Assisted by Accenture, the firm selected by the state to provide system integration services, the Ohio Administrative Knowledge System (OAKS) project is beginning design activities. Scheduled to run from June through September 2005, these design activities will provide a strong foundation for the two OAKS implementations scheduled for 2006.

The first design event, a series of system design meetings called Conference Room Pilots (CRPs), is currently underway. OAKS business owners and project managers selected CRP participants based upon their expertise, vision, and knowledge in a particular subject area.

"The CRPs will confirm the requirements for business processes originally identified by the state in 2002," said Accenture Program Executive, John Hrusovsky. "Findings from these sessions will provide the roadmap for how OAKS will configure PeopleSoft to support the state's business requirements."

CRP sessions began in mid-June 2005 and are scheduled to run through mid-August 2005.

Other key design activities include designing a new chart of accounts, system interfaces and conversion programs; conducting an end-user needs assessment; creating the end user training curriculum; refining the OAKS project communications plan; and providing assistance to the state's 38 agency implementation teams.