Annex: Key terms used in the report
1. Mission critical programmes or projects
are defined as: "A: essential to the successful delivery
of (i) a major legislative requirement OR (ii) a PSA target OR
(iii) a major policy initiative announced and owned by the Prime
Minister or a Cabinet Minister OR B: If the programme or project
is not successful there are catastrophic implications for the
delivery of a key public service, national security or the internal
operation of a public sector operation.
2. OGC Gateway Reviews are undertaken
by a team of experienced people independent of the project team
at key decision points in a project's lifecycle. For projects,
there are five Reviews (Gates), three before contract award, a
fourth at service implementation and a fifth to confirm the operational
benefits. For programmes, there is an additional repeatable Gate
0 (Strategic Assessment) to determine if it is needed and if it
is likely to achieve the required outcomes.
3. Every major IT change programme or project
should have a Senior Responsible Owner (usually a Senior
Civil Servant) to take overall responsibility for making sure
that the programme or project meets its objectives and delivers
the projected benefits. Key tasks include developing the business
case, and monitoring and liaising with senior management on progress
and risks to delivery.
4. All main government departments now have a
Chief Information Officer (CIO) at or near board level
who is responsible for championing the department's IT programmes
and projects and management of its overall portfolio. Most Chief
Information Officers have a background in the IT industry, but
some are generalist officials who undertake the role in conjunction
with other responsibilities. The Chief Information Officer Council
is the first initiative to bring together Chief Information Officers
from across all parts of the public sector to address common issues
and to spread good practice across.
5. The Intellect Concept Viability Service
is a five-stage service provided for a small fee by the IT industry
trade body Intellect: 1. Department submits a short written description
of business need to Intellect. 2. Intellect invites selection
of suppliers to comment. 3. Workshops facilitated by Intellect
to exchange information between department and suppliers. 4. Intellect
prepares Concept Viability Assessment based on suppliers' collated
responses. 5. Concept Viability Assessment made available to all
interested suppliers prior to official procurement process.
6. Programme and Project Management (PPM) Centres
of Excellence were established in departments in 2003 and
2004 as one of six key Cabinet actions to strengthen the delivery
of government IT-enabled programmes and projects. Centres of Excellences
are responsible for supporting the strategic oversight of programmes,
including those delivering Public Service Agreement (PSA) targets,
and for providing a continuous overview of the department's portfolio
of programmes, not just co-ordinating and reporting on the programmes,
but challenging what must be delivered and how it will be delivered.
7. The Programme and Project Management (PPM)
Specialism was established in October 2003. The specialism
supports staff in government who wish to follow a career in programmes
and projects rather than line-oriented career paths.
8. Professional Skills for Government
is a programme intended to equip civil servants with the mix of
skills and expertise to deliver effective services.
9. The Technology in Business Fast Stream
is a new career route for graduates interested in delivering technology-enabled
change within the public sector. Graduates are selected for their
potential to become future Chief Information Officers or leaders
of large IT-enabled business change.
10. The Audit Committee supports the Accounting
Officer in monitoring the organisation's corporate governance
and control systems and offers objective advice on issues concerning
the risk, control and governance of the organisation and the associated
assurances. It has no authority in its own right over the operations
of the organisation or those bodies that conduct audit and assurance
work (including Internal Audit).
11. Portfolio management refers to prioritisation
of all an organisation's programmes and projects in line with
business objectives and matched to its capacity to deliver them.
12. The Intellect IT Supplier Code of Best
Practice sets out standards of professionalism that all providers
of information systems and services to the Government should endeavour
to meet.
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