According to the most recent United Nations E-Government Survey, the UK is ranked 11th when it comes to the scope and quality of online services, having topped the list in 2016. While the UK may have slipped down the rankings in recent years amongst large complex countries, we remain one of the leaders globally.
It is often overlooked that the UK is more populous and diverse than other countries, meaning that we simply can’t deliver digital public services as quickly as the likes of Denmark or Estonia. However, the UK government shouldn’t be resting on its laurels – it needs to challenge the status quo of ‘Big IT’ if digital services are to improve and become more cost-effective.
In February, the shortcomings of public sector IT transformation projects were brought into light when a Public Affairs Committee (PAC) report highlighted siloed strategies, a lack of collaboration between departments, and poor data and IT infrastructure. Ultimately, the public sector must be bold and make changes if digital services are to thrive and deliver value to the taxpayer. As the CDDO Policy Paper ‘Transforming for a digital future: 2022 to 2035 roadmap for digital and data’ states: “People across the country rightly expect public services to be high quality, easy to access and available whenever they need them. They also have a right to expect that every penny they pay in tax is used as productively and efficiently as possible.”
Where has the public sector gone wrong?
There’s no doubt that digitising the entire public sector is a mammoth task. Government departments are sitting on decades of data based around legacy IT systems, and at the same time the pace of technological change shows no sign of slowing down. The stakes are high, with publicly funded projects that impact the daily lives of citizens playing out in the public eye.
Fear, uncertainty and doubt has also held departments back from making drastic changes. As a result, the public sector has played it safe, contracting Big IT to help them modernise infrastructure and applications. But we’ve seen time and time again that size doesn’t always equate to competence, as highlighted by the decades-long Post Office scandal. Furthermore, the public sector has historically been guilty of trying to do too much at once – putting projects out to tender with huge budgets and lengthy, loosely defined contracts that aren’t based on outcomes. This has made it more difficult to hold Big IT to account if the project does fail. In turn, this has led to an unhealthy culture, where ‘Big IT’ companies know that once they win a UK government IT contract, they can get away with doing a bad job. These approaches not only jeopardise public funds but, more critically, can negatively impact on individuals’ lives. It’s imperative that we recalibrate initiatives based on outdated methodologies, paving the way for more innovative and risk adverse solutions.
Embracing a ‘test and learn’ mindset with SMEs
The unpredictability of large-scale projects necessitates a flexible approach. The key to success is not just in what they aim to achieve but in how organisations go about achieving it. By maintaining a close alignment between strategies and the on-ground realities, objectives can be met with clarity and precision. This paradigm shift in managing IT projects underscores the importance of adaptability, responsibility, and a keen focus on iterative learning.
Adopting an iterative strategy prioritises incremental progress and relies on continuous feedback to refine and adjust the course of action. It’s about recognising the value of learning from each step and making adjustments based on real-world feedback, rather than committing to a rigid plan from the outset.
It’s clear that an alternative approach is needed, and there have been some efforts to enact change. In 2015, the Government said it would aim to spend £1 of every £3 with UK SMEs by 2020 (later extended to 2022). However, although there has been progress, this target has been far from met.
For example, recent data from Tussell shows that HMRC stills spends 60 percent of its IT budget with two ‘Big IT’ firms. It’s hoped that with the new Procurement Act, departments such as HMRC will be able to take a much more agile approach, increase the speed to market of specific services and improve competition among suppliers.
SMEs will play a key role in this new strategy. They are more flexible, nimble and agile than ‘Big IT’ and can help the public sector adapt to rapid changes in the tech landscape. An outcome focused approach also can stop the blame games associated with ‘Big IT’, as SMEs are more focused on the client mission and more open to working collaboratively to achieve joint goals. The traditional view that you must work with large suppliers for critical systems has proven to be wrong. Today, many SMEs are at the forefront of delivering critical national infrastructure projects, which have proven to offer better value for money.
Government departments should think big but start small. Rather than huge overarching programmes, projects should be broken down into modules, tackling one problem at a time. This makes it easier for public sector IT leaders to set realistic goals based on outcomes, giving a clear direction for projects and making it easier to hold IT transformation partners to account.
A brighter future
With the government setting out ambitious aims for the UK to become a global leader in AI and regain its status as a digital trailblazer, the public sector will be under pressure to lead the charge in adopting emerging technologies. So instead of playing it safe and relying on Big IT, the government should be doubling down on meeting its SME targets and, more importantly, drive an SME-first culture for innovation and building digital services.
