Transport for London (TfL) has signed an interim desktop outsourcing deal to replace a multimillion-pound contract with LogicaCMG scrapped last month.
LogicaCMG agreed to an early release from the contract after payment disputes and a failure to meet service level agreements.
CSC has been appointed on a temporary basis to manage desktop services including licensing and security, applications support and data centre services.
The agreement is likely to last for about a year. A TfL spokesman says the organisation expects to tender for a permanent replacement in the next few months.
‘TfL decided that, because of the evolving demands of our business, it needed to restructure the way its information management services are delivered,’ he said. ‘In the meantime, CSC will handle core desktop services and day-to-day functions.’
National Outsourcing Association research director Nigel Roxburgh says the problems TfL has encountered with LogicaCMG may be because the boundaries of the deal were not clear.
‘Making the distinction between which outsourcing company is responsible for a problem can be difficult,’ he said. ‘This can lead to issues with response times and service level agreements.’
But Roxburgh says desktop services are a mature outsourcing area, and that TfL should benefit from deploying additional resources, unavailable in-house, to manage its infrastructure.
Ovum principal analyst Phil Codling says the deal with CSC appears comprehensive, and should provide more specialist skills and improved service levels.
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