The VA Financial Services Center (FSC) provides accounting, financial and administrative services to VA and other government agencies. VATAS interfaces with multiple accounting and pay service software systems, and it’s critical to ensure that all systems work correctly and cohesively to ensure that over 400,000 VA employees are paid accurately and on time.
Twice a year, VA incorporates a full system update without gaps in service. Additionally, VA corrects bugs and update the system to reflect policy changes. To accomplish this, Aptive works with VA as a supporting partner to manage software testing, operations and maintenance.
Aptive partnered with VA to lead software testing, manage upgrade timelines and streamline implementation efforts. The team served as a liaison between VA and the software vendor, delivering a reliable system for payroll accuracy and workforce performance tracking.
Aptive managed the test strategy and execution for each VATAS upgrade. This included creating test cases, tracking test performance and producing weekly updates. The team delivered full performance and stress tests before each deployment and coordinated defect tracking with development teams to ensure timely resolutions.
Aptive conducted comprehensive pre-deployment testing for every release. The team created and executed test plans for smoke, unit and functional testing, then documented outcomes in formal test reports. Post-deployment, Aptive verified application functionality and stability through smoke tests, ensuring uninterrupted service delivery.
To support user acceptance training (UAT), Aptive prepared the testing environment, configured access, developed test cases and managed execution timelines. The team collaborated with developers to resolve issues and validate fixes. By maintaining an agile testing framework, Aptive helped VA ensure system functionality aligned with agency expectations.
Aptive helped VA maintain 100% uptime during all system upgrades. The team consistently met delivery milestones and accelerated critical deployments, including a Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) enhancement released two weeks ahead of schedule.
Early in the engagement, Aptive supported the successful migration of VATAS to Amazon Web Services, validating system performance and reliability. Throughout multiple releases, the system remained stable, enabling VA to process payroll without interruption and support its workforce without error.
