It is the Season for ICT strategies

BBC Technology Strategy

Two major ICT strategies have been announced recently. Spencer Piggot, Head of Technology Direction at the BBC, announced the BBC Technology Strategy, which will be used for the next 2 to 5 years. This document reflects four key areas:

The core building blocks – Ensuring the BBC has sustainable networking, telephony, storage and other core services which are needed to support the growing demand across the BBC.

Being connected and collaborative – Breaking down the technology barriers to allow our partners to easily work with the BBC and support for flexible and remote working.

Fostering Innovation – Embracing the growing capabilities of consumer devices for professional use and ensuring that innovative technology is able to be developed and grown within the BBC.

Delivering Value – Minimising customisation across technology, driving standardisation and use of commercial off the shelf products as much as possible.

Click here for BBC Technology Principles and Strategy Document

Government ICT Strategy

On the same day as the BBC announcement the Cabinet Office announced the Government ICT Strategy. Key measures of this strategy include:

• Establishing a Government Cloud or ‘G-Cloud’. The government cloud infrastructure will enable public sector bodies to select and host ICT services from one secure shared network. Multiple services will be available from multiple suppliers on the network making it quicker and cheaper to switch suppliers and ensure systems are best suited to need.
• Reducing of the number of data centres. Consolidating hundreds of computer data centres, which hold all the digital information for Government, to approximately 10 to 12 secure, resilient centres. This will save £300 million, lead to 75% reduction in power and cooling requirements of the centres and ensure data storage is secure, accessible and sustainable.
• Creating a Government Applications store. The Application Store will be a marketplace for sharing and reusing online computer programmes (like standard Office applications such as word processing and email) on a pay by use basis. It will speed up procurement and deliver savings of approximately £500 million per year.
• Implementing a common desktop strategy. A new set of common designs for desktop computers across the public sector. Historically each organisation has separately specified, built and designed its desktop computers. Creating one set of designs will lead to savings of £400 million per year.

Click here for the Cabinet Office ICT Strategy announcement

[If you would like to comment on the Government’s ICT Strategy here it is on writetoreply.org]