulative Actuals, Obligations, and Appropriations, through March 14,2022
Project Group Current Period FY22 YTD FY22 YTD FY22 Allocations
Actuals Actuals Obligations
Business Systems $128,000 $128,000 $185,000 $6,775,000
Web F&A Modernization $185,000 $185,000 $242,000 $1,675,000
Product Suite $128,000 $128,000 $185,000 $435,000
Other Initiatives $128,000 $128,000 $352,000 $370,000
IT Service Management $128,000 $128,000 $185,000 $745,000
Total $697,000 $697,000 $1,149,000 $10,000,000
*Actuals represent transactions that have posted in Cardinal Web F&A as of 3/14/2022
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