LBBs bend the ear of Government!

CEOs at a number of TechMarketView Little British Battler (LBB) companies got the unique opportunity to bend the ear of Government last night when they dined with Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude and government Chief Technology Officer Liam Maxwell. The dinner was hosted by Eric Van der Kleij, Head of Level39, the recently opened Technology Accelerator on the 39th floor of the iconic One Canada Square building at Canary Wharf. Representing TechMarketView (neatly sandwiched between Francis Maude and Liam Maxwell) were Public Sector Research Director Georgina O’Toole and Managing Partner Anthony Miller.

The overwhelming feeling from the attending LBBs was one of frustration that there are still considerable barriers to both working directly with Government and via the large systems integrators (SIs). Issues highlighted included still being locked out of the larger departments due to ongoing long-term contracts, risk averse CIOs remaining too nervous to commit to working with smaller companies, investing in procurement frameworks with little or no business forthcoming, and struggling to maintain significant work-share and/or margins when partnering with bigger providers.

However, it’s fair to say that the LBBs came away feeling positive about the Cabinet Office’s level of commitment to changing the way Government procures, delivers and uses ICT. No-one is denying that it’s a challenge to change behaviours and mindsets across Government. What is clear is that there has been some significant progress made, particularly over the last six months. And Francis Maude and his team aren’t finished yet!

Posted by HotViews Editor at '09:31'