Background

Cardinal is owned, operated and maintained by the Department of Accounts (DOA), and is Virginia’s official system of record for Financials (FIN) and Human Capital Management (HCM). Over 280 state agencies and nearly 400 localities rely on it. Originally launched in partnership with the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) in 2011, Cardinal has steadily expanded in both functionality and user base, culminating in the full deployment of Human Capital Management (HCM) in 2022. To guide future modernization efforts, the Cardinal Governance Committee (CGC) was established in 2021, bringing together leadership from Finance, HR, Technology, and Transportation. The CGC oversees major system upgrades, agency adoption strategies, and long-term transformation goals.

Strategic Direction

At the direction of the CGC, the Cardinal team conducted assessments from June 2024 to August 2025 to understand the current state and determine Cardinal’s path forward. The goals of this work focused on:

• Software Upgrade and Transformation – Addressing Cardinal’s technical debt, upgrading it to the current supported version and preparing for an eventual Cloud migration

• Increased Agency Adoption – Expanding Cardinal functionality to support additional agencies, reducing reliance on standalone agency systems

• Functionality Growth – Adding critical capabilities such as fixed asset management and lease accounting, and restoring Business Intelligence (BI) functionality

To ensure the goals are attainable, the Cardinal team developed a roadmap that targets immediate priorities, sets mid-term milestones, and establishes long-term objectives.

Immediate Priorities (2025–2026)

The immediate priorities for Cardinal are to reduce the risk of having unsupported applications and restoring the previously available Business Intelligence functionality.

• Mitigating Technical Debt and Support Risk – Cardinal FIN and HCM are many versions behind current Oracle PeopleSoft releases, increasing the risk of unsupported systems and functions. Cardinal will be upgraded to the current version as quickly as practical.

• Restoring Business Intelligence (BI) capabilities – The discontinued Cardinal BI solution will be replaced with PeopleSoft Insights, which offers dashboards, reporting, and embedded analytics.

• Completing the Cardinal Upgrade will resolve both immediate priorities.

o Duration: 13 months (September 2025 – September 2026)
o Cost: $18.3M (funded by a $9.1M Working Capital Advance and FY2026 and FY2027 Cardinal support budgets)
» ~$2M of the $18.3M is dedicated to implementing PeopleSoft Insights
o Outcomes: Continued Oracle support, enhanced BI reporting, streamlined user experience, and strengthened security

Mid-Term Milestones (2026–2028)

The mid-term milestones identify the next steps to be taken once the immediate priorities have been addressed. These include expanding Cardinal functionality while continuing to perform regular Cardinal upgrades to remain current and ensure continued support.

• Modernizing finance operations by replacing FAACS and LAS Plus systems with integrated Cardinal functionality – The Commonwealth’s legacy Fixed Asset Accounting and Control System (FAACS) and Lease Accounting System (LAS Plus), in use since 1987, will be replaced using PeopleSoft modules. These systems operate on legacy technology (Cold Fusion) that will be out of extended support by May 2029 and pose risks to statewide financial reporting.

o Target Window: 2026 to 2028 (i.e., 18 months beginning after Cardinal Upgrade)
o Estimated Cost: $20.2M total. $4.7M of this cost to be provided out of the Cardinal annual support budget
o Outcomes: More efficient business processes, better integration with other financial systems, and improved reporting capabilities
o Actions: A budget request in the amount of $15.5M for this project will be submitted as part of the 2026-2028 biennium budget cycle

• Identifying agency financial systems for decommissioning and replacement with Cardinal functionality.
o A survey of 247 agencies identified 14 mostly larger agency-based financial systems as decommissioning candidates
o With expanded Cardinal functionality, nine agencies remain strong candidates to migrate
o After more urgent priorities are addressed, the Cardinal team will assess two options for decommissioning agency systems. Key considerations may include PeopleSoft end-of-life, Cloud readiness, and overall cost:
» Option 1: Prior to moving to the Cloud, expand the existing PeopleSoft application and decommission agency systems at that stage
» Option 2: Incorporate expanded functionality and agency system decommissioning as part of the move to a Cloud solution
o Target Window: 2028 to 2029 to assess the options (post FAACS and LAS Plus replacement project)

• Performing regular Cardinal upgrades to remain on current software releases and ensure continued support. Will be funded through an increase of $3.5M to the annual Cardinal production support budget.

Long-Term Objectives (7–8 Years)

The long-term objectives include continuing to stay current on software releases while planning a move from an on-premise PeopleSoft solution to a Cloud-based model and executing the move once the Commonwealth is satisfied such a solution will meet Commonwealth requirements.

• Transitioning to Cloud ERP – While Cloud ERP solutions are advancing, significant functionality gaps remain for statewide adoption (e.g., DOT billing, cash accounting, 1099 adjustments), other states’ early implementations have seen significant cost overruns and schedule delays.

o Target Window: 2032–2033 (three to five-year phased rollout)
o Estimated Implementation Cost: $157M (if done today)
o Preconditions: Software maturity, Commonwealth readiness, and alignment of policies with industry standards
o Outcomes: Reduced Commonwealth technical burden, large scale integration across the Commonwealth, standardized business processes for efficiency and cost savings, and regularly scheduled maintenance and enhancements

• Performing regular Cardinal upgrades to remain on current software releases and ensure continued support until a successful Cloud solution can be implemented. Will be funded through an increase of $3.5M to the annual Cardinal production support budget.

Key Conclusions

• Short-Term: Upgrade PeopleSoft to maintain Oracle support and restore BI capabilities.
• Mid-Term: Replace FAACS and LAS Plus to reduce operational risk and ensure accurate statewide financial reporting. Keep Cardinal updated to maintain Oracle support.
• Long-Term: While a Cloud SaaS migration is not feasible today, it is projected within the next decade, positioning the Commonwealth to influence vendor development for government ERP needs. Until then, keep Cardinal updated to maintain Oracle support.

This phased strategy balances risk, modernization, and fiscal responsibility, while preparing the Commonwealth for a future enterprise-wide Cloud solution.