analysis Longhaus have calculated that the annual Queensland
Government spending on ICT in 2007/08 was $1.347 billion, or four per cent of
the state's total expenditure. Yet the true composition of this
expenditure has been the subject of rumour and hearsay across the
local ICT industry for years.
A reason for this conjecture has been the apparent uncoordinated
nature of public sector ICT in Queensland when in fact, the
coordination is very centralised. One group is essentially
responsible for government ICT consumption, with a second group
responsible for industry health and development.
However, given the matrix view of technology it is reasonable to accept the confusion.
And in fairness to the confused, the government has never presented
and communicated a consolidated view of the key influencers.
Confusion driven by complexity can only ever be bad for all
concerned.
The true identity of ICT influence in Queensland government still rests with the agency chief information officers. 
In the 1995 movie The Usual Suspects, the central character,
Roger Verbal Kint, is interrogated and interviewed following his
arrest after a dockside incident in Los Angeles. From the point of
his arrest, Kint takes police investigators on a complex tale of
espionage and deceit apparently masterminded by a fabled Hungarian
criminal called Kayser Soze.
In the end the police release Kint from custody with full
immunity without realising that he was in fact the man they were
looking for all along.
Unfortunately, they had followed the "usual suspects" in his
complex tale to a dead end; and lost the opportunity to close the
case. Similarly, it would be very easy for a local ICT firm to be
confused by the usual suspects in Queensland Government. So, as an
ICT industry company who do you go to for answers; for money; for a
single version of the truth? The following table outlines Longhaus'
understanding of the current state of play.
For the segment of the Australian ICT industry that has focused
on the Queensland Government over the last 12-18 months, perhaps the
greatest distraction has been the perceived influence of the
Technology Transformation Project (TTP). The industry has sat
mesmerised by the apparent war-chest of investment allocated to the
consolidation of core infrastructure and networks across the state.
But like The Usual Suspects' character Kayser Soze, the TTP project
serves as a cunning distraction that could catch the unwary
vendor.
Like The Usual Suspects' character Kayser Soze, the TTP project
serves as a cunning distraction that could catch the unwary
vendor.
Despite a changing of the guard in several influential
departments and offices in the past 2-years (Health, Transport,
Emergency Services, Police, Premier's, Public Works, and QGCIO to
name a few), the true identity of ICT influence in Queensland
government still rests with the agency chief information officers.
After all it will be them who will be left with the tasks of
aligning and delivering services at the application layer for the
outcomes of government when the dust of the Service Delivery and
Performance Commission (SDPC), and TTP have settled.
While each of the listed influencers undoubtedly play key roles
in the Queensland ICT economy, for those vendors focused on
delivering solutions for operational, and even strategic ICT, the
majority of discretional spend on an annual basis is still held at
the agency level.
For the vendor community this means that pursuing
the fortunes and fools' gold of Queensland's usual suspects may only
result in anguish and dead-ends in 2009.
| Minister Robert Schwarten |
Minister for Public Works, Housing and
Information and Communication Technology |
| Former Minister Christopher Cummins |
Advisor to Premier Anna
Bligh, assigned to Robert Schwarten for support on IT and
communication policies. |
| Department of PublicWorks (DPW) |
Central lead agency for the
Queensland Government in building asset management,
whole-of-government information and communication technology (ICT)
and procurement. Headed by Director-General Mal Grierson. |
| Chief Information Office (QGCIO) |
Provides strategic leadership,
management and advice to ensure that whole of government
information and communication technology (ICT) initiatives are
maximised. QGCIO collects all ICT data for Queensland Government.
Headed by Alan Chapman. |
| Chief Procurement Office (QGCPO) |
The Queensland Government Chief
Procurement Office administers Information Standard 13, which
outlines the policy and principles relevant to ICT procurement and
is designed to complement State Procurement Policy. Information
Standard 13 mandates the use of the Government Information
Technology Contracting (GITC) framework for all government ICT
contracts. Headed by Evelyn Jeliffe. |
| Chief Technology Office (QGCTO) |
The Queensland Government Chief
Technology Office (QGCTO) provides leadership, collaboration,
management and direction on whole of government ICT technology
issues to the Queensland Government and its agencies. Headed by Bob
Gurnett. |
| ICT Industry Work Group (ICT IWG) |
In May, 2005 the Premier
established the Industry/Government ICT Group to provide the forum
for various industry and government to facilitate discussions on
how to improve issues identified by the industry with regards to
government procurement as it relates to industry development.
Participating associations and clusters include the ACS, AIIA, IT
Gold Coast, ITCRA, ATUG,WIT, Software Queensland, AIMIA, ASIBA, and
Queensland Dot Net. The IWG is chaired by Dr Paul Campbell. |
| CITEC |
CITEC is the primary technology service provider for the
Queensland Government, delivering both whole-of-government and
agency specific ICT services. Headed by Tony Skippington. |
| Technology Transformation Project (TTP) |
The Technology
Transformation Project has been established to implement the
strategies outlined in the technology consolidation business case
following the Service Delivery & Performance Commission review.
Directed by Sharon Valuch. |
| Agency CIOs |
Responsible for government service delivery
including the daily support of 200,000 Queensland Government
employees. |
| Minister Desley Boyle |
Minister for Tourism, Regional Development
and Industry. Responsible for almost 80,000 ICT industry employees. |
| Department of Tourism, Regional Development and Industry (TRDI) |
Regional Ownership of development of the
ICT industry and businesses operating within it. |
| ICT Ministerial Advisory Group (IMAG) |
Provides
ICT industry input to the Minister on issues, policies, and
programs relating to ICT industry development. Chaired by former
Wayne Goss, Chief of Staff, and current CEO of the Australian
Institute for Commercialisation, David Barbagello. |
| Information Industries Bureau (IIB) |
The Information Industries
Bureau (IIB) works with Queensland's small and medium-sized
information and communication technology (ICT) businesses to help
them grow and develop. Headed by Mal Lane. |
| Ms Fiona Simpson |
Shadow ICT
Minister and an unknown quantity within the National Liberal
Party. |
This article is by Queensland-based ICT analyst firm Longhaus, which is led by managing director Peter Carr. It first appeared in the company's journal Longview late in 2008 and is published on ZDNet.com.au with Longhaus' permission.
7%
2%
To the outsider this may seem like something is happening, however with people like Schwarten and Grierson at the helm and all the little kingdom builders (i.e Project Services) , it's like a car stuck in the mud watching the wheels go round and round.