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Qld contractors chase new deal

The Queensland IT industry has been working together on an IT contractor and consultant sourcing model which it hopes the government might use instead of its proposed master vendor model.
Written by Suzanne Tindal, Contributor

The Queensland IT industry has been working together on an IT contractor and consultant sourcing model which it hopes the government might use instead of its proposed master vendor model.

At the end of July, the industry was up in arms because the State Government put forward a model that would see current panels for the sourcing of consultants and contractors abolished to make way for one master vendor drawing on a database of candidates. The government hoped to save 5 to 10 per cent of its costs by doing this, pointing out that some of the temporary employees brought in were priced very highly.

However, the industry did not agree with the model, saying it would be detrimental to the companies and contractors. Now it wants to make the government a better one. "We're working up an alternate model to present to government," a spokesperson for ITCRA (IT Contractor and Recruitment Association) told ZDNet.com.au.

ITCRA is waiting on confirmation from the government as to when the industry might be able to present the model, the spokesperson said. It was hoped this might happen within the next few weeks.

ITCRA along with the Australian Information Industry Association (AIIA) have also decided to finance a survey which they hope will inform the government of the true impact of the proposed model on local companies and contractors.

The survey is being undertaken by Longhaus, the Queensland research firm which carried out an earlier report on the government's engagement with the contracting industry. The results of the survey are currently being analysed, and when finished, will also be presented to the government.

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