So now we’ve all had a few days to think about it, what’s the feeling at large about the Cloudy aspects of the Government’s ICT Strategic Implementation Plan?
Mixed, would appear to be the fairest summation.
Andy Burton, Chairman of the Cloud Industry Forum (CIF), said:
"The goals set out by the government are challenging and the task to deliver them should not be underestimated.
However, every crisis provides an opportunity for boldness and the current climate of financial austerity provides an effective context to succeed at building public sector IT efficiency where previous government plans have failed. Cloud Computing is able to support the government on a number of fronts. Whether it is reducing up-front infrastructure costs, the ability to use agile project delivery to better meet user needs or to establish cross-government shared services for software as a service, cloud underpins it all. ”
He added:
“The 50 percent target for spending transition to cloud by the end of 2015 is a recognition of this importance and CIF continues to support the government wherever it can to get the best value for the taxpayer.
Critically, the government has recognised that a change in both culture and practice is needed. The cloud allows the purchase of IT as a service instead of as an asset – culturally something difficult for some organisations to grasp that have historically demanded greater control and custom built solutions. Secondly, procurement processes do not easily recognise the purchase of IT as a service and these procedures need to be changed to make cloud adoption as smooth as possible.
However, it is not just the public sector that needs to change. It is now up to suppliers to adapt to the demands of the market – and the public sector is one of the largest IT markets in the UK – and provide clear, transparent cloud services that can be understood by procurers. ”
Sureyya Cansoy, director of public sector at Intellect, said:
“This plan sets out how the government intends to deliver on its ambitions to harness the power of ICT to deliver modern public services. The ICT industry particularly welcomes the commitment to creating a competitive market for government ICT, which will enable companies of all sizes to bring exciting and innovative solutions to the table. The industry has promoted the need for government to move away from demanding bespoke systems, to a more standardised approach to buying and we welcome the commitment in the plan to make this change. The big opportunities for government lie in using ICT to enable new ways of delivering public services. This is where the real savings and improvements are to be found, and government needs to work in partnership with the industry to take full advantage. ”
Some providers are keen to stake a claim. Andrew Greenway, Global Cloud Programme lead for Accenture, commented:
“Governments across the world have woken up to the tremendous benefits that cloud-based services offer for improving and streamlining central and local government IT operations. We are seeing a fundamental shift as organisations stop building and running multiple IT environments in silos and start sharing private cloud-based services and consuming external cloud services. Some of the key challenges in driving cloud adoption that the UK government faces could be overcome by appointing a cloud broker, also known as an integrator, to work with the government to establish a catalogue of approved cloud services from the leading cloud service suppliers. This approach would help the government meet security requirements, consolidate demand to a manageable number of providers, drive down costs and establish simple approval processes for buying cloud services going forward. There are already some excellent services on the market which government should be taking advantage of. The broker could also work closely with other public sector organisations to drive further operational benefits. ”
Others feel the government update does not go far enough. Martyn Hart, Chairman of the National Outsourcing Association, commented:
“About time the government got down to the ‘how’ on its ICT strategy, but, as usual, the report doesn’t go far enough. Talk of the Government Procurement Service being leaner and more efficient is fine, but how? By working with suppliers to cut down the ridiculously long procurement times. It takes government at least 12-24 months to decide what they want, at huge costs to both themselves and potential suppliers. This is a major barrier to SMEs getting involved, who simply do not have the resources to bid. The NOA suggests there should be a formalised strategic goal of completing procurements in 6-9 months. This is perfectly achievable, if done the right way. The All Party Group on Outsourcing and Shared Services meets in the Houses Of Parliament in November, to discuss how this can be done, and truly put some ‘meat on the bones’ - ready for the roll out of the governments “lean sourcing process,” in January 2012. ”
