Leader: Don't employ a yes-man for gov't CIO

It's not every day you get the chance to work directly for the Prime Minister.

And Ian Watmore, until the other day head of e-government, has moved up to do just that. But, the IT crowd is asking, what about his grand plans to change the face of public sector IT and services?

You may well ask. The next person to fill Watmore's shoes has a big job to do, though he or she will have the support of the man himself to ensure the big plan (the Transformational Government Strategy) is still continued.

Saying that, it's a long-term project with work expected to go on well into the next decade and the CIO Council has some grand expectations. And we all know how government IT projects usually turn out.

Whereas Watmore's role as head of e-government was as something of a visionary, it's likely the next CIO will have to bring less creativity to the table. Watmore and the CIO Council already have set plans in motion, so the next CIO will need to be an action man or woman to carry out the plans successfully and keep the others happy.

This has its pros and cons. The plan may be carried out to perfection but there are a number of other projects that still need some creativity to make them succeed – the NHS IT programme and the Child Support Agency to name two.

And that would be a shame because someone with creativity is needed in government to see beyond the forest of work that must be done to improve public services.

If the government wants to keep pace with the private sector, it must start to follow its example and employ someone, such as Watmore, with foresight. The worst thing it could do is employ a yes-man.

Perhaps more importantly, the next CIO has to present government IT plans clearly and keep the public and suppliers on side. No easy balancing act.