Save big by using cloud computing
Cloud services are “quicker, cheaper and more competitive”, according to Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude, with some tech companies estimating that they can be 25% to 60% cheaper than traditional long-term IT contracts. This is why the G-Cloud initiative was launched in 2012. It aims to save £120m a year by reducing the public sector IT bill. The idea is that public sector bodies will buy their IT products from a set of Cloud providers available through the government’s CloudStore digital marketplace. So far the take-up of the cloud services has left most wanting.
Cloud computing can bring services to the 21st Century
Phil Dawson, chief executive of Skyscape Cloud Services, a G-Cloud accredited provider said: “My one plea to government would be that they shout louder and more frequently about the case studies demonstrating the cost savings that can be achieved through the cloud. But while the infrastructure cost savings are plain to see, cloud also delivers the agility and responsiveness we need to provide services fit for the 21st Century.”
Only 2% of central government IT spend going through G-Cloud
Since launch in 2012, G-Cloud has seen £175.5m of sales made through the platform up to the end of March 2014 as reported by BBC News. 60% of the sales have benefited small and medium-sized (SMEs) businesses. CloudStore – soon to be called the Digital Marketplace – now lists 1,518 suppliers offering about 17,000 services, according to the Cabinet Office.
The Government is publicising these results as a great achievement, especially because of the boost to SME market. The central government, with an IT budget that amounts to £7 in total, was responsible for 80% of the total spending in G-Cloud. When comparing the numbers, this equates to just 2% of its IT spend, so there is room to grow!
Engage cloud based absence management software
It’s good to see that the government is keen to encourage cloud computing and to streamline the IT provision in the public sector. Perhaps this means it would be the right time to enlist our solution, Engage, into the Digital Marketplace to help local councils better manage staff absence – which is highest in the public sector. If you’d like to check out a cloud-based solution for absence management, you can try Engage for free.