News

IT services and outsourcing

September 27, 2011 27 Sep'11
Mitchells & Butlers continues to drive down IT costs

Pub group Mitchells & Butlers (M&B) is continuing an IT cost-cutting plan to respond to pressure on its operating margins.
September 27, 2011 27 Sep'11
Cognizant acquires Zaffera

Outsourcing company Cognizant has acquired Zaffera, an SAP retail consulting and software development firm, for an undisclosed sum.
September 22, 2011 22 Sep'11
BASF extends BT network contract

Chemical group BASF has signed a €200m deal with BT for networking 900 BASF sites in more than 80 countries. The contract includes the provision of IP telephony and local network services (managed LAN services) at 300 sites in North and South ...
September 21, 2011 21 Sep'11
Global BPO sales to reach £60bn in 2015

The world market for business process outsourcing (BPO) will be worth $93.4bn (£59.7bn) in 2015 compared with $72bn last year, according to Ovum.

September 09, 2011 09 Sep'11
Cambridge exam board outsources applications support to Cognizant

Cambridge University's examination group has outsourced applications management and support to Cognizant that will see the company replace 20-year-old bespoke applications with off-the-shelf alternatives.
August 30, 2011 30 Aug'11
Cloud computing and the public sector: What IT managers need from suppliers

IT departments and suppliers have a long way to go before they understand each other on cloud computing – that was the conclusion when IT practitioners and suppliers met at London law firm DLA Piper to discuss the barriers to cloud.
August 18, 2011 18 Aug'11
NHS trusts already planning a way out of National Programme contracts

NHS trusts in the National Programme for IT's beleaguered southern region have already begun drafting specifications for systems that may replace those supplied under the controversial project.
August 17, 2011 17 Aug'11
Atos employees to be investigated over Facebook remarks about disability benefit applicants

Two Atos Healthcare employees are being investigated over allegations they made inappropriate remarks on Facebook about the people they assess for sickness benefit.
August 12, 2011 12 Aug'11
Parliamentary group of MPs to discuss outsourcing and shared services

A parliamentary group of MPs that will look at how the public sector can get more out of outsourcing and shared services will begin work when it has its first meeting this month.
August 08, 2011 08 Aug'11
Royal Pharmaceutical Society outsources to cope with restructure

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain has outsourced the management of e-mail and storage to support a major restructure.

August 05, 2011 05 Aug'11
Energy giant outsources smart meter services to Logica

Scottish and Southern Energy has outsourced some of its smart metering processes to Logica to help support the UK national roll-out.
August 02, 2011 02 Aug'11
NHS trust forced to adopt National Programme patient records system or face £8.8m fine

An NHS trust was forced to buy care records software through the National Programme for IT or face the threat of an £8.8m fine - even though it had a longstanding supplier in place.
July 28, 2011 28 Jul'11
Highlights from 'A recipe for rip-offs' - the Select Committee report on government IT

The Public Administration Select Committee has published a scathingly critical report on government's use of IT. We've chosen a selection of the highlights from the report.
July 27, 2011 27 Jul'11
Virgin Media sees small drop in business sales, and loses 18,000 broadband users

Cable telecoms supplier Virgin Media has reported a small drop in business revenue for its second quarter, while the firm also revealed it has lost 18,000 broadband users...
July 22, 2011 22 Jul'11
DWP asks system integrators to list SME contractors to open up public sector deals

The Department for Work and Pensions is asking its systems integrators to list the number of SMEs in their supply chains, in a move designed to open up more public sector contracts to small businesses.
July 13, 2011 13 Jul'11
HMRC saves £21m with first centralised government procurement contract

The government has awarded its first centrally managed contract for print services at HMRC with outsourcing company Williams Lea. The deal is expected to save £21m, replacing 140 contracts with one.
July 12, 2011 12 Jul'11
Infosys changes name and splits into four vertical sector divisions

Infosys has split itself vertically to enable it to do more work in specific business sectors, while a change of name reflects its broader remit.
July 04, 2011 04 Jul'11
IT services supplier Capita buys contact centre business Ventura for £65m

Capita has bought contact centre business Ventura for £65m in a further sign of IT and BPO consolidation.
July 01, 2011 01 Jul'11
DWP adds agile development into IT contracts for £2bn Universal Credit system

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has modified contracts governing the supply of its £2bn Universal Credit system by adding clauses encouraging agile development.
June 24, 2011 24 Jun'11
Government cancels SME contracts and hands IT services deals to Capita

Government departments have been cancelling freelance IT contractors supplied through SMEs and giving their interim staff business to Capita under orders from the Cabinet Office's Efficiency and Reform Group (ERG), in apparent contradiction of ...
June 17, 2011 17 Jun'11
Most enterprises plan cloud move but data location concerns the bottleneck, says Dell

Most large enterprises are still only considering the cloud and less than a third are currently using cloud services, according to Dell.
June 16, 2011 16 Jun'11
NHS pays £200m advance to CSC as contract renegotiation nears conclusion

The NHS has paid £200m to troubled supplier CSC as an advance while awaiting the conclusion of discussions on amendments to the controversial deal.
June 09, 2011 09 Jun'11
Plan International moves global systems to SAP

International child welfare charity Plan International is rolling out SAP globally and in doing so is embarking on its first ever major application outsourcing project.
June 08, 2011 08 Jun'11
Open Data Center Alliance publishes IT user requirements for cloud services

The Open Data Center Alliance has published its first set of IT user requirements for cloud computing in a bid to accelerate adoption.
June 06, 2011 06 Jun'11
Outsourcing in the Ukraine: benefits and drawbacks

The Ukraine offers highly skilled IT specialists at a low cost for companies looking to develop projects within Europe. But while the honesty of its people appears to be a key selling point, problems of corruption and the possibility of social ...
June 06, 2011 06 Jun'11
Service providers battle to reduce carbon footprint as datacentres expand

IT service providers are united in their attempt to reduce carbon footprints on paper, with corporate targets to support them, but despite putting a lot of energy into the cause, their power consumption is rising, according to a major benchmarking ...
June 06, 2011 06 Jun'11
HP plans to offshore 200 DWP jobs as PCS union considers industrial action

Up to 200 IT jobs at the Department of Work and Pensions could be moved to India later this year by IT service provider HP.
May 19, 2011 19 May'11
Microsoft attempts to cement Azure values at TechEd Atlanta

"Cloud Power Delivered" is the subtitle of this year's Microsoft TechEd conference, held in Atlanta and attended by around 10,000 IT professionals and developers. Tim Anderson reports from the event.
May 18, 2011 18 May'11
Cognizant steps up business consultancy push in Europe

Cognizant is searching for someone to run its business consultancy operation in Europe as it attempts to emulate the growth rates of its IT services business.
May 18, 2011 18 May'11
Dell posts 177% profit boost after increasing enterprise sales

Dell has boosted profits by 177% since last year after increasing sales to enterprise customers.
May 18, 2011 18 May'11
Future of NHS National Programme for IT in critical condition following NAO report

The remaining NHS National Programme for IT could be scrapped entirely, as the project's aim to deliver electronic records for every patient has fallen far below expectations, according to a National Audit Office report.
May 17, 2011 17 May'11
Multinationals show growing interest in cloud computing, survey reveals

Multinational corporations have significantly increased their take-up of cloud services over the past year, research by analyst firm Ovum reveals.
May 13, 2011 13 May'11
Banks create roadmap for IT outsourcing

Stability is returning after the recent economic meltdown and banks are leading the way with a new approach to IT outsourcing which could become a roadmap for other sectors to follow.
May 10, 2011 10 May'11
MPs told of flawed Oracle iSupplier project at Department of Work and Pensions

A flawed implementation of Oracle iSupplier at the Department of Work and Pensions has been highlighted in written evidence to MPs.
May 10, 2011 10 May'11
BT to become a public sector network service provider

BT Wholesale is set to become a key supplier to Government Conveyance Network services which will interconnect the Cabinet Office's Public Sector Network services.
May 10, 2011 10 May'11
Outsourcing contracts cost businesses more than expected, finds Lieberman survey

Most IT outsourcing contracts turn out more expensive for businesses than were initially anticipated.
May 04, 2011 04 May'11
Capita integrates hospital IT for Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust Pembury site

Capita has installed an integrated IT system to support an NHS Trust's move from two to one hospital.
April 27, 2011 27 Apr'11
HSBC Insurance works with IBM to solve Solvency II

HSBC Insurance in the UK is using IBM Global Services to support its European Solvency...
April 26, 2011 26 Apr'11
Global cloud market to reach $240bn by 2020

The global cloud market is set to explode in the next 10 years, growing from $40.7bn in 2011 to more than $241bn in 2020, according to Forrester Research.
April 21, 2011 21 Apr'11
National Archives scoops Queen’s Award for Enterprise

The National Archives has been awarded the Queen's Award for Enterprise - the first public sector body to receive the gong in more than ten years.
April 07, 2011 07 Apr'11
Dell set to unveil cloud plans

Dell is due to make a global announcement later today, where it is expected to unveil its plans for cloud computing.
April 01, 2011 01 Apr'11
CSC to acquire troubled NHS supplier iSoft

IT services giant CSC has agreed to acquire troubled healthcare software firm iSoft after the latter suspended shares and put itself up for sale last week.
April 01, 2011 01 Apr'11
Exclusive interview: Deputy government CIO Bill McCluggage on the new government IT strategy

Bill McCluggage, deputy government CIO, talks exclusively to Computer Weekly about the changes in the government's new IT strategy.
March 29, 2011 29 Mar'11
Government puts open source at the heart of its new IT strategy

The government has launched its much-anticipated new IT strategy, highlighting open source and a promise that the coalition will do things better.
March 29, 2011 29 Mar'11
Marks & Spencer extends Cognizant outsourcing deal

UK retailer Marks & Spencer (M&S) has expanded its outsourcing relationship with offshore IT service provider Cognizant, which extends a deal signed in 2009.
March 28, 2011 28 Mar'11
MoJ signs £22m shared services deal with Accenture

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has signed a £22m contract with Accenture to implement shared services across its human resources, payroll, finance and procurement operations for the next five years.
March 28, 2011 28 Mar'11
European Commission clears Atos bid for Siemens IT

The European Commission has cleared the proposed €850m acquisition of Siemens' IT Solutions and Service (SIS) by French IT service provider Atos Origin.
March 17, 2011 17 Mar'11
DWP cancelled £300m Fujitsu deal over transition deadline failures

The decision by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to cancel a £300m desktop support deal with Fujitsu before it even began will lead many in the public sector to question some IT suppliers' ability to deliver on their sales pitch.
March 15, 2011 15 Mar'11
Department for Work and Pensions cancels £300m Fujitsu contract

The DWP cancelled its desktop support contract with Fujitsu before it passed to the supplier from incumbent HP.
March 08, 2011 08 Mar'11
Exclusive: Free software guru Richard Stallman on government IT and why he hates the cloud

The founding father of the free software movement tells Computer Weekly why government just doesn't "get it"