Whitehall zeroes in on cost
It wasn’t long ago that an organisation’s choice of IT was dictated to its users by a centralised internal IT function, hand-picking selected devices and favoured suppliers
View ArticleWill the new Cabinet deliver open IT and better public services?
It’s clear that the government’s IT strategy is already having an impact.
View ArticleVanilla nice
The adoption of consumer products will cut costs and drive a new era of user-friendly IT services
View ArticleTomorrow's public sector CIO is a business-led, user-focussed hybrid
Public-sector IT chiefs should be business-led, user-minded and focused on the road ahead
View ArticleGovernment IT is nothing special
Open policy is putting paid to the idea that public sector IT is somehow ‘special’ in its needs
View ArticlePrivacy matters too much to leave it to others
Control of our personal data should be handed over to people who would take more care of it – us
View ArticleSwede surrender - Government in grip of Stockholm syndrome
The government's IT policies are in place - and some good ones at that. Even the National Audit Office has acknowledged progress in beginning to cut some of the layers of excess fat from IT goods,...
View ArticleThe CxO factor
The government-wide CIO role has been abolished and a corporate, government-wide CTO role created, all part of continuing changes to IT governance in Whitehall. This mirrors developments in other...
View ArticleChallenging times for public sector CxOs
Slower than expected progress on reducing our national budget deficit and national debt means public sector CxOs are not just looking for short-term quick fixes, essential as they are.
View ArticleTechnology leadership and the CIO 100
The 2013 CIO 100 champagne reception was an entertaining evening of thoughtful conversation, insight and humour. One recurrent soundbite was that 'CEOs get the CIOs they deserve', reflecting how top...
View ArticleTime for obsolete procurement to have a digital makeover
The government's Service Design Manual and exemplar projects are driving a spike through out-dated, silo approaches to public service design and operations - cutting across both arbitrary...
View ArticleBetter public services needs organisation-wide reform
It's just over 19 years since the website open.gov.uk first tried to put all government information online in one place.
View ArticleTrue leadership value – conquering the summit
September's 2013 CIO Summit showcased what true technology leadership means. It shone a bright, inspiring light on those doing the right thing, busy improving organisations and services through a...
View ArticleEC cloud intervention will impede much-needed innovation
Timing, as they say, is everything. Trying to standardise a new technical innovation for example when it’s still in the early growth stage is a classic example of bad timing.
View ArticlePantomime villains and heroes
It's usually around this time in the electoral cycle that the political parties begin to consider what to include in their next manifesto. Will IT be hissed at yet again as the tabloid's favourite...
View ArticleOpen, modern government requires open standards
Despite opposition from noisy vested interests, the UK government's latest consultation on its Standards Hub tackles the vexed issue of open document formats - and how best to enable government,...
View ArticleTime to remove the pollution of the IT legacy
It’s not only the legacy systems ticking towards their end of life, but also some of the people with the skills to maintain them.
View ArticleDigital public management
Many public sector organisations are struggling with the scale and significance of the changes in public service culture that citizens expect and that digital entails.
View ArticleDigital DNA – digital is an agent of change
Some incumbent suppliers appear anxious to claim ownership of what "digital" means – while describing something else entirely.
View ArticleTruly digital social inclusion
Social inclusion/exclusion has been a hot topic ever since the first moves to put public services online in the 1990s. With a recent BBC…
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