BEST Program Timeline

Phase 2 Announcement of Apparent Successful Bidder (ASB)

After a robust procurement and evaluation process, the Commonwealth has chosen a joint Accenture-Workday proposal to be the Apparent Successful Bidder (ASB) to be implementation partner and solution vendor for Phase 2!

ASB status means that the procurement team has identified Workday and Accenture as having submitted a response to the Request for Proposals that reflects the best value for the Commonwealth, providing the optimal solution for all of our users and employees.

Procurement of Human Capital Management & Payroll Functionalities

Executive Sponsors to release RFR for Software and Systems Integration services (combined) for Phase 2, Human Capital Management & Payroll.

Mosaic Go-Live

Mosaic, the new financial Solution to replace MMARS, went live February 23, 2026, marking a key milestone for financial professionals statewide. Building upon the original functionality available in MMARS, Mosaic introduces improvements to user experience and streamlines day-to-day activities for end-users across the Commonwealth.

Note: Commonwealth VPN or MAGNet required to access additional details related to cutover activities.

View Mosaic Resource Library on CTR Intranet

User Acceptance Testing (UAT)

User Acceptance Testing (UAT) began in July and will continue through October. This critical stage in the transformation process allows end-users to perform “Day in the Life” activities within the new solution. These test scenarios ensure that Mosaic aligns with Commonwealth business requirements and end-user needs before go-live.

First CAN Forum

We held our first Change Agent Network (CAN) Forum on March 20 attended by nearly 200 Change Agents from across the Commonwealth. We discussed how CAN members will partner with the Readiness Team to develop agency readiness plans for the transition from MMARS to Mosaic.

Change Agent Network (CAN) Kickoff and Onboarding

In late November, the BEST Program onboarded its first cohort of Change Agents. These agency representatives will be key partners in ensuring a seamless transition to the new financial solution. Change Agent onboarding continued through March 2025 and consisted of four cohorts of Change Agents.

Beginning of Change Agent Recruitment

Change Agents are agency representatives and key partners in supporting the change journey; they work directly with their agencies to help end users understand why the change is happening, what’s in it for users, and what the benefits are for users and the Commonwealth. These individuals provide knowledge about current processes, tools, and procedures within their own agencies, as well as information on organizational culture.

Beginning of Configuration Sprints

Beginning of configuration and testing activities based on requirements confirmed by the BEST Program’s Functional Team and Financial Implementation Experts (FIEs) during Business Requirements Validation into action. This phase determines how opportunities for system improvement will be realized in the new Advantage 4.0 cloud-based application as it is implemented in the Commonwealth. Configuration Sprints will run through January 2025. 

Phase 1: Project Kick-Off

• Formation of Governance Bodies
• Business Process Alignment
• Requirements Validation
• Human Centered Design

Due Diligence Activities & Agreement Negotiations

Agreement negotiations commence in Spring 2023. Partnership with CGI for Phase 1 announced Winter 2023.

Combined RFR Activities

Executive Sponsors release Request for Response (RFR) for a single ERP Software for combined Financials & HCM/Payroll functionalities. Evaluation Committee and Executive Sponsors determine that “best value” for the Commonwealth may need to be achieved through two separate Procurements for the replacement of MMARS and the replacement of HR/CMS.

Visioning

Key Program stakeholders defined and expanded on BEST Program goals, objectives, purpose, and scope, which included the drafting, review, and finalization of use cases and other deliverables as part of the development and implementation of a broader strategic plan.

Advisory Committee & PMO Set Up

The Office of the Comptroller forms interagency Advisory Committee for new ERP solutioning and begins establishment of the BEST Program Management Office (PMO).

MassCareers Established

Introduced in 2015, MassCareers is the e-recruitment SaaS solution used by the Commonwealth’s Executive Departments, and by certain Independent and Constitutional Offices and Higher Education entities. There are inbound and outbound nightly interfaces with HR/CMS to both pull in foundational and employee data as well as to send candidate data for hiring transactions.

HR/CMS Established

The Human Resources/Compensation Management System (HR/CMS) is the Commonwealth’s payroll services application first introduced during the early 2000s as highly customized, licensed software hosted on premise at a Commonwealth facility. Since its implementation, the customization of HR/CMS has been reduced considerably from periodic upgrades made to the system. In 2019, the HR/CMS application was moved to the AWS cloud with no changes to the software’s core code.