Helping to turn the tide

Yet more concerns about the impact of the recession are hot off the press courtesy of report from Deloitte called  Turning the Tide, which looks at the how the downturn is likely to affect the ‘business of government’.  But for once it’s not all bad news, the report makes the case that while economic change undoubtedly represents a threat it could also create new opportunities for public sector organisations to transform and “emerge as leaner, more commercially savvy entities”.  Something tax payers might suggest has been a long time coming.     

Harnessing the data that public sector organisations hold on customers is cited as a way of embracing innovation and rethinking delivery models, but the report also signposts the huge potential for back-office efficiencies generated by shared services which Cabinet Office estimates at £7bn.  If only things were so simple.  In last week's Guardian, Michael Cross looked at the DVLA shared services project - an implementation that was intended to save £57m but has so far cost £81m – and suggested that believing that shared services can improve public services and reduce costs is akin to “technological alchemy”.  

So what is the government to do?  Clearly it can’t afford to ignore the rising demand for better public services and need to make sweeping efficiency savings.  But to achieve this public sector organisations are going to need to undergo radical reform, and with the economic downturn the pressure is really on.  Technology has an integral role to play in the process, but ICT alone is not the answer.  Ultimately, transformation depends on collaboration across and within public sector organisation and with industry partners.  The new procurement tools launched by OGC earlier this month not only advocate, but having been developed in conjunction with industry, exemplify this approach.  The Joint Statement of Intent and Pre-Qualification Tool are designed to make it easier for the public and private sector to achieve a common view of the outcomes they are looking to achieve and identify the time, cost and quality parameters that define success.  Helping teams to agree what approaches and behaviours they should adopt in pursuit of their goals should help turn this powerful tide.      

By Melissa Frewin, Programme Manager