However there is a whole herd of elephants sitting in the middle of the room, including: the political policy/ service fulfilment lag; fanatically policed organisational boundaries; privacy/ security/ legacy data issues; national and supra-national procurement regulation; ‘heritage’ contracts etc. etc.

I came to the conclusion some time ago that the most plausible approach is to create a NewGov.uk, founded on proper Systems (with a capital S) principles, in parallel to the legacy estate, rather than just hoping that GCloud technology will resolve the serious organisational inhibitors that have long created so much unexpected cost and disappointment in government IT.

You may also like to read:

• Cost of Government IT is a smoke-screen
• IT’s time for a paradigm shift
• TCO = TRUE cost of ownership

In this interactive workshop you will learn how to build your own capability and presence as a Digital CIO, by following a well-proven, strategic and systematic approach to digital engagement.
The Challenge

We operate in a fast-moving, increasingly digital world that transcends traditional business boundaries, with new online engagement opportunities emerging at every turn. An effective CIO intuitively seeks out the important new technologies and invests personal energy into understanding their capabilities and business potential; this is an essential facet of making an effective contribution to a successful organisation.

Armed with understanding, we can then influence the adoption and exploitation of appropriate digital opportunities. But we must accept that understanding is not always enough. True insight usually depends on direct experience and that’s why we need to wholeheartedly embrace the digital lifestyle ourselves; after all, what good is a Digital Organisation without a Digital CIO?

Our Solution

In this interactive workshop you will learn how to build your own capability and presence as a Digital CIO, by following a well-proven, strategic and systematic approach to digital engagement.

You will discover valuable time-saving tips and time-wasting traps, from the hard-won lessons of a fully-connected expert. Most importantly, you will learn how to harness an effective mix of freely available tools, services and resources, for personal and professional benefit.

Benefits and Outcomes

For more information, or to reserve a place: click here

You may also like to read:

• Effective communication is not enough
• let others learn from our mistakes
• Ten Essential Skills for an effective CIO

The cost of Government IT is not just about poor procurement, or even poor in-house IT skills (which I dispute).

In my view, the fundamental problem is twofold.Firstly there is an outdated focus on IT; secondly political policy is intrinsically dynamic and this characteristic is frustrated by the lack of a proper Systems strategy for effective policy implementation.

Until these two factors are addressed, the Cinderella of Government IT will always be accompanied by two ugly sisters: unexpected cost and disappointment.

The Public Accounts Committee of the UK Parliament has recently drawn attention to the sorry state of Government IT. This is long overdue awareness, for those of us who have been shouting about the issues for many, many years.

The Trillion Dollar Bonfire burns unabated – and occasionally a few wisps of smoke cloud the media horizon!

You may also like to read:

• Even the Cloud won’t solve Government IT issues
• Shotgun Wedding strategy for Government IT
• Public Sector IT Enemy Number One: Policy

I’m thinking more about how Google+ might play well with public networks, such as Twitter and LinkedIn, in conjunction with multiple [private] membership organisation architectures.

Chris Brogan has also been given some thought to the potential of Google+ and his list of 50 things about G+ is well worth a read.

We are all members of multiple systems and Google+ could make it easier for us to manage and grow our connectivity. I’ve got high hopes for G+ and can’t wait to get hands-on.

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• Give the infant space