Home Office CTO Criticises G-Cloud’s Invisibility

Denise McDonagh, Home Office CTO, told the audience at Think Cloud For Government yesterday that the Cabinet Office needs to step up and increase the visibility of G-Cloud.

McDonagh’s remarks stem from the news that local authorities are not engaging with the framework enough.

She cited the example that 78% of services procured via G-Cloud were by central government and only 22% of sales came from other public sector bodies.

The CTO has called for more education to remedy the situation, “but the challenge is not about how to procure, the challenge is about how to be a proper buyer,” she said.

“I would like to see a lot more education from the Cabinet Office to people who need to architect and buy solution from G-Cloud,” she claimed.

Such education would include informing people what the framework is and what it is not, she said, ultimately leading to bodies understanding exactly how it should be used.

Parliamentary ICT Director Explains Why Visibility Is Important

Speaking on the same panel, director of Parliamentary ICT Joan Miller, agreed with many of McDonagh’s comments.

She said her department has been involved with G-Cloud since its beginning in 2010 and this is important because it demonstrates that you do not have to be a civil service department to use the framework.

Miller also added there are a number of benefits to using G-Cloud, including knowledge of the services on offer and a larger variety of services available.

According to the Parliamentary director, there is a balancing act between instant delivery of products and providing the best quality that works from the get-go.

She also added that the biggest deterrent to fast procurement is security and faster decision making processes need to be created before more councils and other public sector bodies will get involved.

© 24N.biz