From Crisis to Cloud Charting Nevadas Digital Leap
For decades, the State of Nevada operated on a technological knife’s edge, its most critical financial and human resources functions dependent on a heavily customized and dangerously obsolete 1990s-era mainframe. The state has now embarked on a landmark modernization initiative, CORE.NV, to overhaul these antiquated operations. The legacy infrastructure had become nearly impossible to patch or update, with its payroll system at constant risk of a catastrophic failure that could halt payments to state employees. This strategic transition chronicles the state’s move from a precarious on-premise environment to a modern, cloud-based enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution. Ultimately, the upgrade represents more than just a technological fix; it is a fundamental shift toward a more efficient, data-driven, and resilient government.
The CORE NV Journey a Modernization Timeline
Pre 2023 The Breaking Point of Legacy Systems
Before the upgrade, Nevada’s core administrative systems were operating on borrowed time. The on-premise mainframe, heavily modified over many years, created a fragile ecosystem where even minor updates posed a major risk to stability. The payroll system was particularly vulnerable, creating a palpable sense of urgency among state leaders. The constant threat of system failure not only jeopardized the timely payment of state employees but also severely hampered the government’s ability to function effectively. This precarious situation prompted the critical and unavoidable decision to pursue a complete technological overhaul from the ground up.
2023 Forging the CGI Partnership and Launching CORE NV
Recognizing the immense challenge and the need for a comprehensive, expert-led solution, Nevada initiated the CORE.NV project in 2023 by partnering with the global IT consulting firm CGI. This pivotal collaboration marked the official start of the state’s ambitious journey to the cloud. The primary goal was clear: to replace the failing mainframe with a unified ERP platform. This new system was designed to streamline financial and HR processes, ensure operational stability, and provide a robust foundation for future innovation across all state agencies.
October 2023 – January 2025 Building the Financial Foundation
The implementation strategy centered on a careful, phased “lift and shift” approach that prioritized stability above all else. The initial phase focused on developing a minimum viable product for the state’s core financial functions, which were the most at-risk. This foundational work successfully stabilized essential operations, including general accounting, procurement, and accounts payable. By migrating these critical services first, the state effectively de-risked the entire project and created a secure, reliable platform to support the subsequent, more complex payroll system upgrade.
Early 2025 Initial Go Live Delivers Immediate Wins
The new system’s positive impact was felt almost immediately after the first phase went live. Within the first 90 days of operation, the CORE.NV platform flawlessly processed over 180,000 checks and managed more than $3.9 billion in payments without a single disruption. This early and resounding success served as powerful validation of the project’s phased strategy. Moreover, it demonstrated the new ERP’s capacity to handle the state’s complex financial demands, building crucial momentum and confidence for the next stages of the rollout.
Key Takeaways Efficiency Data and Strategic Governance
The most significant turning point in this initiative was the successful transition of core financial operations, which moved the state from a reactive, crisis-management footing to a proactive, strategic one. A clear theme emerging from this project is the dramatic improvement in operational efficiency. By consolidating data from countless disparate spreadsheets into a single source of truth, the ERP system saves state employees between 30 minutes and two hours daily. This newfound time frees them from tedious process maintenance to focus on their primary duties. The project also highlights a shift from simply keeping the lights on to leveraging technology for data-driven insights, enabling leaders to analyze trends like agency turnover to inform better policy and management.
Beyond the Balance Sheet Modernizing the States Employer Brand and Future Vision
The benefits of the CORE.NV project extended far beyond simple operational metrics. A crucial, often overlooked aspect of this modernization was its impact on Nevada’s “brand” as a contemporary employer. By providing employees with user-friendly tools and applications on par with the private sector, the state positioned itself to more effectively attract and retain top talent in a competitive job market. This successful implementation was not an endpoint but a new beginning. Nevada already laid out plans for future expansions, with new modules for staff recruitment, applicant management, and grants management set to be added. This forward-looking vision ensured the state’s technological infrastructure would continue to evolve, supporting a more agile and responsive government for years to come.
