Florida PALM Implementation Benefits and Planning
The next major implementation for Florida PALM has begun! It includes the Financials Wave (replacing Department and Central FLAIR), Payroll Wave (replacing FLAIR Payroll), and the Data Warehouse/Business Intelligence solution (replacing the FLAIR Information Warehouse) and will be delivered to all agencies at once. Additional Florida PALM functionality will be considered after the upcoming major implementation and is documented as Optional Services within the Business Requirements. During this major implementation, Florida PALM will establish interfaces with MFMP, LAS/PBS, People First, other third-party systems, and agencies.
The major implementation has several exciting characteristics:
- The User Acceptance Testing (UAT) environment will be available 9 months before go-live.
- Following go-live, the Project team will provide extended Hypercare and Post-Implementation Support.
- The Florida PALM Production Sandbox will remain available before and after go-live.
- Agencies will have a true reporting Data Warehouse (DW) with access to Florida PALM and legacy data, advanced reporting capabilities, and self-service functions.
Phases to Go-Live
Select the phase icon to read more about what to expect during that period
Design
MAY 2023 - MAY 2024
During this phase, functional and technical designs are updated or created and shared with impacted stakeholders across four segments. Timing of those segments and the design content are shared on the Design Meetings page. All designs will be finalized by May 2024, along with updated business process models for the Financials Wave and new business process models for the Payroll Wave.
Build
JANUARY 2024 - DECEMBER 2024
Using the design, the system will be configured, and reports, interfaces, conversions, extensions, forms, and workflows (RICEFW) built by the Project team.
Test
SEPTEMBER 2024 - NOVEMBER 2025
This time period includes several types of testing, including system testing, user acceptance testing, parallel testing, and regression testing, and a cadence to refine the system build where appropriate. Testing will be performed by the Project team, enterprise partners, and agencies. User Acceptance Testing, performed by agencies, will begin in April 2025. Enterprise Systems Testing is planned to begin in June 2025.
Stage Gate Decision #3 - “Ready to Begin UAT” is planned for March 2025, which will require ESC approval to allow agencies to move forward into user acceptance testing.
Train
JULY 2025 - NOVEMBER 2025
Training will be available in various forms and across several months prior to go live. State Project team members will develop and conduct Florida PALM-specific training and agencies will be responsible for agency-specific training.
Deploy
NOVEMBER 2025 - DECEMBER 2025
Deployment is a short time frame right before implementation when all testing and readiness activities have been completed and enterprise partners and agencies ensure they are ready to transition to Florida PALM.
Stage Gate Decision #5 - “Deployment Readiness” is planned for December 17, 2025, which will require ESC approval to move forward with Go Live.
Stage Gate Decision #6 - “Confirm Deployment” is planned for December 30, 2025, to begin execution of cut over activities.
Stage Gate Decision #7 - “Go Live” is planned for January 6, 2026, which will require ESC approval to officially bring Florida PALM online for agency use.
Getting There Together
Florida PALM is a business transformation project that will affect all agencies’ people, processes and technologies (systems). At the core of those is the data used or produced to support state business operations.
Each of these four components will transform at varying speeds along the readiness journey.
That is to be expected!
The below graphic provides a high-level view of the readiness journey for agencies alongside the Project’s planned activities.
Click anywhere on the graphic to be directed to an interactive Implementation and Agency Activities Timeline. On the following page, click the yellow portions of the timeline to reveal the activities you should be completing during each stage. To return to the Implementation Timeline and Agency Activities graphic, click the link at the bottom of the page.
Readying Yourself and Your Agency
Select your role to learn what you can be doing
Agency Leadership
- Enhance or expand your CCN
- Identify known staffing changes and plan for knowledge transfer (i.e., succession planning)
- Identify your staff’s skill gaps with current business processes and plan for knowledge transfer
- Consider hiring a full-time project manager to guide your remediation efforts, or contracted staff for current-state process documentation
- Engage your future end users - ensure your team is aware that Florida PALM is coming
- Network with other agencies to gain lessons learned and insights on their Florida PALM transition
- Attend Advisory Council meetings and Executive Steering Committee meetings to build your understanding of Florida PALM
Functional/Technical Owners or SMEs
- Understand how your agency uses FLAIR
- Understand and document the FLAIR data elements you use and why
- Understand and document your agency business systems; what and why you need them, how you use them, the data outputs and inputs
- Understand and document the reports you use that contain FLAIR data elements
- Document your business processes and begin to identify change impacts
- Review your data quality and plan for cleaning up old or unused records
End Users
- Understand what you do in FLAIR and why
- Be curious and learn more about Florida PALM
- Take online training to learn more about CMS wave functionality available through the People First LMS
- Current CMS end users practice in the Production Sandbox