By Steve Ranger, 27 October 2005 10:00
NEWS
Atos Origin
Top contracts include being the partner for NHSScotland, managing its IT infrastructure and providing systems integration services. It also manages the IT infrastructure and provides technical and business consulting for the Metropolitan Police. A £78m deal signed with the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency will see it redeveloping the agencies IT infrastructure, including knowledge management and wireless mobile services. Atos also has a £46m contract with the Ministry of Defence to support the Defence Logisitics Organisation in achieving savings from procurement of goods and services.
Comments
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1. Dick Winchester
Hmm,, If I've got this right 2 of the 11 are actually British which by a rough rule of thumb means of the 80% these 11 companies run then British companies run around 15% ..
Decent of the Govt to let us have that much I suppose.
What's the situation in the USA, France, Germany, Norway etc?
2. Charles Smith
With no disrespect to the companies listed I've seen several cases where better service could have been provided at much lower cost by a small business.
Government Departments suffer from inertia and once a large supplier is place their fees tend to be accepted without question, particularly for consequential business.
The result is that the public (ie Government) overpay for services. If junior managers complain about the cost impact to their own cost centre, they will be told that it is a golbal deal and nothing can be done.
3. anonymous
So what we have here are 11 mutinational companies all in keen competition bringing the benefits of global resources and scale. I compare this with my options of decent supermarket shopping which are four. When considering decent competition I suggest the government has more pressing priorities
4. Paul Wood
Perhaps OGC (and other key Government departments) should lead by example. How many small, innovative businesses are included in their supplier base?
5. Nigel Thomas
So, which consultants will be used to build this National Opportunities Portal? A big one I bet!
6. anonymous
I have worked with many of these companies on government sites and I feel there is definitely a need for more competition.
Your correspondent needs to be aware that these mulitnationals, particularly the American ones, are notorious for the poor service that they provide.
The main thrust of their attention is on the next revenue stream and they deliberately flaunt the agreements they sign to avoid having to account for themselves. I know this because I have audited their work as a consultant. Of course, my findings were ingnored in many cases because I do not work for one of the "fashionable" consultancies.
The problem is that decisions on awarding large contracts are made by non-IT literate senior managers and politicians on golf courses in the south east of England a million miles from the civil servants who have to deliver services.
7. Juilette Williams
Once the big consulting firms move in, they are in for the duration, they are not looking to assess/build/implement and move on, customer retention IT outsourcing partners is big business for these firms, this is the big firms "bread and butter" most of them are ex (auditing, accounting) practices, and from experience clocking up consulting fees is part of the service.
If the government spending was not coming from the tax payers I wonder if they would even consider using these firms.
If the ratio was 40 percent instead 80 percent in government contracts for these firms, who else would be there clients!!!
8. anonymous
How on earth do Capita manage to keep getting Gov't contracts?
As anybody who lives in a borough where Council Tax is administered by them, Capita are (to paraphrase JM Keynes) totally pants. All my personal dealings with them have shown them to be the most woefully inefficient and error prone company I have ever come across.
They appear to keep missing targets and messing up yet they are rewarded with more gov't contracts. Stop this madness now!
Do they perhaps have compromising polaroids of somebody high up in government?
9. James Hogan
Naturally, it would be useful for SME suppliers to have sight of new business opportunities on the 'National Opportunities Portal'. However, it is unclear to me what is going to drive the government buyers to place their contracts with these companies rather than the 'big 11'. In order to meet it's mandate, does anyone know what gives this noble initiative it's teeth?